Крейсер «Огаста»: История службы и участие в операциях Второй мировой войны.

Northampton class heavy cruiser (1931 46)

USS Augusta (CL/CA 31) was a of the United States Navy, notable for service as a headquarters ship during Operation Torch, Operation Overlord, and Operation Dragoon, and for her occasional use as a presidential flagship carrying both Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman under wartime conditions (including at the Atlantic Charter). She was named after Augusta, Georgia, Originally classified as a light cruiser, CL 31, because of her thin armor. Effective 1 July 1931, Augusta was redesignated a heavy cruiser, CA 31, because of her 8 inch guns in accordance with the provisions of the London Naval Treaty of 1930.

Damage to one of her turbines curtailed the ship's original shakedown cruise, but Augusta conducted abbreviated initial training during a cruise to Colón, Panama, and back, before she was assigned duty as flagship for Commander, Scouting Force, Vice Admiral Arthur L. Willard, on 21 May 1931. During the summer of 1931, she operated with the other warships of Scouting Force, carrying out tactical exercises off the New England coast. In September, Augusta moved south to Chesapeake Bay, where she joined her colleagues in their normal fall gunnery drills until mid November, when the cruisers retired to their home ports. Augusta entered the Norfolk Navy Yard at that time. Ten days later Chinese planes bombed the American Dollar Line SS President Hoover off the mouth of the Huangpu, with one death and several wounded. American ships ceased calling at Shanghai as a result, and Admiral Yarnell's attempts to get a division of heavy cruisers to carry out the evacuation met resistance from President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

Departing Mare Island on 11 April 1941, Augusta, her configuration altered and repainted, sailed for San Pedro, remaining there over 12 and 13 April. She transited the Panama Canal four days later, reporting for duty with the Atlantic Fleet on 17 April. Departing the Canal Zone on the 19th, the heavy cruiser arrived at Newport, R. I., on 23 April. Admiral Ernest J. King, now Commander in Chief, Atlantic Fleet, returned from Washington, D. C., on 2 May and broke his flag in Augusta. The cruiser remained at Newport, serving as the administrative CINCLANT flagship (although Admiral King journeyed to Washington again during this time), through most of May, until she sailed for Bermuda on the 24th of that month. Reaching her destination on the 26th, she remained there only until the 28th, at which time she sailed for Newport once more. On 10 June General Bradley and his staff left the heavy cruiser to establish headquarters ashore. Augusta was bombed at 0357 on 11 June, but escaped damage as the bomb exploded 800 yards (730 m) off her port beam. The following day, anchored as before off Omaha Beach, she fired eight 5 inch (127 mm) rounds at an enemy plane at 2343, driving it off. On 13 June at 0352 she sent 21 rounds of 5 inch (127 mm) at a German plane, and shot it down. Augusta drove off other aircraft and bombarded the shore with her heavy guns on 15 June, and provided antiaircraft defense to the forces off Normandy on 18 June. The next day, while underway to shift berths, she lost a man overboard when he was swept overboard by heavy seas.

Rear Admiral Kirk shifted his flag to Thompson on 1 July, and Augusta got underway the same day for Plymouth, mooring there on 2 July. Four days later, in company with TG 120.6, she departed for Mers el Kebir, Algeria, arriving there on 10 July, only to leave two days later with Hambleton for Palermo, Sicily. She moored at that port on 14 July and reported to TF 86 for duty. Rear Admiral Lyal A. Davidson came on board and broke his flag the same day, and Augusta stood out with Macomb and Hambleton for Naples, arriving the next day. She carried out shore bombardment exercises on 23 July. She returned to Palermo on 27 July and steamed to Naples the following day. She continued her training until 12 August, when as flagship for TF 86, she carried Brigadier General Benjamin W. Chidlaw, USA, to Propriano, Corsica, arriving the following day. On 14 August, the heavy cruiser departed the Golfe de Valinco at 1030 for Ile du Levant, southern France and the beginning of Operation "Dragoon". Augusta arrived at 2155 at the staging area, joining the Sitka Assault Group. On the morning of 15 August, Augusta trained her main battery against targets on Port Cros Island, and fired nine rounds. At 1125, she sent six. Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal came on board at 2023 for an official visit with Admiral Davidson. The next day, Augusta patrolled the Sitka Assault Area and Secretary Forrestal left her at 0850. The heavy cruiser fired 63 more rounds at the fort on Port Cros Island to soften it up. On 17 August, she patrolled with Omaha and poured 138 rounds from her 8 inch (203 mm) battery into the island fort, which surrendered that day. The following day, General Chidlaw left the ship to establish his headquarters on shore, and Augusta turned her fire on the remaining coastal defense batteries. She departed on 19 August for a reconnaissance in force of St. Mandrier Island off Toulon, France, where the battery known as "Big Willie" was located, bombarding shore installations, and returning to the Sitka Assault Area the same day. The Golfe Hotel, Hyeres, France, was nearly leveled by 114 rounds from Augusta on 20 August. Toulon and Marseilles surrendered eight days later. On 29 August, a landing party drawn from the Marine detachments from Augusta and Philadelphia went ashore on the islands of Ratonneau and Chateau d'If in the harbor of Marseilles and accepted the surrender of German forces on those islands, taking 730 prisoners. In support of "Dragoon", Augusta had fired over 700 rounds of 8 inch (203 mm) projectiles, and had materially aided invading Allied forces. She steamed to the Gulf of San Tropez, France, on 30 August, where Admiral Davidson shifted his flag to Philadelphia, and Augusta was detached from TF 86.

