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USS Newport (LST 1179)

USS NEWPORT was the lead ship of the NEWPORT - class of Tank Landing Ships and the third ship in the Navy to bear the name. Decommissioned on October 1, 1992, the USS NEWPORT was transfered to the Mexican Navy on May 23, 2001. There, the ship was recommissioned as RIO PAPALOAPAN and the US Navy struck the NEWPORT from the Navy list on July 13, 2001.

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Crew List:

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

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USS NEWPORT Cruise Books:

• Shakedown Cruise Book 1969-70
• Mediterranean Cruise Book 1971
• Mediterranean Cruise Book 1980

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Accidents aboard USS NEWPORT:

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USS NEWPORT History:

USS NEWPORT was laid down at Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on November 1, 1966, launched on February 3, 1968, and sponsored by Mrs. Claiborne Pell, wife of Senator Claiborne Pell of Rhode Island. NEWPORT was commissioned on June 7, 1969, with Commander Derwin T. Lamb in command. NEWPORT was assigned to the Amphibious Force, Atlantic Fleet, and Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Virginia, became the center of the operating pattern that she would follow for most of the next twenty-three years.

After commissioning, NEWPORT spent the remainder of 1969 completing trials, evaluations and amphibious qualifications associated both with a new ship and with the introduction of an entirely new LST design. She was underway in the Delaware River on August 27, 1969, during her early trials period and subsequently conducted amphibious tests in the Little Creek area. These early evolutions included beaching, use of her over-the-bow ramp, stern-gate operations and experiments with causeways and landing craft. In January 1970, she was at Morehead City, North Carolina, where an LCU was married to her stern gate so that vehicles could be moved directly from NEWPORT into the landing craft for transportation ashore. Shakedown and amphibious training also took her to Guantanamo Bay and other Caribbean operating areas. During 1970, she continued working through the procedures needed to employ the new class effectively with Marine landing forces, including operations from Morehead City and training in the Caribbean. Commander Walter F. Saubers relieved Commander Lamb on September 8, 1970. By the end of her first full year of active operations, NEWPORT had moved beyond initial evaluation and was being integrated into the regular Atlantic Fleet amphibious deployment cycle.

Her first Mediterranean deployment began during the spring of 1971. By April 14, NEWPORT was serving as part of Landing Force, Sixth Fleet 1-71 with the 32nd Marine Amphibious Unit embarked. The amphibious group consisted of USS GUAM (LPH 9), USS NASHVILLE (LPD 13), USS SPIEGEL GROVE (LSD 32) and NEWPORT. The Marine landing force included Battalion Landing Team 3/2, supported by artillery, tanks, amphibious tractors, reconnaissance and engineering elements, while the aviation component operated helicopters from USS GUAM and the other aviation-capable ships. The deployment placed NEWPORT within the standing amphibious force maintained by the Sixth Fleet during the Cold War. This force provided a mobile Marine landing capability in a Mediterranean region affected by continuing Arab-Israeli tensions, political instability along the southern and eastern shores of the sea and the wider naval competition between the United States and the Soviet Union.

The same four ships remained together as Task Group 61/62 through the spring and summer of 1971. NEWPORT's role was particularly suited to the heavier elements of Battalion Landing Team 3/2, including vehicles and equipment that could not conveniently be carried by helicopter. The deployment combined amphibious exercises, at-sea readiness periods and visits to Mediterranean ports. A documented call at Palma de Mallorca took place on August 30. Marine Corps operational summaries still listed USS GUAM, USS NASHVILLE, USS SPIEGEL GROVE and NEWPORT together with the 32nd Marine Amphibious Unit on August 11. NEWPORT completed the deployment in the autumn and returned to the United States in October 1971. The cruise constituted the first Mediterranean deployment by the lead ship of the NEWPORT-class and demonstrated that the faster LST could operate as an integral component of a Sixth Fleet amphibious group rather than as a slower element requiring separate movements.

