- USS Sangay (AE-10)
The USS Sangay (AE-10) was a ship of the United States Navy which saw service during World War II in the Pacific theater. A munitions carrier, the Sangay was named after the
Sangay volcano in Equador, a tongue-in-cheek reference to what would happen if a munitions ship was hit by enemy fire. The ship shuttled ammunition initially between San Francisco and Pearl Harbor Hawaii, then moved to the forward area in the Pacific theater to supply combatants. The Sangay served during the entirety of the war and was retired shortly after the end of hostilities.Construction and commissioning
USS "Sangay" (AE-10) was laid down under Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 225) as SS "Cape Sable" on
30 October 1941 byPennsylvania Shipyards, Inc. ,Beaumont, Tex. ; launched on5 April 1942 ; sponsored by Mrs. A. Robert Lee; delivered to the War Shipping Administration on9 September 1942 ; acquired by the Navy on25 November 1942 ; and commissioned on25 March 1943 , Comdr. W. D. Ryan in command.ervice during World War II
huttle to Pearl Harbor
"Sangay" sailed from
Yorktown, Va. , on13 May 1943 with a cargo of mines forSan Diego . On30 May , she began the first of four round trips between the west coast andHawaii , carrying ammunition toPearl Harbor and returning toSan Francisco with defective ammunition and empty shell cases. This duty was completed on2 October . On16 November , the ship left San Francisco for the first of five voyages to supply the fleet with ammunition in forward areas.Forward area service
"Sangay's" first stop was at
Funafuti from29 November 1943 to11 January 1944 where, in addition to issuing ammunition to cruisers and destroyers, her crew cleared obstructions in theTe Bua Bua Channel and directed minesweeping operations in the harbor. After resupplying at Pearl Harbor, the ammunition ship moved to theMarshall Islands and issued bombs and fuses to the carriers of Task Force 58 atMajuro from 6 to9 February , and then transferred the rest of her cargo to barges at Roi between 10 and14 February and to USS "Rainier" (AE-5) at Majuro from 17 to22 February .She then picked up a fresh cargo of ammunition at San Francisco and issued it to fleet units at Efate on
15 April ,Seeadler Harbor from24 April to8 May , atCape Cretin ,New Guinea , from 10 to13 May , atEfate between 18 and21 May , and atEspiritu Santo from 22 to31 May , before arriving atEniwetok on9 June for three weeks. She transferred her remaining ammunition to USS "Shasta" (AE-6) on2 June and sailed to San Francisco for a new load."Sangay's" next assignment was to support the landings on
Peleliu in thePalau Islands . Between 15 and21 September , she lay off the beach during the day issuing ammunition to American warships and retired seaward with the transports at night. She then issued ammunition inKossol Passage between 22 and26 September and at Seeadler Harbor between 1 and10 October before joining USS "Mauna Loa" (AE-8) and sailing to San Francisco. Returning to the forward areas, she issued ammunition and bombs to units of Task Force 38 atUlithi from20 December 1944 to11 January 1945 , and then supplied ammunition depots at Eniwetok between 17 and23 January and at Kwajalein between 24 and27 January before returning to San Francisco on10 February ."Sangay" left San Francisco on
22 March with a cargo of mines and mine components, arriving after several stops at Eniwetok on27 June . She remained there until ordered back to Pearl Harbor on12 August to be fitted as a tender for small minecraft, and sailed from there on26 September with general cargo loaded for fleet issue. After ten days atOkinawa , from 11 to20 October , she arrived at Sasebo on22 October where she provided support to minesweepers clearing Japanese minefields. She remained there, except for a nine-day visit toWakayama Wan , until sailing for home via Okinawa on17 January 1946 . The ammunition ship arrived atOrange, Tex. , on30 April 1946 where she was decommissioned and placed in reserve on20 July 1947 . She was struck from the Navy list on1 July 1960 , having been transferred the previous day to the National Defense Reserve Fleet atBeaumont, Tex. , where she remains through June 1974.Awards and commendations
"Sangay" received two
battle star s for herWorld War II service.References
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