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USS Harlan County (LST 1196)

USS HARLAN COUNTY was the 18^th NEWPORT - class Tank Landing Ship and was last homeported at Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Va.

HARLAN COUNTY was decommissioned on April 14, 1995, and was leased to the Spanish Navy the same day. Since then, HARLAN COUNTY is serving with the Spanish Navy as SPS PIZARRO (L 42).

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Crew List:

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

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• Click here to see which USS HARLAN COUNTY memorabilia are currently for sale on ebay.

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USS HARLAN COUNTY Cruise Books:

• UNITAS and WATC Cruise Book 1986
• Mediterranean Cruise Book 1988

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USS HARLAN COUNTY History:

The keel of USS HARLAN COUNTY was laid at the National Steel and Shipbuilding Company in San Diego, California, on November 7, 1970. She was launched on July 24, 1971, sponsored by Mrs. Richard Capen, wife of Assistant Secretary of Defense for Legislative Affairs Richard G. Capen Jr., and commissioned on April 8, 1972, with Commander Vernon C. Smith as her first commanding officer. She was assigned to the Amphibious Force, Atlantic Fleet, and Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Virginia, became her home port.

After commissioning, HARLAN COUNTY remained on the West Coast for fitting out and initial work. She completed work at Long Beach Naval Shipyard on May 23, 1972, and subsequently began the passage to the Atlantic Fleet. The ship transited the Panama Canal and continued through the Gulf of Mexico. During a stop at New Orleans, Louisiana, she delivered three Inshore Patrol Craft and five River Patrol Boats intended for Coastal River Division 22. HARLAN COUNTY continued to Virginia and arrived at Little Creek on July 3.

Only a few weeks later, she began her first transatlantic voyage. HARLAN COUNTY departed Little Creek on July 25, 1972, carrying twelve sailing boats belonging to the United States Olympic sailing team. The sailing events of the 1972 Summer Olympics were held at Kiel, West Germany, and the LST transported the boats across the Atlantic for use by the American competitors. After completing the mission to Kiel, HARLAN COUNTY eventually returned to the western Atlantic.

On October 1, 1972, HARLAN COUNTY arrived at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for shakedown training. The approximately four-week training period tested the newly commissioned ship and crew in engineering, communications, weapons, damage control and other operational areas. After returning to the United States, HARLAN COUNTY conducted further amphibious training in the Chesapeake Bay and Onslow Bay areas.

On February 2, 1973, HARLAN COUNTY entered Philadelphia Naval Shipyard for post-shakedown availability. Repairs, alterations and corrections identified during her initial operating period continued until March 8. The ship then resumed training and preparation for her first regular Mediterranean deployment.

HARLAN COUNTY departed for the Mediterranean on June 7, 1973, and joined the United States Sixth Fleet under Amphibious Squadron Six with elements of Battalion Landing Team 2/6 embarked. During the deployment, she conducted amphibious exercises at several established Mediterranean training areas, including Carboneras, Spain; Tympaki, Crete; Porto Scudo, Sardinia; Saros Bay, Turkey; and Gytheio, Greece. She also participated in Exercise Deep Furrow 73.

The deployment coincided with the Arab-Israeli war that began on October 6, 1973. The United States and Soviet Union increased their respective naval postures in the Mediterranean as fighting developed between Israel, Egypt and Syria. HARLAN COUNTY was part of the Sixth Fleet amphibious force available during the crisis. Other American amphibious ships operating in the theater included USS MOUNT WHITNEY (LCC 20), USS GUADALCANAL (LPH 7), USS AUSTIN (LPD 4), USS NASHVILLE (LPD 13), USS FORT SNELLING (LSD 30), USS PENSACOLA (LSD 38), USS MANITOWOC (LST 1180) and USS SUMTER (LST 1181).

After returning to the United States, HARLAN COUNTY resumed Atlantic Fleet operations. During 1974, she participated in midshipman training that included visits to Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Nassau, Bahamas. She also took part in Exercise Solid Shield 74. On October 30, 1974, HARLAN COUNTY was photographed at Norfolk, Virginia, alongside USS NEWPORT (LST 1179), with her bow ramp extended to the pier.

