Search the Site with

General Characteristics

Crew List

Memorabilia

Cruise Books

Ship's History

Image Gallery

to end of page

USS Frederick (LST 1184)

USS FREDERICK was the sixth ship in the NEWPORT - class of Tank Landing Ships and the last ship in her class decommissioned. USS 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.

back to top

go to the end of the page

back to top

go to the end of the page

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.

• Click here to view the list.

back to top

go to the end of the page

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

back to top

go to the end of the page

USS FREDERICK Cruise Books:

• WestPac Cruise Book 1978
• WestPac Cruise Book 1980
• WestPac Cruise Book 1981-82
• WestPac Cruise Book 2001

back to top

go to the end of the page

History of USS FREDERICK:

USS FREDERICK was laid down at San Diego, California, by the National Steel and Shipbuilding Company on April 13, 1968. She was launched on March 8, 1969, sponsored by Mrs. Kleber S. Masterson, and commissioned on April 11, 1970, with Commander Robert A. Shaid in command. Following shakedown, she was assigned to the Amphibious Force, Pacific Fleet, with San Diego as her home port.

FREDERICK entered service during the period in which the United States was progressively reducing its ground-force presence in South Vietnam. The process of Vietnamization required not only the withdrawal of American personnel but also the movement of large quantities of vehicles, engineering equipment, ammunition and other military cargo out of the country. Amphibious ships were therefore heavily involved in the continuing retrograde even while Seventh Fleet units remained available for combat support and regional contingencies.

Her Vietnam-related service continued in 1971. During June, FREDERICK operated in connection with the withdrawal of Marine Corps personnel and equipment from South Vietnam. On June 9, she was identified with USS POINT DEFIANCE (LSD 31) and USS PEORIA (LST 1183) as shipping assigned to Embarkation Unit XII. The unit was responsible for moving another increment of Marines and their equipment out of the theater as American force levels were reduced. The embarkation movement was scheduled to stand down late in June, with FREDERICK's portion departing the theater during the final phase of the operation.

FREDERICK continued to alternate between operations from the West Coast and extended western Pacific deployments during the remaining years of direct American involvement in Vietnam. FREDERICK ultimately received the Meritorious Unit Commendation and three battle stars for Vietnam service.

By late 1974, FREDERICK was again in the western Pacific as political and military conditions in Indochina deteriorated. On November 27, she formed part of Amphibious Ready Group Bravo with USS DUBUQUE (LPD 8) and USS DURHAM (LKA 114). The ships carried Battalion Landing Team 1/9 of the 31st Marine Amphibious Unit. Elements of the landing force were participating in Exercise Mablex I-75, also associated with Exercise Bayanihan, on Mindoro in the Philippines from November 27 through December 10, while other portions of the battalion were training at Camp Fuji in Japan. The amphibious ships therefore had to support simultaneously the recurring Seventh Fleet exercise program and the developing contingency requirements associated with the worsening situation in Cambodia and South Vietnam.

FREDERICK remained with Amphibious Ready Group Bravo as 1975 began. On January 8, Battalion Landing Team 1/9 was training at Camp Fuji in preparation for BLT Exercise 2-75 at Pohang, South Korea. By January 29, elements of the landing force were divided between Hong Kong and Camp Fuji. The forward element was scheduled to proceed from Hong Kong toward Pohang on February 3, while the rear element at Camp Fuji was scheduled to depart the following day. FREDERICK, USS DUBUQUE and USS DURHAM continued providing the shipping for the battalion during this phase.

At the same time, events in Cambodia and South Vietnam were accelerating. The Khmer Rouge were closing on Phnom Penh, while North Vietnamese forces were preparing the offensives that would ultimately end the Republic of Vietnam. The United States maintained amphibious forces throughout the region to provide the capability for evacuation if required. Operation Eagle Pull, the evacuation of Phnom Penh, was carried out on April 12, 1975. The principal helicopter evacuation force was centered on other amphibious ships. FREDERICK's operational organization was instead associated with the landing force that soon shifted attention toward the larger evacuation being prepared off South Vietnam.

Between April 18 and April 24 a large American naval force assembled off the Vietnamese coast for Operation Frequent Wind. FREDERICK was assigned to Movement Transport Group Bravo together with USS DUBUQUE and USS DURHAM. Company D, Battalion Landing Team 1/9, was assigned aboard FREDERICK. The overall evacuation task force was commanded from USS BLUE RIDGE (LCC 19) and included several separate amphibious groups, aircraft carriers and surface escorts.

