Service History
In January 1944, the ship was ordered to Groton, Connecticut for sound and radar training. In April, the ship was assigned to New York to train for helicopter landings on board its flight deck. The first such landing occurred on 15 June. On 29 July 1944, the world's first take-off from a helicopter carrier took place in Long Island Sound from Cobb's flight deck.
With the threat from submarines greatly diminished by early 1945, the Coast Guard turned its attention to development of the helicopter in the search-and-rescue role. USCGC Cobb also played a role in this program when helicopters from its flight deck performed some of the earliest air-sea rescues.
In spite of her historic achievements, USCGC Cobb proved an unsatisfactory acquisition. Originally America's first turbine-powered steamship, the aging 37-year-old vessel proved a liability to the Coast Guard with her excessive maintenance costs. During the first 115 days of the ship's service, Cobb was absent from the repair yard for a total of only nine days. Thereafter she managed operational duties an average of only one week out of four.
USCGC Cobb was decommissioned by the Coast Guard on 31 January 1946. She was sold on 6 March 1947, and scrapped a short time later.
Read more about this topic: USCGC Cobb (WPG-181)
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