USS Spectacle ( AM - 305 ) USS " Spectacle " ( AM - 305 ) was a steel - hulled Admirable class minesweeper built for the U . S . Navy during World War II . A trained crew boarded the new vessel , practiced with her minesweeping gear , and then proceeded to the Pacific Ocean to clear mines from Japanese beaches so that Allied forces could invade . While performing this dangerous task of mine clearance , a Japanese plane strafed her , and another deliberately crashed into her . When she returned to the United States , her battle damage was so severe that the U . S . Navy decided to scrap , rather than to repair , her . She was awarded two battle stars . " Spectacle " was laid down on 24 May 1943 by Associated Shipbuilders , Seattle , Washington ; launched on 10 October 1943 ; and , commissioned on 11 August 1944 , Lt . G . B . Williams , USNR , in command . World War II Pacific Theatre operations . After fitting out at Puget Sound and conducting trial runs at Seattle , Washington , " Spectacle " sailed on the 31st for San Pedro , California . Following her shakedown training , held from 5 to 24 September , she moved to the West Coast Sonar School , San Diego , California , for equipment testing and antisubmarine warfare training that lasted until 27 October . The ship got underway for Hawaii the next day and arrived at Pearl Harbor on 5 November . The following week , " Spectacle " sailed in the screen of a convoy and arrived at San Francisco , California , on 20 November . On the 27th , she and departed Seattle , Washington , and headed back toward Pearl Harbor . From 9 December 1944 to 21 January 1945 , the minesweeper conducted extensive minesweeping and training exercises with fleet units in Hawaiian waters . Invasion of Iwo Jima operations . On 22 January , " Spectacle " sortied with Task Group ( TG ) 51 . 13 , Tractor Group Baker , part of the Iwo Jima assault force . After staging at Eniwetok , Marshall Islands , and Saipan , Mariana Islands , the group arrived off Iwo Jima . " Spectacle " began sweeping mines on 16 February and remained in waters near Iwo Jima until 7 March . She swept mines ; acted as an escort and patrol ship ; and , on several occasions , bombarded enemy targets ashore . In 7 March , " Spectacle " , accompanied by , withdrew to Ulithi for replenishment and repair . Invasion of Okinawa operations . " Spectacle " sailed from Ulithi on 19 March with TG 52 . 4 , composed of Minesweeper Group One , for Okinawa to sweep mines from waters near that island for the forthcoming amphibious assault which was scheduled to begin on 1 April . She started minesweeping and patrol duties at Okinawa on 25 March . On 28 April , her whaleboat rescued 14 survivors from which had been hit by a kamikaze . Under Constant Attack and hit by a Kamikaze . On 4 May , the minesweeper sank two small Japanese boats and set one afire with gunfire . That evening , she was strafed by an enemy plane . She sank another small boat on 13 May ; and , the next evening , she sank five small suicide boats . " Spectacle " took patrol station near Ie Shima on 22 May and , early that morning , splashed a " Betty " . At 0805 , a diving kamikaze crashed into the minesweeper , striking the ship under her port 40 - millimeter gun tub , causing extensive damage and blowing many of her crew overboard . Her rudder jammed . She dropped anchor to avoid running over her men in the water . At 0815 , USS LSM - 135 began picking up survivors ; but , 15 minutes later , the medium landing ship was also hit by a kamikaze and burst into flames . " Spectacle " ' s losses were : 11 killed outright , four who died of wounds , six wounded , and 14 missing in action . Returning Stateside in a Damaged Condition . The ship was towed to Ie Shima by . Under power from her starboard engine , she proceeded on the 26th , to Kerama Retto , where she was temporarily repaired by auxiliary repair dock USS ARD - 1 ( no name ) . She sailed for Saipan on 14 June , departed that island on the 26th , and headed via Pearl Harbor for the west coast . Recommended for Scrapping . " Spectacle " arrived at Seattle , Washington , on 1 August and , the next day , moved to the Puget Sound Bridge and Dredging Company ' s dock for battle damage repairs ; but no work was begun . On 5 September , the Pacific Board of Inspection and Survey recommended that she be scrapped and sold . Between 6 September and 18 October , all of her material and equipment was removed and , on the 19th , the ship was decommissioned . " Spectacle " was struck from the Navy list on 5 December 1945 and sold to Northwest Merchandising Service in April 1947 for scrap . Awards . " Spectacle " received two battle stars for World War II service .