BRP Sierra Madre

	USS Harnett County (AGP-821) in South Vietnamese waters, c. 1967–1970. Atop her flight deck is a Sikorsky H-34 Choctaw helicopter (left) and a Navy Helicopter Attack (Light) Squadron Three (HAL-3) "Seawolf" UH-1B Huey gunship.
History
United States
Name	USS LST-821
Builder	Missouri Valley Bridge & Iron Company, Evansville, Indiana
Laid down	19 September 1944
Launched	27 October 1944
Commissioned	14 November 1944
Decommissioned	March 1946
Renamed	USS Harnett County (LST-821), 1 July 1955
Namesake	Harnett County, North Carolina
Recommissioned	20 August 1966
Decommissioned	12 October 1970
Reclassified	AGP-821, 1970
Honors and; awards	1 battle star (World War II); 9 battle stars, 2 Presidential Unit Citations, 3 Navy Unit Commendations (Vietnam);
Fate	Transferred to South Vietnam, 12 October 1970
South Vietnam
Name	RVNS My Tho
Namesake	Mỹ Tho
Acquired	12 October 1970
Identification	HQ-800
Fate	Transferred to the Philippines, 5 April 1976
Philippines
Name	BRP Sierra Madre
Namesake	Sierra Madre
Acquired	5 April 1976
Identification	LT-57
Fate	Deliberately grounded 1999 at Second Thomas Shoal (South China Sea). Remains in commission as a forward outport. ; 9°47′27.4″N 115°51′23.7″E;
General characteristics
Class and type	LST-542-class tank landing ship
Displacement	1,625 long tons (1,651 t) light; 4,080 long tons (4,145 t) full;
Length	328 ft (100 m)
Beam	50 ft (15 m)
Draft	Unloaded :; 2 ft 4 in (0.71 m) forward; 7 ft 6 in (2.29 m) aft; Loaded :; 8 ft 2 in (2.49 m) forward; 14 ft 1 in (4.29 m) aft;
Propulsion	2 × General Motors 12-567 diesel engines, two shafts, twin rudders
Speed	12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph)
Boats & landing ; craft carried	2 LCVPs
Troops	16 officers, 147 enlisted men
Complement	7 officers, 104 enlisted men
Armament	1 × single 3"/50 caliber gun; 8 × 40 mm guns; 12 × 20 mm guns;

USS LST-821, renamed USS Harnett County (LST-821/AGP-281), is an LST-542-class tank landing ship built for the United States Navy during World War II. She was named for Harnett County, North Carolina and was the only U.S. Naval vessel to bear the name. She served the United States Navy in World War II and the Vietnam War. She was transferred to South Vietnam's Republic of Vietnam Navy, which named her RVNS My Tho (HQ-800).

After the Vietnam War, Harnett County was transferred to the Philippine Navy, which named her BRP Sierra Madre (LT-57). In 1999, the Philippine government deliberately had her run aground on Second Thomas Shoal in the Spratly Islands to serve as an outpost of the Philippine Marine Corps to assert Philippine sovereignty in the country's dispute with China over the ownership of the Spratly Islands. She still serves that function as of 2024.

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.