USS Nashville (LPD-13)
USS Nashville (LPD-13) was an Austin-class amphibious transport dock in the U.S. Navy, named after Nashville, Tennessee. Built by Lockheed Shipbuilding in Seattle, its keel was laid in March 1966, it was launched in October 1967, and it was commissioned in February 1970. The ship carried about 489 sailors and 900 Marines, and could operate up to six CH-46 Sea Knight helicopters.
During its service, Nashville deployed widely in the Caribbean, Mediterranean, and Persian Gulf, and took part in NATO operations. It sometimes served as a flagship for amphibious task forces. Notable moments include supporting the 1995 rescue of Captain Scott O’Grady in Bosnia, deploying with the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group in 2003, and becoming the first ship to land an unmanned Fire Scout helicopter in January 2006. In July 2006, it helped evacuate Americans from Lebanon and landed Marines on Lebanese soil—the first such landing there since 1982. The Nashville was also featured in an Anthony Bourdain episode about Beirut’s evacuation.
The ship was decommissioned on 30 September 2009 and moved to the Philadelphia Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility. It was stricken in November 2017 and sold for scrapping, arriving in Brownsville, Texas, in April 2022.
Other notes:
- Nashville was built in the same class as USS Trenton, which was later sold to India as INS Jalashwa.
- There was brief interest from India in 2007 to acquire Nashville, but the deal did not go forward.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 19:13 (CET).