USS Volans (AKS-9)
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USS ''Volans'' (AKS-9) was an ''Acubens''-class
general stores issue ship General stores issue ship is a type of ship used by the United States Navy during World War II and for some time afterwards. The task of the general stores issue ship was to sail into non-combat, or rear, areas and disburse general stores, such a ...
commissioned by the U.S. Navy for service 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 ...
. She was responsible for delivering and disbursing goods and equipment to locations in the war zone. Liberty ship SS ''Edward Preble'' was laid down under a Maritime Commission contract (MCE hull 772) on 19 October 1942 at South Portland, Maine, by the
New England Shipbuilding Corporation The New England Shipbuilding Corporation was a shipyard located in the city of South Portland, Maine, United States. The yard originated as two separate entities, the Todd-Bath Iron Shipbuilding Corporation and the South Portland Shipbuilding C ...
; launched on 2 February 1943; sponsored by Miss Beverly Brown; renamed ''Volans'' and designated AKS-9 on 13 November 1943; and acquired by the Navy on 2 December 1943. Taken to the Tampa Bay Shipbuilding Co., Inc., ''Volans'' was converted for naval service at that yard, the work lasting into the following year. On 31 March 1944, ''Volans'' (AKS-9) was commissioned at Tampa, Florida.


World War II operations

Following her
shakedown Shakedown may refer to: * Shakedown (continuum mechanics), a type of plastic deformation * Shakedown (testing) or a shakedown cruise, a period of testing undergone by a ship, airplane or other craft before being declared operational * Extortion, ...
training in Chesapeake Bay and post-shakedown availability at the Norfolk Navy Yard, ''Volans'' loaded her initial cargo and got underway for the
Panama Canal Zone The Panama Canal Zone ( es, Zona del Canal de Panamá), also simply known as the Canal Zone, was an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the Isthmus of Panama, that existed from 1903 to 1979. It was located within the terr ...
on 11 May 1944. After transiting the Panama Canal, the stores issue ship experienced a two-day layover at Balboa, on the Pacific Ocean side of the isthmian waterway, before she sailed on 28 May for the New Hebrides Islands.


Providing service to the Pacific Fleet

Over the next year, ''Volans'' performed a vital service to the fleet as a stores issue ship. In the course of her important but unglamorous duties, she traveled from port to port, unescorted, proceeding independently from locales ranging from the Solomon Islands to the Carolines; and from the
Palaus Palau,, officially the Republic of Palau and historically ''Belau'', ''Palaos'' or ''Pelew'', is an island country and microstate in the western Pacific. The nation has approximately 340 islands and connects the western chain of the Caro ...
to the Admiralties. Ports of call included
Guadalcanal Guadalcanal (; indigenous name: ''Isatabu'') is the principal island in Guadalcanal Province of Solomon Islands, located in the south-western Pacific, northeast of Australia. It is the largest island in the Solomon Islands by area, and the seco ...
; Tulagi; Emirau (
Green Islands The Green Islands is a small archipelago of islands in the Solomon Sea, within the Autonomous Region of Bougainville, in northeastern Papua New Guinea. They are located at , about northwest of Bougainville Island, and about east of Rabaul ...
); Noumea,
New Caledonia ) , anthem = "" , image_map = New Caledonia on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of New Caledonia , map_caption = Location of New Caledonia , mapsize = 290px , subdivision_type = Sovereign st ...
; the Russell Islands; Munda, New Georgia; Espiritu Santo, New Hebrides; Finschhafen and
Hollandia Hollandia may refer to: * HVV Hollandia, Dutch football team * Hollandia Victoria Combinatie, defunct Dutch football team * ''Hollandia'' (1742 ship), a ship of the Dutch East India Company, wrecked in 1743 on her maiden voyage * Jayapura, a city ...
, New Guinea; Manus; Ulithi;
Kossol Roads Kossol Roads is a large body of reef-enclosed water north of Babeldaob in northern Palau at .Kossol Roads
a ...
; Peleliu; and the islands of Guam and
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 ...
. In addition, she also operated for a time out of Leyte in the Philippines.


A high demand for her goods

''Volans'', in her unsung role, provided stores to the ships that took part in the initial carrier air strikes on Tokyo in January 1945 and to the ships that took part in landing operations at places such as
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. ...
, Okinawa, and the Philippines. She serviced some 1,302 ships and facilities, filling 30,454 requisitions comprising an approximate 137,000 items. While at San Pedro Bay, Leyte, from 23 March to 5 April 1945, ''Volans'' experienced her busiest service. During that period, she issued supplies on a 24-hour basis, supporting the efforts to secure the Philippines and also to take Okinawa.


End-of-war activity

On 10 July 1945, ''Volans'' departed Ulithi for Seattle, Washington, and shipyard availability and arrived at her destination on 31 July. She was still under overhaul at the time of the Japanese surrender in mid-August and at the time of the formal surrender in Tokyo Bay in early September. On 25 September, ''Volans'' sailed for Okinawa and arrived there on 19 October.


Post-war decommissioning

''Volans'' subsequently returned to Pearl Harbor in November and remained there until decommissioned on 17 June 1946. Towed to San Francisco, California, for disposal, the former stores issue ship was delivered to the Maritime Commission at
Suisun Bay, California 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 24 June 1947 and placed in the National Defense Reserve Fleet. Her name was struck from the Navy list on 17 July of the same year. Disposition: scrapped in 1965.


Military awards and honors

Volans’ crew members were eligible for the following medals: * American Campaign Medal * Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal * World War II Victory Medal *
Navy Occupation Service Medal The Navy Occupation Service Medal is a military award of the United States Navy which was "Awarded to commemorate the services of Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard personnel in the occupation of certain territories of the enemies of the U.S. durin ...
(with Asia clasp) *
Philippines Liberation Medal The Philippine Liberation Medal is a military award of the Republic of the Philippines which was created by an order of Commonwealth Army of the Philippines Headquarters on 20 December 1944, and was issued as the Philippine Liberation Ribbon. The d ...


References


External links


NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive - AKS-9 Volans
{{DEFAULTSORT:Volans (AKS-9) Liberty ships Acubens-class general stores issue ships Ships built in Portland, Maine 1943 ships World War II auxiliary ships of the United States