USS Deimos (AK-78)

USS Deimos (AK-78) was a Crater-class cargo ship in the service of US Navy in World War II. It was the first ship of the Navy to have borne the name Deimos, after one of the moons of Mars.

For other ships with the same name, see USS Deimos.

Broadside view of USS Deimos (AK-78) underway off San Francisco, 26 January 1943.
History
United States
Name
  • Hugh McCulloch
  • Chief Ouray
  • Deimos
Namesake
Orderedas a Type EC2-S-C1 hull, MCE hull 513[1]
BuilderPermanente Metals Corporation, Richmond, California
Cost$1,089,087[2]
Yard number513[1]
Way number5[1]
Laid down27 November 1942
Launched28 December 1942
Sponsored byMrs. Marie Moyer
Acquired7 January 1943
Commissioned23 January 1943
Identification
Honors and
awards		1 × battle star
Fate
  • Damaged by torpedo, 23 June 1943
  • Abandoned and scuttled by gun fire from O'Bannon
General characteristics [3]
Class and typeCrater-class cargo ship
Displacement
  • 4,023 long tons (4,088 t) (standard)
  • 14,550 long tons (14,780 t) (full load)
Length441 ft 6 in (134.57 m)
Beam56 ft 11 in (17.35 m)
Draft28 ft 4 in (8.64 m)
Installed power
Propulsion
Speed12.5 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)
Complement210
Armament

Construction

Deimos was laid down 27 November 1942, as liberty ship SS Hugh McCulloch, renamed SS Chief Ouray, MCE hull 513, by Permanente Metals Corporation, Richmond, California, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract. Deimos was launched on 28 December 1942 and sponsored by Mrs. Marie Moyer. Deimos was transferred to the Navy on 7 January 1943, and commissioned 23 January 1943.[4]

Service history

Deimos sailed from San Francisco 27 January 1943, with cargo for Espiritu Santo, New Hebrides, and Townsville, Australia. She arrived at Nouméa, New Caledonia, 23 May, to load cargo which she delivered to Guadalcanal in June. Returning to her base, she was torpedoed by the Imperial Japanese Navy submarine Ro-103[5] on 23 June, on the port side, aft. Efforts to save her failed. She was finally abandoned and sunk by gunfire by the destroyer O'Bannon (DD-450) at 11°26′S 162°01′E.[4]

Awards

Deimos received one battle star for World War II service.[4]

References
  1. Kaiser No. 1 2010.
  2. MARCOM.
  3. Navsource 2013.
  4. DANFS 2015.
  5. Hackett, Bob; Kingsepp, Sander (2017). "IJN Submarine RO-103: Tabular Record of Movement". combinedfleet.com. Retrieved 29 September 2020.

Bibliography
  • Photo gallery of USS Deimos (AK-78) at NavSource Naval History
  • "CHIEF OURAY". United States Department of Transportation. Archived from the original on 12 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2016.
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