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USS Okinawa (LPH-3)

US US Navy

1962-1992

Timeline

DateEvent
Apr 1, 1960 Laid down
Aug 19, 1961 Launched
Apr 14, 1962 Commissioned
May 18, 1967 Deployment launched US Marines into the Ben Hai River Valley and into LZ Goose. Detachment of HMM-263 aboard. Special Landing Force Alpha Operation Beau Charger
Apr 4, 1968 Apollo 6 mission, 1st LPH as primary recovery ship, 370 miles north of Hawaii
Jun 1969 HMM-265 replaced HMM-362 onboard, replaced by HMM-165 in August, SLF helicopter squadrons HMMs 164 and 362 were rotated to Phu Bai in support of the 3rd MarDiv
Dec 13, 1970 At Subic Bay Naval Base, Philippines
Dec 25, 1970 Returned to San Diego, California after 7 month WESTPAC
Aug 7, 1971 Apollo 15 astronauts lifted aboard by helicopter with Soviet tug in target area
May 1972 HMM-164 from the 9th MEB arrived in support of the Vietnamese Marines, each ARG consisted of 4 H-53s (including 156656 ) , 14 H-46s and 4 UH-1Es
Oct 1973 Replaced the USS Tripoli LPH-10 in Subic Bay, (in the Pacific fleet there were only 3 LPHs for 5 squadrons), transferred all embarked MAU elements
Apr 5, 1974 Arrived at Subic Bay with elements of the 31st MAU that unloaded cargo for LPH turnover to the USS New Orleans LPH-11
Mar 1975 Underway from Subic Bay for the Gulf of Thailand
Apr 12, 1975 Operation Eagle Pull, in the Gulf of Thailand with US Marines CH-53 helicopters to evacuate personnel from Phnom Penh
May 3, 1975 Arrived at Subic Bay with 150 evacuees aboard from Phnom Penh
Jan 1980 WESTPAC, in place of USS New Orleans LPH-11, relieves USS Tripoli LPH-10
Dec 25, 1987 Bob Hope Christmas show onboard
Oct 12, 1990 Persian Gulf During Operation Desert Storm, UNREP with fleet oiler Andrew J. Higgins TAO 190 Operation Desert Shield/Storm
Jan 29, 1991 Marines capture Umm al Maradim Island, 12 miles off the coast of Kuwait
Nov 17, 1992 Decommissioned
Nov 17, 1992 Struck
Jun 6, 2002 Fate: sunk COMSUBPAC off Southern California