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USS Diamond Head (AE 19)

- decommissioned -


US Navy Photo, ca. 1952. From the AE 19 cruise book 1952.

USS DIAMOND HEAD was a MOUNT HOOD class ammunition ship and the first ship in the Navy named after the extinct volcano on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. Laid down as maritime commission C-2 hull, she was acquired by the Navy on March 10, 1945. Subsequently converted to an ammunition ship at Bethlehem Steel, Baltimore, Md., the DIAMOND HEAD was commissioned on August 9, 1945. Decommissioned after one year of service, the ship was laid up for five years until recommissioned on August 9, 1951. DIAMOND HEAD made several Mediterranean cruises and also served off Vietnam in 1967 and 1968. Both decommissioned and stricken from the Navy list on March 1, 1973, the DIAMOND HEAD was sold for scrapping on October 3, 1974.

General Characteristics:Awarded: April 4, 1943
Keel laid: December 12, 1944
Launched: February 3, 1945
Commissioned: August 9, 1945
Decommissioned: August 23, 1946
Recommissioned: August 9, 1951
Decommissioned: March 1, 1973
Builder: North Carolina Shipbuilding Co., Wilmington, N.C.
Propulsion system: Two boilers, one GE geared turbine, one shaft, 6,000 shaft horsepower
Length: 459.2 feet (139.7 meters)
Beam: 63 feet (19.2 meters)
Draft: 28.3 feet (8.6 meters)
Displacement: approx. 15,295 tons full load
Speed: 16.4 knots
Aircraft: helo platform only
Armament: two 3-inch/50-caliber guns
Crew: 23 Officers and 244 Enlisted


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Crew List:

This section contains the names of sailors who served aboard USS DIAMOND HEAD. It is no official listing but contains the names of sailors who submitted their information.


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USS DIAMOND HEAD Cruise Books:


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Accidents aboard USS DIAMOND HEAD:

DateWhereEvents
April 27, 1961Caribbean SeaUSS INDEPENDENCE (CVA 62) collides with USS DIAMOND HEAD. INDY is not damaged but two departments of the DIAMOND HEAD suffer leaks and she's holed above the waterline.


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