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NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive

USS LST-733


International Radio Call Sign:
November - Golf - Bravo - Zulu
 NGBZ
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons


Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - American Campaign Medal - Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal (3) - World War II Victory Medal
Bottom Row - Navy Occupation Service Medal (with Asia clasp) - Philippines Presidential Unit Citation - Philippines Liberation Medal (2)
LST-542 Class Tank Landing Ship:
  • Laid down, 16 January 1944 at Dravo Corp., Neville Island, Pittsburgh, PA.
  • Launched, 26 February 1944
  • Commissioned USS LST-733, 15 April 1944, LT. Thomas J. Tracy, USNR, in command
  • During World War II USS LST-733 was assigned to the Asiatic-Pacific Theater and participated in the following campaigns:

    Asiatic-Pacific Campaigns
    Campaign and Dates Campaign and Dates
    Leyte operation
    Leyte landings, 20 October and 19 to 29 November 1944     		Luzon operation
    Mindoro landings, 12 to 18 December 1944
    Okinawa Gunto operation
    Assault and occupation of Okinawa Gunto, 1 to 14 April 1945

  • Following service in the Southwest Pacific Area USS LST-733 was assigned to:
    LST Flotilla Sixteen, CAPT. N. W. Sears;
     LST Group Forty-Seven, CDR. L. A. Drexler USN (23);
     LST Division Ninety-Three
  • Following World War II USS LST-733 was assigned to Occupation service in the Far East from 29 September 1945 to 10 April 1946
  • Decommissioned, 28 June 1946
  • Struck from the Naval Register, 31 July 1946
  • Final disposition, sold, 17 September 1947, to Consolidated Builders, Inc., Seattle, WA for scrapping
  • USS LST-733 earned three battle stars for World War II service
    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 Contributed
    By
    LST-733 62k USS LST-733 entering San Francisco Bay, CA,, Spring 1946, upon her return to the United States from the Western Pacific. Note crewmen forward, waving at the photographer, and long "homeward bound" pennant trailing from her mast.
    US Navy photo NH 79102    		 US Naval Historical Center
    LST-461/662/672/723 75k Tank Landing Ships (LST) and a Barracks Ship (APB) moored together, 1945. The ships in this group include (from left to right): An unidentified LST (In the number range from LST-850 through LST-859); USS LST-461; USS Yavapai (APB-42); USS LST-662; USS LST-672 and USS LST-733.
    US Navy photo 80-G-350133 now in the collection of the US National Archives         		US Naval History and Heritage Command Center
    USS LST-733
    Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships (DANFS)
    Commanding Officers
    01LT. Tracy, Thomas J., USNR15 April 1944 - September 1945
    02LT. Kay, James R., USNRSeptember 1945 - December 1945
    03LTjg. Alderson, Edwin G., USNRDecember 1945 - 28 June 1946
    Courtesy Wolfgang Hechler and Ron Reeves
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation - Navy Log
    Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
    The USS LST Ship Memorial
    LST Homeport
    State LST Chapters
    United States LST Association
    Back To The Navsource Photo Archives Main Page Back To The Amphibious Ship Type Index Back To The Tank Landing Ship (LST) Photo Index
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    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    All pages copyright NavSource Naval History
    Last Updated 20 March 2015