USS Vega (AK-17)

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USS Vega (AK-17) was a Sirius-class cargo ship in the United States Navy. It began life as the freighter Lebanon, built at Hog Island, Pennsylvania by the American International Shipbuilding Co. Laid down on 8 July 1918 and launched on 18 July 1919, it was acquired by the Navy on 2 December 1921, renamed Vega, and commissioned at the Boston Navy Yard on 21 December 1921.

Vega served with the Naval Transportation Service, sailing from the Atlantic to the Pacific on cargo runs to east and west coast ports, the Far East, the Caribbean, and Alaska. In 1924 she completed six round trips from San Francisco to Asiatic waters. From 1925 to 1928 she operated between Seattle and Alaskan ports, delivering supplies to naval radio stations at St. Paul and Dutch Harbor. She also supported Nicaragua peacekeeping efforts and carried Bureau of Fisheries supplies to seal rookeries in Alaska in 1928.

During World War II, Vega arrived in Honolulu on 6 December 1941 with ammunition for Pearl Harbor. She unloaded under the attack on 7 December and escaped damage. After a brief stint on the West Coast for refit, she returned to the Pacific, operating out of Tacoma and Seattle carrying construction materials and vital supplies for the Aleutians and later supporting major amphibious operations in the Marianas, Western Carolines, and Okinawa with Seabees and barges. She also shot down a Japanese bomber during the Okinawa campaign.

Vega was decommissioned on 15 January 1946, struck from the Navy List on 12 March 1946, and turned over to the Maritime Commission. She was sold for scrapping on 6 August 1946. For her World War II service, Vega earned four battle stars and the Combat Action Ribbon for Pearl Harbor.