USS Achelous (ARL-1)
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USS ''Achelous'' (ARL-1) was one of 39 tank landing ships converted into landing craft repair ships for service in the United States Navy during World War II. The lead ship in her class, she was named for the Greek god Achelous, the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name. She was laid down as the unnamed ''LST-10'' on 15 August 1942, at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania by the Dravo Corporation; launched on 25 November 1942; sponsored by Mrs. George F. Wolfe, the wife of the chief engineer of Dravo; named ''Achelous'' and redesignated ARL-1 on 13 January 1943; and commissioned on 2 April 1943, 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 ...
.


Service history

''Achelous'' held shakedown in Chesapeake Bay, stopped at
Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Be ...
, on 22 April, to take on supplies on 28 April, and sailed the same day with a convoy bound for North Africa. She paused in Bermuda from 2–9 May, and arrived in Oran, Algeria on 26 May. ''Achelous'' moved to
Bizerte Bizerte or Bizerta ( ar, بنزرت, translit=Binzart , it, Biserta, french: link=no, Bizérte) the classical Hippo, is a city of Bizerte Governorate in Tunisia. It is the northernmost city in Africa, located 65 km (40mil) north of the cap ...
, Tunisia, on 1 June, and remained there until 14 July, providing varied services to landing craft. Following the
Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
invasion of Sicily, ''Achelous'' moored at
Licata Licata (, ; grc, Φιντίας, whence la, Phintias or ''Plintis''), formerly also Alicata (), is a city and ''comune'' located on the south coast of Sicily, at the mouth of the Salso River (the ancient ''Himera''), about midway between Agr ...
, Sicily from 15 July – 4 August, to perform repair work. She returned to Bizerte, on 15 August, and for the next three days underwent two enemy air raids. During the second raid, ''Achelous guns assisted in downing two German planes. ''Achelous'' spent one week in mid-September at
Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...
, Sicily. She got underway with convoy UGS 19 on 16 October, reached
Port Said Port Said ( ar, بورسعيد, Būrsaʿīd, ; grc, Πηλούσιον, Pēlousion) is a city that lies in northeast Egypt extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, north of the Suez Canal. With an approximate population of 6 ...
, Egypt, on 23 October, and transited the
Suez Canal The Suez Canal ( arz, قَنَاةُ ٱلسُّوَيْسِ, ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia. The long canal is a popular ...
on 25 October. The repair ship then headed for
Massawa Massawa ( ; ti, ምጽዋዕ, məṣṣəwaʿ; gez, ምጽዋ; ar, مصوع; it, Massaua; pt, Maçuá) is a port city in the Northern Red Sea region of Eritrea, located on the Red Sea at the northern end of the Gulf of Zula beside the Dahlak ...
, Italian
Eritrea Eritrea ( ; ti, ኤርትራ, Ertra, ; ar, إرتريا, ʾIritriyā), officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of Eastern Africa, with its capital and largest city at Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia ...
, where she arrived on 31 October. The next day, she entered a British-owned
floating drydock A dry dock (sometimes drydock or dry-dock) is a narrow basin or vessel that can be flooded to allow a load to be floated in, then drained to allow that load to come to rest on a dry platform. Dry docks are used for the construction, maintenance, ...
at Massawa. The ship left the drydock on 4 November and got underway for India. She arrived at Calcutta in early December and spent approximately one month providing services in the
China Burma India China Burma India Theater (CBI) was the United States military designation during World War II for the China and Southeast Asian or India–Burma (IBT) theaters. Operational command of Allied forces (including U.S. forces) in the CBI was offi ...
theater. In early 1944, ''Achelous'' left India and sailed to the Mediterranean to support operations along the Italian coast. She remained at these duties for seven months. In July, the landing craft repair ship began preparations for the assault on the southern coast of France. In mid-August, she dropped anchor off the French coast and set up a pontoon drydock to service landing craft used in the invasion. These duties occupied her through most of 1944. Late in the year, the repair ship was reassigned to the Pacific Ocean and began her voyage via the
Strait of Gibraltar The Strait of Gibraltar ( ar, مضيق جبل طارق, Maḍīq Jabal Ṭāriq; es, Estrecho de Gibraltar, Archaic: Pillars of Hercules), also known as the Straits of Gibraltar, is a narrow strait that connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Medi ...
and the Panama Canal to her new area of operations. She transited the Panama Canal on 7 March 1945 and proceeded to Eniwetok, where she arrived on 24 April. ''Achelous'' then was assigned to support the invasion and occupation of Okinawa, her last combat operation of World War II. Following the War, ''Achelous'' returned to the west coast. She was placed out of commission in reserve in January 1947, and berthed in the Columbia River Group of the
Pacific Reserve Fleet The United States Navy maintains a number of its ships as part of a reserve fleet, often called the "Mothball Fleet". While the details of the maintenance activity have changed several times, the basics are constant: keep the ships afloat and ...
. ''Achelous name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 1 June 1973, and the ship was sold on 21 January 1974, to Overseas Shipyard, Ltd. of Hong Kong for scrapping.


Awards

''Achelous'' earned two battle stars for World War II service.


References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Achelous (Arl-1) Achelous-class repair ships Ships built in Pittsburgh 1942 ships World War II auxiliary ships of the United States Achelous-class repair ships converted from LST-1-class ships Ships built by Dravo Corporation