USS Frederick Funston ( APA - 89 ) USS " Frederick Funston " ( APA - 89 ) was a that served with the US Navy during World War II . Before serving as a Navy APA , she had been the US Army transport USAT " Frederick Funston " . After World War II , she was returned to the Army and operated as USAT " Frederick Funston " . " Funston " was among the seventy - two ships transferred to the Navy ' s Military Sea Transportation Service ( MSTS ) in the 1 March 1950 group and placed in service as USNS " Frederick Funston " ( T - AP - 178 ) . Named after US Army General Frederick Funston a Medal of Honor recipient , the ship was launched 27 September 1941 by Seattle - Tacoma Shipbuilding Corporation at Tacoma , Washington and acquired by the US Army as a transport ship . She was acquired from the Army by the US Navy on 8 April 1943 , reclassified an APA ( Auxiliary Personnel Attack , i . e . attack transport ) , and commissioned 24 April 1943 , Commander J . E . Murphy in command . Operational history . World War II . Mediterranean Theatre . Invasion of Sicily . " Frederick Funston " sailed from Norfolk , Virginia 8 June 1943 for rehearsal landings on the coast of Algeria , and on 10 July arrived off the assault beaches of Sicily to land her men successfully through heavy surf . Three days later she sailed to train at Oran for the assault on Salerno , off which she lay from 8 to 10 September landing soldiers . Invasion of Salerno . The transport returned to North Africa to load reinforcements whom she landed at Salerno on 22 and 23 September , then made three voyages from Oran to Naples carrying Army service troops , engineers , and rangers . On 30 November , she cleared Oran for Northern Ireland with paratrooper s on board , and after disembarking them , sailed on to New York , arriving 31 December 1943 . Pacific Theatre . Invasion of Saipan . After loading men of naval construction battalions at Davisville , Rhode Island , " Frederick Funston " sailed for the Pacific , arriving at Honolulu 16 March 1944 . Here she landed the Seabees and embarked Marines for the invasion of Saipan , landing them in the initial assault 15 June . After a week off the beaches offloading cargo and taking casualties on board , she returned to Honolulu . Here the casualties were transferred to hospitals , and soldiers taken on board with whom she reinforced Guam on 24 July . Invasion of Leyte . During August , the transport joined in training operations in the Hawaiian Islands , then crossed to Manus , from which she sailed 14 October for the invasion of Leyte . She landed her troops and cargo on 21 October , the day after the initial assault , and the following day cleared for Aitape , New Guinea , to embark reinforcements . These were put ashore at Leyte 14 November . Invasion of Luzon . Training off New Guinea and in Huon Gulf prepared " Frederick Funston " for the initial landings on Luzon of 9 January 1945 . That night a watchful lookout spotted and shot a suicide swimmer only 50 yards from the ship . Invasion of Iwo Jima . Completing her unloading the next day , " Frederick Funston " sailed by way of Leyte and Ulithi to Guam to embark Marines for the assault on Iwo Jima . With her troops held in reserve , she did not land them until 27 February , although she lay off the island throughout the assault . She returned to Guam with casualties 8 March , then replaced her landing craft at Guadalcanal and exercised at Nouméa through April . She returned to the west coast for overhaul in May 1945 After hostilities . " Frederick Funston " reached the Philippines 3 October for inter - island transport duty until 8 December when she returned to San Francisco . Another voyage was made to carry occupation troops to the Marianas and return veterans to the United States between 22 December and 7 February 1946 . She was decommissioned and returned to the Army 4 April 1946 . Second Navy commission . After serving with the Army Transportation Corps Fleet out of Seattle , " Frederick Funston " returned to naval custody when the Military Sea Transportation Service was formed in 1950 , and was placed in noncommissioned status for operations with a Civil Service crew , after which she saw some service in the Korean War . The ship was scrapped in 1969 . Awards . " Frederick Funston " received six battle star s for World War II . service and one for the Korean War .