USS Ponce (LPD-15) Ship's Crest Sweatshirt

USS Ponce (LPD-15) is an Austin-class amphibious transport dock commissioned on May 10, 1971, and homeported in Norfolk, Virginia. Named for the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico, she had a career spanning over four decades and served in multiple combat operations, including the evacuation of Saigon in 1975 and Operation Desert Storm in 1991. In her final years, Ponce was redesignated as the Navy's first Afloat Forward Staging Base (AFSB), supporting special operations forces and mine countermeasures in the Persian Gulf from 2012 until her decommissioning in 2017. This Ship's Crest Sweatshirt honors the crew who served aboard this versatile and historic amphibious warship.