HARLAN COUNTY began her next Mediterranean deployment on February 25, 1975, with Battalion Landing Team 3/8 embarked. She reported to the Sixth Fleet on March 8 and conducted further amphibious training in the Mediterranean. Documented landing areas included Carboneras, Spain; Brindisi, Italy; and Porto Scudo, Sardinia. She also participated in Exercise Dawn Patrol 75.

USS FAIRFAX COUNTY (LST 1193) departed Little Creek on July 28, 1975, to relieve HARLAN COUNTY in the Mediterranean and arrived at Rota, Spain, on August 8. HARLAN COUNTY subsequently returned to the United States.

On September 22, 1975, the ship sailed for Onslow Beach, North Carolina, where she conducted five days of amphibious training for approximately 250 Marine Corps second lieutenants from The Basic School at Quantico, Virginia. The officers received practical instruction in amphibious embarkation, movement of equipment and ship-to-shore operations. From October 9 through October 16, HARLAN COUNTY also represented the Navy in Washington, D.C., during events connected with the bicentennial of the United States Navy.

During 1976, HARLAN COUNTY continued Atlantic Fleet amphibious training, maintenance and readiness activity and later returned to Mediterranean duty. By March 1977, HARLAN COUNTY was operating with the Sixth Fleet. From March 19 through March 25, she participated in Exercise National Week XXII as part of the Blue Force Amphibious Group. Other ships in the group included USS GUAM (LPH 9), USS MOUNT BAKER (AE 34), USS FORT SNELLING and USS VALDEZ (FF 1096). The exercise combined air, surface, antisubmarine and amphibious activity involving Sixth Fleet units. Participating forces assembled at Augusta Bay, Sicily, for the post-exercise critique on March 26.

Later that year, HARLAN COUNTY entered a significant maintenance period. On October 12, 1977, she was photographed in Dry Dock No. 8 at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, Virginia, together with USS IWO JIMA (LPH 2). The dry-dock period formed part of the maintenance required before the ship returned to regular amphibious operations.

During September 1978, HARLAN COUNTY took part in Northern Wedding 78, one of the major North Atlantic Treaty Organization maritime exercises of the Cold War. The exercise tested allied ability to protect Atlantic reinforcement routes and move forces into northern Europe. The American amphibious element included USS MOUNT WHITNEY, USS FRANCIS MARION (LPA 249), USS RALEIGH (LPD 1), USS AUSTIN, USS SHREVEPORT (LPD 12), USS GUADALCANAL, USS PLYMOUTH ROCK (LSD 29), USS ANCHORAGE (LSD 36), USS MANITOWOC, USS SUMTER, USS SPARTANBURG COUNTY (LST 1192), USS LA MOURE COUNTY (LST 1194) and HARLAN COUNTY.

The exercise began in early September and included amphibious operations around the Shetland Islands followed by additional activity connected with reinforcement of Denmark and the wider Bold Guard exercise sequence. HARLAN COUNTY transported Marines, vehicles and equipment during operations intended to practice reinforcement of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's northern European area.

HARLAN COUNTY again served in the Mediterranean during 1979. On September 19, the Dutch submarine TONIJN suffered serious machinery-space fires while operating in the region. The submarine's batteries were heavily depleted and outside assistance became necessary. HARLAN COUNTY was dispatched from Cartagena, Spain, to provide towing assistance as the disabled submarine was moved toward Gibraltar.

Northern European operations again formed part of the ship's schedule in 1980. From September 10 through September 24, HARLAN COUNTY participated in Exercise Teamwork 80, a large multinational maritime exercise involving tens of thousands of personnel, numerous ships and several hundred aircraft. Exercise areas included the North Atlantic, English Channel, North Sea and Norwegian Sea.

American amphibious ships involved in Teamwork 80 included USS IWO JIMA, USS SAIPAN (LHA 2), USS PONCE (LPD 15), USS EL PASO (LKA 117), USS HERMITAGE (LSD 34), USS SPIEGEL GROVE (LSD 32), USS BOULDER (LST 1190), USS NEWPORT, USS TRENTON (LPD 14), USS CHARLESTON (LKA 113) and USS SAGINAW (LST 1188), together with HARLAN COUNTY and other naval units. Marines of the 4th Marine Amphibious Brigade formed the main American landing force for the exercise.

