Naval Base San Diego was USS Germantown’s first homeport, and on Sept. 24, 2026, it was where the dock landing ship left the fleet. The Whidbey Island-class ship, hull number LSD 42, was decommissioned there after more than 40 years of service.
Germantown’s place in amphibious history rests on a single distinction: she was the first dock landing ship to conduct Landing Craft Air Cushion operations, the hovercraft that carry Marines and their heavy gear from ship to shore. She was commissioned on Feb. 8, 1986, and her record runs from Desert Storm to Operation Enduring Freedom, with three major disaster-relief missions along the way.
The Navy’s decommissioning release, datelined San Diego on Sept. 24, 2026 and distributed via DVIDS, describes Germantown as “the first dock landing ship to conduct Landing Craft Air Cushion amphibious operations.” It records that the ship was built by Lockheed Shipbuilding in Seattle, christened June 29, 1984, with Barbara Kelly as sponsor, and commissioned Feb. 8, 1986. She carried a crew of 22 officers and 391 enlisted Sailors, with room for a Marine detachment of 402 and surge capacity for 102 more, according to the release…