USS Okanogan ( APA - 220 ) USS " Okanogan " ( APA - 220 ) was a that saw service with the US Navy in World War II , the Korean War and the Vietnam War . " Okanogan " ( APA - 220 ) , built under Maritime Administration contract by Permanente Metals Corporation of Richmond , California , was launched 26 October 1944 , and acquired and commissioned 3 December 1944 , Commander Frederick Fender , USNR , in command . " Okanogan " ' s primary mission as an attack transport was to carry and disembark with her own landing craft , a full battalion of troops , and to evacuate troops , casualties , and prisoners of war from the objective . In line with this , she was equipped with all facilities for the troops embarked ; messing , berthing , medical and dental care , and recreational facilities . Operational history . World War II . " Okanogan " ' s first mission began 16 February 1945 , when she sailed from San Francisco bound for Hawaii with the staff of Transport Division 57 , along with a number of Navy , Marine , and civilian passengers . Invasion of Okinawa . At Pearl Harbor " Okanogan " embarked some 740 Army assault troops , reinforcements for Okinawa , where she arrived 17 April . After five days off the fiercely embattled island , " where the fleet had come to stay " , she sailed for Saipan , with 160 battle casualties . At Saipan 1 , 000 veterans embarked for San Francisco which she reached 1 June . " Okanogan " voyaged across the Pacific and between the combat areas twice more as the war closed . After hostilities . Only brief periods in West Coast ports broke her heavy schedule , brought on by the urgent need to redeploy troops for occupation duties and to return combat veterans to the United States . She completed a voyage at San Francisco 9 January 1946 , and a month later sailed for Norfolk , Virginia , her home port for operations with the Atlantic Fleet for the next four years . Peacetime missions . As the Navy and Marines sharpened the techniques of warfare born in wartime , " Okanogan " made reserve training cruises and took part in maneuvers and exercises along the eastern seaboard , in the Caribbean , and , in the fall of 1949 , in the Hawaiian Islands . Korean War . " Okanogan " rejoined the Pacific Fleet upon the outbreak of the Korean War , and in August 1950 loaded part of the 1st Marine Division at San Diego for Japan . These troops had been urgently requested by General Douglas MacArthur for a counter - offensive against North Korean aggression . " Okanogan " landed the men at Inchon 15 September in an amphibious assault of incredible difficulty . The skill with which the operation was executed won acclaim from General MacArthur , who exclaimed " . . . the Navy and Marine Corps have never shone brighter … " . " Okanogan " landed men of the same division in the assault on Wonsan 26 October . " Okanogan " evacuated three thousand refugees from Chinampo in December ; one more was born at sea and later named for the ship by its grateful parents . In January 1951 , " Okanogan " brought more troops to Inchon , and in April served as flagship in demonstration landings at Kojo . Returning to San Diego in May 1951 , " Okanogan " trained indefatigably for future combat assignments . In September and October she carried men of the Air Force to Yokohama , and sailed again for Japan in March 1952 , carrying Naval Beach Group One . She transported the staff of Landing Ship Flotilla One to Kojedo , Korea , and carried out amphibious exercises off Japan , before returning to Long Beach in December . Peacetime missions . For the next eight years , " Okanogan " continued a tight program of training both for herself and for Marines when she was not deployed to the Far East . Such six to seven - month cruises were made in 1954 , 1956 , 1958 , and 1959 . An experience of her 1958 cruise illustrates the ability of the Navy to make a world - wide response to any crisis . When the 6th Fleet landed Marines in Lebanon in July , " Okanogan " , half a world away , at once proceeded to Okinawa , ready to load more marines and carry them to the Mediterranean should they be needed . During 1959 OKANOGAN was in San Francisco for overhaul and San Diego for refresher training . Amphibious Squadron SEVEN including OKANOGAN left Long Beach on 16 February 1960 , and after participating in a large scale amphibious exercise in Taiwan , a search and rescue operation and deterrent operations in the Taiwan Straits . OKANOGAN remained in Southeast Asia conducting amphibious exercises on Luzon in the Philippines and visited various ports . Her first mission , in preparing to return to Long Beach , was the delivery of ten landing craft to the Laotian government ; her second , the loading of Thai and Vietnamese art treasures for a planned tour of the United States . OKANOGAN returned to Yokosuka Japan to reconfigure # 1 and 4 hatches and per - voyage repairs . OKANOGAN returned to Long Beach 25 July . For the remainder of the year OKANOGAN conducted amphibious exercises off the coast of California . The Laotian situation entailed changes of embarkation plans for the 4th Marine Regiment . On 11 March 1961 , while Amphibious Squadron SEVEN including OKANOGAN was in Hawaii , originally intended for an amphibious assault exercise on California beaches , the Marines were instead carried , under Top Secret orders , to Buckner Bay Okinawa where Amphibious Squadron SEVEN joined the amphibious squadron and an amphibious command ship already in WESTPAC until tensions abated . Amphibious Squadron SEVEN returned to Long Beach on 22 May 1961 . OKANOGAN was in Portland Oregon for overhaul , San Diego for refresher training and amphibious exercises off the coast of California . Amphibious Squadron SEVEN departed Long Beach for the Western Pacific on 22 January 1962 . OKANOGAN operating as part of Amphibious Ready Group SEVENTH Fleet . She remained in Southeast Asia conducting amphibious exercises on Luzon in the Philippines and visited various ports . OKANOGAN returned to Long Beach on 24 July . During international tensions brought on by the discovery of Russian missile sites in Cuba , Amphibious Squadron SEVEN including OKANOGAN embarked units of the 5th Marine Expeditionary Brigade and sailed from San Diego on 27 October , with two reinforced amphibious squadrons and the amphibious command ship ELDORADO ( AGC 11 ) . The Panama Canal was closed to commercial shipping and on 5 November warships of Amphibious Group THREE arrived in Panama . The 22 amphibious ships passed thru the canal to the Caribbean . OKANOGAN operated with the Atlantic Fleet until tensions abated with the withdrawal of the missiles . OKANOGAN returned to Long Beach on 15 December 1962 . For the remainder of 1962 , the ship remained in Long Beach with the heavy cargo remaining aboard . 1963 - 4 , " Okanogan " again cruised with the 7th Fleet in the Western Pacific . When she once again left Long Beach 19 April 1965 , it was for direct participation in the Vietnam War . Vietnam War . Through May and June 1965 , " Okanaogan " carried men and ammunition between Okinawa and Da Nang , Chu Lai , and Qui Nhơn ; from July to November , she served as station ship at Da Nang , providing the Navy Support Activity there with berthing and messing facilities for 700 to 900 persons . Her boats operated 18 to 20 hours a day in this essential support for build - up of one of the major bases for the Allied effort to repel Communist aggression . " Okanogan " returned to Long Beach 17 December , and in June and July 1966 again voyaged to South Vietnam , carrying Marine communications technicians . On 17 November 1966 , she returned to Da Nang as station ship , making her unique contribution to the cause of freedom in South Vietnam . As a member of Amphibious Force Pacific " Okanogan " continued her mission in transporting , training and supporting the fleet into 1968 . She was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 1 June 1973 , and scrapped on 2 October 1979 . Decorations . " Okanogan " received one battle star for World War II Service , six for Korean War Service , four for Armed Forces Expeditionary Service , and five for Vietnam War Service .