The third USS Astoria was a Cleveland-class light cruiser of the United States Navy, which were built during World War II.

The start of the war led to the dissolution of the treaty system, but the dramatic need for new vessels precluded a new design, so the Clevelands used the same hull as their predecessors, but were significantly heavier.

Astoria was launched on 6 March 1943, sponsored by Mrs. Robert Lucas (wife of the editor of the Astorian-Budget), and commissioned at the Philadelphia Navy Yard on 17 May 1944, Captain George Carroll Dyer in command.

Following the start of World War II in September 1939, Britain announced it would suspend the treaty for the duration of the conflict, a decision the US Navy quickly followed.

[2] The ship's belt armor ranged in thickness from 3.5 to 5 in (89 to 127 mm), with the thicker section amidships where it protected the ammunition magazines and propulsion machinery spaces.

[4] At that time, the unit also included The aircraft carriers Lexington, Hancock, Hornet, Independence, and Cabot, the fast battleships New Jersey, Iowa, and Wisconsin, the light cruisers Pasadena, Vincennes, Miami, and San Juan, and twenty destroyers.

[4] TF 38 sortied from Ulithi again on 30 December to cover the invasion of Luzon, striking Japanese positions on the islands from 6 to 9 January 1945.

[4] By this time, TG 38.2 had been reduced to Lexington, Hancock, and Hornet, covered by New Jersey, Wisconsin, Astoria, Pasadena, San Juan, the cruiser Wilkes-Barre, and fifteen destroyers.

[4] At that time, Astoria, Wilkes-Barre, and Pasadena were transferred to TG 58.3, which included Cabot, the carriers Bunker Hill and Essex, the battleships South Dakota and New Jersey, the large cruiser Alaska, and fourteen destroyers.

[7] The fleet, including Astoria, sortied early that month to conduct a series of air attacks on the Japanese home islands, which began on 18 February.

Later that day, the fleet sailed south to support the invasion of Iwo Jima, and Astoria was detached to conduct shore bombardment on 21 February.

[4] On 1 July, she sailed to return to the fast carrier task force for another major operation against the Japanese home islands.

The ship got underway for a lengthy voyage to the central Pacific on 15 October 1946, which included stops in Guam and Saipan in the Marianas Islands.

On 17 February 1947, she left Guam to return home by way of Kwajalein and Pearl Harbor, arriving in San Diego on 24 March.

She stopped in Pearl Harbor for three days while en route and then resumed her voyage across the Pacific, arriving in Qingdao, China, on 29 October.

Astoria visited a number of ports in the area over the next three and a half months, including Inchon and Pusan in Korea, Sasebo and Yokosuka in Japan, and Shanghai, China.