USS Kalinin Bay (CVE-68)

History of USS Kalinin Bay (CVE-68)

The Casablanca-class escort carriers of the United States Navy (USN) were built during World War II (1939-1945). The escort carrier has withstood the test of time, capable of delivering small amounts of aircraft, supplies and vehicles where they are needed. Compared to their larger and faster counterparts, escort carriers are slower and smaller, and have the advantage of being able to be built in short periods of time and relatively cheap in war conditions.

USS Kalinin Bay (CVE-68) was just one of the 50-person Casablanca-class warships built by Caesars Shipyard and laid down on April 26, 1943. She was launched on October 15 of that year and began serving in combat as early as November 27.

Displacement reaches 7,800 tons, length 512.2 feet, beam 65.1 feet, draft 22.5 feet. Power comes from 4 boilers feeding 2 Skinner Uniflow 5-cylinder reciprocating engines producing 9,000 hp to drive 2 axles under the stern.

Top speed in ideal conditions is 19 knots and range is 10,240 nautical miles.

There were 860 crew members on board the aircraft, and another 56 made up the Luftwaffe. Armament is modest and strictly self-defense, including 1 x 5"/38 caliber Dual Purpose (DP) gun, 16 x 40mm Bofors Flak (AA) guns spread over 8 twin mounts, and 20 x 20 mm Oerlikon counter-mounted Aircraft gun on a single gun stand.

The escort carrier carries 27 fighter jets of various makes and models.

Her design met Casablanca class standards: the island's superstructure was moved to starboard and slightly forward amidships. The flat-top flight deck is a continuous design with no obstructions other than islands. There are two lifts on the deck for moving the aircraft up and down the deck, and a catapult for launching.

Anti-aircraft guns were placed in "barrels" on the edge of the flight deck, forming a defensive network against enemy aircraft.

USS Kalinin Bay completed her "rebuilt" cruiser off the US Pacific coast in December 1943 and arrived at Tarawa via Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, later that month. From there she fought in major battles including Gilbert and the Marshall Islands, Mariana and Palau, the Philippines and the famous "Battle of Samar" - a victory for the United States.

Kalinin Bay was a maintenance base in January 1945, which transported additional personnel and machinery to Guam via pearls during the final months of the Pacific War, and served as a supply transport during the final months of the Pacific War - 600 fighters were routed before the war ended in August 1945. The post-war involved setting up about bringing American soldiers home as part of "Operation Magic Carpet."

USS Kalinin Bay was decommissioned on 15 May 1946 and sold as scrap on 8 December 1946.

Kalinin Bay received five Battle Stars and the Presidential Unit Medal for her service in World War I her contribution to the Allied Warfare during this period.

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