Commander Ervin E. White relieved Commander Saubers on January 12, 1972. During the first part of the year, NEWPORT returned to Atlantic Fleet amphibious exercises and preparations along the East Coast. A Caribbean operating period followed during August, after which the ship became involved in one of the largest NATO exercises conducted up to that time. NEWPORT departed the Morehead City area on August 29 with Marine forces associated with the 6th Marine Amphibious Brigade for Exercise Strong Express. Other documented American amphibious ships participating in the movement included USS PORTLAND (LSD 37), USS FAIRFAX COUNTY (LST 1193) and USS FORT SNELLING (LSD 30).

Strong Express began on September 16, 1972, within an overall exercise period extending through September 28 in the North Atlantic and northern European region. Approximately 64,000 personnel, 300 ships and 700 aircraft from twelve NATO nations participated. The exercise tested reinforcement of NATO's northern flank at a time when the Soviet Northern Fleet represented an increasingly important element of Soviet naval power. For NEWPORT the exercise involved an extended North Atlantic operating period considerably different from her previous Caribbean and Mediterranean work. Immediately afterward, she participated in an American fleet visit to Amsterdam, Netherlands, where she was moored on September 29. She returned to the United States during October.

NEWPORT spent much of 1973 in the Atlantic Fleet readiness cycle, alternating maintenance with amphibious and type training from the East Coast. Commander Roy E. Starrin relieved Commander White on July 27. In November, the ship entered a regular overhaul period that continued into June 1974. The extended availability restored and maintained the propulsion, hull, amphibious and support systems of a ship that had already accumulated several years of demanding operations. After completing the overhaul in 1974, NEWPORT returned to sea and worked through the normal sequence of post-overhaul tests and refresher training. During August, she operated from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, where Atlantic Fleet ships traditionally conducted intensive refresher training before returning to full operational status. The remainder of the year was devoted to rebuilding amphibious readiness and East Coast operations.

During January through March 1975, NEWPORT returned to Caribbean waters for another operating period. Commander Michael N. Delpercio Jr. relieved Commander Starrin on June 16. Additional Caribbean training followed during the summer, but the ship's principal operation of the year began in the autumn when she deployed to northern Europe with Landing Amphibious Ready Group 2-75 and the 36th Marine Amphibious Unit. The group included USS CORONADO (LPD 11), USS PONCE (LPD 15), USS GUADALCANAL (LPH 7), USS BOULDER (LST 1190) and NEWPORT. The embarked Marine force was centered on Battalion Landing Team 2/6, with a reinforced helicopter squadron and logistical support element.

In October 1975, the force operated in West Germany during Exercise Straffe Zuegel, conducted from October 13 through October 17 in Lower Saxony in the vicinity of Hanover. NEWPORT was at Bremerhaven while the exercise was under way. The operation practiced the movement and employment of American amphibious forces in support of NATO's Central European defense structure, placing Marine landing forces into an environment far removed from the warmer-water deployments normally associated with the Atlantic Fleet amphibious force. After the exercise the group shifted to Dutch ports. By October 22, NEWPORT was at Rotterdam, while other ships of the group were distributed between Rotterdam and Amsterdam. The northern European deployment continued through the autumn, and NEWPORT returned to the United States in December 1975.

Following maintenance and another Caribbean training period in March 1976, NEWPORT prepared for a Mediterranean deployment that became closely connected with the deteriorating situation in Lebanon. In June, she joined Mediterranean Amphibious Ready Group 2-76. The group consisted of USS IWO JIMA (LPH 2), USS CORONADO, USS PONCE, USS PORTLAND and NEWPORT, with the 32nd Marine Amphibious Unit and Battalion Landing Team 3/2 embarked. The group crossed the Atlantic and arrived at Rota, Spain, on June 18. After less than three days there, the force sailed for Carboneras, Spain, for amphibious assault training and subsequently moved eastward.

On June 26, 1976, the group reached the vicinity of Kithira, Greece, where it relieved the preceding Sixth Fleet amphibious force and assumed the Task Force 61 readiness mission. A scheduled amphibious exercise at Capo Teulada, Sardinia, had been canceled as events in Lebanon took priority. The Lebanese Civil War had made the position of American citizens and other foreign nationals in Beirut increasingly uncertain, and the amphibious force was ordered to prepare for a noncombatant evacuation. The ships remained available in the eastern Mediterranean while diplomatic and military arrangements for an evacuation were developed.

