LPH-10

• USS Tripoli (LPH-10): The LPH-10 was named USS Tripoli, an Iwo Jima-class amphibious assault ship of the United States Navy, commissioned in 1966. • Namesake Significance: The ship was named to honor the 1805 Battle of Derna (Tripoli) during the First Barbary War, a pivotal event in early U.S. Marine Corps history. • Vietnam War Service: USS Tripoli played a major role in the Vietnam War, earning five battle stars for her service and conducting numerous helicopter-borne assault operations. • Apollo Recovery Ship: In 1969, Tripoli served as the primary recovery ship for the Apollo 13 mission, retrieving astronauts and their spacecraft after their dramatic safe return to Earth. • Mine Strike During Gulf War: On February 18, 1991, during Operation Desert Storm, Tripoli struck an Iraqi mine in the Persian Gulf, sustaining significant damage but continuing operations for six days afterward. • Unique Aviation Operations: Tripoli was capable of operating a full Marine helicopter squadron and was used for vertical envelopment tactics, a then-modern approach to amphibious warfare. • Longest Serving of Her Class: By her decommissioning in 1995, USS Tripoli was the last active Iwo Jima-class LPH in U.S. Navy service. • Humanitarian Missions: In her later years, Tripoli was involved in humanitarian operations, including relief missions in the Pacific and Caribbean. • Post-Service Fate: After decommissioning, Tripoli was used as a test and target ship during the RIMPAC 2005 exercise, where she was ultimately sunk off the coast of Hawaii. • Legacy: The ship's name and heritage live on in the current USS Tripoli (LHA-7), an America-class amphibious assault ship commissioned in 2020.