Operation Frequent Wind was activated on April 29 after shelling and attacks around Tan Son Nhut Air Base made fixed-wing evacuation increasingly impractical. Helicopters began moving American personnel, Vietnamese evacuees and other designated passengers from Saigon to the ships offshore. FREDERICK's role was primarily as a troop and equipment transport within the amphibious movement group rather than as one of the main helicopter assault ships. The larger force included USS HANCOCK (CVA 19), USS OKINAWA (LPH 3), USS VANCOUVER (LPD 2), USS THOMASTON (LSD 28), USS PEORIA, USS ANCHORAGE (LSD 36), USS DENVER (LPD 9), USS DULUTH (LPD 6) and USS MOBILE (LKA 115), in addition to numerous carriers, destroyers, frigates and support ships.

The helicopter evacuation continued through the night of April 29-30. FREDERICK remained within the offshore force as Saigon's political and military structure collapsed. The final American helicopter departed the U.S. Embassy compound during the morning of April 30, only hours before North Vietnamese forces entered the city. Operation Frequent Wind brought direct American involvement in South Vietnam to an end. The amphibious forces began dispersing after the evacuation. On May 13, FREDERICK was at sea with USS DUBUQUE and USS DURHAM. By May 15, the three ships were in the North Pacific proceeding toward Pearl Harbor with Battalion Landing Team 1/3 embarked, with arrival expected on May 18. FREDERICK subsequently returned to the West Coast.

Another western Pacific deployment began on April 13, 1976. FREDERICK sailed as part of Amphibious Squadron 3 with USS CLEVELAND (LPD 7), USS OGDEN (LPD 5), USS POINT DEFIANCE, USS FRESNO (LST 1182) and USS PEORIA. USS CHICAGO (CG 11) and USS COOK (FF 1083) also participated in the initial movement across the Pacific. USS CLEVELAND suffered an engineering casualty shortly after departure and temporarily returned to San Diego, but the rest of the force continued westward.

By May 19, FREDERICK was operating with Amphibious Ready Group Bravo, whose shipping included USS CLEVELAND, USS THOMASTON, USS PEORIA and FREDERICK. At that point, FREDERICK was at Sattahip, Thailand, with departure scheduled for May 20. The landing force was Battalion Landing Team 1/9. Other ships and embarked units were simultaneously dispersed for training in Japan and for Exercise Quick Jab V on Tinian. Typhoon Pamela affected the group's planned schedule in May, forcing storm-evasion movements and subsequently creating extensive humanitarian requirements on Guam.

FREDERICK remained in the western Pacific through the summer and autumn. By September 22, she had become part of the reorganized Amphibious Ready Group Bravo supporting Battalion Landing Team 2/9. FREDERICK was then en route to Inchon, South Korea, with expected arrival on September 23. USS CLEVELAND was likewise heading toward Inchon, while USS THOMASTON remained at Subic Bay and USS PEORIA was moving toward the Philippines. The embarked Marines were engaged in an extended training period at Camp Fuji.

After the 1976 deployment, FREDERICK resumed the West Coast training and maintenance cycle. FREDERICK undertook another western Pacific deployment during 1978. A contemporary cruise book documents this cruise and confirms another extended period of Seventh Fleet operations. The deployment formed part of the recurring amphibious presence maintained around Japan, Okinawa, Korea and the Philippines following the end of the Vietnam War. The amphibious mission now emphasized combined exercises, rapid reinforcement of regional allies, movement of Marine units and readiness for possible noncombatant evacuation or other contingencies.

The ship continued Pacific Fleet service through 1979 and returned to the western Pacific again in 1980. During this cruise, Commander Wirt R. Fladd assumed command of FREDERICK in July while the ship was already deployed. She remained in western Pacific waters through the following months and returned to San Diego in November 1980.

After returning from the 1980 deployment, FREDERICK was assigned an unusual stateside support role connected with the Navy's emerging cruise-missile program. She operated off southern California as a range-support, safety and surveillance platform during CNO Project 251 operational test launches of the Tomahawk cruise missile. These assignments differed from the ship's traditional amphibious mission but demonstrated the continued utility of her large deck areas, endurance and ability to support test-range operations.

FREDERICK deployed again to the western Pacific in November 1981. The cruise extended into May 1982 and included extensive operations in Northeast Asia. By January 1, 1982, FREDERICK was at Pusan, South Korea, in company with USS DUBUQUE. The two ships were operating as a separate operating group within the larger Seventh Fleet amphibious organization. FREDERICK was detached from USS DUBUQUE on January 3. The deployment subsequently brought the ships together again in support of Battalion Landing Team 3/4. During the spring of 1982, FREDERICK and USS DUBUQUE constituted the principal shipping of Amphibious Ready Group Bravo. By early April, both ships were at Pohang, South Korea, supporting the Marine battalion during the concluding period of Korean amphibious training, with departure scheduled for April 5. The Korean Peninsula remained one of the most important locations for recurring American amphibious exercises because U.S. strategy required the capability to reinforce South Korea rapidly in the event of conflict.

