USS Pelias (AS-14)

USS Pelias (AS-14)
Shipname	USS Pelias (AS-14)
Country	United States
Namesake	Pelias
Builder	General Engineering & Dry Dock Company
Laid down	19 August 1941
Launched	11 April 1942
Commissioned	15 April 1943
Decommissioned	30 September 1992
Fate	Scrapped
Class	Fulton-class submarine tender
Displacement	9,000 tons (full load)
Length	530 ft
Beam	73 ft
Draft	25 ft
Propulsion	Steam turbines
Speed	18.5 kn
Complement	1,184 officers and enlisted
Armament	Multiple 5 in and 40 mm and 20 mm guns (varied)

USS Pelias (AS-14) was a Fulton-class submarine tender of the United States Navy commissioned during World War II. Built to provide maintenance, repair, logistics, and crew support to submarine squadrons, Pelias served in multiple theaters, supporting operations in the Pacific Ocean and contributing to postwar occupation and Cold War forward presence. The ship underwent several overhauls and redeployments before eventual decommissioning and disposal.

Construction and commissioning

Laid down by the General Engineering & Dry Dock Company at Alameda, California on 19 August 1941, Pelias was launched on 11 April 1942 with sponsorship reflecting ties to naval patronage and civic support typical of wartime shipbuilding. Her design derived from earlier submarine tender concepts developed in the interwar period and informed by lessons from the Battle of the Atlantic, the London Naval Treaty era fleet composition, and rapidly expanding United States Navy construction programs administered by the Maritime Commission. The ship completed fitting out at the Naval Shipyard and was commissioned on 15 April 1943 under a commanding officer experienced in logistics and afloat repair operations.

Service history

Assigned initially to the Pacific Fleet, Pelias joined the network of tenders, repair ships, and tenders that enabled sustained submarine campaigns. She operated in coordination with Submarine Squadron commands and worked closely with bases such as Pearl Harbor, Midway Atoll, and forward anchorage areas established after the Guadalcanal campaign and during the Gilbert and Marshall Islands campaign. Pelias’s repair crews included machinists, electricians, and hull specialists who performed complex overhauls, electronics work tied to Radio Corporation of America equipment, and torpedo maintenance linked to Mark 14 torpedo troubleshooting efforts. The ship’s logistical role connected her to Service Squadron 10 support schemes, and she often coordinated with tenders like USS Holland (AS-3) and USS Nereus (AS-17) in theater.

World War II operations

During World War II Pelias made multiple voyages between rear-area bases and forward anchorages to keep fleet submarines mission-capable for the Pacific offensive against Imperial Japan. She serviced boats returning from patrols that ranged to the waters off Truk Atoll, the Philippine Sea, and the East China Sea. Pelias’s work impacted patrols linked to campaigns such as the Marianas campaign and operations supporting the Leyte Gulf area, enabling submarines to continue offensive actions against Japanese merchant marine and warship movements. Her repair capabilities encompassed hull plating, diesel engine overhaul associated with General Motors Cleveland Diesel, gearbox alignment, and electrical systems tied to Asbury Park-style generators and Bureau of Ships specifications. Pelias also supported crew rest and medical referrals, coordinating evacuations with hospital ships and shore-based facilities like the Naval Hospital Pearl Harbor when casualties or tropical disease issues arose.

Postwar activity and peacetime service

Following Victory over Japan Day, Pelias shifted tasks to occupation support, assisting submarines involved in presence patrols and training during the transition from wartime tempo to peacetime operations. She served at Pacific bases including Pearl Harbor, San Diego, and occasionally forward-deployed to outposts such as Subic Bay and Yokosuka during the initial Occupation of Japan and early Cold War tensions like the Korean War, when submarine force readiness again became critical. Pelias underwent Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization overhauls that integrated improved fire-control systems and updated communications equipment compliant with Naval Communications standards, and trained personnel on evolving antisubmarine warfare doctrines and submarine-support logistics promulgated by Commander, Submarine Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet.

Decommissioning and fate

As newer tenders and changes in submarine maintenance philosophy—driven by the introduction of nuclear-powered submarine classes such as USS Nautilus (SSN-571) and shore-based depot modernization—reduced demand for World War II–era tenders, Pelias was gradually phased down. She was decommissioned on 30 September 1992 and struck from the Naval Vessel Register in accordance with United States practice for disposition of obsolete hulls. The ship was transferred to the Maritime Administration and eventually sold for scrapping, concluding a service life that spanned from the height of World War II through the late Cold War period.

Awards and honors

Pelias and her crew were recognized through campaign and service awards reflecting her wartime and postwar contributions, which paralleled honors awarded to fleet support units active in the Pacific Theater and Cold War deployments. Emblems and unit citations acknowledged participation in campaigns tied to Marianas campaign, Philippines campaign (1944–45), and service during occupation operations following Surrender of Japan, as well as efficiency awards promulgated under Chief of Naval Operations directives for afloat support performance.

Category:Fulton-class submarine tenders Category:1942 ships Category:United States Navy auxiliary ships of World War II