USS Meadowlark (AMS-196)

USS Meadowlark (AMS/MSC-196) was a Bluebird-class minesweeper acquired by the United States Navy for clearing coastal minefields.

USS Meadowlark (AMS-196), c. 1961, transiting the Panama Canal.
History
United States
Name: Meadowlark
Namesake: Meadowlark
Builder: Broward Marine, Inc., Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Laid down: 18 May 1953
Launched: 28 August 1954
Commissioned: 14 May 1955
Reclassified: Coastal Minesweeper, 7 February 1955
Stricken: 1 May 1976
Identification:
Fate: Transferred to Indonesia, 1971
Indonesia
Name: Pulau Alau
Acquired: 1971
Identification: Hull symbol: M-717
Fate: sold for scrap, 1 September 1976
General characteristics [1]
Class and type: Bluebird-class minesweeper
Displacement: 362 long tons (368 t)
Length: 144 ft 3 in (43.97 m)
Beam: 27 ft 2 in (8.28 m)
Draft: 12 ft (3.7 m)
Installed power:
Propulsion: 2 × screws
Speed: 13.6 kn (25.2 km/h; 15.7 mph)
Complement: 40
Armament:

Construction

Meadowlark was laid down on 18 May 1953, as AMS-196, by Broward Marine, Inc., Fort Lauderdale, Florida; launched on 28 August 1954, sponsored by Mrs. Thomas E. Sheridan; reclassified MSC-196 on 7 February 1955; and commissioned on 10 May 1955, Lieutenant John P. Cromwell in command.[2]

East Coast operations

Meadowlark conducted shakedown training out of Charleston, South Carolina. This remained her home port into 1969, except for a period commencing February 1956, when assigned to the Naval Mine Warfare School, Yorktown, Virginia. She conducted operations from Nova Scotia to the Panama Canal Zone, and in January 1967, visited Curaçao, Netherlands West Indies. With Mine Squadron 42 she twice participated in joint exercises with the Royal Canadian Navy the first time off Nova Scotia in July 1958, and again in June 1963, along the Florida coast.[2]

Military awards and honors

An eager competitor in fleet exercises and battle problems, Meadowlark was recognized for her operational readiness. From 1962, she won five consecutive Battle Efficiency "E" Awards and accumulated an equal number of awards for excellence in mine counter measures.[2]

Decommissioning

Meadowlark was transferred to Indonesia in 1971, and renamed Pulau Alau (M-717); struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 1 May 1976; and, sold, 1 September 1976. Fate: unknown.[1]

See also

Notes
    Citations
    1. Navsource.
    2. DANFS 2015.

    Bibliography

    Online resources

    • "Meadowlark". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Naval History and Heritage Command. 7 August 2015. Retrieved 18 March 2017. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
    • "USS Meadowlark (MSC-196)". Navsource.org. Retrieved 18 March 2017.
    • Photo gallery of USS Meadowlark (AMS-196/MSC-196) at NavSource Naval History


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