USS Sitkoh Bay (CVE-86) was the thirty-second of fifty Casablanca-class escort carriers built for the United States Navy during World War II.

The ship was launched in February 1944, commissioned in March, and served as a replenishment and transport carrier throughout the Philippines campaign, the Invasion of Iwo Jima and the Battle of Okinawa.

With the outbreak of the Korean War, however, she was called back to service, continuing to serve as a transport and utility carrier with the Military Sealift Command until 1954, when she was once again decommissioned, and mothballed in the Pacific Reserve Fleet.

Casablanca-class escort carriers were designed to carry 27 aircraft, but the hangar deck could accommodate more, which was often necessary during transport or replenishment missions.

She therefore received the classification symbol CVE-86, indicating that she was the eighty-sixth escort carrier to be commissioned into the United States Navy.

She was launched on 19 February 1944; sponsored by Mrs. Kathryn Mullinix, the widow of Rear admiral Henry M. Mullinnix, who had perished when her sister Liscome Bay was sunk by the Japanese submarine I-175; transferred to the Navy and commissioned on 28 March 1944, with Captain Robert Green Lockhart in command.

[1][7] Upon being commissioned, Sitkoh Bay underwent a shakedown cruise down the West Coast to Naval Air Station Alameda, and upon arriving on 28 April, she took on a load of cargo and passengers.

She left Alameda on 30 April, bound for Pearl Harbor, and for the next half-year, she carried out routine transport missions between California and various bases scattered throughout the Central and South Pacific, as a part of Task Group 30.8, the Fleet Oiler and Transport Group, under the command of Captain Jasper T.

The aircraft and passengers delivered on these transport missions went to the United States Third Fleet and the United States Seventh Fleet, respectively, although the ship's action report did note that a significant portion of these replenishment aircraft were recycled from damaged carriers returning to the backline, and that they were often in rather poor condition.

[10][7] In January 1945, Sitkoh Bay became a replenishment carrier solely dedicated to resupplying the Third Fleet within the Central Pacific, as it participated in the Philippines campaign, the Invasion of Iwo Jima, and prepared for the Battle of Okinawa.

At the time, she was 60 miles (97 km) southeast of Okinawa, and at around noon that day, she began launching some F4U-4C variant Corsairs to Yomitan Auxiliary Airfield.

The kamikaze was met by heavy anti-aircraft fire, and it wobbled, ultimately crashing about 100 yards (91 m) off the carrier's port beam, with the kill being accredited to Lieutenant John J.

[7] Sitkoh Bay continued to be mothballed with the Pacific Reserve Fleet until the Korean War broke out during the summer of 1950.

Therefore, Sitkoh Bay was decommissioned again on 27 July 1954, when she rejoined the Pacific Reserve Fleet, this time as part of its San Francisco group.

She was struck from the Navy list on 1 April 1960, and subsequently sold for scrapping to Eisenberg & Co. of New York City on 30 August.