USS Serpens (AK-97)

History of USS Serpens (AK-97)

The USS Serpens was the 18th Crater-class cargo ship built by the Maritime Commission for use by the US Navy during World War II. She is classified as EC2-S-C1 (EC2 = Emergency Cargo, Type 2 and S = Steam Propulsion) and is equipped with a propeller. A Liberty, she was commissioned in San Diego in May 1943. Comprising a total of 62 ships, the class was the largest freighter ever built for warmany believed it belonged to the stars in the skyhence the star or constellation name. Arguably, the logistical support provided by ships like the Snake won World War II.

By contrast, the Japanese military had poor logistical support for its soldiers throughout the war, with many starving to death in places like Guadalcanal. The Imperial soldier was called upon to fight American fighter jetsa soldier on a par with his countrymen, but who often provided military ammunition, medical supplies and food (albeit in rations at times), and even came via the occasional mail call. received better care.

The Liberty was 441 feet long and 57 feet wide. They used a 2,500-horsepower steam engine to push her into the water at 11 knots, which is about 11.5 miles per hour. The range of these ships is about 17,000 miles.

Crew cabins are located amidships, while cargo is installed in one of the five available cargo holds - three forward of the engine room and two aft. Each vessel can carry up to 10,800 deadweight tons and 4,380 net tons - an amount of space effectively available for cargo and/or passengers.

In late December 1944, Serpens began loading in Wellington and ended in Auckland, New Zealand. She returned to the Solomon Islands on 16 January 1945. Late on the night of January 29, 1945, the Serpent dropped anchor at Lunga Beach, Guadalcanal, a port she knew very well at the time. The commanding officer - Lieutenant Colonel Stinson - went ashore with another officer and six crew members. Loading continued into the night, as usual.

The practice was designed to allow men to work at night, away from the heat of the day, while still adhering to the war schedule. The remaining 198 Serpens crew members and 57 members of the Army Loading Team loaded the ship with cargo such as ammunition, depth charges and general cargo supplies, as she had done many times before.

During this time, the USS Serpens suddenly exploded.

The blast was so powerful that an Army soldier on the beach and a public health surgeon - Dr. Levine - were killed on board. After the explosion, only the bow was seen. The rest of the ship had completely disintegrated, and the bow soon sank.

Only two sailors on board survived the accident - SN 1/C Kelsie Kemp and SN 1/C George Kennedy - and escaped the bosun's hole. According to witnesses, the headset exploded and the sky filled with tracers. Part of the ship ended up in the waters of the entire port. Ships searched for survivors, finding only debris, body parts and dead fish. Fire and oil covered the water, and everyone was shocked and stunned by the slowly sinking prow of the giant snake.

No one knows if this was an accident or an enemy attack, but after a lengthy investigation it was classified as unknown, although it was not sunk by the enemy on June 10, 1949. The loss of Serpens remains the largest single disaster ever recorded on the U.S. coast, according to the Guard.

The military buried the remains of 250 people in the Guadalcanal cemetery of all services. In 1949, as part of a repatriation program, the remains of the snake incident were recovered on a large scale, as all remains were of unidentified war dead. The chosen resting place is Arlington National Cemetery in Washington, D.C., in the 34th arrondissement at MacArthur Circle.

All remains were placed in 52 coffins and buried in 28 graves.

Every year in America we celebrate Memorial Day and our culture honors its brave and dead by showcasing films that are brave and brave, but it's easy to forget how many people died in WW2, like on the snake and The dead in the army Serpens are the stevedores assigned to them on the hard, dirty and dangerous jobs. USS Serpens and her brave crew were awarded Battle Stars during World War II.

May they rest in peace. Crew of the Serpent:

