USS Cassiopeia

Broadside view of USS Cassiopeia (AK-75) off San Francisco, 19 December 1942.
History
United States
Name	Melville W. Fuller Cassiopeia
Namesake	Melville W. Fuller The constellation Cassiopeia
Ordered	as a Type EC2-S-C1 hull, MCE hull 504[1]
Builder	Permanente Metals Corporation, Richmond, California
Cost	$1,124,481[2]
Yard number	504[1]
Way number	2[1]
Laid down	13 October 1942[1]
Launched	15 November 1942
Sponsored by	Mrs. C. F. Calhoun
Acquired	27 November 1942
Commissioned	8 December 1942
Decommissioned	21 November 1945
Stricken	5 December 1945
Identification	Hull symbol: AK-75 Code letters: NYLN
Honours and awards	1 × battle star
Fate	Expended as a target 28 June 1961
General characteristics [3]
Class and type	Crater-class cargo ship
Type	Type EC2-S-C1
Displacement	4,023 long tons (4,088 t) (standard) 14,550 long tons (14,780 t) (full load)
Length	441 ft 6 in (134.57 m)
Beam	56 ft 11 in (17.35 m)
Draft	28 ft 4 in (8.64 m)
Installed power	2 × Oil fired 450 °F (232 °C) boilers, operating at 220 psi (1,500 kPa) ,  (manufactured by Babcock & Wilcox) 2,500 shp (1,900 kW)
Propulsion	1 × Vertical triple-expansion reciprocating steam engine,  (manufactured by Hooven-Owens-Rentschler) 1 × screw propeller
Speed	12.5 kn (23.2 km/h; 14.4 mph)
Capacity	7,800 t (7,700 long tons) DWT 444,206 cu ft (12,578.5 m3) (non-refrigerated)
Complement	195
Armament	1 × 5 in (127 mm)/38 caliber dual-purpose (DP) gun 1 × 3 in (76 mm)/50 caliber DP gun 2 × 40 mm (1.57 in) Bofors anti-aircraft (AA) gun mounts 6 × 20 mm (0.79 in) Oerlikon cannon AA gun mounts

USS Cassiopeia (AK-75) was a Crater-class cargo ship in the service of the US Navy in World War II. She was the only ship of to bear this name. She is named after the Northern Hemisphere constellation Cassiopeia.

Cassiopeia was launched 15 November 1942 as liberty ship SS Melville W. Fuller by Permanente Metals Corporation, Richmond, California, under a Maritime Commission (MARCOM) contract, MCE hull 504; sponsored by Mrs. C. F. Calhoun; acquired by the Navy 27 November 1942; and commissioned 8 December 1942.^[4]

Cassiopeia sailed from San Francisco 21 December 1942 with cargo for Nouméa, where she arrived 12 January 1943. From this base, she offered essential support to the operations in the consolidation of the northern Solomons, carrying the varied necessities of war throughout the South Pacific. Between 19 June and 11 July, the cargo ship voyaged to Auckland, New Zealand, to reload, then returned with voyages from Nouméa to Guadalcanal until 9 August. Another resupply mission and a brief repair period in New Zealand preceded her resumption of South Pacific operations in November.^[4]

This pattern of ferrying vital supplies in the South Pacific alternating with voyages to New Zealand to reload continued until 6 June 1945, when Cassiopeia cleared Auckland for San Francisco, the Panama Canal Zone, and Norfolk, where she arrived 25 October.^[4]

The cargo ship was decommissioned 21 November 1945, and transferred to MARCOM for disposal the same day.^[4]

Cassiopeia was laid up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, James River Group, Virginia, on 21 November 1945.^[3]

On 21 June 1961, the Navy requested her for testing purposes, on 27 June 1961, she was transferred back to the Navy^[5] to be used as a target by Cutlass, in the VACAPES area.^[3]

Cassiopeia received one battle star for World War II service.^[4]

• Photo gallery of Cassiopeia (AK-75) at NavSource Naval History