Allied Warships
USS Block Island (ii) (CVE 21)
Escort carrier of the Bogue class
US Naval Historical Center Photograph #NH106576
Navy | The US Navy |
Type | Escort carrier |
Class | Bogue |
Pennant | CVE 21 |
Built by | Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding Corp. (Seattle, Washington, U.S.A.) |
Ordered | |
Laid down | 19 Jan 1942 |
Launched | 6 Jun 1942 |
Commissioned | 8 Mar 1943 |
Lost | 29 May 1944 |
Loss position | 31° 13'N, 23° 03'W |
History | On 29 May 1944 U-549 slipped undetected through the screen of the hunter-killer group TG 21.11, formed around USS Block Island (CVE 21) and sank the escort carrier with three torpedoes hit about 300 nautical miles west-north-west of the Canary Islands in position 31º13'N, 23º03'W. The U-boat also damaged the destroyer escort USS Barr (DE 576) with a Gnat homing torpedo, but was eventually sunk by USS Eugene E. Elmore (DE 686) and USS Ahrens (DE 575). Hit by U-boat |
U-boat Attack | See our U-boat attack entry for the USS Block Island (ii) |
Commands listed for USS Block Island (ii) (CVE 21)
Please note that we're still working on this section.
Commander | From | To | |
1 | T/Capt. Logan Carlisle Ramsey, USN | 8 Mar 1943 | 10 Mar 1944 |
2 | T/Capt. Francis Massie Hughes, USN | 10 Mar 1944 | 29 May 1944 |
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Notable events involving Block Island (ii) include:
28 Oct 1943
German U-boat U-220 was sunk in the North Atlantic, in position 48°53'N, 33°30'W by depth charges from two Avenger and Wildcat aircraft of the American escort carrier USS Block Island.
10 Mar 1944
Capt F M Hughes, I believe , was CO 10/3/44 & survived her loss 29/5/44 (1)
17 Mar 1944
German U-boat U-801 was sunk in the mid-Atlantic near the Cape Verde Islands, in position 16°42'N, 30°28'W, by a Fido homing torpedo from 2 Avenger aircraft (VC-9) of the US escort carrier USS Block Island and depth charges and gunfire from the US destroyer USS Corry and the US destroyer escort USS Bronstein.
19 Mar 1944
German U-boat U-1059 was sunk south-west of the Cape Verde Islands, in position 13°10'N, 33°44'W by depth charges from Avenger and Wildcat aircraft of the US escort carrier Block Island (VC-6).
6 May 1944
German U-boat U-66 was sunk west of the Cape Verde Islands, in position 17°17'N, 32°29'W, by depth charges, ramming and gunfire from Avenger and Wildcat aircraft of the US escort carrier USS Block Island and by the destroyer escort USS Buckley.
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Sources
- Personal communication
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