FREDERICK completed this deployment and returned to San Diego in May 1982. The cruise marked another substantial period of Seventh Fleet service and concluded Commander Fladd's tour in command later that month.

The ship returned to the western Pacific in May 1983 as part of Amphibious Squadron 1. FREDERICK operated with USS TARAWA (LHA 1) and USS DULUTH in support of the 31st Marine Amphibious Unit. The deployment initially followed the usual western Pacific pattern and took the force through Hawaiian waters, Okinawa, the Philippines, Hong Kong, Thailand and Singapore. The group subsequently moved into the Indian Ocean and participated in training associated with American forces operating around East Africa.

By late August and early September, the ships had reached Mombasa, Kenya. While the amphibious force was there, events in Lebanon caused a major change in its deployment. The Lebanese Civil War had escalated, and the multinational force in Beirut, including United States Marines stationed around Beirut International Airport, was coming under increasing artillery, mortar and small-arms fire. On September 2, the amphibious force received orders to move rapidly from East Africa toward the eastern Mediterranean. FREDERICK, USS TARAWA and USS DULUTH moved north, passed through the Suez Canal and entered the Mediterranean. Marine Corps reporting in early September identified the ships as Task Group 76.1 carrying the 31st Marine Amphibious Unit and proceeding toward an eastern Mediterranean modified location. FREDERICK reached the Beirut operating area with the group by September 12.

For nearly a month, the ships remained off Lebanon as the security situation deteriorated. Their presence added another amphibious group and additional embarked Marines to the substantial American naval force already supporting the multinational presence ashore. FREDERICK remained in the Beirut area until October 10, operating offshore while Marines ashore were subjected to increasingly frequent attacks from several Lebanese factions.

The amphibious group left the immediate Beirut assignment before the major October 23 bombing of the Marine headquarters building at Beirut International Airport. FREDERICK then began the long return journey toward the Pacific, again transiting the Suez Canal and Indian Ocean. The return voyage included further stops in Southeast Asia and Hawaii before FREDERICK reached San Diego in November 1983.

The years immediately following the Beirut deployment returned FREDERICK to the regular cycle of maintenance, local amphibious training and western Pacific service. FREDERICK remained an operational Pacific Fleet amphibious ship throughout the middle of the decade. Another western Pacific deployment extended through portions of 1985 and 1986, with operations around Japan, Korea, Okinawa and the Philippines. During this period, FREDERICK continued to transport Marine vehicles and heavy equipment between training areas and to support recurring combined exercises in the western Pacific.

The ship continued this pattern through 1987 and 1988. Her long service life required increasingly extensive maintenance, but the NEWPORT-class design retained operational value because of its large vehicle deck, bow ramp, stern gate and ability to place heavy equipment ashore without developed port facilities. In August 1986, the Navy formally documented special navigation-light arrangements for FREDERICK and the other NEWPORT-class ships under the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea, reflecting the unusual physical configuration created by their long bow derricks and specialized amphibious design.

FREDERICK remained in regular active service as the Cold War entered its final years. During the late 1980s, she continued to operate from the West Coast and deploy to the Pacific and Indian Ocean regions. The increasing age of the class was becoming apparent, but its heavy-lift amphibious capability still provided a useful complement to the newer helicopter- and well-deck-oriented amphibious ships entering the fleet.

A major new chapter began in late 1990 after Iraq's invasion of Kuwait. The United States and its coalition partners deployed extensive naval, air and ground forces to Southwest Asia under Operation Desert Shield. On December 1, 1990, FREDERICK departed the West Coast as part of Amphibious Group 3 carrying the 5th Marine Expeditionary Brigade. The 13-ship amphibious formation included USS TARAWA, USS TRIPOLI, USS NEW ORLEANS (LPH 11), USS DENVER, USS JUNEAU (LPD 10), USS VANCOUVER, USS ANCHORAGE, USS MOUNT VERNON (LSD 39), USS GERMANTOWN (LSD 42), USS MOBILE, USS BARBOUR COUNTY, USS PEORIA and FREDERICK. Additional Military Sealift Command ships carried equipment required by the brigade.

