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Naval History and Heritage Command

Naval History and Heritage Command

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Bombard
(AM-151: dp. 650; l. 184'6"; b. 33'0"; dr. 9'9"; s. 14.8 k.; cpl. 104; a. 1 3", 4 40mm.; cl. Admirable)



Bombard (AM-151) was laid down on 7 December 1942 at Tampa, Fla., by the Tampa Shipbuilding Co., Inc.; launched on 23 February 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Vivian Broadwater; and commissioned on 31 May 1944, Lt. Donald M. Elder, USNR, in command.


After shakedown training, Bombard transited the Panama Canal at the end of July. From there, she voyaged directly to Samoa, departing the Canal Zone on 1 August and arriving at Tutuila on the 29th. On 2 September, the minesweeper left Tutuila bound ultimately for Alaska. Along the way, the warship made stops at Pearl Harbor and San Francisco before arriving in Alaskan waters at the end of the first week in November. Minesweeping exercises, patrols, and convoy escort missions kept her busy until the following summer. On 18 July 1945, Bombard was decommissioned at Cold Bay, Alaska, and transferred to the Soviet Navy under the provisions of the lend lease program. The Soviet Union has never returned her. The U.S. Navy carried her on its Navy list for almost 40 years, even redesignating her MSF-151 on 7 February 1955. Her name was struck from the Navy list on 1 January 1983.

Raymond A. Mann


31 January 2006