Allied Warships
USS Helena (i) (CL 50)
Light cruiser of the St. Louis class
USS Helena (CL-50) at Boston, USA in June 1940. US Navy photo # NH 95816.
| Navy | The US Navy |
| Type | Light cruiser |
| Class | St. Louis |
| Pennant | CL 50 |
| Built by | New York Navy Yard (New York, New York, U.S.A.) |
| Ordered | |
| Laid down | 9 Dec 1936 |
| Launched | 27 Aug 1939 |
| Commissioned | 18 Sep 1939 |
| Lost | 6 Jul 1943 |
| Loss position | 7° 46'S, 157° 11'E |
| History | The light cruiser USS Helena (Captain Charles Purcell Cecil) was participating in the Battle of Kula Gulf when she was hit by three torpedoes from Japanese warships. The Helena was blown in two and sank in position 07º46'S, 157º11'E with 193 were killed out of a crew of 888. The survivors were later picked up by Radford which includes the Commanding Officer who had been wounded. |
Commands listed for USS Helena (i) (CL 50)
Please note that we're still working on this section
and that we only list Commanding Officers for the duration of the Second World War.
| Commander | From | To | |
| 1 | Capt. Max Burke DeMott, USN | 18 Sep 1939 | 14 Jul 1941 |
| 2 | Capt. Robert Henry English, Jr., USN | 14 Jul 1941 | 6 Mar 1942 |
| 3 | Cdr. Gerald Desmond Linke, USN | 6 Mar 1942 | 29 Mar 1942 |
| 4 | Capt. Oliver Middleton Read, USN | 29 Mar 1942 | 25 Sep 1942 |
| 5 | Capt. Gilbert Corwin Hoover, USN | 25 Sep 1942 | 23 Nov 1942 |
| 6 | Capt. Charles Purcell Cecil, USN | 23 Nov 1942 | 6 Jul 1943 |
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