After almost a month in the Kithira area, the task force moved toward the Lebanese coast. On July 27, 1976, a United States Navy LCU evacuated 308 American and other foreign civilians from Beirut and transferred them to USS CORONADO for transportation to Greece. NEWPORT formed part of the amphibious task force supporting the contingency and remained available with her landing-craft and transport capability, although USS CORONADO served as the receiving ship for the evacuees.

The Mediterranean deployment continued after the Lebanon contingency eased. During the autumn, NEWPORT returned to the normal Sixth Fleet program of amphibious exercises, readiness operations and port visits. In October, the amphibious force participated in the Italian phase of Exercise Display Determination 76, including operations in the Pian di Spille and Monte Romano area. By November 3, the ships of the group were dispersed among Italian ports; NEWPORT was at Civitavecchia while USS CORONADO and USS PORTLAND were at Genoa and Naples respectively and other elements of the group were conducting maintenance and liberty visits elsewhere. NEWPORT subsequently also visited Barcelona during November. She completed the deployment and returned to the United States in December 1976.

The first half of 1977 brought another cycle of East Coast and Caribbean training, including a Caribbean operating period during June. Commander Robert H. Fred relieved Commander Delpercio on July 27. During the autumn, NEWPORT continued amphibious readiness work with Atlantic Fleet Marine units. In November, she operated with Landing Amphibious Ready Group 2-77, whose ships included USS SHREVEPORT (LPD 12), USS TRENTON (LPD 14), USS FORT SNELLING and NEWPORT. The group conducted a short-notice embarkation and landing exercise from November 15 through November 17. Marines and their equipment were loaded at Morehead City, the ships moved into the Onslow Bay operating area, and the landing phase was conducted before the force returned to its East Coast bases. Such exercises were intended to test the ability of an amphibious group to assemble, embark a landing force and put it ashore with little advance preparation.

In February 1978, NEWPORT began another Mediterranean deployment. By March, she was part of Mediterranean Amphibious Ready Group 1-78 with USS GUAM, USS CORONADO, USS FORT SNELLING and USS SAGINAW (LST 1188). The 32nd Marine Amphibious Unit formed the landing force, with Battalion Landing Team 1/8 as its ground component. The ships crossed the Atlantic for turnover with the preceding Sixth Fleet force, and NEWPORT was among the units scheduled to reach Rota on March 13.

A major part of this deployment was Exercise Dawn Patrol 78, conducted from May 16 through May 30. The amphibious group operated from the Capo Teulada area of Sardinia during the exercise, which involved allied forces in the southern and central Mediterranean. NEWPORT provided heavy vehicle and amphibious-lift capacity within the group while USS GUAM supplied the principal helicopter platform and the other amphibious ships carried complementary elements of the Marine landing force. The deployment continued through the summer before NEWPORT returned to the United States in August.

Beginning in September 1978, NEWPORT entered an extended regular overhaul that occupied approximately a year. Work concentrated on restoring machinery and ship systems after repeated overseas deployments and on keeping the lead ship of the class compatible with changing equipment and operational requirements. The overhaul continued through the summer of 1979. Commander William J. Naldrett relieved Commander Fred on August 25, 1979, shortly before NEWPORT returned to an active operating schedule.

Post-overhaul refresher training took the ship back to the Caribbean in the autumn of 1979. NEWPORT then participated in GTMO ReinforcEx, conducted from October 9 through November 14. The amphibious task group included USS NASSAU (LHA 4), USS PLYMOUTH ROCK (LSD 29) and NEWPORT, with the 38th Marine Amphibious Unit, Battalion Landing Team 3/6 and Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 162 embarked. The scenario tested the rapid reinforcement and defense of the United States naval base at Guantanamo Bay.

