USS John Penn
Attack transport
USS John Penn (APA-23) was an attack transport that served with the US Navy during World War II. Named after Founding Father John Penn, a signatory to the American Declaration of Independence, she was the only ship in her class.
The ship was initially launched as Excambion in 1931 by the New York Shipbuilding Company of Camden, New Jersey as one of American Export Lines's original "Four Aces", SS Excalibur, SS Exeter, SS Excambion and SS Exochorda. She was acquired by the Navy 8 January 1942; and commissioned 6 April 1942.
World War II
Invasion of North Africa
After fitting out and training, John Penn began preparations for what was to be one of the largest overseas expeditions ever undertaken, Operation Torch, the North African Invasion. From 4 to 16 October 1942, John Penn loaded Army equipment, cargo, and troops, then topped off with fuel. She sortied from Hampton Roads 23 October with Admiral Hewitt's Western Naval Task Force.
As a unit of Rear Admiral Monroe Kelly's Northern Attack Group she arrived 8 November in the transport area off Mehdia, Western Morocco, where she began landing troops and putting cargo ashore. Although hampered by heavy surf and fire from enemy shore batteries, she unloaded with efficiency and dispatch. At 1053 an enemy aircraft attacked John Penn, but her after batteries quickly splashed the intruder. On 15 November she departed for Casablanca, arrived that same day, and unloaded the remainder of her cargo.
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This entry incorporates text from “USS John Penn” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.