Iwo Jima (LPH 2) - Naval Cruise Book

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5 22f'!.-..vns,:s' .I 1 ., Elia.. 22 Years In The Life of USS IWO JIMA CLPH 2 . The United States Ship IWO JIMA is the first ship of its class and the first ship to be designed from the keel up as an amphibious assault ship. lt was launched Sept. I7, l96O, at Bremerton, Wa., and commissioned Aug. 26, l96l. lt has an overall length of 602 feet and a breadth of lOl feet. Fully loaded, IWO JIMA displaces more than I8,CXD tons and draws more than 26 feet of water. IWO JlMA's original homeport was San Diego. IWO JIMA made it's first deployment to the Western Pacific, one of six the ship would eventually make, in Sept. l963. During each deployment, IWO JIMA could be found play- ing an active role in Southeast Asia developments. One highlight of IWO's West Coast career was its assignment as the prime recovery ship for the Apollo I3 Moon Mission, recovering astronauts Lovell, Swigert and Haise. ln addition. IWO JIMA participated in excess of 30 amphibious operations off the coast of Vietnam. ln May, l972, IWO JIMA departed San Diego for the last time, bound for its new homeport of Norfolk, Va. Six weeks after arriving on the East Coast, IWO departed for its first Mediterranean deployment. Also that year, IWO received the Arleigh Burke Award signifying the most improved ship in the Atlantic Fleet. Other East Coast highlights include hosting l.2w offi- cial guests at the i976 Mardi Gras celebration in New Orleans and its participation in the evacuation of civil- ians from war-torn Beirut, Lebanon, IWO also conducted the first shipboard certification trials for the CH-53 Echo Super StalIion helicopter, the largest in the free world. ln May l979, IWO was host to such guests as Don Knotts. Diane Carroll. Charo, Henry Kissinger. Mrs. Happy Rockefeller and Bob Hope in New York City for the taping of the Bob Hope Birthday Special which aired nationwide. Upon its seventh deployment to the Mediterranean in January. l98I, IWO JIMA participated in contingency op- erations off the coast of Lebanon, standing by to evacu- ate American citizens. ln Aug. I982, IWO was notified it had again been se- lected as the Atlantic Fleet Arleigh Burke Award winner. IWO JlMA's latest deployment was again to strife- ridden Lebanon, where it provided command control and logistics support for the U.S. contingent of the Multina- tional Peacekeeping Force. That deployment began May IO. I983 and ended December 8. l983. Since its commissioning, IWO JIMA has recorded more than IIQK accident-free landings and has been awarded the Admiral Flatley Award for aviation safety four times. IWO has also been awarded numerous awards for excellence in battle efficiency. operations. amphibi- ous assault. air communication, engineering, aviation maintenance, damage control, surface-to-air missilery and gunnery.

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