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NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive

USS Sussex (AK-213)


International Radio Call Sign:
November - Xray - Papa - Foxtrot
 NXPF
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons


Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - American Campaign Medal - World War II Victory Medal - National Defense Service Medal
Bottom Row - Korean Service Medal (3) - United Nations Service Medal - Republic of Korea War Service Medal

USS Sussex (AK-213) was initially manned by the US Coast Guard
Alamosa Class Cargo Ship
  • Laid down, 3 October 1944, as a Maritime Commission type (C1-M-AV1) hull, under Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 2167), at Leathem D. Smith Shipbuilding Co., Sturgeon Bay, WI.
  • Launched, 3 February 1945
  • Acquired by the US Navy in July 1945
  • Commissioned USS Sussex (AK-213), date unknown, with a Coast Guard crew
  • Operated by the US Coast Guard until spring 1946
  • Decommissioned, 23 May 1946, and returned to the Maritime Commission the same day, for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, James River Group. Lee Hall, VA.
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 5 June 1946
  • Reacquired by the US Navy, 27 February 1947
  • Commissioned, USS Sussex (AK-213), 27 May 1947, LCDR. John L. Hunter, USN, in command
  • During the Korean War USS Sussex participated in the following campaigns:

    Korean War Campaigns
    Campaign and Dates Campaign and Dates
    UN Summer-Fall Offensive
    12 to 16 August 1951
    31 August to 1 September 1951
    26 September to 3 October 1951
    4 to 6 and 19 to 27 October 1951     		Korean Defense Summer-Fall 1952
    24 to 28 July 1952
    11 to 13 September 1952
    6 to 10 and 19 to 21 November 1952
    Second Korean Winter
    28 November to 5 December 1951
    8 to 11 and 16 to 19 January 1952     		 

  • Decommissioned, 5 December 1959, at Yokosuka, Japan
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 1 January 1960
  • USS Sussex earned three battle stars for Korean War service
  • Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 27 July 1960, to Hugo Neu Steel Products Corp., New York. N.Y.
    Specifications:
    Displacement 2,382 t.(lt) 7,450 t.(fl)
    Length 338' 6"
    Beam 50'
    Draft 21' 1"
    Speed 11.5 kts.
    Complement
    Officers 15
    Enlisted 70
    Largest Boom Capacity 30 t.
    Cargo Capacity 3.945 DWT
    non refrigerated 177,515 Cu ft.
    Armament
    one single 3"/50 cal dual purpose gun mount
    six single 20mm AA gun mounts
    Fuel Capacity Diesel 6,300 Bbls
    Propulsion
    one Nordberg TSM6 Diesel engine
    two Diesel-drive 250Kw 120V/240V D.C. Ship's Service Generators
    single propeller, 1,700shp
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		Size Image Description Source
    Coastal Sentry 306k Somerset (AK-212) and Sussex (AK-213), prior to Navy acceptance, in the ice is at Leathem D. Smith Shipbuilding Co., Sturgeon Bay, WI., winter 1945.
    Courtesy Door County Maritime Museum    		 Julia Cosgrovve, courtesy
    Coastal Sentry
    09531506    		 52k Somerset (AK-212) and Sussex (AK-213), prior to Navy acceptance, in the ice is at Leathem D. Smith Shipbuilding Co., Sturgeon Bay, WI., winter 1945.
    Bowling Green University - Historical Collection of the Great Lakes    		 John Spivey
    Sussex 68k USS Sussex (AK-213) at anchor, probably in San Francisco Bay, circa 1946.
    Photo available for purchase from ©Nobe Smith, Atlantic Fleet Sales, Box 6202, Norfolk, VA 23508 All Rights Reserved    		 Rob Wade for his grandfather W.R. Crickman GM3/c USS Sussex
    Sussex 88k A barge loaded with bombs siting alongside USS Sussex (AK-213), 1952, location unknown. Photo by Harold Simpson, Gunners Mate, deceased USS Sussex Rob Wade for his grandfather W.R. Crickman GM3/c USS Sussex
    Sussex 52k USS Sussex (AK-213) gun crew (GM3 W.R. Crickman far right), 1952, Japan. Photo by Harold Simpson, Gunners Mate, deceased USS Sussex Rob Wade for his grandfather W.R. Crickman GM3/c USS Sussex
    Sussex 128k USS Sussex (AK-213) underway, location unknown, 27 March 1953.
    US National Archives, RG-80-G, photo # 80-G-1078412 a US Navy photo now in the collections of the US National Archives, courtesy Shipscribe.com.    		 Mike Green
    Sussex 105k USS Sussex (AK-213) souvenir ashtray, 1951-52, Japan and Korea. Tommy Trampp
    USS Sussex (AK-213)
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Commanding Officers
    02LCDR. Hunter, John Lee, USN27 May 1947 - 17 October 1947
    03LCDR. Carl, Edward Franklin, USN17 October 1947 - 15 October 1948
    04CDR. Branch, Alvin Deon, USN (USNA 1951)15 October 1948 - 25 July 1949
    05LCDR. Weiler, John Sanborn25 July 1949 - August 1951
    Courtesy Wolfgang Hechler and Ron Reeves
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation - Navy Log
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    All pages copyright NavSource Naval History
    Last Updated 1 April 2022