Andromeda-class attack cargo ship

The Andromeda-class attack cargo ships were a class of amphibious cargo ship built by Federal Shipbuilding & Drydock Co. in Kearny, New Jersey, and Moore Dry Dock Co., in Oakland, California, during World War II. Like all attack cargo ships, they were designed to carry combat loaded military cargo and landing craft, and to use the latter to land weapons, supplies, and troops on enemy shores during amphibious operations.

USS Rolette – a typical Andromeda-class AKA
Class overview
Builders	Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company Moore Dry Dock Company
Built	1943–1945
Completed	30
General characteristics
Class and type	Type C2 ship
Displacement	6,761 tons empty
Length	459 ft 2 in (140 m)
Beam	63 ft (19 m)
Draft	26 ft 4 in (8 m)
Speed	16.5 kn (31 km/h)
Complement	247 (varies)
Armament	1 × 5-inch/38-caliber dual-purpose gun mount 4 × twin 40 mm gun mounts 16 × 20 mm guns gun mounts

All these ships were built on the same standard hull design, but there were some differences from ship to ship. The armament varied, as did that of the other ships of the day. During 1944–1945, the 5"/38 was recognized as the best gun for the dual role of antiaircraft and naval gunfire support, and the 40 mm was seen as the best antiaircraft gun. The older 20 mm and .50 caliber guns had been recognized to be of limited value, and were being phased out, though they appeared on some of these ships. The 20 mm guns were later removed from all of them, but it is not clear just when this happened.

The complement varied as well, but the Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships figures sometimes seem to confuse ship's company with embarked troops in determining a ship's complement.