USS Longspur (AMCU-28)
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| Career |  |
|---|---|
| Ordered as: | LSIL-844 |
| Laid down: | 22 September 1944 |
| Launched: | 20 October 1944 |
| Commissioned: | 27 October 1944 |
| Battle Stars: | 1 for World War II |
| Reclassified: | AMCU-28, 7March 1952; MHC-28, 7 February 1953 |
| Decommissioned: | January 1954 |
| Struck: | 1 January 1960 |
| Fate: | Sold for scrap, 18 May 1960 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class: | LCI(L)-351 Class Landing Craft, Infantry (Large) / AMCU-7 Class Coastal Minesweeper (Underwater Locator) |
| Displacement: | 216 tons |
| Length: | 158' 5½" |
| Beam: | 23 ft 3 in |
| Draft: | 3'1½" |
| Speed: | 14 knots (16 mph/26 km/h) |
| Complement: | Two officers, 21 enlisted |
| Armament: | Four single 20 mm guns one forward, one amidship, two aft, later added two .50 cal. machine guns |
| Propulsion: | Two sets of four General Motors diesel engines, 4 per shaft, 1,600 bhp, Twin variable pitch propellers |
The USS Longspur (AMCU-28) was initially an LCI(L)-351-class large landing craft / AMCU-7 Class Coastal Minesweeper (Underwater Locator): Laid down, 22 September 1944 by the New Jersey Shipbuilding Co., Barber, New Jersey; Launched, 20 October 1944; Commissioned USS LCI(L)-884, 27 October 1944; Decommissioned, 24 March 1947; Reclassified a Landing Ship, Infantry (Large), LSIL-844, 28 February 1949; Named Longspur and reclassified as a Coastal Minesweeper (Underwater Locator), AMCU-28, 7 March 1952; Conversion to AMCU-28 began, 15 November 1953 at the Charleston Naval Shipyard, Charleston, South Carolina; Conversion completed, 15 May 1954; Recommissioned in June 1952; Reclassified as a Coastal Minehunter, MHC-28, 7 February 1953.
After shakedown LCI(L)-884 departed Norfolk, Virginia, 25 November, steamed through the Panama Canal. and arrived San Diego, California, 20 December. Following additional training off the west coast, the landing craft sailed 6 March 1945 for the Marianas, arriving Guam 8 April. Two weeks later she was en route to Okinawa, where U.S. Forces were already engaged in the most extensive campaign of the Pacific war.
Upon her arrival 28 April LCI(L)-884 was assigned mail delivery and smoke station duty for large ships operating off Okinawa. She remained in the vicinity for the rest of the war, playing a part for the fleet in aiding it against the Japanese Empire.
After the war she operated as a mine destruction vessel out of Nagasaki and Sasebo, remaining in Japan until December. Early in 1946, LCI(L)-884 returned to the United States and decommissioned 24 March 1947, joining the Atlantic Reserve Fleet at Green Cove Springs, Florida. She was reclassified LSI(L)-884, 28 February 1949.
LSI(L)-884 was named and redesignated Longspur (AMCU-28) 7 March 1952. Recommissioned in June 1952, Longspur was assigned to the 6th Naval District for harbor defense. Reclassified MHC-28 on 7 February 1953, she continued operations out of Charleston, South Carolina, until 1 January 1954.
Decommissioned the first of the year, she joined the Atlantic Reserve Fleet at Charleston, South Carolina. Struck 1 January 1960, Longspur was sold to Mills Marine Co., 18 May 1960 and was towed away for scrap 22 June 1960.
LCl(L)-884 received one battle star for World War II service.
[edit] References
- This article includes text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
