USS Rushmore (LSD-47)
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USS ''Rushmore'' (LSD-47) is a of the
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 ...
. She was the second navy ship to be named for the Mount Rushmore National Memorial in the
Black Hills The Black Hills ( lkt, Ȟe Sápa; chy, Moʼȯhta-voʼhonáaeva; hid, awaxaawi shiibisha) is an isolated mountain range rising from the Great Plains of North America in western South Dakota and extending into Wyoming, United States. Black ...
of
South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux Native American tribes, who comprise a large porti ...
. She is the seventh ship in her class of dock landing ships and the fourth ship in that class to serve in the United States Pacific Fleet. ''Rushmore'' was laid down on 9 November 1987, by the
Avondale Shipyards Avondale Shipyard was an independent shipbuilding company, acquired by Litton Industries, in turn acquired by Northrop Grumman Corporation. In 2011, along with the former Ingalls Shipbuilding, the yard was part of Huntington Ingalls Industries. It c ...
,
New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
; launched on 6 May 1989, sponsored by Mrs. Meredith Brokaw, wife of
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...
News anchorman
Tom Brokaw Thomas John Brokaw (; born February 6, 1940) is an American retired network television journalist and author. He first served as the co-anchor of ''The Today Show'' from 1976 to 1981 with Jane Pauley, then as the anchor and managing editor of '' ...
; and commissioned on 1 June 1991, at New Orleans.


Mission

The assigned mission of the
dock landing ship A dock landing ship (also called landing ship, dock or LSD) is an amphibious warfare ship with a well dock to transport and launch landing craft and amphibious vehicles. Some ships with well decks, such as the Soviet Ivan Rogov class, also hav ...
is to transport and launch loaded amphibious craft and vehicles with their crews and embarked personnel in amphibious assaults by landing craft and amphibious vehicles. It can render limited docking repair service to small ships and craft.


General comments

The provides for greater storage space of weapons and equipment, improved facilities for embarked troops, greater range of operations, and the capability to embark either conventional landing craft or LCAC. The ships incorporate materiel handling equipment including elevators, package/roller conveyors and forklifts, pallet transporters, and a turntable. The turntable is located between the well deck and the helicopter deck forward of the boat deck to assist in the rapid turnaround of vehicles and equipment during loading/offloading operations.


History


1990s

The ship's first assignment was to deliver three Air Cushioned Landing Craft ( LCAC) to Camp Pendleton, California from
Panama City Panama City ( es, Ciudad de Panamá, links=no; ), also known as Panama (or Panamá in Spanish), is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has an urban population of 880,691, with over 1.5 million in its metropolitan area. The city is locat ...
, Florida. Along the way, Rushmore conducted a port visit in Jamaica, traversed the
Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a condui ...
, and visited Rodman, Panama. Camp Pendleton was the last stop before arriving at her homeport of NS San Diego. During her first six-month deployment, ''Rushmore'' spearheaded the beach landing on Somalia during Operation Restore Hope. The largest military humanitarian operation in history, Restore Hope was designed to provide food and medical relief to the starving people of Somalia. ''Rushmore''s 1994 WestPac deployment came almost one year ahead of schedule. She deployed with only four weeks' notice and participated in
Operation Support Hope Operation Support Hope was a 1994 United States military effort to provide immediate relief for the refugees of the Rwandan genocide and allow a smooth transition to a full United Nations humanitarian management program. The inhabitants of the ca ...
off the coast of Mombasa, Kenya, the USLO relocation in Somalia, and exercises with forces of Oman and the United Arab Emirates. During this deployment, ''Rushmore'' also was awarded a Meritorious Unit Commendation. ''Rushmore''s 1996 deployment followed a complete and highly successful training cycle during which ''Rushmore'' earned the Blue E and the
Battle E The Battle Effectiveness Award (formerly the Battle Efficiency Award, commonly known as the Battle "E"), is awarded annually to the small number of United States Navy ships, submarines, aviation, and other units that win their battle effectiveness c ...
. This deployment provided numerous international training opportunities for the Amphibious Readiness Group and the
13th Marine Expeditionary Unit The 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit (13th MEU) is one of seven Marine Expeditionary Units currently in existence in the United States Marine Corps. The Marine Expeditionary Unit is a Marine Air Ground Task Force with a strength of about 2,200 p ...
(13th MEU) including Exercise Cobra Gold '96 with Thailand, Exercise Infinite Moonlight with Jordan, Exercise Red Reef with Saudi Arabia, and MEUEX '96 with Kuwait. ''Rushmore'' demonstrated its superior adaptability throughout deployment by becoming the first LSD-41-class ship to employ Rigid Hull Inflatable Boats (RHIBs) for the SPECWAR Detachment. ''Rushmore'' concluded 1996 with a port visit to
Mazatlán Mazatlán () is a city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa. The city serves as the municipal seat for the surrounding '' municipio'', known as the Mazatlán Municipality. It is located at on the Pacific coast, across from the southernmost tip ...
, Mexico. The ship earned its second consecutive
Battle E The Battle Effectiveness Award (formerly the Battle Efficiency Award, commonly known as the Battle "E"), is awarded annually to the small number of United States Navy ships, submarines, aviation, and other units that win their battle effectiveness c ...
in 1996. ''Rushmore'' is the test platform for the Smart Ship program known as Gator 17. The ship was outfitted with several new technologies to reduce workload and manning levels. Information from the program aboard ''Rushmore'' will be used to assist in the design of the LPD-17 class amphibious ships. Installation was completed at the end of 1997. ''Rushmore'' deployed in 1999 with the Amphibious Ready Group and the
11th Marine Expeditionary Unit The 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (11th MEU) is one of seven Marine Expeditionary Units currently in existence in the United States Marine Corps. The Marine Expeditionary Unit is a Marine Air Ground Task Force with a strength of about 2,200 ...
(11th MEU). During this deployment, ''Rushmore'' participated in Exercise Iron Magic with the United Arab Emirates and Exercise Red Reef with Saudi Arabia. ''Rushmore'' also had the distinction of becoming the first United States Naval warship to visit
Doha Doha ( ar, الدوحة, ad-Dawḥa or ''ad-Dōḥa'') is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor, it is home to most of the count ...
, Qatar in 10 years. Other port visits included Japan, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Singapore,
Guam Guam (; ch, Guåhan ) is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States in the Micronesia subregion of the western Pacific Ocean. It is the westernmost point and territory of the United States (reckoned from the geographic cent ...
, Australia and Hawaii. On 12 March 1999, the ship made history when then Commander
Michelle J. Howard Michelle Janine Howard (born April 30, 1960) is a retired United States Navy four-star admiral who last served as the commander of United States Naval Forces Europe while she concurrently was the commander of United States Naval Forces Africa ...
( later assumed command of United States Naval Forces Europe and Naval Forces Africa before retiring in December 2017 as a full Admiral) became its commanding officer and the first African American woman to Command a US Navy ship. ''Rushmore'' returned to San Diego in December 1999 and became the first "Smart Ship" to complete a six-month Western Pacific deployment.


