USS Kaula

History
United States
Name	USS Kaula
Namesake	Ka'ula Island in Hawaii
Builder	Henry Robb Ltd
Launched	1938
Acquired	3 January 1941
Commissioned	22 January
Decommissioned	14 January 1946
Stricken	12 March 1946
Fate	Sold
General characteristics
Displacement	2,100 tons
Length	267 ft (81 m)
Beam	38 ft 3 in (11.66 m)
Speed	12 kn (22 km/h)
Complement	70
Armament	1 x 4"/50 caliber gun; 2 x 3"/50 caliber guns; 4 x 0.5 in (12.7 mm) machine guns;

USS Kaula (AG-33) was built in 1938 by Henry Robb Ltd, in Leith, Scotland. She was acquired by the U.S. Navy as Cubahama 3 January 1941 from her owner, Balboa Shipping Company of New York and renamed Kaula 15 January then commissioned at Baltimore, Maryland 22 January.^[1]

Sailing to Hampton Roads, Virginia, 25 January, Kaula departed 4 February for Hawaii, via the Panama Canal and the West Coast, reaching Pearl Harbor 17 March. Prior to the outbreak of war in the Pacific, she carried cargo from Pearl Harbor and Honolulu to various islands in the Hawaiian chain and to Johnston and Palmyra Islands. During the Japanese raid on Pearl Harbor 7 December, she was en route to Palmyra Island.^[1]

Throughout the war with the Japanese Empire, Kaula operated out of Pearl Harbor and Honolulu to principal Hawaiian Islands and to outlying islands west to Midway and south to Palmyra. Usually sailing in convoy, she ranged the Hawaiian Sea frontier carrying military equipment, ammunition, and contingents of Seabees until she sailed for the United States on 18 May 1945, arriving at Seattle, Washington on 26 May.^[1]

Following 2 months of overhaul, Kaula departed Seattle 31 July on the first of several voyages to Alaska. Assigned to the 13th Naval District, she steamed for the US Coast Guard to Ketchikan, Juneau, Seward, Kodiak, and Dutch Harbor before returning to Seattle 18 September. She operated in Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan de Fuca before steaming to Blake Island Anchorage, Washington, 6 December and decommissioning 14 January 1946. Struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 12 March, Kaula was transferred to the Maritime Commission 15 July for sale to her former owner.^[1]

References[edit]

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. "Kaula". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Navy Department, Naval History & Heritage Command. Archived from the original on 25 October 2012.

External links[edit]

photo gallery at navsource.org

[DANFS-1] This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. "Kaula". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Navy Department, Naval History & Heritage Command. Archived from the original on 25 October 2012.

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