USS Carina ( AK - 74 ) The USS " Carina " ( AK - 74 ) was a " Crater " - class cargo ship , and the only ship of the United States Navy to have this name . She was named for the southern constellation Carina , with most of her sister ships being named for the constellations or stars . The USS " Carina " was launched on 6 November 1942 by Permanente Metals Corporation , Yard No . 1 , Richmond , California , as the Liberty ship S . S . " David Davis " ( MCE hull 502 ) . She was sponsored by Mrs . A . R . Olds , transferred to the U . S . Navy on 20 November 1942 , and commissioned on 1 December 1942 , with Lt . Commander J . I . MacPherson , USNR , in command . The " Carina " departed from San Francisco Bay on 14 December 1942 laden with military cargo for Espiritu Santo and Guadalcanal in the South Pacific Ocean . At Guadalcanal , she unloaded her cargo between 23 January and 4 February 1943 , bringing invaluable support to the last phases of the bitter campaign for that island . Operating to aid in the consolidation of the southern Solomon Islands , she steamed between the main port of Espiritu Santo and Purvis Bay , Tulagi , Tongatapu , and Tagoma Point . On 3 March , while she was unloading at Tulagi , she endured two air attacks . Several near misses with bombs occurred , spraying her with shrapnel and wounding six of her crewmen . After repairs at Espiritu Santo , the " Carina " resumed her cargo runs until May 1943 , when she steamed to Australia , arriving on 30 May for engine repairs and to replenish at the ports of Townsville , Sydney , and Melbourne . She next carried cargo for U . S . Marine Corps units that were training in New Zealand , arriving at the port of Auckland in August . Next , she returned to her supply runs closer to the combat zone in the South Pacific . She added the Fiji Islands , the Russell Islands , New Guinea , the Admiralty Islands and Norfolk Island to her list of Pacific Island delivery ports . The " Carina " continued her cargo missions until 12 July 1943 , when she departed from Espiritu Santo and steamed home for an overhaul and crewmen ' s leave at San Francisco , California . This shipyard overhaul prepared the " Carina " for service with distant voyages in support of the Liberation of the Philippines . Among other tasks , she carried pontoons from Pearl Harbor to Ulithi Atoll between 2 October 1944 and 31 December 1944 . Returning to San Francisco for further repairs and upgrades , she went asea towards the combat areas again on 9 March 1945 . She arrived in the dangerous combat waters off Okinawa on 26 April , and on 4 May , she became the target of a determined Japanese suicide boat , which successfully rammed the " Carina " . This ramming produced a violent explosion on her port side , knocked out one of her boilers , and flooded one of her holds . Six crewmen of the " Carina " ’ s were injured by the explosion . Skillful damage control saved both the USS " Carina " and her cargo , and she was able to complete unloading her cargo at Okinawa before departing for temporary repairs at the U . S . Navy base at Ulithi Atoll . The " Carina " returned to the West Coast of the United States for an overhaul in July , and the war ended in August before her services were needed again . On 16 October 1945 , she was decommissioned at Suisun Bay , California , and she was delivered to the War Shipping Administration for long - term storage . The USS " Carina " received three battle stars for her World War II service .