The task force crossed the Pacific and Indian Ocean and reached the Arabian Sea on January 12, 1991. With the addition of amphibious ships already operating in the region, the force expanded to eighteen ships, the largest American amphibious concentration assembled since the Korean War. The combined organization included USS OKINAWA, USS OGDEN, USS FORT McHENRY (LSD 43), USS DURHAM and USS CAYUGA (LST 1186), in addition to the Amphibious Group 3 ships.

Operation Desert Storm began on January 17 with the coalition air campaign. FREDERICK remained with the amphibious task force as Marine units trained and prepared for a possible assault against the Kuwaiti coast. The prospect of an amphibious landing formed part of the coalition's larger operational deception and forced Iraqi commanders to retain significant forces in defensive positions near the shoreline rather than moving all available units against the main coalition attack from the west.

The amphibious force carried out extensive rehearsals and demonstrations during the buildup to the ground offensive. FREDERICK's principal contribution remained the transportation of Marine personnel, vehicles and heavy equipment, with her bow-ramp and stern-gate arrangements giving the landing force another means of moving tracked and wheeled vehicles ashore. The coalition ground offensive began on February 24. A full-scale opposed amphibious landing against Kuwait was ultimately unnecessary, because coalition ground forces advanced rapidly through western Kuwait and southern Iraq. FREDERICK nevertheless remained within the afloat Marine force until the fighting ended and through the initial postwar period.

The return voyage produced another major operational assignment. In late April 1991, a powerful tropical cyclone struck Bangladesh, killing many thousands of people and devastating low-lying coastal districts. The amphibious force returning from the Persian Gulf was diverted to provide humanitarian assistance under what became Operation Sea Angel.

FREDERICK joined the relief organization with USS TARAWA, USS JUNEAU, USS ST. LOUIS (LKA 116), USS MOUNT VERNON, USS BARBOUR COUNTY and USS ANCHORAGE, among other support units. The amphibious ships brought Marines, helicopters, landing craft, vehicles, medical personnel and logistics equipment into the Bay of Bengal. FREDERICK and USS BARBOUR COUNTY were positioned particularly close to the Bangladesh coast, anchored in water only about ten meters deep. Their position allowed them to serve as forward helicopter replenishment platforms. Helicopters working inland could obtain fuel and supplies without returning to the larger amphibious ships farther offshore, substantially shortening the cycle between relief missions. Marine helicopters carried food, medical supplies, water-purification equipment and other relief cargo to isolated communities across the cyclone-damaged coastal region.

Operation Sea Angel continued through May. The major amphibious task force began withdrawing on May 29 as Bangladeshi authorities and remaining relief organizations assumed more of the effort. FREDERICK then resumed the eastward passage toward the United States. She returned to San Diego in June 1991.

FREDERICK remained an active Pacific Fleet amphibious ship through the early 1990s. By January 1994, she was again overseas with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit. The amphibious group consisted of USS PELELIU (LHA 5), USS DULUTH, USS ANCHORAGE and FREDERICK. The deployment carried the group to the western Indian Ocean and the Horn of Africa as the United States was reducing its military involvement in Somalia.

The amphibious group operated in support of the remaining American and United Nations presence associated with the withdrawal from Somalia. In March 1994, an American AC-130H aircraft crashed near Malindi on the Kenyan coast. USS PELELIU and FREDERICK moved south from the Mogadishu operating area to assist in the response. FREDERICK's wider 1994 deployment subsequently included operations and exercises beyond Somalia, while the amphibious group was progressively dispersed for other regional assignments. Contemporary Navy summaries subsequently described FREDERICK's deployment as supporting Operation Restore Hope and associated operations during the final phase of the American presence in Somalia.

A significant administrative change occurred in January 1995 when FREDERICK transferred from the regular active force to the Naval Reserve Force. Under the Naval Reserve Force concept, ships retained a permanent active-duty cadre while reserve sailors augmented the crew during training and operational periods. This arrangement allowed the Navy to retain useful ships at lower active-duty manpower levels. FREDERICK shifted her home port from San Diego to Pearl Harbor later in 1995. From that point, she became increasingly distinctive within the Pacific Fleet. As other NEWPORT-class ships were retired or transferred overseas, FREDERICK remained operational. By the final years of her career, she was the Naval Reserve Force's only amphibious ship and eventually the last tank landing ship still commissioned in the United States Navy.

Reserve status did not end her overseas deployments. In 1997, FREDERICK became the principal amphibious platform for Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training 97, or CARAT 97. The deployment began in May and was designed to support U.S. Pacific Command's cooperative-engagement strategy by conducting bilateral training with armed forces across Southeast Asia and the Pacific. Approximately 270 Marines and sailors were organized as the embarked landing force, including elements of 1st Battalion, 3rd Marines, reconnaissance personnel and combat service support units. The deployment represented an extensive use of a reserve-force ship in a multinational engagement mission.