HARLAN COUNTY returned to the Mediterranean in 1981 as part of Mediterranean Amphibious Ready Group 2-81. The deployed 34th Marine Amphibious Unit operated from June 4 through November 10. The amphibious group consisted of USS GUADALCANAL, USS PONCE, USS PORTLAND (LSD 37), USS SUMTER and HARLAN COUNTY. The Marine force comprised Battalion Landing Team 3/8, Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 263 reinforced, and Marine Amphibious Unit Service Support Group 34.

During July, the amphibious group conducted Italian port visits while maintaining a readiness requirement that kept the force within approximately 96 hours' steaming time of Lebanon. HARLAN COUNTY was among the ships operating in Italian waters during this period, and later in the deployment she made a documented visit to Livorno. In September 1981, the group participated in Exercise Display Determination 81. On September 19, HARLAN COUNTY operated off Doganbey, Turkey, during an amphibious assault phase. Marine amphibious vehicles formed assault waves from the ships and moved toward the Turkish shore. The exercise combined allied naval, air and ground forces in the eastern Mediterranean. By late October, the amphibious group was moving west toward Rota, Spain, and the 34th Marine Amphibious Unit completed its deployment on November 10.

During 1982, HARLAN COUNTY underwent maintenance, inspections, training and preparations for subsequent operations. In May 1983, HARLAN COUNTY deployed again to the Mediterranean with Amphibious Squadron Eight and the 24th Marine Amphibious Unit. The amphibious group consisted of USS IWO JIMA, USS AUSTIN, USS PORTLAND, USS EL PASO and HARLAN COUNTY. The Marine force included Battalion Landing Team 1/8, Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 162 and Marine Amphibious Unit Service Support Group 24.

The deployment took place during the continuing multinational operation in Lebanon. Following Israel's 1982 invasion and the departure of Palestine Liberation Organization forces from Beirut, American, French, Italian and British troops had been deployed as part of a multinational force. The United States Marine contingent was concentrated around Beirut International Airport, while Navy amphibious ships remained offshore to provide transport, logistics, aviation support and an evacuation capability.

The 24th Marine Amphibious Unit began moving ashore at the end of May and formally assumed its multinational-force responsibilities on May 30. HARLAN COUNTY remained part of the supporting amphibious force offshore. Through the summer of 1983, fighting among Lebanese factions intensified and American positions increasingly came under artillery, mortar and small-arms fire. On October 23, 1983, a suicide truck bomb destroyed the headquarters building occupied by Battalion Landing Team 1/8 at Beirut International Airport. The attack killed 241 United States military personnel, including 220 Marines. HARLAN COUNTY and the other amphibious ships remained off Lebanon as rescue, recovery and reinforcement operations followed.

As the scheduled relief of the 24th Marine Amphibious Unit approached, units began withdrawing from positions ashore. Early on November 8, Company A of Battalion Landing Team 1/8 left its position and embarked in HARLAN COUNTY. The company remained aboard for the rest of the deployment. By late on November 18, the 24th Marine Amphibious Unit had completed reembarkation. HARLAN COUNTY, USS AUSTIN and USS EL PASO then departed the Beirut area and proceeded westward. Following turnover activity at Rota, the force crossed the Atlantic and returned to the Norfolk area in early December.

In April 1984, HARLAN COUNTY participated in Exercise Ocean Venture 84 in the Caribbean and western Atlantic. On April 20, she was photographed underway in the Caribbean with pontoon causeways carried aft. Landing craft assigned to the ship were used during the exercise to recover and tow supplies that had been dropped into the sea, demonstrating the logistical functions performed by the ship in addition to conventional amphibious assault operations.

During 1985, HARLAN COUNTY remained active in the Atlantic Fleet training cycle. In May, she exercised with USS FAIRFAX COUNTY in the Virginia Capes operating area.

On July 22, 1986, approximately 200 Marines embarked in HARLAN COUNTY at Morehead City, North Carolina, for a combined Unitas and West African Training Cruise deployment. The annual Unitas program brought United States naval forces together with South American navies for maritime and amphibious training, while the West African portion of the cruise involved visits and military exchanges with countries along the African coast. HARLAN COUNTY carried the Marine contingent and supported amphibious demonstrations, professional exchanges and combined training throughout the extended deployment. The ship returned to Atlantic Fleet training and maintenance during 1987 and prepared for another Mediterranean deployment the following year.