2000s

With the new millennium, came a year of local operations for ''Rushmore''. ''Rushmore'' participated in CARAT 2001 in cooperation with other navies in the Western Pacific, South China Sea and Southeast Asia. Returning home just days prior to the
September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...
, ''Rushmore'' began preparations to deploy to areas of national security interests. After coming out of "the yards" USS ''Rushmore'' participated in RIMPAC 2002 with a host of nations off the shores of Hawaii. The ship set sail in December 2002 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom as part of the ''Tarawa'' Amphibious Ready Group (ARG). The ship deployed on 6 December 2004 once again in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom as part of the Expeditionary Strike Group (ESG 5). On the way to the Fifth Fleet Area of Responsibility, the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami occurred, which would change the course of ''Rushmore'' and begin a massive U.S. military humanitarian operation, dubbed
Operation Unified Assistance Operation Unified Assistance was the American military's humanitarian response to the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami. On 28 December 2004, elements of the Combined Support Force were deployed to U-Tapao International Airport in Thailand ...
. The
tsunami A tsunami ( ; from ja, 津波, lit=harbour wave, ) is a series of waves in a water body caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, generally in an ocean or a large lake. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other underwater exp ...
that flooded parts of Southeast Asia took the lives of more than 100,000 people in a matter of hours. USS ''Rushmore'' and the elements of Expeditionary Strike Group Five were called into action. The ship became an afloat staging base for military helicopters to refuel and transport supplies. USS ''Rushmore'' launched both LCACs bringing tons of food and water ashore for distribution to survivors. Once the operation ended, ''Rushmore'' reset a course to the
Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The bod ...
to support Maritime Security Operations, and help defend Iraq's Kwar Al Amaya and Al Basra Oil Platforms. The Marines of the
15th Marine Expeditionary Unit The 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit (15th MEU) is one of seven such units currently in existence in the United States Marine Corps. The Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) is a Marine Air Ground Task Force (MAGTF) with a strength of about 2,200 pe ...
deployed to Kuwait, and went further north into areas of Iraq before they were brought back on board in early April. ''Rushmore'' sailors enjoyed two port visits during their two months in the Persian Gulf, one visit to the Mid-Eastern country of Bahrain, the other, a trip to the port of
Jebel Ali Jebel Ali ( ar, جبل علي) is a port town south-west of Dubai. The Jebel Ali Port is located there. Al Maktoum International Airport has been constructed just outside the port area. Jebel Ali is connected to Dubai via the UAE Exchange (fo ...
, United Arab Emirates. During the transit home, ''Rushmore'' stopped for a port visit to Cairns, Australia. ''Rushmore'' returned to the ship's homeport of San Diego, California on 6 June 2005. The ship completed a three-month maintenance period and participated in Exercise Rim of the Pacific (
RIMPAC RIMPAC, the Rim of the Pacific Exercise, is the world's largest international maritime warfare exercise. RIMPAC is held biennially during June and July of even-numbered years from Honolulu, Hawaii, with the exception of 2020 where it was held ...
) off the coast of Hawaii from June to August 2006. ''Rushmore'' began 2007 by completing work ups with the ''Bonhomme Richard'' (ESG 5). They loaded more than 400 Marines of the
13th MEU The 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit (13th MEU) is one of seven Marine Expeditionary Units currently in existence in the United States Marine Corps. The Marine Expeditionary Unit is a Marine Air Ground Task Force with a strength of about 2,200 p ...
onboard along with their equipment to prepare for the transit to the Middle East. On 16 February 2007, ''Rushmore'' was awarded the 2006 Battle "E" award. As 10 April 2007 arrived ''Rushmore'' was ready to get underway for deployment to the Middle East. ''Rushmore'' visited several different ports, including Guam, Singapore, Jebel Ali,
Dubai Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...
and Bahrain. On 1 December 2007, ''Rushmore'' became the first ship since the
September 11 terrorist attacks The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commerc ...
to host 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 ...
open house while inport Seal Beach, California. Thousands showed up to tour the ship. The crew took visitors through the
bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...
, medical center,
Combat Information Center A combat information center (CIC) or action information centre (AIC) is a room in a warship or AWACS aircraft that functions as a tactical center and provides processed information for command and control of the near battlespace or area of op ...
, and other external places on the ship. ''Rushmore'' certified in ULTRA-C in May 2008 and sailed up to Seattle, Washington, to take part in the Centennial Celebration of the Great White Fleet on 22 May. She participated in a parade of ships and later hosted tours to both the general public and guests for the gala. In late September 2008, ''Rushmore'' sailed to Esquimalt, British Columbia, Canada, to serve as the test platform for developing ASW systems in the Nanoose Firing Range. While there, ''Rushmore'' had a three-day port visit and was hosted by (FFH 334). Upon their return home, ''Rushmore'' finalized their preparations for the Congressionally-mandated Navy's
Board of Inspection and Survey The Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV) is a United States Navy organization whose purpose is to inspect and assess the material condition of U.S. Navy vessels. The Board is currently headquartered at Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Virgin ...
(INSURV) on 27 October 2008. She also underwent ULTRA-E in November 2008.


