USS LSM-20

USS LSM-20 was a LSM-1-class landing ship medium of the United States Navy, commissioned at Brown Shipyards in Houston, Texas, on 16 June 1944.^[1] During WWII, she operated in the Pacific. On 5 December 1944, the vessel sunk after she was hit by a Japanese kamikaze in the Surigao Strait in the Philippines. Five sailors were killed and another nine were wounded.^[2]

USS LSM-20 sinking on 5 December 1944
History
United States
Name	USS LSM-20
Ordered	15 September 1943
Builder	Brown Shipbuilding Co., Houston, Texas
Laid down	24 April 1944
Launched	14 May 1944
Commissioned	16 June 1944
Stricken	20 January 1945
Honors & awards	1 battle star
Fate	Sunk 5 December 1944
General characteristics
Class & type	LSM-1-class landing ship medium
Displacement	520 long tons (530 t) (light) 743 long tons (755 t) (landing) 1,095 long tons (1,113 t) (fully loaded)
Length	203 ft 6 in (62.03 m)
Beam	34 ft 6 in (10.52 m)
Draft	light, 3 ft 6 in (1.07 m) forward, 7 ft 8 in (2.34 m) aft fully loaded, 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) forward, 8 ft 3 in (2.51 m) aft
Speed	13.2 knots (24.4 km/h; 15.2 mph) max.