Edwin A. Ables EM2 USCGR

John C. Aiken III LT USCGR

Roy G. Anderson PHM2 USCGR

Edwin F. Antkowiak COX USCGR

Lawrence L Arndt CPL USA

Harry E. Aro WT1 USCG

Clifford D Ashby AS USCGR

George C. Auble LTJG USCGR

Woodward S. Babcock GM3 USCGR

Walter E. Baginski PFC USA

Charles E. Baillargeon TEC5 USA

Edward A. Baker MACH USCG

Jacob Barer S1 USCGR

Charles R. Barnhouse S1 USCGR

American Robert J Barrett PFC

American Leland C Barrick PFC

Alec Beskosty TEC 5 USA

Joseph Bielinski S1 USCGR

Edwin L. Boos PFC USCGR

Derious F Borton JR PFC USA

Billy L Boyd SK1 USCG

Lester L. Brandlen S1 USCGR

Gerald C. Breen F2 USCGR

Alfred W. Brieschke TEC5 USCGR

Chester Brooks ST2 USCGR

James M. Broshear QM3 USCGR

Clarence M. Buchanan PFC USA

Leo H. Burke S2 ??????USCGR

Clifton C. Burks PVT USA

Keith D. Burns S2 USCGR

Junior W Butler F1 USCGR

Raymond F. Callahan S1 USCGR

Gilbert J Camarlinghi S2 USCGR

Anthony Cambria S2 USCGR

Louis S Carey S1 USCGR

James G Carmichael TEC5 USCGR

Charles E Carl S2 USCGR

Peter A. Cassaris S1 USCGR

Pete Catgenova S2 USCGR

Philip R Cervantez CM3 USCGR

James E Chadwick MM2 USCGR

Leslie E Chambers S2 USCGR

Fred L. Childs SSGT USA

Frank J. Ciancio S1 USCGR

Joseph Cope S1 USCGR

James V Cote S1 USCGR

American Howard R Cotton PFC

William Cowhey S1 USCGR

Charles E Craft S1 USCGR

Lawrence F. Creech S2 USCGR

Lovell R. Crook S1 USCG

Ranard M. Crowe S1 USCGR

Arden O Cummings MM1 USCG

Albert B Curtis F1 USCGR

Fritze O ??????Dahlbrg PVT USA

John C. Daly S1 USCGR

John A. Dancisak S1 USCGR

James E. Davis TEC4 USA

Max E Davis ENS USCGR

Clarence W Label S2 USCGR

Howard E. Day Jr. S1 USCGR

John C. Dedmon Jr. RDM3 USCGR

Henry K. Deermer S2 USCGR

Samuel DeGaetano S1 USCGR

Robert M. Degreve S2 USCGR

Marvin Derouen S1 USCGR

George L. Dickerson STM1 USCGR

Lee H. Diehl S1 USCGR

Harold C. Distel F1 USCGR

Homer A. Dix Jr. S2 USCGR

William C. Doherty S1 USCGR

Edward J Donato CM3 USCGR

Donald R. Donovan S1 USCGR

James Drago S2 USCGR

William C. Dunn S1 USCGR

Edmund J. Durso COX USCGR

Robert A Ostertag F1 USCGR

Gustave F. Eckart COX USCGR

American Billy G Elam PFC

Sylvan B. Elsasser Jr. S1 USCGR

Joseph D. Faust COX USCGR

Richard M Feutz US PFC

John Fidurski S1 USCGR

Ira V Fletchr S1 USCGR

Murray C Flower HA1 USCGR

Fieldon B Forkner EM3 USCGR

Warren L. Fox CM2 USCGR

Glenn B. Frank PVT USA

Roger W Fregia S2 USCGR

Jay F French S1 USCGR

Ralph C. Fritz S1 USCGR

Lewis L Fulda PFC USCGR

Charles D Furrey TEC5 USCGR

Kayah Gale PFC, USA

Jime Gallo COX USCGR

Ely Gamsu S1 USCGR

John L Garzon F1 USCGR

Edward C Gesford PFC USA

Mack E. Gibson S1 USCGR

Fred E Gilbert PFC USA

Robert L Glaze CBM USCG

Sheldon G Goldstein HA2 USCGR

Emelio C. Gonzales S2 USCGR

John K. Goral CPC USCGR

Charles E. Graeber PHM3 USCGR

Warren J Granger SC3 USCGR

Daniel L Grant Jr Y3 USCGR

Floyd Grapenthin Jr PFC USA

Let PD Gray S1 USCGR

Freeman Gregory S1 USCGR

Frank J. Gretz S1 USCGR

Stanley R. Grisbaum S1 USCGR

Boyce F. Guthridge RT3 USCGR

Philip Gutierrez TEC5 USA

Alan J Guyett PFC USA

Elmer P. Hagemeier Jr. WT2 USCGR

Arthur C. Hagendorn Jr. PHM3 USCGR

Raymond C Hamilton RDM3 USCGR

John W Hampton BM2 USCGR

William H Harlow F1 USCGR

Kenneth H. Harmon F2 USCGR

Donald J. Hart S2 USCGR

James Hartleib F1 USCGR

William C Hartzler MM3 USCGR

Melvin Haskell S1 USCGR

Perry P. Headrick S2 USCGR

Alexander Helement PFC USA

Leslie Helson MM2 USCGR

