A crew consisting of a cox, and engineer and two extra men are pictured on the stem of the boat, which was used to take enlisted men ashore. The boat carries about 125 men and is 50 feet long.
A sailor stands in the boat while it's being raised by the battleship's crane. The "punt" boat was used only to paint the sides of the ship. The boat pictured on the far left is a whale boat, which is used as a life boat and is also used in racing. The boat on the right is called a "racing cutter" and is also used as a life boat and in cutter racing.
Crew members pal around during the crossing initiation ceremony, where sailors who have never crossed the equator before are "brought before Neptune" and tested.
U.S.S. West Virginia Landing Vehicle Headed for Okinawa Beaches
Date:
1945/04
Description:
Troops loaded into landing vehicles head for the beaches of Okinawa as part of the largest amphibious assault in the Pacific theater during World War II. The U.S.S. West Virginia is pictured in the background.