Succeeding them following the Korean Armistice was Mine Division – 111 which had almost totally converted to 50′ Motor Launch Minesweepers, heavily modified by Ship Repair Depot in Sasebo with decks, some with enclosed pilot houses and masts. They were forced by Navy wisdom to relinquish their MSB designations (Mine Sweeping Boats) and reclassify their boats as Motor Launch Mine Sweepers – MLMS. This was due to BuShips having given the MSB designation to a new 57′ minesweeper class they were developing.

In 1958 these boats were replaced by newly built 36′ Mine Sweeping Launches (MSL’s), powered by Boeing Gas Turbine Type 502-10C. Twenty MSL’s were delivered to WestPAC split between Sasebo and Long Beach, CA. Following this re-organization their LCVP’s and MLMS’s were given to Taiwan, Korea, and Vietnam. The Division was re-named Mine Division – 33, and in 1961 the USS Epping Forest LSD-4, was transferred to MinFlot 1 in Sasebo and re-designated MCS-7. Mine Countermeasures Support ship.

In August 1966 MinDiv – 33 was decommissioned and tranferred aboard the USS Epping Forest mCS-7 as the Boat Division. In Fall of 1968 the USS Epping Forest was de-commissioned. The Boat division was sent to the Sasebo Seawall for the winter. The following Spring the USS Catskill MCS-2 arrived in Sasebo as the new mothership. During which in the waning budgets due to Vietnam, the Catskill was decommissioned. Minesweeping Boat Divisions homeported in Sasebo no longer exist.

I think the Japanese perspective of what occurred with the Sasebo facilities post WWII is very interesting, Life in Base Town Sasebo

Ed Sinclair

W.J Miller QMC USN, a writer for the USN All Hands Magazine wrote a nice 6 page story on the AMS minesweepers (136″) and the CoMinRon 3 Boat Division sweepers (36′) - Which were later redesginated as Mine Sweeping Boat Division ONE for the remaider of the Korean War. Following the Korean Armistice in August 1953, the unit became Mine division – 111 homeported in Sasebo. In 1958 it was further redesignated Mine Division – 33 and reorganized to report to COMINRON THREE/MINFLOT 1 Sasebo.

Ed Sinclair

Charlotte Knight, Colliers War Correspondent, produced a nice article (attached) on AMS operations of COMINDIV Three in Korea during a fall 1951 visit to these minesweepers. These were primarily YMS designs of WWII that were converted to Auxiliary Mine Sweepers, and given ship names. The YMS Series (>425) were only given hull numbers during WWII. Fifty keywords of ship names commanding officers and key personnel are also listed in the complete article.

Seawall @ Jake (Juliet) Basin Sasebo, Japan

CLICK ON PHOTO TO ENLARGE – Again to enlarge More

The Sasebo, Japan based mine sweeping boat division began as the COMinRon-3 Boat Division sometime following the outbreak of the Korean War in June 1950. In early 1951 it was commissioned as Mine Sweeping Boat Division ONE, still reporting to COMinRon-3, cosisting of two 40′ motor launches and a dozen or more LCVP’s as minesweepers. Conversion to mostly 50′ motor Launches (modified with decks and even cabins, before the end of the war. At the Korean Armistace, the Division was re-named Mine Division 111, reporting to MinRon 11 in Long Beach, CA. In 1958 their 50′ Motor Launch Minesweepers (MLMS) were replaced by newly built 36′ Mine Sweeping Launches (MSL’s) built bt Sagstad Shipyards in Seattle, and powered by Boeing 502-10-C Gas Turbine Engines.

Three minute introduction only. WP limits videos to 32mB

This movie, The Small Boat Navy, was sent to me by a shipmate in 2013. It appears to be a very well done documentary, post 1968, regarding Vietnam Naval Coastal Surveillance and Riverine Warfare. There is a section devoted to minesweeping the Long Tau Shipping Channel (Saigon River Complex)using 57′ Mine Sweeping Boats – MSB’s. Nothing is mentioned regarding the 36′ Mine Sweeping Launches – MSL’s of Mine Division – 33 transported by the USS Epping Forest MCS-7 Who arrived in July 1964 for the  check sweeping of Cam Ranh Bay, Nha Trang Harbor, and Da Nang Harbor. The EF MCS-7 transported our ten MSL’s to Vietnam eighteen times through 1968. Our XO of MinDiv – 33 said he attended a meeting in early 1966 in Saigon, where MACV was considering our 36′ Mine Sweeping Launches for the Long Tau Shipping Channel minesweeping effort. MSL’s were eliminated in favor of the 57′ MSB’s due to the MSB’s larger size, pilot house, bunk arrangements, head facilities, and general sea worthiness. Also, the MSB was fitted with ceramic armor, and had a small crane for deploying oropesa minesweeping gear, and the newly designed chain drag sweep gear, for clearing command detonated mine wires from river shorelines to mines planted in the river.

The Boat Minesweeping Unit (BMS) was the first large scale boat unit organized by the USN for shallow water minesweeping ahead of an invasion in Europe. Allegedly, Boat Unit Eight practicing for the Normandy Invasion in the English Channel months prior to the June 1944 Normandy invasion, was scratched from the invasion due to rough English Channel weather having swamped their LCVP’s during practice.

Lake Ferryville was the WWII name of the salt water lake fed from the Mediterranean by a channel dug by the Phoenecians in the 3rd or 4th century BC. Lake Ferryville (today lake Bizerte) was where the BMS Unit practiced daily.

The invasions began near St Tropez, St Maxine, and continued westward to Toulan, and Marseilles Harbors. Small boat minesweeping had arrived in the U.S. Navy at the unit level. Previous use of motor launches and landing craft had been dabbled with on a much smaller scale since 1942, according to Mine Warfare Notes – a fleet wide classified USN publication published during WWII.

Irving B. Gerson Lt(jg) USNR and Ed Sinclair

Hushion-Donaldson Korea

The sign at the beginning was their HQ Building at Jake Basin in Sasebo, Japan and the colorful North Korean Propaganda Poster was from the era early in the war. The mine explosion destroying a South Korean YMS (a 140′ WWII YMS) occured during the start of the 900 Day USN Seige of Wonsan Harbor in North Korea. The ship was of course obliterated by 900 lbs of TNT, and the USS Redhead a similar YMS/AMS was between the South Korean ship and the camera on 10-18-1950.

Ed Sinclair

Stroud, the SN on the bow, is reading the signalled semaphore message indicated by his raised arm. His semaphore flags are likely in his right hand. The Element Commander of five MSL’s is likely signalling an upcoming turn. The navigation “balls” indicate we are towing gear on both port and starboard sides, a signal for civilian traffic to stay clear. The main propulsion engine, a Boeing 502-10C gas turbine is in the foreground. At full power when towing, the 502-10C generates 110-130db of noise similar to any jet engine. The power package loaded forward, is a diesel powered generator powering our acoustic minesweeping hammer, a noisemaker when towed far behind, is intended to explode acoustic mines well aft of the boat. We are also streaming moored Oropesa sweep gear.

Ed Sinclair

Register for blog updates, and info regarding my book “Iron Men In Wooden Boats”.

Edward Sinclair