On March 1, 1988, the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit began a six-month deployment with Amphibious Squadron Eight. The group consisted of USS IWO JIMA, USS PONCE, USS HERMITAGE, HARLAN COUNTY and USS EL PASO. The Marine force comprised Battalion Landing Team 1/8, Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 365 reinforced and Marine Expeditionary Unit Service Support Group 26. The amphibious group crossed the Atlantic and reached Rota, Spain, in March for turnover with the force it was relieving. It subsequently conducted amphibious training at Sierra del Retin in southern Spain before moving into the Mediterranean. The deployment included further amphibious training in Italy and other Mediterranean operating areas. The 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit remained deployed through August 30, after which HARLAN COUNTY returned to the United States and resumed operations from Little Creek.

In May 1989, HARLAN COUNTY participated in Exercise Solid Shield 89. During the amphibious phase on May 12 and May 13, she operated with Amphibious Group Two. Ships associated with the group included USS NASHVILLE, USS PENSACOLA, USS CHARLESTON, USS SAGINAW and USS SUMTER. The exercise tested joint amphibious, maritime and mine-warfare procedures along the Virginia and North Carolina coasts.

On July 18, 1989, a Marine detachment drawn principally from 2nd Battalion, 2nd Marines, together with an assault-amphibian element, embarked in HARLAN COUNTY at Morehead City for West African Training Cruise 89. The ship departed the same day. HARLAN COUNTY visited Conakry, Guinea, from July 28 through July 30 and Freetown, Sierra Leone, from July 30 through August 1. The deployment subsequently included visits to Monrovia, Liberia; Lagos, Nigeria; Cotonou, Benin; Libreville, Gabon; Sao Tome; Pointe-Noire, Congo; and Matadi, Zaire. Marines conducted demonstrations and training with host-country military personnel, while embarked engineering personnel carried out civic-action projects. West African Training Cruise 89 concluded on September 7.

In 1990, HARLAN COUNTY participated in Unitas XXXI, operating around South America with a United States task group that included USS JOSEPHUS DANIELS (CG 27), USS HAYLER (DD 997), USS STEPHEN W. GROVES (FFG 29) and USS GREENLING (SSN 614). The task group conducted successive exercise phases with the armed forces of South American countries. Photographic records document HARLAN COUNTY at Talcahuano, Chile, and during the task group's passage through the Strait of Magellan. She subsequently operated along the Argentine coast and during the Brazilian phase, including activities associated with Rio de Janeiro. Training during the deployment included amphibious operations, communications, tactical maneuvering and other forms of combined naval training.

HARLAN COUNTY returned to Southwest Asia in 1991. The 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit deployed from September 19, 1991, through March 16, 1992, aboard an amphibious ready group composed of USS SAIPAN, USS NASHVILLE and HARLAN COUNTY. The deployment took place several months after the coalition campaign that expelled Iraqi forces from Kuwait, while American naval and Marine forces remained in the Persian Gulf region for postwar operations and training.

Mine-clearing operations were still required because Iraqi forces had laid extensive minefields during the conflict. On November 21, 1991, USS GUARDIAN (MCM 5) conducted a lead-through for USS SAIPAN, USS NASHVILLE and HARLAN COUNTY into Kuwait City Harbor. The evolution allowed the amphibious ships to enter through waters in which the mine threat remained an operational concern. HARLAN COUNTY continued with the deployment into 1992 and returned to the United States when the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit deployment ended in March.

During 1993, HARLAN COUNTY continued Atlantic and Caribbean operations. On May 1, she was at Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico, during Exercise Ocean Venture 93, where her bow ramp was used to move vehicles between ship and shore facilities. During the year's Atlantic operations she also supported mine-countermeasures vessels returning from overseas by providing astern refueling during their transit. Later in 1993, HARLAN COUNTY was assigned to an international mission connected with the political crisis in Haiti. Haitian president Jean-Bertrand Aristide had been removed by a military coup in September 1991. The Governors Island Agreement of July 1993 provided for Aristide's return and for international assistance in reforming Haitian military and police institutions.