The amphibious force departed its East Coast bases and embarked the landing force at Morehead City and Onslow Bay before moving south. On October 17, the Marines conducted the principal waterborne and heliborne reinforcement of Guantanamo Bay. Small-unit training ashore continued into November. The amphibious ships subsequently returned, re-embarked Marine forces on November 12 and November 13 and began the voyage back to the United States. The post-overhaul operating period also included Caribbean port activity, including a visit to Port-au-Prince, Haiti. By the end of 1979, NEWPORT had returned to regular operational status after the lengthy overhaul.

Early 1980 brought operations in colder waters. NEWPORT deployed with USS SAIPAN (LHA 2) and USS PONCE for Anorak Express 80, a cold-weather amphibious exercise in northern Norway. The force was moving toward Portsmouth, England, in late February before proceeding into Norwegian waters, where the principal exercise period was scheduled from March 14 through March 19. The operation gave the participating Navy and Marine units experience under Arctic and sub-Arctic conditions and formed part of the continuing NATO emphasis on reinforcement of Norway and protection of the alliance's northern flank.

NEWPORT returned to the Atlantic Fleet training cycle before participating in Readex 2-80 during July. The exercise combined American, Brazilian and Venezuelan naval forces in the Caribbean. The American amphibious element included USS SAIPAN, USS EL PASO (LKA 117) and NEWPORT with the 38th Marine Amphibious Unit, Battalion Landing Team 1/8 and Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 162. Loading and movement to the exercise area took place from July 8 through July 14. The principal amphibious phase was held around Vieques from July 15 through July 21, with the main landing on July 16 and combined cross-training with allied forces during the following days.

Only a short interval separated Readex from NEWPORT's next and more extensive overseas deployment. During September, she participated in NATO Exercise Teamwork 80 in North Atlantic and Norwegian waters. The large multinational exercise, conducted from September 10 through September 24, tested NATO reinforcement, maritime control and amphibious operations on the alliance's northern flank. NEWPORT was underway toward the exercise area on September 15 as part of the American amphibious contribution.

Following Teamwork 80, NEWPORT continued with Mediterranean Amphibious Ready Group 3-80. USS SAIPAN, USS EL PASO and NEWPORT carried the 34th Marine Amphibious Unit, including Battalion Landing Team 1/8 and its tanks, artillery, amphibious vehicles and supporting equipment. Unlike a routine Mediterranean cruise, this deployment extended into the Indian Ocean. The move took place against the background of the Iranian hostage crisis, the Soviet intervention in Afghanistan and increased American emphasis on maintaining naval and amphibious forces able to respond in the Indian Ocean and Persian Gulf approaches.

The group transited the Suez Canal on October 27, 1980, and continued into the Red Sea and Indian Ocean. NEWPORT crossed the equator during the deployment on November 5. The amphibious force operated in the western Indian Ocean as part of the expanded American naval presence associated with regional contingencies and the security of access to the Persian Gulf. After the Indian Ocean phase, the group returned westward through the Suez Canal and Mediterranean. In December, NEWPORT supported amphibious training in Sardinia and operations in Italy, with documented calls including Naples and Gaeta. The Christmas and New Year period was spent in the western Mediterranean and included a visit to Malaga, Spain.

In January 1981, the group conducted Exercise Phiblex 11-80A with Tunisian forces in the Bizerte area. By the end of the exercise, the ships were heading west toward Rota, with arrival scheduled for February 3. The deployment concluded during February as the amphibious force crossed the Atlantic and returned to the United States, with the embarked Marines being landed in the Morehead City area.

NEWPORT remained busy after returning home. During the summer and autumn of 1981, she participated in Ocean Venture 81, a large Atlantic-wide joint and multinational exercise conducted from August 1 through October 15. The exercise involved forces from fifteen nations and was intended to test command and control, reinforcement and maritime operations across a broad Atlantic scenario. During the second phase, the 38th Marine Amphibious Unit operated aboard USS GUAM, USS AUSTIN (LPD 4), USS HERMITAGE (LSD 34), NEWPORT and USS FAIRFAX COUNTY. The Marine force included Battalion Landing Team 1/2 and Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 365, with amphibious activity centered on the Caribbean and the reinforcement of Guantanamo Bay.

