USS Boxer ( CV - 21 ) USS " Boxer " ( CV / CVA / CVS - 21 , LPH - 4 ) was one of 24 s of the United States ( U . S . ) Navy , and the fifth ship to be named for the HMS " Boxer " . She was launched on 14 December 1944 and christened by the daughter of a US Senator from Louisiana . Commissioned too late to see any combat in World War II , " Boxer " spent much of her career in the Pacific Ocean seeing 10 tours in the western Pacific . Her initial duties involved mostly training and exercises , including launching the first carrier - based jet aircraft , but demobilization prevented much activity in the late 1940s . At the outbreak of the Korean War , she was used as an aircraft transport before arriving off Korean Waters as the third U . S . Carrier to join the force . She supported the Inchon landings and subsequent invasion of North Korea , and was among the ships that provided support during the Chinese counteroffensive against an under - prepared and spread out United Nations ( UN ) force . She saw three subsequent combat tours in Korea conducting close air support and strategic bombing in support of UN ground troops fighting along the 38th Parallel , as the battles lines had largely solidified by this time . She was awarded eight battle star s for her service in Korea . After the Korean War , " Boxer " saw a variety of duties , including as an anti - submarine warfare carrier and an amphibious assault platform . She participated in a number of training exercises including Operation Hardtack and Operation Steel Pike , as well as several contingencies including Operation Powerpack and the Cuban Missile Crisis . In her later years , she served as a pickup ship for spacecraft during the Apollo program as well as an aircraft transport to troops during the Vietnam War . Although she was extensively modified internally as part of her conversion to an LPH , external modifications were minor , so throughout her career " Boxer " retained the classic appearance of a World War II ship . She was decommissioned on 1 December 1969 after 25 years of service and sold for scrap . Construction . " Boxer " was one of 24 ships to be completed , among the largest and most numerous capital ship s produced for World War II . She was ordered in 1943 . The ship was one of the " long - hull " designs of the class , which had begun production after March 1943 . This " long hull " variant involved lengthening the bow above the waterline into a " clipper " form . The increased rake and flare provided deck space for two quadruple 40mm mounts ; these units also had the flight deck slightly shortened forward to provide better arcs of fire . Of the " Essex " - class ships laid down after 1942 , only followed the original " short bow " design . The later ships have been variously referred to as the " long - bow units " , the " long - hull group " , or the " " Ticonderoga " class " . However , the U . S . Navy never maintained any institutional distinction between the long - hull and short - hull members of the " Essex " class , and postwar refits and upgrades were applied to both groups equally . Like other " long - hull " " Essex " - class carriers , " Boxer " had a displacement of . She had an overall length of , a beam of and a draft of . The ship was powered by eight 600 psi Babcock & Wilcox boilers , and Westinghouse geared steam turbines that developed 150 , 000 shaft horsepower that turned four propellers . Like other " Essex " - class carriers , she had a maximum speed of . The ship had a total crew complement of 3 , 448 . Like other " Essex " - class ships , she could be armed with 12 5 - inch ( 127 mm ) / 38 caliber guns arrayed in four pairs and four single emplacements , as well as 8 quadruple Bofors 40 mm guns and 46 Oerlikon 20 mm cannons . However , unlike her sisters , " Boxer " was armed instead with 72 40mm guns and 35 20 mm cannons . Her keel was laid on 13 September 1943 by the Newport News Shipbuilding Company at its facility in Newport News , Virginia . She was the fifth ship of the US Navy to be named " Boxer " , after HMS " Boxer " , which had been captured by the U . S . during the War of 1812 . The last ship to bear the name had been a training ship in 1905 . The new carrier was launched on 14 December 1944 and she was christened by Ruth D . Overton , the daughter of U . S . Senator John H . Overton . The ship ' s cost is estimated at $ 68 , 000 , 000 to $ 78 , 000 , 000 . Service history . " Boxer " was commissioned on 16 April 1945 under the command of Captain D . F . Smith . She subsequently began sea trials and a shakedown cruise . Before these were complete , the Empire of Japan surrendered on V - J Day , marking the end of World War II before " Boxer " could participate . She joined the Pacific Fleet at San Diego in August 1945 and the next month she steamed for Guam , becoming the flagship of Task Force 77 , a position she held until 23 August 1946 . During this tour , she visited Japan , Okinawa , The Philippines , and China . She returned to San Francisco on 10 September 1946 , embarked Carrier Air Group 19 flying the F8F Bearcat . With this complement , " Boxer " began a series of peacetime patrols and training missions off the coast of California during a relatively uneventful period during 1947 . In spite of manning difficulties brought on by the demobilization of the US military after World War II , " Boxer " remained active in Pacific readiness drills around the West Coast and Hawaii . In 1948 , she conducted a number of short cruises with US Navy Reserve personnel . On 10 March 1948 , an