On 1 September, the heavy cruiser sailed via Propriano to Naples, where she joined Cruiser Division (CruDiv) 7. After calling at Oran, Algeria, on 6 September, Augusta, in company with Tuscaloosa, Fitch, and Murphy, stood out, bound for Philadelphia and an extensive overhaul. While undergoing these repairs and alterations, Augusta suffered an explosion of unknown origin on 20 November in her ice machine room, which killed three yard workers and injured four crew members. Her overhaul completed, Augusta departed Boston on 26 January 1945 with Rhind and Bainbridge, bound for Trinidad, tested her guns en route, and arrived on 31 January. In the first week of February, she conducted refresher training in the Gulf of Paria, Trinidad, polishing up on gunnery, night battle, radar, and antiaircraft techniques. She steamed to San Juan, Puerto Rico, calling there on 9 February. Sailing for the United States on 21 February, Augusta, along with Tillman, Herndon, and Satterlee, rendezvoused with Quincy and her screen on 24 February as that cruiser steamed back to the United States with President Roosevelt embarked, following the Yalta Conference. After Augusta and her screen had covered the approach of the President to Hampton Roads, she underwent minor emergency repairs, remaining at Norfolk until 7 March when she steamed to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, arriving there three days later. She trained off Trinidad and Curaçao until 7 April, when Chicago joined her. Augusta returned to Norfolk on 10 April, and on 14 April, in accordance with orders from the Secretary of the Navy, half masted her colors for a period of one month in honor of the late President Roosevelt. After a brief call at Annapolis, Maryland, she sailed north to Newport on 22 April to train 11 officers and 300 men from Columbus on a cruise. The ship conducted antiaircraft defense and other exercises in Long Island Sound until 27 April when she returned to Newport and disembarked the trainees. Three days later, Augusta sailed for New York, and arrived there on 1 May. On 7 May, in company with Decatur, she headed for Casco Bay, where the end of the war in Europe found her, and returned to New York on 2 June. On the 13th, Augusta got underway to proceed back to Norfolk. She then conducted further training exercises in Chesapeake Bay until 7 July, when President Harry S. Truman, Secretary of State James F. Byrnes, and Fleet Admiral William D. Leahy boarded her, and she stood out for Antwerp, Belgium, to carry her distinguished passengers on the first leg of their voyage to the Potsdam Conference. Met by a British escort, Augusta arrived on 14 July, and received dignitaries, including General Eisenhower. Her guests departed the same day, and Augusta got underway to proceed to Plymouth, arriving there on 28 July. On 2 August, she embarked her distinguished passengers again, and received another visit from King George VI. Harry Truman was on the ship when he got the news that Hiroshima had been bombed by an atomic bomb. The ship then sailed for the United States, arriving at Newport on 7 August to disembark the President. A week later she moored in Casco bay. After carrying out training at Baltimore, Maryland, she arrived at Norfolk on 11 September, and conducted exercises off the Virginia Capes until steaming to Casco Bay again on 5 October for temporary duty under the direction of Commander, Operational Training Command, Atlantic, Commander TF 69. She then proceeded to New York, and participated in Navy Day observances on 27 October at New York City, where President Truman reviewed the fleet. Open to the public from 25 to 30 October, Augusta hosted 23,362 visitors.

On 31 October, Augusta moored at the New York Naval Shipyard, to be modified for "Magic Carpet" operations, bringing home American servicemen from Europe. She performed this duty through the end of the year 1945. On 16 July 1946, Augusta was ultimately placed out of commission, in reserve, in a deferred disposal status at Philadelphia. She remained in the Philadelphia group of the Reserve Fleet until stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 1 March 1959. She was sold for scrap on 9 November 1959 to Robert Benjamin of Panama City, Florida, and her hulk removed from naval custody on 2 March 1960.