USS Wake Island
| History | |
|---|---|
| United States | |
| Name | USS Wake Island |
| Namesake | Battle of Wake Island |
| Builder | Kaiser Shipyards |
| Laid down | 6 February 1943 |
| Launched | 15 September 1943 |
| Commissioned | 7 November 1943 |
| Decommissioned | 5 April 1946 |
| Stricken | 17 April 1946 |
| Fate | Sold for scrap on 19 April 1946 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type | Casablanca-class escort carrier |
| Displacement | 7,800 tons |
| Length | 512 ft 3 in (156.13 m) overall |
| Beam | 65 ft (20 m), 108 ft (33 m) maximum width |
| Draft | 22 ft 4 in (6.81 m) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | 19 knots (35 km/h) |
| Range | 10,240 nmi (18,960 km) @ 15 kn (28 km/h) |
| Complement |
|
| Armament | 1 × 5 in (127 mm)/38 cal dual-purpose gun, 16 × Bofors 40 mm gun guns (8×2), 28 × Oerlikon 20 mm cannons (28×1) |
| Aircraft carried | 28 |
| Service record | |
| Part of: | United States Atlantic Fleet, United States Pacific Fleet |
| Operations: | Philippines campaign, Invasion of Iwo Jima, Battle of Okinawa |
| Victories: | German submarine U-543 |
| Awards: | 3 Battle stars |
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USS Wake Island (CVE-65) was a Casablanca-class escort carrier of the United States Navy.
She was laid down under a United States Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 1102) on 6 February 1943 at Vancouver, Washington, by the Kaiser Shipyards; launched on 15 September 1943, sponsored by Mrs. Frederick Carl Sherman, the wife of Rear Admiral Frederick Sherman; and commissioned on 7 November 1943, with Captain Hames R. Tague in command.