FJ - 1 Fury launched from " Boxer " , the first such launch of an all - jet aircraft from an American carrier , which allowed subsequent tests of jet aircraft carrier doctrine . For the remainder of 1948 and 1949 , she participated in numerous battle drills and acted as a training carrier for jet aircraft pilots . She was dispatched to the Far East on another tour on 11 January 1950 . She joined the 7th Fleet in the region , making a goodwill visit to South Korea and entertaining South Korean president Syngman Rhee and his wife Franziska Donner . and at the end of the tour returned to San Diego on 25 June 1950 , the same day as the outbreak of the Korean War . At the time , she was overdue for a maintenance overhaul , but she did not have time to complete it before being dispatched again . Korean War . With the outbreak of the Korean War , the U . S . forces in the Far East had an urgent need for supplies and aircraft . The only aircraft carriers near Korea were the and . " Boxer " was ordered into service to ferry aircraft from California to the fighting on the Korean Peninsula . She made a record - breaking crossing of the Pacific Ocean , leaving Alameda , California on 14 July 1950 and arriving at Yokosuka , Japan on 23 July , a trip of 8 days and 7 hours . She carried one hundred forty - five P - 51 Mustang s and six L - 5 Sentinel s of the United States Air Force destined for the Far East Air Force as well as 19 Navy aircraft , 1 , 012 Air Force support personnel , and of supplies for the United Nations troops fighting the North Korean invasion of South Korea , including crucially needed spare parts and ordnance . Many of this equipment had been taken from Air National Guard units in the United States because of a general shortage of materiel . She began her return trip from Yokosuka on 27 July and arrived back in California on 4 August , for a trip of 7 days , 10 hours and 36 minutes , again breaking the record for a trans - Pacific cruise . She carried no jet aircraft , though , because they were deemed too fuel inefficient for the initial defense mission in Korea . By the time " Boxer " arrived in Korea , the UN forces had established superiority in the air and sea . After rapid repairs in California , " Boxer " embarked Carrier Air Group 2 , flying the F4U Corsair propeller driven fighter aircraft , and departed again for Korea on 24 August , this time in a combat role . She had 110 aircraft aboard , intended to complement the hundreds of aircraft already operating in Korea . En route to the peninsula , the carrier narrowly avoided Typhoon Kezia which slowed her trip . She was the fourth aircraft carrier to arrive in Korea to participate in the war , after " Triumph " and " Valley Forge " had arrived in June and followed in early August . She arrived too late to participate in the Battle of Pusan Perimeter , but instead she was ordered to join a flotilla of 230 US ships which would participate in Operation Chromite , the UN counterattack at Inchon . On 15 September , she supported the landings by sending her aircraft in a close air support role , blocking North Korean reinforcements and communication to prevent them from countering the attack . However , early in the operation , her propulsion system was damaged when a reduction gear in the ship ' s engine broke , a casualty of her overdue maintenance . The ship ' s engineers worked around the problem to keep the carrier in operation , but she was limited to 26 knots . She continued this role as the UN troops recaptured Seoul days later . " Boxer " continued this support as UN troops advanced north and into North Korea , but departed for the United States on 11 November for refit and overhaul . US military commanders believed the war in Korea was over , and had ordered a number of other carriers out of the area and were subsequently under - prepared at the beginning of the Chosin Reservoir Campaign when the Chinese People ' s Liberation Army entered the war against the UN . Battlefield commanders requested " Boxer " return to Korea as soon as possible , but she did not immediately return as commanders feared it might reduce the Navy ' s ability to respond if another conflict or emergency broke out elsewhere . " Boxer " ' s propulsion problems required extensive repair so she returned to San Diego to conduct them . Upon arrival , she offloaded Air Group 2 , which then embarked for Korea again aboard " Valley Forge " . After a repair and refit in California , " Boxer " was prepared for a second tour in Korea . She embarked Carrier Air Group 101 . The group was composed of Navy Reserve squadrons from Dallas , Texas , Glenview , Illinois , Memphis , Tennessee and Olathe , Kansas , and most of its pilots were reservists who had been called to active duty . She rejoined Task Force 77 , and began operations in Korea on 29 March 1951 , and her squadrons were the first Naval Reserve pilots to launch strikes in Korea . Most of these missions were airstrikes against Chinese ground forces along the 38th Parallel , and this duty lasted until 24 October 1951 . During this time , the carrier operated around " Point Oboe , " an area off the coast of Wonsan . They would withdraw another east when they needed replenishment or refueling . A large destroyer screen protected the carriers , though MiG - 15 attacks against them did not occur . After another period of rest and refits , " Boxer " departed California 8 February 1952 for her third tour in Korea , with Carrier Air Group 2 embarked , consisting of F9F in VF - 24 , F4U in VF 63 and VF - 64 , and AD in