Herman T. Helton PVT USA

Felix L. Henigan F2 USCGR

Francis V Henry PFC USA

George A. Henshaw SC2 USCGR

Robert A Herrington F1 USCGR

Marcus R. Hickman STM3 USCGR

Thomas L Higgins S1 USCGR

Nile W. Hinerman CPL USA

Henry C. Hinson GM3 USCGR

Robert B. Hodge S1 USCGR

Robert B. Hopkins TEC5 USCGR

Bernard J Houchen S1 USCGR

Robert L Hoyt S1 USCGR

Raymond E. Hubacher QM3 USCGR

Otis D Hull S1 USCGR

Colon J Hutchinson S1 USCGR

Vernard C. Jacobs MOMM2 USCGR

Paul R. Jaissle S2 USCGR

Norman A Johnson S2 USCGR

Richard C Johnson PFC USA

Robert J Johnson LTJG USCGR

Frank Cadillac SK1 USCGR

William G Kayler Jr PFC USA

Milton R Kellar Jr S2 USCGR

Herbert C Keough PFC USA

Arnold E. Kettunen F1 USCGR

Ralph D. Kiley S1 USCGR

Melvin M Kolar MOMM3 USCGR

William C. Kotkas LT USCG

William J. Kramer US PVT

Paul F. Kreps PFC USA

Norbert E Krueger S1 USCGR

Vincent J. Kurdilla S1 USCGR

Stanley J. Kusek S1 USCGR

Charlie G Kyle STM1 USCGR

James E Laird S1 USCGR

Walter P. Lambert S1 USCGR

Woodrow Lanham S1 USCGR

David A Latraille PVT USA

Nolan R Lego Jr F2 USCGR

Russell C. Leverentz MM3 USCG

Harry M Levin Surgery USPHS

David F. Lewis SC3 USCGR

Walter J. Limbacher Jr. SK3 USCGR

Charles T. MacFarland MOMM3 USCGR

John H McCarter MM3 USCGR

John L McCaw WT3 USCGR

William J. McCullough Jr. MM# USCGR

Charles E McDaniel American PFC

Malcolm W. McDaniel RDM3 USCGR

Arnold J McGrath 1st LT USA

Harold M McGuckin Jr SK3 USCGR

Lloyd A McLarty RM2 USCGR

Ted McMahan USA SGT

Joseph J. Mackey COX USCGR

Samuel M. Maddox S2 USCGR

Albert J. Manke COX USCGR

Guy L. Mark TEC5 USA

Curtiss D. Matney TEC4 USA

Nicholas A May PFC USA

Raymond G Mazzanti COX USCG

Raymond F. Medves PVT USA

Alvis J Menard MM3 USCGR

Madge V Miller STM1 USCGR

James J. Miron S1 USCGR

Leo E. Moore TEC5 USCGR

American Hui Morgan PFC

William F. Nivin S1 USCGR

Douglas H. Oakland S1 USCGR

William R. O'Donnell COX USCGR

Walter L. Okichick TEC5 USA

George E. Orton CMM USCGR

Albert Lowen TEC4 USA

Charles C Payne F1 USCGR

William O Pazurek SM3 USCGR

Lincoln F. Peterson WT3 USCGR

Warren C. Prance LTJG USCGR

John J. Preedom TEC5 USA

Frederick E.A. Qualmann STM3 USCGR

Roy A Questad ENS USCGR

George H. Reilly US SGT

Orville F. Reuter S1 USCGR

Hugo Riccardi MOMM1 USCGR

Linton J. Robeson TEC5 USA

Fred O Royer RM3 USCGR

Paul Rudy CMM USCGR

Eugene Ruggiero CMM USCGR

Marcus A Ruth TEC5 USA

Roy A Sampay MM3 USCGR

Alfonso C. Sandoval S1 USCGR

Lewis J. Sarkisoff COX USCGR

John P. SchmooK F1 USCGR

Charles E Schrader S1 USCGR

James D Selaya S1 USCGR

William H. Seleman Jr. COX USCGR

Jacob H. Shogren ENS USCGR

Robert J Smith WT3 USCGR

Robert C. Sneddon S1 USCGR

Robert H Sorensen MM3 USCGR

Cyril D. Steinman Jr. RM1 USCGR

William P. Stiles American PFC

Washington E. Stillman CPHM USCG

Mryon K. Strickland RM3 USCGR

Floyd Starkey COX USCGR

Ivan B Thomas PFC USA

Robert E. Thomas Y1 USCG

James R Thornburgh MM1 USCGR

Hubert Turner MOMM1 USCGR

Vernon H. Twait BM2 USCGR

William W. Vaughan GM2 USCG

Edgar L. Vedder CEM USCGR

Samuel L. Villemont WT3 USCGR

Harold L. Vincent WT2 USCGR

John F Walko COX USCGR

Eugene J Ward ST1 USCG

Delos R. Wardle COX USCGR

Lawton Watts PFC USA

Kinchion D West SM2 USCGR

Woodrow H. Wetts S1 USCGR

Alton White S2 USCGR

Charles B Wood SC1 USCGR

Tom Zaffe SSML3 USCGR

Specification

Basic

Roles

Dimensions

Weight

Performance

Performance

Armor

Wing