SS Panama Victory

The second ship, with V-9 on the hull, is the SS Panama Victory.
History
United States
Name	SS Panama Victory
Namesake	Panama
Owner	War Shipping Administration
Operator	Marine Transport Line
Builder	California Shipbuilding Company, Los Angeles
Laid down	February 5, 1944
Launched	April 3, 1944
Completed	May 30, 1944
Fate	Sold, 1946
Netherlands
Name	SS Amsteldijk
Owner	Holland America Line
Operator	Holland America Line
Renamed	SS Amsteldyk, 1954
Fate	Sold, 1968
Panama
Name	SS Helena
Owner	Progressive Mariner S.A. of Panama
Operator	Progressive Mariner S.A.
Fate	Scrapped in Taiwan, 1973
General characteristics
Class and type	VC2-S-AP3 Victory ship
Tonnage	7612 GRT, 4,553 NRT
Displacement	15,200 tons
Length	455 ft (139 m)
Beam	62 ft (19 m)
Draught	28 ft (8.5 m)
Installed power	8,500 shp (6,300 kW)
Propulsion	HP & LP turbines geared to a single 20.5-foot (6.2 m) propeller
Speed	16.5 knots
Boats & landing craft carried	4 Lifeboats
Complement	62 Merchant Marine and 28 US Naval Armed Guards
Armament	1 × 5 inch (127 mm)/38 caliber gun 1 × 3 inch (76 mm)/50 caliber gun 8 × 20 mm Oerlikon
Notes

The SS Panama Victory was a Victory ship built during World War II. She was launched by the California Shipbuilding Company on April 3, 1944 and completed on May 30, 1944. She was built in 115 days under the Emergency Shipbuilding program. The ship’s United States Maritime Commission designation was VC2-S-AP3, hull number 9 (V-9). SS Panama Victory served in the Pacific Ocean during World War II. SS Panama Victory was ninth of the new 10,500-ton class ship to be known as Victory ships. Victory ships were designed to replace the earlier Liberty Ships. Liberty ships were designed to be used just for WW2. Victory ships were designed to last longer and serve the US Navy after the war. The Victory ship differed from a Liberty ship in that they were: faster, longer and wider, taller, had a thinner stack set farther toward the superstructure and had a long raised forecastle. Engine was made by Joshua Hendy Iron Works Inc. of Sunnyvale, California.

SS Panama Victory was christened on April 3, 1944 by Mrs. Jimenez wife of ambassador Don Enrique A. Jimenez of Panama. The SS Panama Victory was one of a long line of Victory ships to leave the Calship building. The launching of The SS Panama Victory splashed into the water of Terminal Island to enter the Pacific War.

World War II

SS Panama Victory was operated by Marine Transport Line under charter with the Maritime Commission and War Shipping Administration. SS Panama Victory took to part in the Guadalcanal Campaign. The SS Panama Victory was in combat action in Lingayen Gulf in Philippines and survived an attack on January 12, 1945. She supplied a number of Landing Ship, Tank in WW2. On Feb. 28, 1945 she unloaded cargo on to other ships at the Ulithi atoll.

Post World War II

She was sold on 1946 to Holland America Line in Rotterdam and renamed SS Amsteldijk. In 1954 Holland America Line renamed her the SS Amsteldyk. In 1968 she was sold to a Panama company, Progressive Mariner S.A. and renamed SS Helena. In 1968 she was sold to Sincere Navigation Corp., in Keelung in Taiwan. In 1973 she was scrapped in Taiwan.

Honors

Crew of Naval Armed Guards on the SS Panama Victory' earned "Battle Stars" in World War II for war action during the Invasion of Lingayen Gulf from 4 Jan. 1945 to 18 Jan. 1945.

Typical Victory Ship

See also

• List of Victory ships
• Type C1 ship
• Type C2 ship
• Type C3 ship

Sources

• Sawyer, L.A. and W.H. Mitchell. Victory ships and tankers: The history of the ‘Victory’ type cargo ships and of the tankers built in the United States of America during World War II, Cornell Maritime Press, 1974, 0-87033-182-5.
• United States Maritime Commission: [1]
• Victory Cargo Ships [2] Archived 2005-09-22 at the Wayback Machine