VF - 65 . ( Ref . The Sea War in Korea , Cagle and Manson , US Naval Institute , 1957 , page 500 ) . Rejoining Task Force 77 , her missions during this tour consisted primarily of strategic bombing against targets in North Korea , as the front lines in the war had largely solidified along the 38th Parallel . On 23 and 24 June , her planes conducted strikes against the Sui - ho hydro - electric complex in conjunction with , and " Philippine Sea " . On 5 August 1952 , a fire broke out on the hangar deck of the " Boxer " at 05 : 30 when a fuel tank of an aircraft caught fire while the ship was conducting combat operations in the Sea of Japan . The fire raged on the carrier ' s hangar deck for 4 – 5 hours before being extinguished . The final total of casualties was 8 dead , 1 missing , 1 critically injured , 1 seriously burned and some 70 overcome by smoke . Of the 63 who had gone over the side , all were rescued and returned to the ship . Eighteen aircraft , mostly F9F - 2 Panther s , were damaged or destroyed . She steamed for Yokosuka for emergency repairs from 11 to 23 August . She returned to the Korean theatre , and from 28 August to 2 September she tested a new weapons system , with six radio guided F6F Hellcat s loaded with bombs guided to targets , resulting in two hits and one near miss . They are considered to be the first guided missile s to be launched from a carrier in combat . On 1 September her aircraft also took part in a large bombing mission of an oil refinery near Aoji , on the Manchurian border . She returned to San Francisco for more extensive repairs on 25 September . In October 1952 , she was re - designated CVA - 21 , denoting an " attack aircraft carrier . " Following extensive repairs , she steamed for Korea again on 30 March 1953 , and resumed operations a month later with her Corsairs embarked . Her missions around this time were generally strategic bombing missions , however the effectiveness of these final missions were mixed , with some failing to achieve strategic results . She also provided close air support for UN troops for the final weeks of the war before an armistice was reached at Panmunjom in July 1953 , ending major combat operations in Korea . During this time , the two sides often conducted costly attacks in order to strengthen their bargaining positions at the negotiating table . " Boxer " remained in Korean waters until November 1953 . She received eight battle star s for her service in Korea . Post - Korea . Following the Korean War , " Boxer " returned to the United States . She conducted a tour of the Pacific throughout 1954 which was relatively uneventful , followed by a rest in the United States and another tour in the Pacific in late 1955 and early 1956 , which was similarly uneventful . She was converted to an anti - submarine warfare carrier in early 1956 , re - designated CVS - 21 . She completed another tour of the western Pacific in late 1956 and early 1957 , which was her tenth and final deployment to the area . In late 1957 , the navy began experimenting with the concept of a carrier operating entirely with attack helicopter s , and " Boxer " was used to test the concept . In 1958 , " Boxer " was the flagship during Operation Hardtack , a series of nuclear weapons tests in the central Pacific . Later that year , she was transferred to the Atlantic Fleet , and became part of a new amphibious assault squadron with four Landing Ship Tank vessels equipped with helicopter platforms . The experimental concept would allow for rapid deployment of US Marine Corps personnel and helicopter squadrons . For the remainder of 1958 elements of this force were organized aboard " Boxer " and she was reclassified LPH - 4 , denoting a " Landing Platform Helicopter , " on 30 January 1959 . For the next 10 years , " Boxer " operated mainly out of the Caribbean Sea as an amphibious assault carrier . During this duty , she was on station during the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis . In 1964 , she undertook her first tour to the Mediterranean Sea when she took part in Operation Steel Pike , the largest amphibious exercise in history . With two Landing Ship Dock s , " Boxer " was dispatched to Hispanola on 29 August 1964 on a humanitarian mission to aid Haiti and the Dominican Republic whose infrastructure had been damaged by Hurricane Cleo . The ships provided medical aid and helped to evacuate civilians displaced by the storm . On 27 April 1965 " Boxer " returned to the Dominican Republic with Helicopter Squadron 264 and a complement of Marines . They evacuated about 1 , 000 US nationals from the country in the wake of a revolution in the country . It was a part of Operation Powerpack which would eventually see the US occupation of that country . Later in 1965 , she was used as a transport vessel for the Vietnam War . The carrier transported 200 helicopters of the US Army ' s 1st Cavalry Division to South Vietnam . She made a second trip to Vietnam in early 1966 when she transported Marine Corps aircraft to South Vietnam . However , she did not participate in combat operations during that war . On 26 February 1966 , " Boxer " recovered AS - 201 , an unmanned test flight of the Apollo program which had launched from Cape Kennedy , Florida aboard a Saturn 1B rocket . The capsule had landed east of Ascension Island and one of " Boxer " ' s helicopters picked it up . She was decommissioned on 1 December 1969 after 25 years of service , and she was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register . She was sold for scrap on 13 March 1971 .