USS La Moure County (LST-1194)
USS La Moure County (LST-1194) was the sixteenth of twenty Newport-class tank landing ship of the United States Navy (USN) which replaced the traditional bow door-design tank landing ships (LSTs). The second vessel named after a county in North Dakota, the LST was constructed by National Steel and Shipbuilding Company of San Diego, California. The vessel was launched and was commissioned into the USN in 1971. La Moure County alternated deployments in the Caribbean Sea with those to the Mediterranean Sea. During the Gulf War, La Moure County transported elements of the 4th Marine Expeditionary Brigade to the Persian Gulf. In 2000, the LST was taking part in a training exercise off Chile when the vessel ran aground. Considered beyond repair, La Moure County was decommissioned that year and towed out to sea in 2001 and sunk as a target ship.
USS La Moure County (LST-1194) underway
La Moure County at anchor in Cifuncho Bay, where the ship lay from 12 September to 28 October 2000
Ex-La Moure County as seen here during the first phase of the SINKEX on 10 July 2001
Ex-La Moure County overhead view showing the ship later in the SINKEX exercise, burning after several missile hits
Newport-class tank landing ship
Newport-class tank landing ships were an improved class of tank landing ship (LST) designed for and employed by the United States Navy from 1969 to 2002. The ships were intended to provide substantial advantages over their World War II-era predecessors. Larger and faster than any previous LST design, they carried a ramp over the bow that allowed them to surpass 20 knots, a goal of the United States amphibious forces. 27 were planned of which twenty were completed, the high number due to the demands of US force projection estimates. However, the arrival of the air-cushioned landing craft which allowed for over-the-horizon attacks made the class obsolete in the eyes of the United States Navy. Placed in reserve, twelve were eventually sold to foreign navies, while the remaining eight have since been decommissioned.
USS Newport (LST-1179)
USS Frederick with its bow ramp extended
USS Racine bow view with bow ramp sitting on deck
USS San Bernardino during a landing exercise in 1979