USS Lyra (AK-101)

USS Lyra (AK-101) was a Crater-class cargo ship in the service of the US Navy in World War II. It was the only ship of the Navy to have borne this name. It is named after the constellation Lyra.

USS Lyra (AK-101) (broadside view) at anchor in San Francisco Bay, 4 August 1943.
History
United States
Name:
  • Cyrus Hamlin
  • Lyra
Namesake:
Ordered: as a Type EC2-S-C1 hull, MCE hull 1555[1]
Builder: Permanente Metals Corporation, Richmond, California
Yard number: 1555[1]
Way number: 2[1]
Laid down: 25 April 1943
Launched: 28 May 1943
Sponsored by: Mrs. Harry N. Nelson
Acquired: 10 June 1943
Commissioned: 22 July 1943
Decommissioned: 3 May 1946
Identification:
Fate: sold, 7 January 1947
Greece
Name: Virginia
Namesake: US State of Virginia
Owner: A. G. Pappadakis, Piraeus, Greece
Acquired: 7 January 1947
Fate: sold, 1951
Greece
Name: Virginia
Owner: Freighters & Tankers Agency Corp, New York City
Acquired: 1951
Fate: sold, 1953
Greece
Name: Virginia
Owner: J. J. Culucundis, Piraeus and Freighters & Tankers Agency Corp, New York
Acquired: 1953
Fate: sold, 1954
Greece
Name: Virginia
Owner: J. J. Culucundis, Piraeus and A G Pappadakis & Co Ltd, London
Acquired: 1954
Fate: sold, 1964
Greece
Name: Virginia
Owner: Amedeo - Marfrontera Cia Nav. SA, Republic of Panama
Acquired: 1964
Fate: sold to Taiwan breakers
Status: arrived, Kaohsiung, 3 April 1967
General characteristics [2]
Class and type: Crater-class cargo ship
Displacement:
  • 4,023 long tons (4,088 t) (standard)
  • 14,550 long tons (14,780 t) (full load)
Length: 441 ft 6 in (134.57 m)
Beam: 56 ft 11 in (17.35 m)
Draft: 28 ft 4 in (8.64 m)
Installed power:
Propulsion:
Speed: 12.5 kn (23.2 km/h; 14.4 mph)
Capacity:
  • 7,800 t (7,700 long tons) DWT
  • 444,206 cu ft (12,578.5 m3) (non-refrigerated)
Complement: 255
Armament:

Construction

Lyra was laid down 25 April 1943 as Liberty ship SS Cyrus Hamlin, MCE hull 1555, by Permanente Metals Corporation, Yard No. 1, Richmond, California, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract; renamed Lyra 27 May 1943; launched 28 May 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Harry N. Nelson; acquired by the Navy 10 June 1943; converted by General Engineering & Drydock Co., San Francisco, California, completed 22 July 1943; and commissioned 22 July 1943, Lieutenant Commander James H. Henderson in command.[3]

Service history

Lyra departed San Francisco 28 August 1943, with 8,000 tons of lend-lease cargo for New Zealand. En route she towed one unit of a sectional dock to Espiritu Santo, New Hebrides, and arrived Wellington, New Zealand, 19 October. The cargo ship returned to San Francisco 24 November. On 17 December she began a three-day experimental run to help perfect towing techniques.[3]

Two days after Christmas, she again departed for Espiritu Santo towing Auxiliary Repair Dry Dock ARD-12. The ship then proceeded to Tulagi and Munda, Solomon Islands, embarking 200 troops from the latter for transport to Guadalcanal, which she reached 29 February 1944. Lyra returned to Tulagi and Guadalcanal, and was back in San Francisco 2 April after steaming 13,567 miles (21,834 km). From 29 April to 30 June, she made two short voyages between the west coast and Pearl Harbor.[3]

The cargo ship's next assignment was a towing operation to Manus, Admiralty Islands, between 21 August and 15 January 1945. On 26 February she voyaged to Samar, Philippine Islands, and returned to home port 1 June. Her seventh voyage, 17 June to 24 August, took her to Honolulu and Saipan. She sailed from San Francisco 26 September to Samar for her last assignment before decommissioning in Norfolk 3 May 1946. Lyra was redelivered to War Shipping Administration (WSA) 5 days later.[3] She was sold 7 January 1947,[4] to A. G. Pappadakis and operated out of Piraeus, Greece, as Virginia.[3]

Notes

    Citations
    1. Kaiser No. 1 2010.
    2. Navsource 2014.
    3. DANFS 2015.
    4. MARAD.

    Bibliography

    Online resources

    • "Lyra". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Naval History and Heritage Command. 29 July 2015. Retrieved 19 December 2016. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
    • "Kaiser Permanente No. 1, Richmond CA". www.ShipbuildingHistory.com. 13 October 2010. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
    • "USS Lyra (AK-101)". Navsource.org. 13 June 2014. Retrieved 19 December 2016.
    • "CYRUS HAMLIN (AK-101)". United States Department of Transportation. Retrieved 19 December 2016.


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