USS St. Lo
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| USS St. Lo | |
|---|---|
| Ship name | USS St. Lo |
| Ship caption | USS St. Lo underway in 1944 |
| Ship country | United States |
| Ship flag | 1944 |
| Ship class | Casablanca-class escort carrier |
| Ship displacement | 7,800 tons |
| Ship length | 512 ft 3 in (156.13 m) |
| Ship beam | 65 ft 2 in (19.86 m) |
| Ship draft | 22 ft 6 in (6.86 m) |
| Ship speed | 19 knots |
| Ship complement | 860 officers and men |
| Ship aircraft | 28 |
| Ship armament | 1 × 5-inch/38 caliber gun, 16 × 40 mm Bofors guns, 20 × 20 mm Oerlikon cannons |
USS St. Lo was a Casablanca-class escort carrier of the United States Navy during World War II. Originally commissioned as USS Chapin Bay, she was renamed in honor of the Battle of Saint-Lô, a pivotal engagement in the Normandy campaign. The ship is historically significant for being the first major warship sunk by a kamikaze attack during the Pacific War.
History
The vessel was laid down under a Maritime Commission contract by the Kaiser Shipyards in Vancouver, Washington. She was launched as USS Chapin Bay (CVE-63) in 1943, as part of a massive wartime shipbuilding program. Prior to her commissioning, the Navy Department decided to rename the ship to honor the recent Allied victory in France, becoming USS St. Lo. This renaming followed a pattern of naming escort carriers after battles or bays, linking the ship's identity directly to the ongoing global conflict.
Design and description
As a member of the Casablanca class, USS St. Lo was a mass-produced, purpose-built escort carrier designed for anti-submarine warfare, aircraft transport, and close air support. The class was constructed from merchant ship hulls, making them quicker to build than fleet carriers. Her flight deck was 477 feet long, and she could carry a typical air group of around 28 aircraft, a mix of FM-2 Wildcat fighters and TBM Avenger torpedo bombers. Defensive armament included a single 5-inch gun, numerous 40 mm and 20 mm anti-aircraft guns to defend against aerial threats.
Service history
Commissioned in October 1943, USS St. Lo was initially assigned to training and transport duties in the Atlantic Ocean. After transitioning to the Pacific Theater in 1944, she joined Task Force 77 and participated in several major campaigns. Her aircraft provided crucial close air support during the Battle of Leyte and the Invasion of Lingayen Gulf. Operating as part of Task Unit 77.4.3 (codenamed "Taffy 3"), she was involved in providing air cover for the amphibious landings on Leyte in the Philippines.
Loss
On October 25, 1944, during the Battle off Samar—a pivotal action within the larger Battle of Leyte Gulf—USS St. Lo and the other escort carriers of Taffy 3 were attacked by a powerful Japanese surface force led by the battleship ''Yamato''. After surviving the initial naval gunfire, the ship's group came under intense air attack. A lone Japanese Zero fighter, piloted by Yukio Seki, dove into the ship's flight deck. The kamikaze's bomb penetrated to the hangar deck, igniting ordnance and fuel, which triggered catastrophic secondary explosions. The ship sank within 30 minutes, with the loss of approximately 114 men from her crew of over 800.
Legacy
The loss of USS St. Lo marked a grim tactical shift in the war, demonstrating the devastating effectiveness of organized kamikaze tactics against Allied naval forces. The ship was struck from the Naval Vessel Register in November 1944. Her sacrifice is memorialized at the Manila American Cemetery and in historical accounts of the Battle of Leyte Gulf. The action of Taffy 3, in which she fought, is celebrated for its extraordinary defense against overwhelming odds, and the ship's name remains a somber footnote in the history of naval warfare in the Pacific Theater.
Category:Casablanca-class escort carriers Category:Ships sunk by kamikaze attack Category:World War II shipwrecks in the Philippine Sea