2010s

On 12 July 2012, ''Rushmore'' successfully completed its material inspection by the navy's
Board of Inspection and Survey The Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV) is a United States Navy organization whose purpose is to inspect and assess the material condition of U.S. Navy vessels. The Board is currently headquartered at Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Virgin ...
(INSURV) assessment and was found fit for sustained combat operations. On 17 September 2012, ''Rushmore'' departed San Diego on a 7-month deployment with , and under the command of Amphibious Squadron (
PHIBRON PHIBRON is a United States Navy abbreviation for Amphibious Squadron. It is a tactical and administrative organization composed of amphibious assault shipping to transport troops and their equipment for an amphibious assault operation. Before the a ...
)Three and with the
15th Marine Expeditionary Unit The 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit (15th MEU) is one of seven such units currently in existence in the United States Marine Corps. The Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) is a Marine Air Ground Task Force (MAGTF) with a strength of about 2,200 pe ...
embarked as the Landing Force. This deployment to the Western Pacific and Indian Ocean included a brief port visit at
Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the R ...
, Hawaii; participation in Exercise Crocodilo in
Timor-Leste East Timor (), also known as Timor-Leste (), officially the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, is an island country in Southeast Asia. It comprises the eastern half of the island of Timor, the exclave of Oecusse on the island's north-west ...
; a port visit at Darwin, Australia; participation in Exercise Eager Mace in Kuwait; a brief port visit to
Naval Support Activity Bahrain Naval Support Activity Bahrain (or NSA Bahrain) is a United States Navy base, situated in the Kingdom of Bahrain and is home to U.S. Naval Forces Central Command and United States Fifth Fleet. Occupying the original territory of the British Roy ...
; participation in Exercise Iron Magic in
UAE The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...
; participation in Exercise Red Reef in Saudi Arabia; a visit to Port Kahlifa near Abu Dhabi,
UAE The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...
; an equipment washdown and agricultural inspection in Aqaba, Jordan; a visit to Hong Kong; and a second visit to Pearl Harbor during the return transit. In June 2015, ''Rushmore'' made news for rescuing 65 people who were stranded on a makeshift raft in the
Makassar Strait Makassar Strait is a strait between the islands of Borneo and Sulawesi in Indonesia. To the north it joins the Celebes Sea, while to the south it meets the Java Sea. To the northeast, it forms the Sangkulirang Bay south of the Mangkalihat Pe ...
after their ferry capsized.


2020s

In December 2020 the U.S. Navy's Report to Congress on the Annual Long-Range Plan for Construction of Naval Vessels stated that the ship was planned to be placed Out of Commission in Reserve in 2024.


Notes


References


External links


USS ''Rushmore'' official website
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rushmore (LSD-47) Whidbey Island-class dock landing ships Cold War amphibious warfare vessels of the United States Amphibious warfare vessels of the United States Ships built in Bridge City, Louisiana 1989 ships