The Aiken Victory arriving in Boston with 1,958 troops from Europe, 26 July 1945

USNS ''Aiken Victory'' (T-AP-188) was a Victory ship-based

troop transport A troopship (also troop ship or troop transport or trooper) is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime. Troopships were often drafted from commercial shipping fleets, and were unable land troops directly on shore, typicall ...

that served with the United States Army Transport Service during both World War II and the Korean War. She was one of a class of 84 dedicated troop transports. She was laid down as a VC2-S-AP2 hull, no. 616Maritime Victory ship history at US DOT Maritime Administration
/ref> on 13 October 1944 at

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was ...

, by the Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyard, Inc., under a Maritime Commission contract (MCV hull 616); launched on 30 November 1944; and delivered to the Maritime Commission on 30 December 1944. She was operated under Maritime Commission contract by

Mississippi Shipping Company Mississippi Shipping Company (also called Delta Line) of New Orleans, Louisiana was a passenger and cargo steamship company founded in 1919. In 1961 officially changed its name to the Delta Line. The Mississippi Shipping Co. serviced port from t ...

. She was put in the reserve fleet in

Suisun Bay Suisun Bay ( ; Wintun for "where the west wind blows") is a shallow tidal estuary (a northeastern extension of the San Francisco Bay) in Northern California. It lies at the confluence of the Sacramento River and San Joaquin River, forming the ent ...

on February 22, 1947. She was reactivated on July 21, 1950, to join the Military Sea Transportation Service (MSTS) during the Korean War. She was returned to the reserve fleet on December 19, 1952, and remained there until allocated for scrapping to American Ship Dismantlers, Inc., on August 10, 1971, and physically delivered August 26.

World War II

During World War II, ''Aiken Victory'' was operated by the firm Mississippi Shipping company, under a contract with the United States Maritime Commission. ''Aiken Victory'' delivered cargo to support the war efforts in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater of war. She also transported small groups of troops in the

Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War, was the theater of World War II that was fought in Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and Oceania. It was geographically the largest theater of the war, including the vast ...

. She was part of Convoy CU 63 that departed New York on March 23-1945, arriving at Liverpool, England on 3 April 1945. ''Aiken Victory'' was part of

Operation Magic Carpet Operation Magic Carpet was the post-World War II operation by the War Shipping Administration to repatriate over eight million American military personnel from the European, Pacific, and Asian theaters. Hundreds of Liberty ships, Victory ships ...

bring troops home form both Pacific and European Theater. Following the end of hostilities, that company continued to operate her under contract until she was put in the National Defense Reserve Fleet in

on February 22, 1947.

MSTS service - Korean War

The United States Navy acquired the ship on 21 July 1950 in the wake of the outbreak the Korean War the previous month. Designated T-AP-188, the ship was assigned to the Military Sea Transportation Service as a troopship transport. In May 1951, she transported the

Colombia Battalion The Colombian Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Colombian Army that served under United Nations Command during the Korean War from 1951 to 1954. The first Colombian military unit to serve in Asia, the battalion was attached to the U.S. 7 ...

to Korea, with a stop-over in Hawaii. Operated by a civil service crew, USNS ''Aiken Victory'' carried troops in the Korean War combat zone for almost 30 months. She earned eight battle stars for transporting troops in combat zones during she 30 months of service. Late in 1952 the she was returned to the United States and was transferred back to the Maritime Commission on 19 December 1952. She was berthed with the National Defense Reserve Fleet at Olympia, Washington. Her name was struck from the Navy list on 12 February 1953. She remained with the National Defense Reserve Fleet until 10 August 1971 at which time she was sold to American Ship Dismantlers, Inc., for scrapping. In 1971 she was scrapped in Portland, Oregon. The Korean War By Cameron Forbes, page 153

Awards

''Aiken Victory'' received eight battle stars for her Korean War service. ''Aiken Victory'' also earned the National Defense Service Medal, Korean Service Medal,

United Nations Service Medal The United Nations Service Medal for Korea (UNKM) is an international military decoration established by the United Nations on December 12, 1950 as the United Nations Service Medal. The decoration was the first international award ever created by t ...

and the

Republic of Korea War Service Medal The Korean War Service Medal (KWSM, ko, 6.25사변종군기장, ), also known as the Republic of Korea War Service Medal (ROKWSM), is a military award of South Korea which was first authorized in December 1950. History 6.25 Incident Participati ...

-(retroactive).

References

USAT ''Aiken Victory''
– DANFS Online.

Navsource Online. {{DEFAULTSORT:Aiken Victory (T-AP-188) World War II auxiliary ships of the United States Ships built in Baltimore 1944 ships Troop ships of the United States