Coast Guard LST Follows LCIs to Cape Sansapor

At the end of July 1944, US Army General Douglas MacArthur sent an amphibious expeditionary force to Cape Sansapor, New Guinea. By doing so he made a 200-mile jump from his previous most advanced position. The Coast Guard-manned LSTs 18, 22, 26, 66, 67, 68, 170, 202, 204 and 206 all took part in the landings and the follow-up activity. The Coast Guard-manned frigates Bisbee, Coronado, Eugene, Gallup, Glendale, Long Beach, San Pedro and Van Buren performed offshore patrols during the landings. MacArthur's planners sped up the operations in New Guinea, bypassing Japanese strongholds. Cape Sansapor was selected because of its ability to support Tank Landing Ships (LSTs). Here elements of the US Army's 6th Infantry Division, their anti-aircraft guns manned in case of air attack, follow in the wake of Infantry Landing Craft (LCIs) to the Vogelkop Peninsula.