USS Frederick ( LST - 1184 ) USS " Frederick " ( LST - 1184 ) is a Newport class tank landing ship that was named after the city of Frederick , Maryland and Frederick County , Maryland . She was laid down on 13 April 1968 at San Diego , California , by the National Steel and Shipbuilding Company ; launched on 8 March 1969 ; sponsored by Mrs . Kleber S . Masterson ; and commissioned on 11 April 1970 , CDR Robert A . Shaid in command . History . Following shakedown , " Frederick " was assigned to the Amphibious Force , Pacific Fleet , and was homeported at San Diego . She made over thirteen major deployments to the $ 3 and Far East . She participated in the Vietnam withdrawal operation in 1970 and Operation Frequent Wind the evacuation of Saigon in April 1975 . " Frederick " , under Commander Harold Gastler , deployed with Commander Amphibious Squadron One ( COMPHIBRON ONE ) in May 1983 from San Diego , California . During the deployment she visited Pearl Harbor , Hawaii ; Okinawa , Japan ; Philippines ; Hong Kong , due to a typhoon " Frederick " was forced to leave harbor on 14 July 1983 ; Thailand ; Singapore ; Somalia ; Kenya , during the short stay at Mombasa " Frederick " was reassigned for deployment to Beirut ; Beirut , Lebanon , " Frederick " was part of the Multinational Peace Keeping Force at Beirut , Lebanon from Sept 12 to 10 October 1983 . " Frederick " then cruised back to San Diego making three stops along the way . The first was at Singapore . Then a short visit to Subic Bay in the Philippines . Then a relaxed port of call at Pearl Harbor . " Frederick " arrived in San Diego on 22 November 1983 . " Frederick " deployed in support of Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm . She was part of a 13 ship amphibious task force that departed on 1 December 1990 for the Persian Gulf in support of Operation Desert Shield . Upon arriving in the Gulf of Oman , " Frederick " along with various amphibious ships from the Atlantic and Pacific Fleets conducted amphibious exercises in preparation for an amphibious landing , if needed , in Kuwait . Upon commencement of Operation Desert Storm , " Frederick " and various elements of Commander Amphibious Group Two and Three ( COMPHIBGRU TWO and COMPHIBGRU THREE ) headed into the Persian Gulf and conducted one of the greatest mock amphibious invasions in modern warfare . That operation pinned down 15 Iraqi divisions , thus ensuring a quick and decisive victory for the allied forces . " Frederick " was also involved in the only actual amphibious landing of the Gulf War . " Frederick " conducted Operation Sea Angel , humanitarian assistance for Bangladesh . In 1994 , " Frederick " deployed to Somalia in support of humanitarian aid operations . " Frederick " was transferred to the Naval Reserve Force in January 1995 and changed homeport to Pearl Harbor , Hawaii . As the only amphibious ship in Pearl Harbor , she conducted bilateral exercises with South East Asian armed forces , continuous training exercises with the United States Marine Corps and was on standby to conduct humanitarian assistance and disaster relief missions , throughout the Pacific . Fate . " Frederick " decommissioned on 5 October 2002 and was transferred the following month to the Mexican Navy as the " Usumacinta " ( A - 412 ) . She was the last of her class to decommission . " Frederick " earned one award of the Meritorious Unit Commendation and three battle star s for Vietnam service . RIMPAC 2012 . ARM Usumacinta , along with an Mi - 17 helicopter and a Naval Infantry detachment , took part in RIMPAC ( Rim of the Pacific Exercise ) 2012 in the summer of 2012 off the coast of the Hawaiian Islands . Other participants included vessels and personnel from Japan , The Netherlands , The United States , Australia , South Korea and other nations .