HARLAN COUNTY embarked an advance contingent of American and Canadian personnel and their equipment for the planned international mission. Contemporary records identify 193 American and 25 Canadian military personnel aboard, including engineers, trainers and supporting troops. Engineering equipment, vehicles and other material intended for the mission were also loaded. HARLAN COUNTY arrived at Port-au-Prince on October 11, 1993. A hostile crowd gathered in the port area, and Haitian military and police authorities did not provide the security arrangements expected under the agreement. Threats were made against people in the harbor area, and the embarked American and Canadian force remained aboard. United States authorities decided not to attempt a forced disembarkation. HARLAN COUNTY remained off Port-au-Prince and withdrew on October 12 without landing the contingent. She was subsequently directed to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The failure of the deployment was followed by renewed international pressure and sanctions against Haiti, and a separate multinational intervention was eventually mounted in September 1994.

HARLAN COUNTY began preparations for another Mediterranean deployment during early 1994. On March 1, during at-sea workups for the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit, an Amphibious Assault Vehicle operating from HARLAN COUNTY sank. Two Marines were recovered alive and were reported in good condition, but a third Marine drowned. A Navy Judge Advocate General Manual investigation and a mishap review were initiated.

The ship departed Norfolk on May 20, 1994, with the other ships of the amphibious group and proceeded to Morehead City, North Carolina, where the Marine force embarked. The 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit's formal deployment ran from May 21 through November 3. Amphibious Squadron Two consisted of USS GUAM, USS AUSTIN, USS TORTUGA (LSD 46) and HARLAN COUNTY. The Marine force numbered approximately 1,900 personnel and included Battalion Landing Team 3/2, Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 365 reinforced and Marine Service Support Group 26.

The group crossed the Atlantic and reached Plymouth, England, at the beginning of June. The amphibious force then operated off the Normandy coast in connection with ceremonies commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Allied landings of June 1944. On June 5 and June 6, the group operated off Pointe du Hoc before moving to Cherbourg. Turnover with the outgoing Mediterranean amphibious force, which included USS INCHON (LPH 12), took place at sea on June 11. The amphibious group subsequently moved into the eastern Mediterranean and continued toward the Suez Canal. After operating in the Souda Bay area of Crete during June, the force passed southward through the canal on June 28 and June 29 and entered the Red Sea.

During July, the amphibious group operated off eastern Africa in connection with the continuing international military presence related to Somalia. The 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit conducted Exercise Noble Shield from July 11 through July 22 while the group remained in the region. The force subsequently returned north through the Red Sea and Suez Canal and resumed Mediterranean training. In August, it participated in Tunisian Phiblex 94, followed by operations involving elements of the Marine Expeditionary Unit in the Black Sea. HARLAN COUNTY is directly documented at anchor at Villefranche, France, on August 13.

During September, the amphibious group participated in Exercise Betacom in Spain from September 5 through September 15. This was followed by additional Mediterranean operations, including Exercise Dynamic Guard from September 28 through October 16. These exercises involved allied naval and Marine forces and took place while the wars in the former Yugoslavia remained the principal security crisis affecting southern Europe. After completing the final exercise phases and turnover preparations, the amphibious force began its return across the Atlantic. The 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit deployment ended on November 3, 1994. HARLAN COUNTY subsequently returned to Little Creek and entered the final months of her United States Navy career.

By this time, the Navy was steadily withdrawing the NEWPORT-class tank landing ships from active service as newer amphibious ships assumed their functions. HARLAN COUNTY was selected for transfer to Spain. USS HARLAN COUNTY was decommissioned on April 14, 1995, after slightly more than twenty-three years of commissioned service. On the same day, she was transferred on loan to the Spanish Navy and commissioned as the Spanish landing ship PIZARRO (L 42). The United States retained ownership during the initial loan period. On April 27, 2000, the former HARLAN COUNTY was sold outright to Spain. Her name was subsequently removed from the United States Naval Vessel Register on July 23, 2002.

PIZARRO remained in Spanish naval service until December 14, 2012, when she was formally decommissioned. The former HARLAN COUNTY was later offered for disposal. A contract for her sale for dismantling was concluded in January 2016, and the ship was dismantled in Spain during 2016 and into early 2017.

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USS HARLAN COUNTY Image Gallery:

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