During the First and Second Taiwan Straight Crises, she was damaged by Communist forces twice. After being crippled at the battle Dongding Island during the Second Crisis, she was towed off for repairs and operated the rest of her career in Taiwanese service. She was decommissioned in 2010 with several groups vying to have her either scrapped, sunk, or restored.
As of 2021, the ship is awaiting restoration as a museum ship in Tainan City, Taiwan.
On 16 July 1946, President Truman approved the China Aid Act, allowing him to authorize the transfer of up to 271 warships to the Republic of China (RoC).[4][5]
LST-755 was one of the first ships to be transferred and was commissioned into the Republic of China Navy on 29 May 1946, now under the name of ROCS Chung Hai (LST-201).[6]
During the Battle of Wanshan Islands, she was attacked by the gunboat Jiefang on May 25, 1950. Chung Hai and destroyer escort Taihe returned fire, injuring or killing 16 of 19 crewmembers on the Jiefang. Among those killed on the gunboat was CaptainLin Wenhui, deputy of the Communist People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) fleet. Following Wenhui's death, he was honored as a hero by the PLAN.[11][12]
In January 1955, the landing ship transported commander of Kuomintang forces Colonel Wang Shengming and a load of coal for the upcoming battle of Yijiangshan Island. Halfway through the voyage, the ship anchored off Dachen Island when she was attacked by two Mig-15s on the 10th. Two bombs pierced through her main deck and struck her cargo of coal, yet failed to explode.[13][14]
On 4 August 1958, she was in the process of being unloaded in Dongding Island when CCP forces attempted to repel the landing. At 18:30 local time, costal artillery shelled the bay the LST and her accompanying fleet were located in. After being hit by two 130 mm shells, Chung Hai abandoned attempts her to continue and withdrew out of range of the enemy artillery. Now in the open ocean, the fleet was harassed by 9 PLAN torpedo boats. The previously unnoticed attacking boats closed in on the group at about 19:10, disrupting the Kuomintang's formation as they tried to evade.
At 20:25, PLAN torpedo boats 105 and 180 approached Chung Hai and fired four torpedoes. One torpedo struck her stern; the resulting explosion knocked out her engine and radar. Another torpedo attack on the Taisheng caused a catastrophic explosion on board, sinking the ship in about 5 minutes. As the boats withdrew, remaining Kuomintang ships, including Xiangjiang (PC-103), Mei Song (LSM-347), and the damaged Chung Hai opened fire, sinking the torpedo boat 175. Following the action, eight crewmembers onboard Chung Hai were killed and another 12 injured.[15][16] The PLAN states that it sunk 2 enemy vessels and damaged another in the action, listing 175 as its only loss. Kuomintang sources initially announced that it sunk 8 enemy boats, however reports were later clarified to state that only one enemy vessel was sunk.[17][16][18][19][15]
Taiwanese Service
Following the action off Dongding Island, the damaged Chung Hai was towed to Subic Bay Naval Base, a US Navy facility in the Philippines for repairs. Her stern was replaced at a cost of about US$500,000.
Some time later, old LSTs in Kuomintang (now Taiwanese) service were refurbished with new engines and expanded bridges. She was decommissioned on 1 February 2010.[20][21]
Restoration
In 2018, Chung Hai was labeled an 'Important Antiquity', preventing her from being sold off or dismantled in hopes that she could be preserved as a museum ship.[4][20] An attempt by the Kinmen County Government to preserve her in Kinmen Island failed due to a lack of funding. Despite her protected status, the ship was in such a poor condition that she was sold for scrap on 19 May 2020. The Taiwanese Navy expressed interest in sinking her as a floating target, but the public backlash from destroying the ship ended attempts to scrap her.[22][23]
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