USS Counsel (AM-165) was an
Admirable-class
The ''Admirable'' class was one of the largest and most successful classes of minesweepers ordered by the United States Navy during World War II. Typically, minesweepers detected and removed naval mines before the rest of the fleet arrived, the ...
minesweeper built for the
U.S. Navy during
World War II. She was built to clear minefields in offshore waters, and served the Navy in the
Pacific Ocean.
She was launched 17 February 1943 by
Willamette Iron and Steel Works,
Portland, Oregon; and commissioned 27 May 1944. She was reclassified MSF-165, 7 February 1955.
World War II Pacific Ocean operations
Sailing from
San Francisco, California, 8 August 1944, ''Counsel'' was repaired at
Pearl Harbor and escorted a
convoy to
Eniwetok, arriving 20 September. Five days later she was underway for
Saipan
Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States in the western Pa ...
for patrol and escort duty during which she rescued three naval aviators off
Tinian on 18 October. Arriving at
Ulithi 26 October, she continued her patrols, and was assigned on 10 November to escort the damaged to
Manus, towing in tandem with
SS Watch Hill during the last two days of the trip. ''Counsel'' returned to
Ulithi 24 November, and sailed two days later for the landings on
Peleliu,
Palau Islands, where she patrolled against
submarines
A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely o ...
until 15 December. After overhaul at
Eniwetok ''Counsel'' sailed out of that port on convoy escort duty to
Guam,
Saipan
Saipan ( ch, Sa’ipan, cal, Seipél, formerly in es, Saipán, and in ja, 彩帆島, Saipan-tō) is the largest island of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth (U.S. insular area), commonwealth of the United States in the western Pa ...
,
Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima (, also ), known in Japan as , is one of the Japanese Volcano Islands and lies south of the Bonin Islands. Together with other islands, they form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The highest point of Iwo Jima is Mount Suribachi at high.
...
,
Ulithi, and
Tarawa, and on
antisubmarine patrol and minesweeping operations until the end of the war. She arrived in
Buckner Bay,
Okinawa, 23 August 1945, and until 6 November swept mines in
Japanese and Chinese waters, from
Sasebo.
Post-War Decommissioning
On 20 November ''Counsel'' sailed for home, arriving at San Francisco 19 December. ''Counsel'' was placed out of commission in reserve 15 January 1947 at
San Diego, California. She was struck from the
Navy List on 1 July 1972 and sold for scrap, 1 September 1973.
Awards
''Counsel'' received one
battle star for World War II service.
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Counsel (AM-165)
Admirable-class minesweepers
World War II mine warfare vessels of the United States
Ships built in Portland, Oregon
1943 ships