Wednesday, February 15, 2006

Vets Raise Funds For WW2 Museum ship


They are near their goal says Navy Times:

A group of World War II veterans has raised three-quarters of the money needed to return a tiny warship used in the invasion of Okinawa to San Francisco Bay as a museum.
The “mighty midget,” which measures 158 feet long and had a top speed of 14 knots, is now in Bangkok where it is about to end a long career in the Royal Thai navy.
The Thai navy has agreed to give the 61-year-old ship back to the United States, but it will cost about $200,000 to tow to California, where supporters are trying to dock it as a museum ship at Mare Island Naval Shipyard in Vallejo...

The ship, known as the LCS (L) 86, was one of a fleet of 130 gunnery support ships that served in the Pacific in the last days of the war. They were slower than modern-day commuter ferries but were loaded with anti-aircraft guns and 10 rocket launchers.

This is the only photo I could find of a LCS (L). If anyone has a different one, please let me know.