USS Elkhart

Elkhart in 1945
History
United States
Name	USS Elkhart (APA-80)
Namesake	Elkhart County, Indiana
Builder	Consolidated Steel
Launched	5 December 1944
Sponsored by	Mrs. J.B. Bonny
Acquired	7 February 1945
Commissioned	8 February 1945
Decommissioned	12 April 1946
Fate	Scrapped, 1964
General characteristics
Class and type	Gilliam-class attack transport
Displacement	4,247 tons (lt), 7,080 t.(fl)
Length	426 ft (130 m)
Beam	58 ft (18 m)
Draft	16 ft (4.9 m)
Propulsion	Westinghouse turboelectric drive, 2 boilers, 2 propellers, Design shaft horsepower 6,000
Speed	17 knots
Capacity	47 Officers, 802 Enlisted
Crew	27 Officers, 295 Enlisted
Armament	1 x 5"/38 caliber dual-purpose gun mount, 4 x twin 40mm gun mounts, 10 x single 20mm gun mounts
Notes	MCV Hull No. 1873, hull type S4-SE2-BD1

USS Elkhart (APA-80) was a Gilliam-class attack transport that served with the United States Navy from 1944 to 1945. She was scrapped in 1964.

History

Elkhart was named after a county in Indiana. She was launched 5 December 1944 by Consolidated Steel at Wilmington, Los Angeles, under a Maritime Commission contract; transferred to the Navy 7 February 1945; and commissioned the following day.

World War II

Sailing from San Diego 3 April 1945, Elkhart during her brief war service carried cargo in or out of Eniwetok, Ulithi, Leyte, Peleliu, Guam, and Okinawa. In July she supported the occupation of Kume Shima in Okinawa Gunto.

After hostilities

With the end of hostilities, she made one trip to Tokyo Bay to deliver occupation cargo, then transported 6th Marine Division from Guam to reoccupy Qingdao, China. Arriving at Haiphong in November, she embarked Chinese troops for transportation to Chinwangtao, then continued on to Jinsen (Inchon) to embark servicemen eligible for discharge upon return home. They reached the Golden Gate 3 January 1946.

Decommissioning

Elkhart was decommissioned at Seattle 12 April and returned to the Maritime Commission 28 June 1946. She was finally scrapped in 1964.

References

•  This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
• APA-80 Elkhart, Navsource Online.