On September 30, 1981, while operating north of Cuba, NEWPORT was involved in an accident with USS PEGASUS (PHM 1). USS PEGASUS was maneuvering toward NEWPORT to establish a towing connection when the hydrofoil collided with the LST. The damage was reported as minor. Commander James A. Maxwell relieved Commander Naldrett on October 16.

Preparations for another overseas deployment occupied the closing months of 1981. Commander Robert C. Johnson briefly relieved Commander Maxwell on January 17, 1982, before Commander James F. Howick assumed command on February 11. NEWPORT had already departed on January 19 as part of Mediterranean Amphibious Ready Group 1-82. The group consisted of USS NASSAU, USS TRENTON and NEWPORT and carried the 34th Marine Amphibious Unit, including Battalion Landing Team 1/8 and Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 162. The force was assigned operations in both the Mediterranean and Indian Ocean.

By March, the ships had moved into the western Indian Ocean. USS NASSAU was heading toward Mombasa, Kenya, while USS TRENTON and NEWPORT were operating from Berbera, Somalia, a strategically located port near the entrance to the Red Sea. On March 18, 1982, while NEWPORT was at anchor at Berbera, a Class B fire occurred in a main engineering space. The casualty caused serious damage and interrupted NEWPORT's participation in the deployment. USS TRENTON provided firefighting and medical assistance. NEWPORT subsequently required an extended repair period that occupied much of the remainder of 1982. After the repair and recovery period, she returned to operational training, including refresher work from Guantanamo Bay in December.

The beginning of 1983 marked the ship's return to sustained operations. NEWPORT conducted a North Atlantic operating period during the first months of the year and again operated in northern waters. Command also changed twice during this period: Commander John H. Heidt relieved Commander Howick on January 28, and Commander Howick resumed command on February 22. After the early-year operating period, NEWPORT entered another maintenance and overhaul phase. On June 10, she was at Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, Virginia, undergoing overhaul work. The balance of the year was spent restoring readiness and preparing for the next major overseas assignment.

Commander Andrew M. Petruska III relieved Commander Howick on June 18, 1984. Later that year, NEWPORT became part of Mediterranean Amphibious Ready Group 3-84 under Amphibious Squadron Four. The group consisted of USS INCHON (LPH 12), USS HERMITAGE, USS SUMTER (LST 1181), NEWPORT and USS SHREVEPORT, carrying the 22nd Marine Amphibious Unit. The Marine force included Battalion Landing Team 1/8, Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 264 and the associated logistical support element. The Marine deployment extended from July 26, 1984, into February 1985.

The deployment took place during a period of continuing instability in Lebanon following the 1982 Israeli invasion, the multinational force deployment to Beirut and the bombing of the Marine barracks there in October 1983. By September 1984, NEWPORT was moving toward Rota while other elements of the amphibious force were positioned farther east. USS SHREVEPORT remained separately on an eastern Mediterranean station off Beirut for part of the deployment. In October, the broader amphibious group operated around Italy, and by November elements of the group were conducting port calls and upkeep in France, including Marseille. NEWPORT remained part of the Sixth Fleet amphibious force through the winter. The 22nd Marine Amphibious Unit's deployment period ended on February 19, 1985, after which the ships returned to the Atlantic Fleet operating cycle.

During 1985, NEWPORT again concentrated on amphibious readiness along the American East Coast. On June 1 she was operating off Onslow Beach near Camp Lejeune during Exercise Solid Shield 85, with an LCU alongside during the amphibious phase. Solid Shield was a major joint exercise designed to test reinforcement, command relationships and large-scale amphibious operations along the southeastern United States. NEWPORT's continued participation in such exercises demonstrated that, despite being the oldest member of the class, she remained a regular operational amphibious unit.

A Caribbean training period followed in April 1986 and included a port call at St. John's, Antigua. The year then developed into another substantial North Atlantic exercise cycle. Commander William R. Graner relieved Commander Petruska on July 31. During August and September, NEWPORT took part in NATO's Northern Wedding 86, a large exercise intended to test reinforcement and defense of the alliance's northern flank and the sea routes leading toward Norway and Denmark. American amphibious forces operated in the Norwegian Sea and North Atlantic alongside allied naval, air and ground forces.

