Some went. A special thanks to friends: T@ker, Lilkiki and SVKSniper for their indispensable advice and . Mrz 25, 2022; Posted by are meatless crumbles vegan? Destroyers, dubbed "tin cans" because of their lack of armor . The first 25 ships were ordered 28 June and 1 July 1940 (the first day of the 1941 fiscal year), with DD 445 actually belonging to the 1 July group. During World War II this rating was called Pharmacists Mate. [5], The first design inputs were in the fall of 1939 from questionnaires distributed around design bureaus and the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations. On Nov. 13, 1942, the USS Juneau light cruiser was torpedoed and sunk by a Japanese submarine. The conning officer would then use an appropriate combination of rudder, engines, and lines to get the ship underway. Destroyers, dubbed "tin cans" because of their lack of armor . Required fields are marked *. Here we see the Fletcher-class destroyer USS Cony (DD/DDE-508) off Norfolk in October 1963 as seen from the USS Keppler (DD-765).Though she earned 11 battle stars for World War II service, two for Korean War service and spent five months off Vietnam, it was a little-acknowledged day in 1962 that Cony witnessed what could have been the start of World War III. As Senior Watch Officer, he had the responsibility for the training and assignment of junior officers, and in some cases CPOs to underway and in port watch stations. Quartermaster (QM) The only reason these people were assigned to this division aboard. You mentioned the Radiomen being responsible for teletype and old fashioned morse code key. I assumed all destroyers had a least one medical officer aboard. On some ships a junior officer is assigned as navigator. Technical information. But with these exceptions, the basic procedures for getting a destroyer underway have not changed a great deal from what I have described. They were also the first US destroyers fitted with radar as built. It was a very diverse division that was comprised of several ratings. [5] They could cover the vast distances required by fleet actions in the Pacific and served almost exclusively in the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II, during which they accounted for 29 Imperial Japanese Navy submarines sunk. His office was referred to as the Log Room and he would designate one bright young sailor as the Log Room Yeoman to help with the paperwork. During World War II, the commanding officer was frequently a Lieutenant Commander with far less experience. Communications would be established with all vital stations, steering gear, alarms, whistle and engine order telegraph tested, radar, sonar, and fathometer in operation, and compasses checked. Fairwinds and calm seas Uncle Andrew. Designed in the late 1930s and early 1940s . Abbot was a Fletcher-class destroyer built in 1943. l spent over a year on the USS TINGEY (DD539). I am so sorry I never had a discussion with him about his experiences and what he did, before he died when I was 14. The Fletcher class was a class of destroyers built by the United States during World War II. My uncle was also a TM2 aboard the USS Terry. The answer to your question (if you havent already received it) is 12 depth charges in each of the two racks. We also made fueling stops at Guam and Midway. In my previous two articles (read Part 1 here, read Part 2 here) I gave technical and manning overviews of the U.S. Navys highly successful Fletcher class destroyer. They were also to carry no fewer than five 5in (127mm) guns and ten deck-mounted torpedo tubes on the centerline, allowing them to meet any foreign design on equal terms. Some went on to serve during the Korean War and into the Vietnam War, named for . In the traditional system of naming destroyers after Naval heroes, she was named after Rear Admiral Isaac Campbell Kidd, Sr. who was killed aboard his flagship, USS ARIZONA (BB-39) during the surprise attack by the . Members of the pre-beta test will be able to test this destroyer in one of the future tests, and results of this test will taken into account for the future development of our fleet. I spent 22 years in the Navy. Of course, ships today are fitted with Global Positioning (GPS), Electronic Chart Display (ECDIS) and other more advanced equipment. The USS The Sullivans (DD-537), a Fletcher -class destroyer, pictured here in 1962 was named in their honor. He was always on call when the ship was underway. [26][27], Learn how and when to remove this template message, National Museum of the United States Navy, List of destroyer classes of the United States Navy, "Life on a Fletcher Class Destroyer in the 1950's", "NHL nomination for USS Cassin Young (destroyer)", "Veterans' Museum to Receive Historic Navy Ship's Mast", "Flag Honors Hall of Fame | Naval ROTC Alumni Society", "USS Knapp - bridge: Fujifilm X System / SLR Talk Forum: Digital Photography Review", "Fletcher-Klasse Mark-30 Turm Walkaround (124) Scalenews", "Tom Hanks' WWII drama filming aboard USS Kidd this week", Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Fletcher-class_destroyer&oldid=1133218886, 369.25ft (112.55m) wl, 376.5ft (114.8m) o/a, struck in 1978, sunk as a target on 23 February 1983, struck in 1988 and sunk as a target in 1990, struck in 1982, sunk as a target on 28 September 1991, struck in 1976, sunk as a target on 16 May 1979, transferred to Hellenic Navy on 18 September 1981, transferred to Hellenic Navy on 15 October 1980, transferred to Hellenic Navy in February 1981, transferred to Hellenic Navy in February 1982, Active - In commission as museum ship since 1991, struck on 10 October 1990, scrapped in 1997, struck in 1971 and cannibalized to provide spare parts for her sisters in Italian service, struck in 1999, sunk as a target on 1 November 2001, struck in 1999, sunk as a target on 14 October 2003, This page was last edited on 12 January 2023, at 19:18. The A Gang took care of the steering gear, heating and ventilation systems (now also air conditioning), deck machinery, laundry and galley