USS Shelikof

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USS Shelikof (AVP-52) was a Barnegat-class seaplane tender built for the United States Navy. She served in two active periods, 1944–1947 and 1952–1954, and later spent two decades in Greek civilian service under several names before sinking in 1981.

Construction and dimensions
- Built at Lake Washington Shipyard in Houghton, Washington.
- Laid down: 20 September 1942; launched: 31 January 1943.
- Commissioned: 17 April 1944.
- Class and role: Barnegat-class seaplane tender.
- Basic data: around 1,766 tons light displacement and 2,750 tons full load; about 311 feet long; crew around 215 (plus aviation personnel to bring total to roughly 367).

World War II service (1944–1945)
- After fitting out, Shelikof loaded aircraft spares in Alameda, California, and conducted shakedown in California waters before heading to San Pedro for a yard period.
- 1944: sailed to Pearl Harbor and then to Eniwetok, where from 18 July to 1 August 1944 she converted her facilities to support both aircraft and radar maintenance.
- Afterward she operated from Saipan/Tanapag Harbor, shuttling spare parts and supplies among Guam, Ulithi, and Saipan to keep forward aviation units supplied.
- In March 1945 Shelikof joined Task Unit 51.20 for the Okinawa invasion. She laid eight seaplane mooring buoys at Kerama Retto on 28 March 1945; three were used on 29 March as Mariner flying boats arrived.
- The anchorage came under Japanese air attack throughout April 1945. Casualties aboard Shelikof occurred on 28 April 1945 due to friendly fire. On 6 May 1945 she opened fire on a Japanese plane that approached very close but caused no damage to the plane.
- The seaplane base moved to Chimu Wan, Okinawa, on 15 July 1945, and Shelikof operated there until Japan’s capitulation on 15 August 1945.

Honors
- Shelikof earned three battle stars for World War II service.

Peacetime service (1945–1947)
- After the war, Shelikof moved between Okinawa and ports in Japan, then returned to the United States, arriving at Norfolk on 4 December 1945.
- She underwent overhaul and then made multiple voyages, including four trips to San Juan, Puerto Rico, and two to Trinidad by 11 June 1946.
- By 16 March 1947 she headed to Philadelphia for inactivation and was decommissioned on 30 June 1947, placed in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet.

Second period in commission (1952–1954)
- Recommissioned at Philadelphia on 3 January 1952, Shelikof operated along the U.S. East Coast from her home port in Norfolk for about two and a half years.
- She began inactivation in July 1954 and was placed out of commission in reserve in the Texas Group of the Atlantic Reserve Fleet at Orange, Texas, in December 1954.

Final decommissioning and disposal
- Shelikof was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 1 May 1960 and sold on 20 December 1960 to Panagiotis Kokkinos of Piraeus, Greece.

Greek commercial service
- Converted to a Greek passenger ship and renamed MV Kypros, later becoming MV Mykonos (1964), MV Artemis (1973), MV Artemis K (1974), and MV Golden Princess (1979).
- The Golden Princess sank in a storm at Perama, Greece, in January 1981 while laid up.

In summary, USS Shelikof served as a seaplane tender during World War II, earned three battle stars, had a peacetime stint on the U.S. East Coast, returned to active duty in the early 1950s, and then spent many years as a Greek-flag merchant passenger vessel before sinking in 1981.