- USS Force (AM-99)
USS Force (AM-99) was anAdroit class minesweeper : Laid down,19 November 1941 by thePenn-Jersey Corp.,Camden, New Jersey ; launched,7 September 1942 ; commissioned, USS Force (AM 99),16 June 1943 ; reclassified aSubmarine chaser PC-1603,1 June 1944 .Armament one single 3"/50
gun mount , two 40 mmgun mount s, eight 20 mm guns, twodepth charge tracks, fivedepth charge projectiles.Operation as a World War II Minesweeper
No data available.
Converted to PC-1603, Wrecked by a Kamikaze
On
26 May 1945 , while anchored inKimmu Wan ,Okinawa , PC-1603 was struck by two Kawasaki "Tony"kamikaze aircraft. The first hit the bow at the water line and the second hit the bow at deck level. Three lives were lost and 15 wounded mostly from burns.Decommissioning
On
21 June 1945 PC-1603 was decommissioned and towed to the ship grave yard atKerama Retto . The hulk was ordered destroyed on24 October 1945 . The hull was incorporated in the building of abreakwater /dock and officially donated to the Government of theRyukyu Islands on10 July 1957 .PC-1603 was awarded three
battle stars for theLeyte ,Luzon andOkinawa landings.References
*DANFS|http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/f3/force-i.htm
External links
* [http://www.navsource.org/archives/12/011603.htm NavSource Online: Submarine Chaser Photo Archive - PC-1603 - ex-Force (AM 99)]
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