USS Karin ( AF - 33 ) USS " Karin " ( AF - 33 ) was an acquired by the U . S . Navy for service in World War II . Her task was to carry stores , refrigerated items , and equipment to ships in the fleet , and to remote stations and staging areas . " Karin " was launched 22 June 1944 by Pennsylvania Shipyard Inc . , Beaumont , Texas , under a Maritime Commission contract ; sponsored by Mrs . E . M . Ratcliff ; acquired by the Navy and commissioned 3 February 1945 , Lt . Richard C . Mallon in command . World War II service . After a brief shakedown in the Gulf of Mexico , " Karin " loaded cargo at Mobile , Alabama , sailed through the Panama Canal , and arrived Pearl Harbor 23 March 1945 . She departed 4 April with food for the U . S . Pacific Fleet and discharged cargo at Eniwetok and Saipan . For the closing months of the war , the store ship made two additional cruises from Pearl Harbor to Saipan and Ulithi . Post - war activity . After the end of the war , " Karin " carried supplies to occupation forces in the western Pacific . Early in November she steamed to the assistance of after the other store ship had struck a mine off Korea . After salvaging the ship ' s cargo and distributing it at Pusan and Jinsen , she got underway on the 22d for Seattle , Washington , arriving 21 December . From 1946 to 1950 " Karin " made cruises from San Francisco to the mid - Pacific and the Far East , supplying the fleet with fresh and frozen provisions . Korean War operations . During the summer of 1950 , " Karin " was in the Far East when Communist forces invaded South Korea . She remained in the area until January 1951 , provisioning U . S . and U . N . ships operating there . After returning to San Francisco , California , 19 February for overhaul at Mare Island , California , she resumed provisioning cruises to the Marshalls and Pearl Harbor . On 7 January 1952 " Karin " departed San Francisco and resumed supply operations out of Japan in early February . She made runs between Sasebo and Yokosuka , and two cruises to Pusan and Inchon , Korea . " Karin " returned to San Francisco 18 December to prepare for provisioning duties in the mid - Pacific . Special Indo - China operations . During 1954 her home port was changed from Mare Island to Pearl Harbor . She arrived Sasebo , Japan 17 June for operations in the Far East . While there , " Karin " was assigned to special duty in Indochina and from 25 August to mid October participated in Operation Passage to Freedom . During this period more than 100 , 000 Vietnamese men , women , and children were evacuated from the Communist dominated North to the free world in the south . " Karin " assisted this gigantic population transfer by supplying many ships with fresh and frozen foods while providing the Vietnamese with rice and small essentials . " Karin " returned Pearl Harbor 10 November to prepare for her regular duties . From 1955 to 1958 she made 18 cruises to the mid - Pacific with provisions and supplies . Inactivation and decommissioning . " Karin " departed Pearl Harbor 25 September 1958 , arriving Astoria , Oregon , 6 October ; and decommissioned there 15 December 1958 . She was transferred to War Shipping Administration and struck from the Navy List September 1961 . She was placed in the National Defense Reserve Fleet and was berthed at Puget Sound , Olympia , Washington . In September 1961 , she was struck from the Naval Vessel Register . Final Disposition : she was sold by the Maritime Administration in 1969 and converted into a drillship and renamed " Typhoon " . Fate : unknown . Military awards and honors . " Karin " received two battle star s for Korean War service : Her crew was eligible for the following medals :