USS General R . L . Howze ( AP - 134 ) USS " General R . L . Howze " ( AP - 134 ) was a for the U . S . Navy in World War II . The ship was crewed by the U . S . Coast Guard throughout the war . She was named in honor of U . S . Army general Robert Lee Howze . She was transferred to the U . S . Army as USAT " General R . L . Howze in 1946 . On 1 March 1950 she was transferred to the Military Sea Transportation Service ( MSTS ) as USNS " General R . L . Howze " ( T - AP - 134 ) . She was later sold for commercial operation under the name SS " Austral Glen , before being scrapped in 1980 . Operational history . " General R . L . Howze " ( AP - 134 ) was laid down under Maritime Commission contract ( MC # 657 ) 22 July 1942 by Kaiser Co . , Inc . , Yard 3 , Richmond , California ; launched 23 May 1943 ; sponsored by Mrs . W . C . Gardenshire ; acquired by the Navy 31 December 1943 ; converted to a transport by Matson Navigation Co . , San Francisco ; and commissioned at San Francisco 7 February 1944 , Captain L . H . Baker , USCG , in command . After shakedown off San Diego , the transport loaded supplies , embarked troops at San Francisco , and sailed 20 March 1944 for New Guinea . " General R . L . Howze " carried troops to Milne Bay and Lae to support the American buildup of pressure in the southwest Pacific , returning to San Francisco 2 May 1944 . Subsequently , the ship steamed to Guadalcanal , Manus , Eniwetok , and many other islands as the rising tide of the Navy ' s amphibious offensive swept toward Japan . She carried troops , supplies , and even Japanese prisoners of war on a total of 11 voyages to the combat areas of the Pacific , before returning to San Francisco 15 October 1945 , after the Japanese surrender . In November , " General R . L . Howze " steamed to the Philippines to bring home veterans , and sailed 10 January 1946 for England with 3 , 400 German prisoners . After touching at Liverpool 31 January , she brought American troops from Le Havre to New York 16 February , and made a final voyage to France for more returning veterans . " General R . L . Howze " decommissioned at New York 1 April 1946 and was returned to WSA for transfer to the War Department . She was placed in reserve in the James River 6 August 1947 , and returned to the War Department as an Army Transport in 1948 . On 20 November 1949 USAT " General R . L . Howze " left Naples with 1 , 105 displaced persons from Europe and arrived in Melbourne on 17 December 1949 . This voyage was one of almost 150 voyages by some 40 ships taking refugees of World War II to Australia . " General R . L . Howze " made one more such trip herself , arriving in Melbourne , again , with 1 , 316 refugees on 26 March 1950 . The veteran transport was reacquired by the Navy 1 March 1950 and joined MSTS with a civilian crew . For the next year " General R . L . Howze " sailed to and from Europe for the International Refugee Organization , bringing displaced persons from Eastern Europe to the United States . In mid - 1951 , she was transferred to the Pacific , and steamed between San Francisco or Seattle and the Far East with troop replacements for U . N . troops fighting in Korea . She continued this role during the active fighting and after the armistice . However , in September 1954 , " General R . L . Howze " was diverted from her normal pattern of sailings to take part in Operation Passage to Freedom . For 5 months she and other Navy ships brought tens of thousands of refugees from North to South Vietnam as that country was partitioned . According to one source , " General R . L . Howze " held the record for the " Passage to Freedom " ships with 38 births on board . " General R . L . Howze " made two more voyages to the Far East supporting America ' s important readiness forces before returning to Seattle 31 December 1955 . She remained inactive until entering the reserve fleet at Astoria , Oregon , 15 July 1957 . The ship was finally returned to the Maritime Administration 17 July 1958 and placed in the Maritime Defense Reserve Fleet at Astoria , where she remained until sold for commercial service in 1965 . At one time operated by Farrell Lines under the name SS " Austral Glen " , the ship was laid up in New York in 1978 , and scrapped in 1980 . " General R . L . Howze " received six battle star s for Korean War service .