USS St. Louis LKA-116

Commissioned: November 22, 1969

Decommissioned: November 2, 1991

Displacement: 8,368 tons

Speed: 20 knots

Crew: 642

• The USS St. Louis LKA-116 was involved in several campaigns during the Vietnam War and the corresponding ceasefire.
• Active involvement in the Vietnam counteroffensive lasted from August 20, 1970 to March 12, 1971.
• The ship was also directly involved in transporting troops and diplomats to and from Vietnam during the ceasefire in 1972.
• Awarded two campaign stars for its exemplary service during the conflict in Vietnam.
• The St. Louis would later participate in 'Operation Eagle Claw', the Iran Hostage Rescue Mission (1981).
• Having been decommissioned for more than two decades, the ship sits in the Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future.

References:
"USS St. Louis (LKA-116)." NavSource Online: Amphibious Photo Archive. http://www.navsource.org/archives/10/02/02116.htm. (Accessed June 2012.)
"Counteroffensive Phase VII." 1st Battalion 50th Infantry Association." http://www.ichiban1.org/html/history/1969_1973_vietnamization/14_counteroffensive_phase7_1970_1971.htm. (Accessed June 2012.)
"St. Louis." Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/s17/st_louis-vi.htm. (Accessed June 2012.)