The USS Krishna (ARL-38) was an Achelous-class landing craft repair ship that served in the US Navy from the closing months of World War II through the Vietnam War. She was originally laid down as LST-1149 in 1945, redesignated ARL-38, then launched and commissioned the same year. The ship operated primarily in the Atlantic and Caribbean, supporting amphibious forces and providing repair and logistical services. During the early 1950s, she participated in Operation Blue Jay in Greenland, supporting American activities associated with the construction and development of Thule Air Base. Later on, the vessel supported major fleet exercises, including Operation Steel Pike off the coast of Spain in 1964. Her most extensive operational service was during the Vietnam War, when she provided vital maintenance, repair, fueling, communications, and logistical support to American naval and riverine forces. Operating from locations including Subic Bay and An Thoi, she helped sustain patrol craft and coastal units operating in South Vietnam – earning twelve battle stars for her Vietnam service. The USS Krishna was decommissioned and struck from the Register in 1971. Because the ship operated in support of Vietnam’s inland waterway operations, veterans who served aboard her during qualifying periods may be eligible for VA’s herbicide-exposure presumption.
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