Northern Wedding involved a substantial American amphibious presence. Ships participating in the broader amphibious force included USS INCHON, USS AUSTIN, USS NASHVILLE, USS WHIDBEY ISLAND (LSD 41), USS EL PASO, NEWPORT and USS SPARTANBURG COUNTY (LST 1192), among others. NEWPORT again operated in high northern latitudes during this deployment. Later in 1986 she also participated in the Atlantic exercise cycle associated with Ocean Venture. For that exercise, the 22nd Marine Amphibious Unit operated aboard USS IWO JIMA, USS NASHVILLE, USS PENSACOLA (LSD 38), NEWPORT and USS SUMTER. The combination of Northern Wedding and Ocean Venture gave NEWPORT another year dominated by large-scale joint and allied amphibious training rather than a routine Mediterranean deployment.

On January 20, 1987, NEWPORT began another Mediterranean deployment as part of Amphibious Squadron Four and Mediterranean Amphibious Ready Group 2-87. USS NASHVILLE, USS INCHON, USS WHIDBEY ISLAND, USS SPARTANBURG COUNTY and NEWPORT comprised the principal amphibious ships, with the 26th Marine Amphibious Unit embarked. The group called at Morehead City on January 21 to complete embarkation of Marines and their equipment and then began the Atlantic crossing.

The ships arrived at Rota on February 2, 1987, and transferred to Sixth Fleet operational control. On February 3, the group was ordered to make an emergency sortie and move into the Mediterranean, where it completed the turnover with the preceding amphibious ready group. NEWPORT was operating off Spain during February with the force. In March, she participated in Exercise Sardinia 87 in the Gulf of Teulada. On March 8, she was moored at Rapallo, near Genoa, Italy, during one of the deployment's port periods. The deployment continued through the spring and summer with further amphibious training and Mediterranean port visits before NEWPORT returned to the United States in August.

During 1988, NEWPORT remained in the Atlantic Fleet readiness cycle. A Caribbean operating period extended from March into May, followed by maintenance and preparations for another overseas deployment. Commander Timothy A. Kok relieved Commander Graner on October 1. By this point, the international environment was beginning to change substantially as relations between the United States and Soviet Union improved, but NATO reinforcement exercises and amphibious readiness operations remained regular fleet commitments.

NEWPORT departed on her next Mediterranean deployment in December 1988 as part of Mediterranean Amphibious Ready Group 1-89. The amphibious force operated under Amphibious Squadron Two and included USS AUSTIN, USS GUADALCANAL, USS WHIDBEY ISLAND, USS SPARTANBURG COUNTY and NEWPORT. After embarking Marine personnel and equipment at Morehead City, the group crossed the Atlantic. It arrived at Rota on January 11, 1989, where it relieved the preceding Sixth Fleet amphibious force.

The deployment combined routine Sixth Fleet readiness with amphibious exercises and port visits. NEWPORT arrived at Palma de Mallorca on April 7. Later that month, the amphibious force participated in Exercise Dragon Hammer 89, a major allied Mediterranean exercise that began for the group in mid-April. NEWPORT continued operating in the Mediterranean through the spring and returned to the United States in June. In September, she entered another regular overhaul period. Work continued through the winter and into the spring of 1990, after which she resumed refresher and amphibious training, including operations from Guantanamo Bay in April.

The international situation changed abruptly during the summer of 1990. Civil war in Liberia had placed American citizens and foreign nationals in danger around Monrovia, while on August 2 Iraq invaded Kuwait and triggered the deployment of large American forces to Southwest Asia under Operation Desert Shield. NEWPORT was assigned to Mediterranean Amphibious Ready Group 3-90 with USS INCHON, USS NASHVILLE and USS FAIRFAX COUNTY, carrying the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit. The group reached Rota on August 31 while moving toward its Sixth Fleet operating area.

