Peleliu (LHA 5) - Naval Cruise Book

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Eight stars across top of shield - sym- bolizes eight Medal of Honor awardees from the assault on Peleliu Large Roman HV in center of shield - LHA-5 Ring in lower left of shield - by tradition of heraldry, a ring or annulet symbol- izes the fifth born SPIRIT '88. Some other exercises were VALIANT USI'I- ER, KERNEL USI-IER, COBRA GOLD, RIMPAC and REA- DEX. While on GULFPAC '91, in addition to some of the previously mentioned exercises, PELELIU participated in AL HAMRA I and II, and SEA SOLDIER V during de- ployment in the Persian Gulf. PELELIU has visited many fascinating ports of call, in- cluding: Colon, Panama, Balboa, Panama, Vancouver, B.C, Canada, Pearl I-Iarbor, I-Iawaii, Subic Bay, Philip- pines, Pattaya Beach, Thailand, Singapore, Hong Kong, Pusan, South Korea, Pohang, South Korea, Sasebo Japan, Yokosuka, Japan, Okinawa, Diego Garcia, Pele- liu Island, Guam, Dubai, United Arab Emirates: and Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. 712 7 -1 Four-pointed star in center oflarge HV - symbolizes four functions of the Ll'lA it at ' X Emblem of lst Marine Division - Con- stellation Southern Cross, with numer- al superimposed T Motto - PAX PER POTEHS: Latin for I 'Peace Through Power S E I 9 pk flilll E PELELIU HISTORY 7

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PELELIU S keel was laid on November 12 1976 and the ship was launched two years later on November 11 1978 She was christened on January 6 1980 by Mrs Margaret Hayward wife of then Chief of Naval Oper ations Admiral Thomas B Hayward On May 5 1980 PELELIU was commlssloned at Ingalls Shipyard Pasca goula Mississippi USS PELELIU translted the Panama Canal on May 20 1980 and arnved at her homeport Naval Station Long Beach Callfomla ln June 1980 She was underway for her first deployment by March 27 1982 and made her second deployment on September 12 1985 Almost two years later PELELIU deployed on her third deploy ment visiting the Westem Pacific and Indian Ocean on January 14 1988 she departed for her fourth deploy ment again to the Western Pacific WESTPAC 90 was launched on January 12 and her most recent deploy ment CIULFPAC 91 was accompllshed dunng the pen od of May 29 to November 27 1991 in support of Operation Desert Storm in the Persian Gulf PELELIU S m1ss1on IS to embark deploy and land ele ments of a landmg force in an assault by helicopters landmg craft amphibious vehicles or a combination of all three methods It may operate independently or ln conjunction with a large force conducting a1r and sur face operations USS PELELIU was designed to main tam what the Marine Corps calls Tactical Integnty getting a balanced force to the same point at the same U time. She can carrya complete Marine Battalion Land- ing Team CBLTJ, along with the supplies and equipment needed in an assault, and land them ashore by helicop- ter and for amphibious craft. This dual capability, with emphasis on vertical launch and landing of troops and equipment, aids the Navy-Marine Corps Team in carry- ing out its present-day amphibious mission. PELELIU'S survivability is enhanced by two Close-In Weapons Sys- tems CCIWSD and two automatic five-inch guns. A secondary mission of the PELELIU is evacuation and disaster relief- was put to test during the Mt. Pinatubo volcanic eruption in the Philippines in June of 1991. Hundreds of tons of medical supplies and foodstuffs can be carried in her cargo holds and delivered to disaster victims within minutes of PELELlU'S arrival on 6 PELELIU HISTORY the scene. Fresh water and electricity could be pro- vided from the ship's engineering plant until domestic services are restored. PELELlU'S medical facilities can accommodate as many as 500 patients and provide out-patient treat- ment for hundreds of additional sick or injured. Two thousand evacuees could be brought aboard by heli- copter or landing craft and transported to safe areas. Most recently, PELELIU served as flagship for Com-- mander, Amphibious Squadron Three during CIULFPAC '91. In the past she has served as flagship for Com- mander, Amphibious Squadron One and Amphibious Squadron Seven. PELELIU has participated in numer- ous exercises, including her first appearance in TEAM

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MILESTONES Keel laid . , . . . .12 November 1976 Launched ........ 11 November 1978 Christened .......,.. 6 January 1979 Commissioned . . . ...... 5 May 1980 CHARACTERISTICS Displacement .,,. .,.. 5 9,500 tons Length .4.... ,.,.,. 8 20 ft Beam ..., ...,...........,. 1 06 ft Draft .,.... .......,......,....,....... 2 9 ft Propulsion ............ Steamf70,000 shaft I-IP Crew ........ 55+ officers and 851+ enlisted Troop Capacity .170+ officers and 1750+ en- listed Speed .,... ,.... , .r.,..,..,., 2 0 plus knots Evaporators , . . ,r... 140,000 gallons daily Range miles .,.....,rr,r.. 10,000 at 20 knots Aircraft: The flight deck can operate a maxi- mum of 9 CH-55 Sea Stallion or 12 Cl-l-46 Sea Knight helicopters: the hangar deck can accom- modate 19 Cl-l-55 Sea Stallion or 26 CH-46 Sea Knight helicopters. A mix of these and other helicopters and at times 6 + AV-8 Harriers could be embarked. Design: Beneath the full-length flight deck are two half-length hangar decks, the two being connected by an elevator amidships on the port side and a stem lift: beneath the after elevator is a floodable docking well which is capable of accommodating four LCU landing craft or one LCAC and two LCUs. Also included is a large garage for trucks and AFVs and troop berthing for a reinforced battalion. Storage for 10,000 gallons of vehicle petrol and 400,000 gallons of JP-5 helicopter fuel. 55,750 sq. ft. is available for vehicles and 116,900 cu. ft. for palletted stores. Fire Control: Mk 86 Mod 4 gunfire control sys- tem and two Mk 15 Phalanx close-in weapon systems fClWSJ. Guns: 2 5 154 caliber and 6 20mm guns. Fiscal: Approximately S229 million. Electronic Warfare: ANfSLQ-52fVJ5, 4 Mk 56 SRBOC chaffroc launchers. Radan 5D search:SPS 52c. Air search: SPS 40B. Surface search: SPS 67. Navigation: LN 66. Fire Control: SPG 60: SPQ 9A. Air traffic control: SPN 55. Medical: These ships are fitted with extensive medical facilities including operating rooms, X- ray room, hospital ward, isolation ward, labora- tones, phannacy, dental operating room and medical store rooms. Electronics: Helicopter navigation equipment provided. Equipped with Tactical Amphibious Warfare Data System QTAWDSJ. Fitted with OE- 82 satellite communications antenna, SSR-1 re- ceiver and WSC-5 transceiver. Also equipped with an NTCS-A and JOTS network. 8 PELELIU STATISTICS