Photo © 2006 Pongsatorn Sukhum.
Diver Oramas Pinijchob swims alongside the wreck of the Royal Thai Navy ship HTMS Kut (731), formerly the USS LSM 333, during an inspection dive on September 30, 2006.
USS LSM 333 was commissioned on November, 25 1944 and served in World War II, patrolling the waters off Okinawa after the invasion, and participating in the occupation landings at Northern Honshu and Hokkaido. After the war, the Siamese (Thai) Purchasing Commission negotiated with the United States and British governments to obtain war surplus material. The ship was commissioned into the Royal Thai Navy in 1947. The ship was used during the Korean and Vietnam wars, then was used as a training ship for many years until it was decommissioned in 2004. It was sunk on September 17, 2006 as an artificial reef.
Sukhum is a shipwreck researcher and underwater photographer based in Thailand.
great post , really good view on the subject and very well written, this certainly has put a spin on my day, many thanks from Thailand and sustain up the good work
I have files and records of everyone on that ship and the locations the USS LSM 333 arrived and departed from. This information is correct.
My grandfather brought them back years and years ago.