USS Pearl Harbor

USS Pearl Harbor (LSD 52) is a Harpers Ferry-class dock landing ship of the United States Navy. She was named for Pearl Harbor, where World War II began for the United States.

USS Pearl Harbor (LSD 52) in the Pacific Ocean (20 June 2007).
History
United States
Name: USS Pearl Harbor
Namesake: Pearl Harbor
Ordered: 12 October 1993
Builder: Avondale Shipyards
Laid down: 27 January 1995
Launched: 24 February 1996
Commissioned: 30 May 1998
Homeport: Naval Base San Diego
Motto: Nation's Battle Cry
Nickname(s): Black Pearl
Status: in active service
Badge:
General characteristics
Class and type: Harpers Ferry-class dock landing ship
Displacement:
  • 11,251 tons (light)
  • 16,088 tons (full)
Length: 610 ft (190 m)
Beam: 84 ft (26 m)
Draft: 21 ft (6.4 m)
Propulsion: 4 Colt Industries, 16-cylinder diesel engines, 2 shafts, 33,000 shp (25 MW)
Speed: 20+ knots (37+ km/h)
Boats & landing
craft carried:		 2 LCACs
Complement:
  • 22 officers, 397 enlisted
  • Marine detachment:
  • 402 + 102 surge
Sensors and
processing systems:
  • AN/SPS-67
  • AN/SPS-73
  • AN/SPS-49
Electronic warfare
& decoys:
  • SLQ-32(V1)
  • Nulka
Armament:

Pearl Harbor was laid down on 27 January 1995, by the Avondale Shipyards, New Orleans, La.; launched on 24 February 1996; and commissioned on 30 May 1998.

As of September 06, 2018, Pearl Harbor is homeported to NS San Diego, California, and assigned to Commander Amphibious Squadron 1 (COMPHIBRON 1).

Service history

On 4 May 2008 the ship departed San Diego for assignment in the Persian Gulf as part of the Peleliu amphibious assault group. On 21 July 2008, Pearl Harbor was run aground on a shoal off of Kuwait without damage. Following the incident, Commander Xavier F. Valverde was relieved of command by Rear Admiral Kendall Card, commander of Expeditionary Strike Group 3, and reassigned to shore staff duty in Bahrain. Captain Mike Slotsky, deputy commodore of Destroyer Squadron 9 in Everett, Washington, was assigned to oversee the ship temporarily.[1][2]

On 20 May 2010 the ship departed on a WESTPAC deployment as a part of the Peleliu Amphibious Readiness Group, where she participated in relief efforts following devastating floods in Pakistan in September 2010. Following her aid to Pakistani victims, she sailed south to Somalia where she conducted counter-piracy operations and lent aid to over 60 Somali refugees for over a month. She returned to her homeport of San Diego, California on 17 December 2010.

On 14 November 2011 the ship departed on a WESTPAC deployment as part of the Makin Island Amphibious Readiness Group. She returned to San Diego on 22 June 2012.

From May through August 2013, Pearl Harbor deployed independently in support of Pacific Partnership 2013, providing humanitarian aid to the island nations of Samoa, Tonga, New Caledonia, Marshall Islands, Kiribati, and Soloman Islands.

Close up look of USS Pearl Harbor (LSD-52)

On 15 April 2014, the ship entered an Extended Docking Phased Maintenance Availability (EDPMA) to complete her midlife overhaul. After numerous extensions due to unplanned growth work, Pearl Harbor completed her extensive overhaul in May 2016. The ship participated in Southern California Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) in July 2016 where it supported amphibious operations in conjunction with Australian, Canadian, Japanese, and German coalition partners under command of CDR Judd Krier.

Pearl Harbor is currently assigned to the USS America (LHA-6) amphibious readiness group (ARG).

It is currently planned for Pearl Harbor to be Decommissioned, and placed in the Reserve Fleet sometime in 2024.[3]

Notes
  1. Carter, Chelsea (28 July 2008). "Navy commander fired after running ship aground". San Jose Mercury News. Retrieved 29 July 2008.
  2. San Diego Union-Tribune, "Commander Is Reassigned After Ship Runs Aground", 29 July 2008.
  3. "navy-plans-to-retire-48-ships-during-2022-2026". seapowermagazine.org.
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