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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

USS LST-70

International Radio Call Sign:
November - Quebec - Delta - Mike
NQDM

USS LST-70 was manned by the US Coast Guard during World War II

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons

Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - Combat Action Ribbon (retroactive - Iwo Jima) - American Campaign Medal
Bottom Row - Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (5) - World War II Victory Medal - Navy Occupation Service Medal (with Asia clasp)

LST-1 Class Tank Landing Ship

Laid down, 13 November 1942, at Jeffersonville Boat and Machine Co., Jeffersonville, IN.

Launched, 8 February 1943

Commissioned USS LST-70, 28 May 1943, LCDR Augustus Pollack, USCGR in command

During World War II USS LST-70 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater:
LST Flotilla Five, CAPT. G.B. Carter, USN;
LST Group Fifteen, CDR.. V. K. Busck, USN;
LST Division Thirty and
LST Flotilla Six, Laidlaw, USN;
LST Group Eighteen, CDR. P. Neikum USN Ret;
LST Division Thirty-Six and participated in the following campaigns:

Campaign and Dates	Campaign and Dates
Asiatic-Pacific Campaigns
Treasury Island-Bougainville operation Occupation and defense of Cape Torokina, 6 and 17 November 1943	Iwo Jima operation Assault and occupation of Iwo Jima, 19 to 25 February 1945
Bismarck Archipelago operation Green Islands landing, 15 to 19 February 1944	Okinawa Gunto operation Assault and occupation of Okinawa Gunto, 1 April to 18 May 1945
Marianas operation Capture and occupation of Guam, 21 to 25 July 1944

Following World War II USS LST-70 was assigned to Occupation service in the Far East for the following periods:

Navy Occupation Service Medal
29 October to 6 November 1945
15 to 21 November 1945

Decommissioned, 1 April 1946

Struck from the Naval Register, 1 May 1946

USS LST-70 earned five battle stars for World War II service

Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 1 July 1946, to Arctic Circle Exploration, Inc., Seattle, WA.

Specifications:

Displacement

1,625 t.(lt)

4,080 t.(fl) (sea-going draft w/1675 ton load)

2,366 t. (beaching displacement)

Length 328' o.a.

Beam 50'

Draft

light 2' 4" fwd, 7' 6" aft

sea-going 8' 3" fwd, 14' 1" aft

landing 3' 11" fwd, 9' 10" aft (landing w/500 ton load)

limiting 11' 2"

maximum navigation 14' 1"

Speed 11.6 kts. (trial)

Endurance 24,000 miles @ 9kts. while displacing 3960 tons

Complement

13 officers

104 enlisted

Troop Accommodations

16 officers

147 enlisted

Boats 2 LCVP

Cargo Capacity (varied with mission - payloads between 1600 and 1900 tons)

Typical loads

One Landing Craft Tank (LCT), tanks, wheeled and tracked vehicles, artillery, construction equipment and military supplies. A ramp or elevator forward allowed vehicles access to tank deck from main deck

Additional capacity included sectional pontoons carried on each side of vessel amidships, to either build Rhino Barges or use as causeways. Married to the bow ramp, the causeways would enabled payloads to be delivered ashore from deeper water or where a beachhead would not allow the vessel to be grounded forward after ballasting

Armament (varied with availability when each vessel was outfitted. Retro-fitting was accomplished throughout WWII. The ultimate armament design for United States vessels was

2 - Twin 40MM gun mounts w/Mk. 51 directors

4 - Single 40MM gun mounts

12 single 20MM gun mounts

Fuel Capacity

Diesel 4,300 Bbls

Propulsion

two General Motors 12-567A, 900hp Diesel engines

single Falk Main Reduction Gears

three Diesel-drive 100Kw 230V D.C. Ship's Service Generators

two propellers, 1,700shp

twin rudders

Click On Image For Full Size Image	Size	Image Description	Source
	188k	Reinforcements wade ashore from USS LST-353 on the shores of Empress Augusta Bay, Bougainville, 6 November 1943. Also present are USS LST-488 and USS LST-70. Note barrage balloons overhead. US National Archives Catalog # 80-G-202485 a US Navy photo now in the collections of the US National Archives.	US Naval History and Heritage Command
1016007001	430k	USS LST-70 participating in the invasion of Green Island, 15-20 February 1944, US National Archives Identifier 205584747, Local ID 26-G-04-25-44(2), US Coast Guard photo # 0425442	David Upton
	207k	Green Islands Invasion, February, 1944. Heavy equipment belonging to Navy Seabees is loaded on an LST at a Russell Islands Base, in preparation for the Green Islands Operation, February 12, 1944. Ships are (l-r): *LCT-330, LCT-370, USS LST-70, USS LST-220* and USS APc-50. Note trucks, Jeeps and Barrage Balloon. US National Archives photo # USMC 77989	US Naval History and Heritage Command
	34k	USS LST-70 and USS LST-895 beached, date and location unknown.	Al Lopinot PhM1/c USS LST-895
1016007005	388k	USS LST-70, at anchor off Okinawa in the transport area, 2 April 1945. Photo was taken from USS LST-782 US National Archives Identifier 205586459, Local Identifier 26-G-4428, US Coast Guard photo # 4428 by US Coast Guard photographer Queinan.	David Upton
	96k	USS LST-70 beached at Palawan, Philippines, date unknown	Steve Smith for his father Clyde Smith LST-7 17

USS LST-70
Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)

Commanding Officers
01	LCDR. Pollack, Augustus, USCGR	28 May 1943 - 1944
02	LT. Devins, Bernard P., USCG	1944 - 18 March 1945
03	LT. Shallow, William J., USCG	18 March 1945 - 1 April 1946


Courtesy Wolfgang Hechler and Ron Reeves

Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
LST Flotilla Five War Diary May 1944
LST Flotilla Five War Diary July 1944
The USS LST Ship Memorial
LST Home Port
State LST Chapters
United States LST Association

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This page is created by David W. Almond and maintained by Gary P. Priolo

Last Updated 9 June 2023