The USS Antrim (AK-159) was an Alamosa-class cargo ship constructed for the United States Navy during World War II. Laid down on 18 April 1944 under a Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 2104) at the Richmond Shipyard in California by Kaiser Cargo, Inc., she was launched on 17 July 1944 and sponsored by Mrs. F. H. Horstman. The vessel was commissioned into the Navy on 31 October 1944 and underwent fitting out and shakedown training out of San Pedro, Los Angeles, completing these preparations by 13 December 1944. Following her shakedown, Antrim headed for Hawaii, arriving at Pearl Harbor on New Year’s Day 1945. She soon departed for the Western Pacific, making calls at Eniwetok, Ulithi, and Kossol Roads before arriving at Leyte on 9 February 1945 to unload cargo. During the final months of World War II, she operated under Service Squadron 9, primarily transporting supplies between Manus in the Admiralty Islands and various Philippine ports. She completed three voyages for this purpose between March and August 1945, supporting Allied efforts in the Pacific theater and the subsequent occupation of Japan during the autumn of 1945. After the war, Antrim left the Western Pacific on 4 January 1946, traveling alone through the Panama Canal to Cristobal, Panama, and eventually arriving in Norfolk, Virginia, on 4 March 1946. She was decommissioned on 3 April 1946 and transferred to the War Shipping Administration three days later. Her name was struck from the Navy list on 17 April 1946. Following her naval service, the vessel briefly operated under the U.S. flag with Dichmann, Wright & Pugh, Inc., in 1947, before being transferred to Turkish registry in 1948. Renamed Kars and based in Istanbul, she served under the Turkish flag into the 1980s. The USS Antrim's service exemplifies the logistical support role played by cargo ships during and immediately after World War II, contributing to the Allied victory and subsequent occupation efforts in the Pacific.

This description has been generated using GPT-4.1-NANO based on the Vessel's wikidata information and then modified by ShipIndex.org staff.