- USS Redhead (AMS-34)
USS "Redhead" (AMS-34/YMS-443) was a YMSsub|135 built for the
United States Navy duringWorld War II . She was the first U.S. Navy ship to be named for the Redhead duck.History
"YMS-443" was laid down
21 October 1943 by the Hiltebrant Dry Dock Co.,Kingston, New York ; launched5 May 1944 ; and commissioned15 December 1944 , Lt. (jg.) John P. Hanna in command.World War II service
Following shakedown, "YMS-443" operated off the
U.S. East Coast until the spring when she transited thePanama Canal 10 April . She served briefly atPearl Harbor ,Eniwetok , andGuam , then steamed further west for her initial combat duty, atOkinawa . Arriving26 June 1945 , she remained in theRyukyus , engaged in minesweeping and antisubmarine patrol duties, with one interruption for availability in thePhilippines until6 September 1945 . Then ordered to Japan, she swept the Kochi Channel,Wakayama andHiro Wan areas until12 February 1946 when, with a crew of men eligible for discharge, she departedKobe for theUnited States .Arriving at
San Francisco, California ,27 March , she headed west again27 November and operated atPearl Harbor ,Johnston Island ,Eniwetok ,Guam , andWoleai for the remainder of the year. Named "Redhead" and reclassified AMS-34,18 February 1947 , she continued her postwar clearing operations atTruk ,Satawan ,Guam ,Saipan , Ngulu Island,Palau ,Malakal ,Karor Island ,Chichi Jima , andYokosuka .Korean War service
Remaining in Japanese waters throughout 1948, 1949, and into 1950, "Redhead" steamed for
Korea on12 July 1950 to help defendSouth Korea . A unit ofMine Division 31, "Redhead" served intask force TF 95 and, during the latter part of 1950 and the early months of 1951, operated off both coasts of the Korean Peninsula, sweeping moored mines with "O" type gear, acting as a mine destruction vessel and as a minesweep gear retriever."Redhead" receives the Presidential Unit Citation
"Redhead" received the Presidential Unit Citation for operations against enemy forces in Korea from 11 to
24 October 1950 . Operating as part oftask unit TU 95.61, "Redhead" assisted in sweeping and buoying a channel 2,000 yards wide and 14 miles in length, to the outer limits ofWonsan Harbor, during which time heavy concentrations of enemy contact mines were swept. On12 October , after aiding in the clearance of a channel through two heavily mined contact-type minefields, "Redhead" encountered a third field of extreme density and immediately conducted rescue operations for the survivors of USS|Pirate|AM-275|3 and USS|Pledge|AM-277|3 which had both been sunk by mines. Straddled continually by enemy shore battery fire for approximately a half hour, "Redhead" assisted in silencing at least three of the hostile shore batteries and successfully evaded many mines to carry out rescue activities. She then returned to the minesweeping assignment and completed the clearance of an area through "one of the heaviest concentrations of enemy mines ever encountered in naval history."Varied minesweeping operations in Korean waters
During the latter part of 1951 and the early months of 1952, "Redhead's" operations took her to
Pukhan Suido ; Yasu,South Korea ; andWonsan . There, in addition to her "O" type gear, she now streamed the acoustic hammerbox and "open and closed jigs" for use in sweeping acoustic and magnetic minefields, while incidental duties included air-sea rescue, night patrols, and investigation of suspicious fishing vessels and junks, which were often used by the Communists for minelaying.Clearing mines under enemy fire
From
7 May until3 June 1952 , "Redhead" penetrated deep intoWonsan Harbor to clear mines while close to heavy shore guns and permit entry of friendly bombardment vessels. "Redhead" conducted magnetic, acoustic, and moored check sweeps offInchon during June and July 1952, and patrolled a night picket station offSongjin during August. Participating in operations off the east coast ofKorea ,12 August to8 September , "Redhead" dispersed a concentration of enemysampan s by scoring hits on two of the craft in the face of heavy enemy shore battery fire. Then from 12 to15 October , she led her formation close to the shore atKojo , where, under intense enemy fire, they successfully completed their mission. During 1953 "Redhead" continued minesweeping and night identification patrol duties off Wonsan, theYang Do Islands ,Cho To ,Po Hang , andDaengyong Do .Post-Korean War operations
Remaining in Korea after the July 1953 truce, "Redhead" continued to carry out night patrol duties off the eastern coast of Korea into the later summer of 1954. On
1 September 1954 , she reported to theYokosuka Ship Repair Facility and was reclassified minehunter "AMCU-48". She was again reclassified, to "MHC-48", on7 February 1955 . On28 April 1955 she got underway forLong Beach, California , arriving25 May .She then proceeded to
Seattle, Washington , where she joined the Harbor Defense unit,13th Naval District . Through 1956 and into 1957 she carried out channel investigation in the Straits ofJuan De Fuca andPuget Sound . In October 1957, however, she shifted toAstoria, Oregon , where she decommissioned6 December 1957 and joined the Columbia River Group,Pacific Reserve Fleet , where she remained until struck from theNavy list 1 November 1959 .Awards and honors
In addition to receiving the Presidential Unit Citation, "Redhead" earned three
battle star s for World War II service and 10 battle stars during the Korean War.References
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See also
* for other ships of the same name.
External links
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