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USS FREDERICK was the sixth ship in the NEWPORT - class of Tank Landing Ships and the last ship in her class decommissioned. FREDERICK was last homeported in Pearl Harbor, HI. Two months after decommissioning, the ship was recommissioned as ARM USUMACINTA (A 142) in the Mexican Navy.
USS FREDERICK was the second ship in the Navy to honor the city of Frederick, Maryland. A city and county in Maryland, Frederick was first settled by the Germans and was named in honor of Frederick Calvert, Sixth Lord Baltimore, Proprietor of the Colony of Maryland.
General Characteristics: | Awarded: July 15, 1966 |
Keel laid: April 13, 1968 | |
Launched: March 8, 1969 | |
Commissioned: April 11, 1970 | |
Decommissioned: October 5, 2002 | |
Builder: National Steel and Shipbuilding Company, San Diego, Calif. | |
Propulsion system: 6 diesels; 16,000 horsepower; bow thruster | |
Propellers: two and one bow thruster screw | |
Length: 522 feet (159 meters) | |
Length over derrick arms: 561 feet (171 meters) | |
Beam: 70 feet (21.2 meters) | |
Draft: 17,4 feet (5.3 meters) | |
Displacement: approx. 8500 tons | |
Speed: 20 knots | |
Aircraft: helicopter platform only | |
Armament: one | |
Crew: 14 officers, 210 enlisted and approx. 350 embarked troops |
Crew List:
This section contains the names of sailors who served aboard USS FREDERICK. It is no official listing but contains the names of sailors who submitted their information.
USS FREDERICK Cruise Books:
Short History of USS FREDERICK:
The Tank Landing Ship FREDERICK was built at National Steel and Shipbuilding Company in San Diego, California. Her keel was laid on April 13, 1968. Launched on March 8, 1969, she was commissioned on April 11, 1970 at Long Beach Naval Shipyard, California.
After commissioning, FREDERICK was homeported in San Diego, Ca. She made over thirteen major deployments to the Western Pacific and Far East. She participated in the Vietnam withdrawal operation in 1970 and the South Vietnam refugee evacuation of 1974. She also deployed in support of operation Desert Shield and Desert Storm. USS FREDERICK was part of the 13 ship amphibious task force that departed on December 1, 1990 for the Persian Gulf in support of Operation Desert Shield. Upon arriving in the Gulf of Oman, FREDERICK along with various amphibious ships from the Atlantic and Pacific Fleets conducted amphibious exercises in preparation for an amphibious landing, if needed, in Kuwait. Upon commencement of Operation Desert Storm, USS FREDERICK and various elements of COMPHIBGRU TWO and COMPHIBGRU THREE headed into the Persian Gulf and conducted one of the greatest mock amphibious invasions in modern warfare. That operation pinned down 15 Iraqi Divisions, thus ensuring a quick and decisive victory for the allied forces. FREDERICK was also involved in the only actual amphibious landing of the Gulf War.
USS FREDERICK also conducted Operation Sea Angel, humanitarian assistance for Bangladesh. In 1994, FREDERICK deployed to Somalia in support of humanitary aid operations.
USS FREDERICK was transferred to the Naval Reserve Force in January 1995 and changed homeport to Pearl Harbor, HI. As the only amphibious ship in Pearl Harbor, she conducted bilateral exercises with South East Asian armed forces, continuous training exercises with the United States Marine Corps's and was on standby to conduct humanitarian assistance / disaster relief missions, throughout the Pacific.
USS FREDERICK Image Gallery:
The photos below were taken by Vinson Miller and show the FREDERICK unloading elements of the 1st Battalion 12th Marines at San Diego, Calif., in early 2002.