A Landing Ship Medium (LSM) was originally an amphibious assault ship of the United States Navy in World War II. Of a size between that of Landing Ships Tank and Landing Craft Infantry, 558 LSMs were built for the USN between 1944 and 1945. Most of the vessels built on this frame were regular transports, but several dozen were converted during construction to specialized roles. Most LSMs were scrapped during the Cold War, but several were sold by the United States Department of Defense to foreign nations or private shipping companies.
OPNAV N95 established a new LSM program in 2020. The new LSM will be long, able to operate at 22 knots and have a range of . The cost will be much lower than traditional amphibious shipping, according to a story in the March 2023 Marine Corps Gazette. The piece suggests that a MLR (Marine Littoral Regiment) would need nine LSMs. The lead ship of the new class is LSM-1 USS McClung.
LSM-1-class Landing Ship Medium (Transport)
List of LSM-1-class ships In total, 558 LSM ships were launched. Some notable examples include:
Name Year launched Fate Short summary Sold on 15 November 1974 Sank on 5 December 1944 Scrapped after 1998 Sold on 23 October 1948 Sold on 23 October 1948 Scuttled on July 25, 1946 Sold on 10 December 1958 Scrapped on 9 June 1976 Sold on 29 December 1946 Scrapped on 4 October 1977 Sank on 25 May 1945 Grounded on 5 December 1944 Sank in September 1958 Transferred to Nationalist China in 1949, recommissioned as Mei Le, sunk by Red Chinese artillery 9/1958 Scrapped on 14 August 1972 USS Oceanside (LSM-175) Scrapped in 1989 Scrapped in 1960 Scrapped in 1972 Sold in February 1947 Sank on 16 June 1969 Transferred to Nationalist China in 1949, recommissioned as Mei Hua, sunk in a collision with M.V. Ta Tung 16/6/69 USS LSM-275 Scrapped in 1976 Later renamed and reclassified Scrapped in 1958 USS LSM-315 USS LSM-319 Sank in 1971 Scuttled on 17 September 2006 Later USNS LSM-335 (T-AG-335) Assigned Ryukyuan shuttle. Scrapped Waiting for preservation Sold in November 1958 USS Hunting (LSM-398) Scrapped after 1983 Later reclassified (E-AG-398) Scuttled on 1 February 2003 USS LSM-477 Sank in 1971 USS LSM-547 Abandoned by 1972
LSM(R)-188-class Landing Ship Medium (Rocket)
Name Year launched Fate Short summary 12 September 1944 Sold for scrapping, 17 February 1948 12 September 1944 Sold for scrap, 17 February 1948 21 September 1944 Sunk by Japanese Kamikaze plane off Okinawa, 4 May 1945
LSM(R)-401-class Landing Ship Medium (Rocket)
(LSM(R)-401), later reclassified (LFR-401) (LSM(R)-402) (LSM(R)-403) (LSM(R)-404), later reclassified (LFR-404) (LSM(R)-405), later reclassified (LFR-405) (LSM(R)-406) USS Chariton River (LSM(R)-407) (LSM(R)-408) USS Clarion River (LSM(R)-409), later reclassified (LFR-409) (LSM(R)-410) (LSM(R)-411) (LSM(R)-412), later reclassified (LFR-412)
LSM(R)-501-class Landing Ship Medium (Rocket)
(LSM(R)-501), later reclassified (IX-501) (LSM(R)-502) (LSM(R)-503) (LSM(R)-504) (LSM(R)-505) (LSM(R)-506) USS Greenbrier River (LSM(R)-507) USS Gunnison River (LSM(R)-508), later reclassified and renamed USS Targeteer (YV-3) (LSM(R)-509) (LSM(R)-510) (LSM(R)-511) (LSM(R)-512), later reclassified (LFR-512) (LSM(R)-513), later reclassified (LFR-513) (LSM(R)-514) (LSM(R)-515), later reclassified (LFR-515) (LSM(R)-516) USS Pee Dee River (LSM(R)-517) (LSM(R)-518) USS Powder River (LSM(R)-519) (LSM(R)-520) (LSM(R)-521) (LSM(R)-522), later reclassified (LFR-522) (LSM(R)-523) USS Saint Croix River (LSM(R)-524) USS St. Francis River (LSM(R)-525), later reclassified (LFR-525) (LSM(R)-526) USS St. Joseph's River (LSM(R)-527) USS St. Mary's River (LSM(R)-528) USS St. Regis River (LSM(R)-529) (LSM(R)-530) (LSM(R)-531), later reclassified (LFR-531) (LSM(R)-532) (LSM(R)-533) (LSM(R)-534) (LSM(R)-535) USS White River (LSM(R)-536), later reclassified (LFR-536)
Gypsy-class salvage lifting vessels
, authorized as LSM-549 USS Mender (ARS(D)-2), authorized as LSM-550 USS Salvager (ARS(D)-3), authorized as LSM-551, later reclassified to YMLC-3 USS Windlass (ARS(D)-4), authorized as LSM-552, later reclassified to YMLC-4
Production
Dates are launch dates.
Brown Shipbuilding: Houston, TX: 254 (May 1944 - Apr 1946) purpose-built yard for the war effort Charleston Navy Yard, North Charleston, SC: 121 (May 1944 - Nov 1945) traditional military yard Dravo Corporation, Wilmington, DE: 65 (Apr 1944 - May 1945) purpose-built yard for the war effort Pullman Company, Chicago, IL: 44 (May 1944 - May 1945) traditional rail car manufacturer Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company, Newark, NJ: 42 (May 1944 - Feb 1945) traditional civil and military yard Western Pipe and Steel, San Pedro, CA: 32 (Aug 1944 - Mar 1945) traditional civil yard
Delivery: Q2 1944: 74 Q3 1944: 129 Q4 1944: 132 Q1 1945: 111 Q2 1945: 58 Q3 1945: 30 Q4 1945: 15 1946: 9
Legacy One LSM, , survived in its original configuration until around 2010. It was in storage at Marine Station Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, North Carolina. It was slated to become the centerpiece of the Museum of the Marine, but due to changed plans, was scrapped between 2010 and 2014.
Mcclung Class As of February 2023 the US Marine Corps has proposed the purchase of 18 to 35 modern LSMs; this LSM concept was previously known as the Light Amphibious Warship (LAW).
See also List of United States Navy Landing Ship Mediums Landing Ship, Infantry Mark 8 Landing Craft Tank
References
LSM-LSMR: WWII Amphibious Forces, Turner Publishing Co.; Paducah, Kentucky, Jane's Fighting Ships, 1980–81 US Navy, ONI 226, Allied Landing Craft and Ships, April 1944
External links USS LSM/LSMR Association NavSource Photo Archives Landing Ships ibiblio.org My Life Aboard the LSM-319 by Eugene Carey The Navy's Smallest Aircraft Carrier, July 1958, Popular Mechanics small article on conversion of LSM-445 to a target drone launching vessel