Although much of the Navy's attention was increasingly directed toward the Persian Gulf, NEWPORT soon received a separate assignment connected with the crisis in Liberia. Operation Sharp Edge had begun on August 5 as an American noncombatant evacuation and embassy-support operation. Ships and Marines had remained off Monrovia while fighting between Liberian factions continued ashore. On November 3, 1990, NEWPORT arrived off Liberia and relieved USS BARNSTABLE COUNTY (LST 1197) on station. Company L of Battalion Landing Team 3/8 was embarked aboard NEWPORT as part of the force available for operations ashore.

NEWPORT operated from the offshore station known as Mamba Station while Marines supported the American Embassy and the continuing evacuation effort. On November 14, Company L moved from NEWPORT to assume responsibility for embassy security, allowing other Marine elements to return to the offshore reserve. NEWPORT simultaneously provided an afloat base for personnel, equipment and landing-force support during a period in which the political and military situation in Monrovia remained unsettled. By late November, a ceasefire had reduced the immediate requirement for large-scale evacuation operations.

On December 2, 1990, USS NASHVILLE relieved USS WHIDBEY ISLAND and NEWPORT off Monrovia. NEWPORT and USS WHIDBEY ISLAND subsequently departed the Liberian operating area, and on December 6 both ships were recorded returning to Mediterranean duties. Operation Sharp Edge itself continued into January 1991, but NEWPORT's direct station off Liberia had ended. The Liberia assignment took place simultaneously with the rapid American military buildup following Iraq's occupation of Kuwait. After leaving West Africa, NEWPORT remained within the Mediterranean amphibious posture supporting the wider Operation Desert Shield environment rather than joining the amphibious forces operating directly in the Persian Gulf.

When Operation Desert Storm began on January 17, 1991, NEWPORT remained associated with the Atlantic and Mediterranean amphibious force structure. Her 1990-91 deployment was therefore connected with the broader American response to the Gulf crisis while her most direct operational commitment during the cruise had been Operation Sharp Edge off Liberia. Commander William J. Ungvarski relieved Commander Kok on February 7. NEWPORT returned to the United States during the first part of 1991 and resumed maintenance and training in preparation for what would become her final overseas deployment.

On December 5, 1991, NEWPORT departed with Mediterranean Amphibious Ready Group 1-92. The group was commanded by Amphibious Squadron Six and consisted of USS INCHON, USS SHREVEPORT, USS WHIDBEY ISLAND, NEWPORT and USS FAIRFAX COUNTY. The following day, the ships were at Morehead City embarking the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, including Battalion Landing Team 2/4, Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 266 and the unit's combat-service-support element. After loading was completed, the force began its Atlantic crossing.

This final deployment occurred in a markedly different strategic setting from NEWPORT's first Mediterranean cruise twenty years earlier. The Soviet Union ceased to exist in December 1991, while instability in the Balkans and elsewhere around the Mediterranean increasingly replaced the Cold War confrontation that had shaped most of the ship's service. NEWPORT nevertheless continued performing the same basic role for which she had been designed: carrying Marine vehicles, heavy equipment and landing-force elements as part of an amphibious ready group.

During the spring of 1992, the group continued Sixth Fleet readiness and amphibious training in the Mediterranean. Elements of the force operated in Italy during April, including training in the Pian di Spille and Monte Romano areas, and the group was operating around Sicily by early May. The deployment entered its homeward phase later that month. By May 29, the amphibious force was en route toward Morehead City, with arrival planned for early June. The 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit's Sixth Fleet deployment concluded in June, and NEWPORT returned to the United States after her final overseas cruise.

The remaining months of 1992 were devoted to inactivation. By then, the operational concept represented by the NEWPORT-class was being displaced by newer amphibious warfare ships and air-cushion landing craft, which permitted amphibious forces to launch heavy equipment from farther offshore without requiring a tank landing ship to approach a beach. September 30, 1992, was NEWPORT's final day in commission, and her official decommissioning became effective on October 1, 1992. She had completed more than twenty-three years of active service.

NEWPORT remained in United States Navy custody after decommissioning and was placed in inactive status at Portsmouth, Virginia. After several years in reserve, she was transferred to the government of Mexico on May 23, 2001. Her name was formally struck from the United States Naval Vessel Register on July 13, 2001.

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