Customer Reviews

Combat Loaded: Across the Pacific on the USS Tate (Williams-Ford Texas A&M University Military History Series)

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Last night I was reading this book well past midnight. I could not put it down until I saw how the Tate and her sister ships came through a series of unrelenting kamikaze attacks. The narrative in this book is riveting. I read it to gain insight into my father's WWII experience. He served aboard the USS Ormsby (APA-49). I was particularly interested in the many first-person stories that provide windows into the lives and experiences of sailors aboard these ships. I was surprised to find how well I was able to follow the combat sequences. I usually get lost in a jumble of unit designations, but the author took great care with charts, maps and verbal descriptions so I was able to understand what was going on and why. He explained the complex choreography of amphibious assault in a way that even I could understand. It is a great read.

I was an officer on one of the USS Tate's sister ships in the early 1960's, and I'm in contact with numerous shipmates from WWII. This book presents an accurate account of life aboard an attack cargo ship. Additionally, it gives interesting and informative accounts of the amphibious landing support mission in the Pacific. No other book has ever done either of these, though the famous "Away All Boats" dealt well with shipboard life in a fictional way. Combat Loaded is well-written from both the historic and human point of view. I read every word of it, and I found it hard to put down.

First, in the interest of full disclosure, let me first say that my father served on this ship, so please excuse me for being being a "homer" on this one. Ships such as the Tate and sailors like Dad played an important role in keeping many ships (battleships, carriers, etc") supplied and attacking the enemy. The designation AKA was funny in that the A stood for "attack", which means they had at least one gun.

Tom has done a great job of shedding light on a group of WWII's unsung heros, who faced the same enemy attacks as some of the better known Navel elements. Enjoy the book.

This is a very good perspective of the amphibious transport ships of World War 2, in particular the USS Tate. These ships provided all the supplies and support for the Army and Marines hitting the beaches in the Pacific; without them, they would not have been able to fight their way off the beach, and the war in the Pacific would have been lost.

The author has done a fine job of blending the personal stories of the crewmen of the Tate with the history of the invasions of the Japanese home islands of Ie Shima and Okinawa, and the postwar duties of the ship in China.

For those of you tired of reading about aircraft carriers, subs, and battleships and are looking for the unsung heroes of the war, get this book.

A fine tribute to those who served in our Amphibious Forces.
This is a very well researched book about the men who served on our Amphibious Ships during WWII. The detail can't be found in any other source. It's not just the story of one ship, it's the story of all the ships that helped win the war.
In addition to being incredibly well researched it is very readable and a must read of those who served, their families and those who want to learn about this part of our history.
Russ Padden - Webmaster for Amphibious Forces of WWII

I served on an AKA (USS Yancey AKA-83) during the Korean War. I am the historian for the Yancey and found the story of the Tate similar to the Yancey's experience during WW2. The Yancey was in commission for about 25 years was a part of Antartic expedition (Natl Geo.Oct 47'), the Korean War, the Cuban blockade and was in both the Pacfic and Atlantic fleet. I was very pleased to read about the day to day experiences of the AKAs in the Tate story