By June 18, FREDERICK was at Sattahip, Thailand. The port visit and bilateral training period with Thai forces extended through July 4. She was scheduled to leave for Malaysia on July 5. The CARAT program included combined amphibious training, professional exchanges, small-unit exercises and familiarization with partner-nation equipment and procedures.

During July, FREDERICK continued through Southeast Asian waters. By July 28, she was en route to Bali, Indonesia, where a port visit was scheduled from July 30 through August 1. The subsequent phase included operations associated with the Philippines and Indonesia. By August 21, FREDERICK was at Pago Pago in American Samoa. The overall four-and-a-half-month cruise also took the ship and her embarked Marines through several other Pacific and Southeast Asian locations, demonstrating that Naval Reserve Force status had not reduced FREDERICK to a purely local training role.

The CARAT 97 deployment ended during the autumn. It represented the type of mission increasingly emphasized by the post-Cold War Navy: regular interaction with regional partners, combined training, maritime presence and the maintenance of interoperability rather than preparation for a single specific conflict.

FREDERICK returned to Southeast Asia two years later for CARAT 99. The main American surface group initially departed San Diego on May 21, 1999, with USS COMSTOCK (LSD 45), USS GARY (FFG 51) and USS GEORGE PHILIP (FFG 12). FREDERICK joined the group at Pearl Harbor before the ships continued westward. The first major CARAT 99 phase began at Lumut, Malaysia, on June 28. FREDERICK operated with USS GARY, USS GEORGE PHILIP, USS COMSTOCK and mine-countermeasures units during the bilateral training program.

The task group subsequently moved to Singapore. CARAT Singapore began on July 12 and continued through July 23, combining at-sea and shore-based training between American and Singaporean naval forces. The exercise involved surface ships, aviation, special warfare elements, diving units and maritime-patrol aircraft.

FREDERICK and USS GEORGE PHILIP also visited Brunei during the deployment. The group then moved into the Thai phase of CARAT 99. FREDERICK served as Commander Amphibious Task Force platform during amphibious planning involving American and Royal Thai personnel. The training included embarking Marines and their equipment, rehearsing an amphibious movement at Hat Yao and conducting a subsequent exercise assault in the Rayong area.

FREDERICK remained based at Pearl Harbor as the new millennium began. Another western Pacific cruise followed in 2001 and became the final major overseas deployment of her United States Navy career. Among the major events was participation in Exercise Cobra Gold 2001 in Thailand. Cobra Gold was a recurring combined exercise intended to improve cooperation between American and Thai forces and practice responses to regional contingencies. By this stage, the exercise had evolved beyond conventional amphibious warfare to include peace-enforcement and multinational operations. FREDERICK's continued participation in such exercises reflected her unusual longevity. Nearly every other NEWPORT-class ship had already left United States Navy service, but FREDERICK was still capable of embarking Marines, vehicles and equipment and transporting them throughout the western Pacific. Her remaining years increasingly combined Reserve Force training with regional exercises and readiness for humanitarian assistance or disaster-response missions.

By 2002, the Navy had decided to retire the ship. FREDERICK was by then not only the final NEWPORT-class ship still flying the United States flag but the last commissioned tank landing ship in the Navy. The specialized LST mission had gradually been absorbed by newer amphibious ships, landing craft and increasingly capable amphibious assault vehicles that allowed Marines and equipment to be launched farther from shore.

FREDERICK was decommissioned at Naval Station Pearl Harbor on October 5, 2002. The ceremony ended more than thirty-two years of commissioned United States Navy service. She had completed sixteen western Pacific deployments during her career and was at the time of her retirement the Naval Reserve Force's only amphibious ship. Immediately after the decommissioning ceremony, a tug moved the former FREDERICK to a temporary berth among inactive ships at Pearl Harbor. FREDERICK was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on November 6, 2002. The ship was not destined for scrapping. Mexico had expressed interest in acquiring her, and Mexican naval representatives inspected the recently decommissioned vessel at Pearl Harbor during October.

The former FREDERICK was subsequently transferred to Mexico through the Security Assistance Program and entered Mexican Navy service in December 2002 as ARM USUMACINTA (A 412). Her transfer extended the operational career of the hull beyond the thirty-two years she had already spent in the United States Navy.

back to top

go to the end of the page

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.

back to top

Back to Tank Landing Ships page.

Back to ships list.

Back to selection page.

Back to 1^st page.