USAT Maui
From Our Contribution
 SS Maui at start of Maiden voyage 7 Apr 1917. | |
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| History | |
|---|---|
| Name | USAT Maui |
| Owner | United States Army |
| Builder | Union Iron Works, San Francisco, California |
| Launched | 23 Dec 1916 |
| Completed | 1917 |
| In service | 1917 |
| Out of service | 1946 |
| Fate | scrapped 1948 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Passenger Liner |
| Tonnage | 17,430 tons |
| Length | 501 ft 2 in (152.8m) |
| Beam | 58 ft (18m) |
| Depth | 44 ft 9 in (13.6m); draft 30 ft 2 in (9.19m) |
| Propulsion | twin screw |
| Speed | 18 knots (33 km/h) |
Remarks
Built as a passenger ship for the Matson Navigation Company who used her on the Hawaii service, but also with the characteristics of a Second class auxiliary cruiser. During ww1 the US Navy took her over and used her to transport troops and cargo to Europe and return with injured servicemen. Following the Armistice she was used to repatriate troops to the USA.
In September 1919 the Maui returned to civilian hands, but was laid up during 1933 before being converted to cargo.
In November 1941 she was involved in a collision in San Francisco Bay, but soon after, on 3 December she was purchased by the US Army and used in the Pacific for the rest of the war. Maui was part of a particularly important convoy, Number 2033 escorted by USS New Orleans departing San Francisco on 12 February 1942 arriving at Brisbane, Australia on 5 March, that transported Army air units, planes and supplies to Australia to reinforce that area against Japanese advances in the Southwest Pacific. She operated in the Pacific Ocean for the remainder of World War II, carrying personnel and cargo to Alaska, the South Pacific, the Southwest Pacific, the Philippines, and, after the end of the war in August 1945, to Japan. Maui completed her Army service in early 1946 and was transferred to the Maritime Administration for disposal. On 16 January 1948 the ship was sold to Zidell Ship Dismantling Company for $40,000 scrapped in 1948