The USS Mallard (AMCU-30), originally designated LCI(L)-963, was a large landing craft of the LCI(L)-351 class, constructed by the Consolidated Steel Corporation in Orange, Texas. Laid down on February 25, 1944, and launched on March 20, 1944, she was commissioned on May 16, 1944. The vessel measured as a large infantry landing craft designed for amphibious operations during World War II. Following her shakedown in the Gulf of Mexico, LCI(L)-963 journeyed through the Panama Canal to the Pacific Theater. She participated actively in key amphibious assaults, including the landings on Leyte on October 20, 1944, which played a vital role in General Douglas MacArthur's return to the Philippines. She also took part in the Ormoc Bay landings on December 7, 1944, and the invasion of Mindoro a week later. In January 1945, she transported units of the 11th Airborne Division to Luzon’s Batangas Province, aiming for Nasugbu, a strategic road hub from Manila. In February, she contributed to the liberation of Palawan, before moving back across the Sulu Sea to engage in operations within the Visayan Islands. After Japan's surrender, LCI(L)-963 remained in the South Pacific until her return to the United States, where she was decommissioned and placed in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet at Green Cove Springs, Florida, in 1946. Between late 1948 and early 1949, she was redesignated and renamed USS Mallard (AMCU-30). Reactivated during the Korean War in June 1952 at Charleston, South Carolina, Mallard served as an underwater mine detector along the U.S. East Coast until after the Korean Armistice in July 1953. She was decommissioned again in July 1954 and reclassified as MHC-30. Ultimately, she was struck from the Navy List on January 1, 1960, and sold on June 30, 1960. Throughout her service in World War II, USS Mallard received four battle stars for her participation in significant amphibious operations, marking her as an important vessel in the US Navy’s wartime amphibious fleet.

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