Merchant Marine Cargo Ships (Freighters) The U.S. freighters listed below each carried 480 men and about 120 army vehicles to Normandy from the United Kingdom during June 1944 or were loading or awaiting orders during June 1944.. Of 326 cargo ships, 200 were American ships. Amid the jubilee celebrations for the Six-Day War, the tragic story of the American spy ship USS Liberty – which was bombed by an Israeli fighter jet and torpedo boats on June 8, 1967 in the eastern Mediterranean – was somewhat overlooked.Thirty-four American sailors were killed in the Israeli attack and many others were wounded. Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, 1972. Early in the afternoon of June 8, 1967, Israeli jets and missile boats opened fire on the USS Liberty, an American surveillance ship operating off the coast of Gaza.Struck by rockets, cannons and torpedoes, the vessel suffered extensive damage and over 200 casualties. This other ship was a British steamship, the SS Californian, a vessel that completed its maiden journey a decade earlier in 1902.The SS Californian, however, will be forever remembered and judged by history after it failed to promptly respond to the … Aircraft Impact . After the Israeli fighter aircraft completed their attacks, three Israeli torpedo boats arrived and began a surface attack about 35 minutes after the start of the air attack. The ship was built during World War II by Bethlehem-Fairfield Shipyards in Baltimore as part of the United States' Liberty ship program and was originally scheduled to be named George M. Shriver. Liberty Ships, The Ugly Ducklings of World War II, John G. Bunker. The liberty ships; The history of the"emergency" type cargo ships constructed in the United States during World War II, by L. A. Sawyer and W. H. Mitchell. U.S. The only possible reason to use unmarked aircraft to attack the ship is that Israel knew it was an American ship and intended to sink it, then to blame the attack on Egypt. It cost $2.7 million to build, and it took almost twice as much steel to build as did a Liberty Ship. More than one spectator, watching this 16,000-ton behemoth being launched and knowing another would be joining it in just a few days, surely felt reassured that 1943 would be a much better year. USS Liberty Veterans Association - On June 8, 1967 while patrolling in international waters in the Eastern Mediterranean Sea, USS Liberty was savagely attacked without warning or justification by air and naval forces of the state of Israel. But the impact of the Boeing 767-200ER series aircraft and the burst of flames did not make the towers collapse right away. The initial targets on the ship were the command bridge, communications antennas, and the four .50 caliber machine guns, placed on the ship to repel boarders. It is said to be haunted after several workers were riveted inside the ship during construction, they were found the day after, suffocated. Cornell Maritime Press, … 10 reasons why America’s first constitution failed November 17, 2020 by NCC Staff It was on this day in 1777 that the Articles of Confederation, the first American constitution, was sent to the 13 states for consideration. When hijacked commercial jets piloted by terrorists struck the twin towers, some 10,000 gallons (38 kiloliters) of jet fuel-fed an enormous fireball.