Name USS PC-1261 Commissioned May 1943 Construction started 20 November 1942 Length 53 m | Laid down 20 November 1942 Struck 29 July 1944 Launched 28 February 1943 Builder Sturgeon Bay | |
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Fate sunk by shellfire off the coast of Normandy, 6 June 1944 Class and type | ||
USS PC-1261 was a PC-461-class submarine chaser built for the United States Navy during World War II. She is notable for being the first ship sunk during the D-Day landings on 6 June 1944, when she was hit by shellfire from German shore batteries.
Career
PC-1261 was laid down on 20 November 1942 by the Leathem D. Smith Shipbuilding Company in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin and launched on 28 February 1943. She was commissioned in May 1943 and was sent to Europe and participated in the Normandy Landings.
On 6 June 1944, PC-1261 led the first wave of landing crafts. While en route to the beach, she was struck by an artillery shell and foundered. She was the first ship sunk on D-Day.
References
USS PC-1261 Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA