Mine Division 73 USS Conquest MSO-488

Mine Division 73 was a United States Navy mine warfare unit active during the Cold War, specializing in mine countermeasures operations. Among its ships was USS Conquest (MSO-488), an Aggressive-class ocean minesweeper commissioned in 1955. USS Conquest participated in training exercises, fleet maneuvers, and readiness missions along the U.S. East Coast, Caribbean, and occasionally in the Mediterranean as part of NATO operations. The ship and its division played a crucial role in ensuring safe passage for naval and commercial vessels by detecting and clearing naval mines until Conquest’s decommissioning in 1971.