USS ''LST-566'' was a

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

tank landing ship Landing Ship, Tank (LST), or tank landing ship, is the naval designation for ships first developed during World War II (1939–1945) to support amphibious operations by carrying tanks, vehicles, cargo, and landing troops directly onto shore with ...

in commission from 1944 to 1946. From 1952 to 1973, she served in a non-commissioned status in the

Military Sea Transportation Service Military Sealift Command (MSC) is an organization that controls the replenishment and military transport ships of the United States Navy. Military Sealift Command has the responsibility for providing sealift and ocean transportation for all US m ...

and the

Military Sealift Command Military Sealift Command (MSC) is an organization that controls the replenishment and military transport ships of the United States Navy. Military Sealift Command has the responsibility for providing sealift and ocean transportation for all US m ...

as USNS ''LST-566'' (T-LST-566).

Construction and commissioning

''LST-566'' was laid down on 17 March 1944 at

Evansville Evansville is a city in, and the county seat of, Vanderburgh County, Indiana, United States. The population was 118,414 at the 2020 census, making it the state's third-most populous city after Indianapolis and Fort Wayne, the largest city in S ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

, by the

Missouri Valley Bridge and Iron Company The Missouri Valley Bridge & Iron Co., also known as Missouri Valley Bridge Company, was a engineering, construction, and steel fabrication firm that operated through the late nineteenth and most of the twentieth centuries. It was based in Leavenwo ...

. launched on 11 May 1944; sponsored by Mrs. George C. Martin; and commissioned on 29 May 1944.

Service history

''LST-566'' saw no combat action in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Following World War II, ''LST-566'' performed occupation duty in the Far East and saw service in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

until early March 1946. She was decommissioned on 11 March 1946. On 31 March 1952, ''LST-566'' was transferred to the

—from 1970 the

—which placed her in non-commissioned service as

USNS United States Naval Ship (USNS) is the prefix designation given to non- commissioned ships that are property of the United States Navy (USN). Definition United States Naval Ships are unarmed auxiliary support vessels owned by the U.S. Navy ...

''LST-566'' (T-LST-566) until she was stricken from the

Navy List A Navy Directory, formerly the Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval author ...

on 1 November 1973.

Transfer to the Philippines

USNS ''LST-566'' was transferred to the

Philippine Navy The Philippine Navy (PN) ( tgl, Hukbong Dagat ng Pilipinas, , Sea Army of the Philippines) ( es, Armada de Filipinas, , Ejército del Mar de las Filipinas) is the naval warfare service branch of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. It has an e ...

on 13 September 1976 and renamed BPR ''Lanao Del Norte'' (LT-504). During December 2004, LT-504 ran aground on the coral reef very near

Pag-Asa Pagasa may refer to: * ''Pagasa'' (genus), an insect genus in the family Nabidae *PAGASA, an acronym for the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration *"May Pagasa", a pen-name of José Rizal *Pagasa, alternate ...

Island which is part of the Kalayaan Islands chain, during a personnel and resupply mission. Her

hulk The Hulk is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer Stan Lee and artist Jack Kirby, the character first appeared in the debut issue of ''The Incredible Hulk (comic book), The Incredible Hulk' ...

has been abandoned and aground in 2007. Later in 2017, she was dismantled at her current location for salvaging, only the submerged lower half on the hull remains. On 9 June 2020, a new beaching ramp for Pag-Asa Island was completed right beside where her remaining hull rests.

References

* *

External links

history.navy.mil: USS ''LST-566''

{{DEFAULTSORT:LST-0566 LST-542-class tank landing ships World War II amphibious warfare vessels of the United States Cold War amphibious warfare vessels of the United States Ships transferred from the United States Navy to the Philippine Navy Ships built in Evansville, Indiana 1944 ships Shipwrecks in the South China Sea Maritime incidents in 2007 Shipwrecks of the Philippines