Castor (AKS 1) - Naval Cruise Book

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D E C K H

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On June 30, 1947 as part of the post war cutback, CASTOR was decommissioned and placed in the San Francisco Group, Pacific Reserve Fleet. There she remained for nearly four years. As a result of the Korean conflict, she was reactivated in late 1950, and for the next fourteen months c arried vital supplies to United Nations forces. Inchon, Pusan, Sasebo, and Yokosuka were her main ports of call. Sailing for San Francisco in March 19C2, CASTOR was caught in a typhoon as trouble developed in her main reduction gears. All engines were stopped and the ship lav dead in the water for twenty-two hours while the storm raged about her. After sustaining considerable damage, she was taken under tow and returned to Yokosuka for repairs. By April she was back on the line, this time operating in the Philippine area. More runs brought a varietj of duties. In 19C4 she was in Indochina, issuing supplies to the ships evacuating refugees. In January 1956 CASTOR returned to the States to the Triple A and Todd Shipyard tor five months of overhaul and conversion. She emerged in June as the most advanced supply ship in the U.S. Navy. With her redesign she was the first to add technical spares to her cargo of general stores. Her new profile included petroleum products, electrical, electronic, ordnance, and ships repair parts. In uiuist [9C6, she sailed west again and her home port became Sasebo. In October it was changed to Yokosuka. bout that same time she picked up an SOS from the Philippine merchant ship SS 1 I PUS, caught in a typhoon M i sinking oil Cagayan, Philippines. With the as- sistance of aircraft from Clark ir force Base, CASTOR located and picked up the n survivors. For this she received a citation , m. plaque from Ramon Magsaysay, then president ol the Philippine Republic. In peacetime or at war CASTOR lias always been number one . In u)(- 1 she earned the battle efficienc) I award for the Service lone Pacific Meet. In [963 she made a clean sweep i.l cargo transfer records for ks tvpes. Her speed ol transfer to aircraft carrier, cruiser, and destroyer type ships were more than double the old rates. In August [964, CASTOR ' S home port was changed to Sasebo. She has not returned to the I niteel Slates since [9C6, and for more than fourteen ol herlvventv six vc.nsslic has Steamed in far eastern waters. Ichi-ban Main is a familiar sic ht in the Orient.

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C. A. AIM ER. INS, USNR M. E. ARNOLD D. L. McCALLUM A. DITCHARO, N. G. YORK E. RANM I I s I 1 |G, USNR IBS I G. ROBINSON D. R HINKI I |. B. Jl NNINGS R. A. HURRls (Ull ki i M. CI IB( RNI