equipment, refrigeration systems, and probably some other things that I have forgotten. Destroyers Fletcher class. USS Fletcher: note the open hatch with Black ZEBRA marking. [1], Learn how and when to remove this template message, Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park, Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_Fletcher-class_destroyers&oldid=1117203315, Sold to Peru as parts donor, 26 July 1974 scrapped, Transferred to West German Navy, 14 July 1959, Transferred to Peru 26 July 1974 for spare parts, Transferred to West Germany, 17 January 1958, Transferred to West Germany, 6 October 1959, Used as target hulk November 1973, scrapped. Some went on to serve during the Korean War and into the Vietnam War.. This organization sounds very complex to the outsider. He was directly accountable for all expenditures of government funds. It was still a great ship .. Miss it .. Phil Becker, my father, John Hanson, was an officer on USS Aulick DD569. A new ahead-throwing weapon called Weapon Alpha was installed in many of the ships. The United States Navy commissioned 175 Fletcher-class destroyers between 1942 and 1944, more than any other destroyer class, and the Fletcher design was generally regarded as highly successful. Main gun armament was five dual-purpose 5-inch/38 caliber (127mm) guns in single Mk 30 turrets, guided by a Mark 37 Gun Fire Control System, including a Mk 12 fire control radar and a Mk 22 height-finder (replaced by the circular Mk 25 radar postwar) linked by a Mark 1A Fire Control Computer and stabilized by a Mk 6 8500 rpm gyroscope. Once the first burner was lit, subsequent burners could be lit from the adjacent burner. During World War II, the Atlantic Coast destroyers would probably be at battle stations with Material Condition Zebra set by the time that they cleared the submarine net. Introduced in 1942, the 2,100-ton Fletcher -class destroyers formed the core of the US Navy's destroyer force from 1943. [10] No design can be perfect and the Fletchers were no exception. *** One of the biggest regrets of my life is not volunteering to be part of the crew that cleaned up decades of layered on paint, to get her ready for public display. This group normally had one or more qualified welders assigned. Thanks for the experience. Your email address will not be published. Built to scout for a fleet of battleships, the Omaha class featured high speed (35 kn (65 km/h; 40 mph)) for cooperation with destroyers, and 6-inch . As well as other tasks, most of the ships served on weather station patrols, monitoring conditions in specific areas of the Atlantic. This meant passing a second bight around the bollard on the pier or the ship alongside. Military Wiki is a FANDOM Lifestyle Community. Many memories aboard it. In fact, they served until 1971 in the United States and in the Mexican Navy until 2001. Despite talk of returning her to the United States as a museum ship, she was condemned in 2010 as a derelict and hazard to navigation and scrapped in 20102011. 175 ships . While at the buoys we were provided with services with some harbor craft which were referred to as fuel, water, and garbage barges operated by the Naval District. 789k. It was also one of the most successful and popular with their crews. Naval philosophy in those days was to man the ships with a large number of personnel and little use was made of automatic controls or other labor saving devices. The class featured enclosed air-case boilers and 80kW of power available by emergency diesel generators. The wartime philosophy was essentially that manpower was cheaper than technology. $0.00. At 2,050 tons standard displacement and approximately 2,900 tons fully loaded, the Fletchers were significantly larger than any preceding American destroyer classes. Two of the three destroyers were sunk, but not until they had inflicted serious damage on their opponents. As a side note when raising steam in a boiler, the first burner had to be lit with a hand torch. Interior Communications Electricians (IC) were responsible for all interior communications equipment including telephone, indicating and alarm systems, announcing systems, and the ships gyro compass. He currently holds the title of Chief Marine Engineer at Marine Design Dynamics. Nineteen Fletchers were lost during World War II. I made 2 deployments, home ported out of Pearl Harbor. while Ross's book is about just one ship that served from 1942 to 1965. It was an honor to serve on Fletchers as the brave sailors of WWII. Much of this philosophy was a carry over from the days of sailing ships. May 21, 2022. . Manage all your favorite fandoms in one place! Shipfitter (SF) and Damage Controlmen (DC) comprised the Damage Control gang on the ship. What they got was a destroyer design that was effective enough to provide excellent service in World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam Wars. my great uncle served aboard the Halligan DD584 lost at sea 3-26-45. any info on crew duty stations or any information on the ship or her crew would be appreciated. Fox Division This division was headed by either the Fire Control Officer or Anti-Submarine Officer, whoever was senior. He died back in 1986. Normally all four ships in the division would be moored to the same buoy. In World War II, US destroyers escorted convoys, hunted submarines, fought surface battles, bombarded shore positions, rescued downed airmen and stranded sailors, and served as radar pickets to detect and fight incoming kamikaze flights. LTJG George Stewart from the 1958 USS Halsey Powell Cruise Book. The Navy started my lifes work e.g. The First Lieutenant probably came under fire more than any other officer because everything his people did was readily observable and most COs and XOs were very concerned with topside appearance, sometimes overly so. In the interest of reduced manning levels, did the Radiomen copy fleet broadcast via teletype instead of morse? More about this later. The design parameters were the armaments desired of the next destroyer. This addition to the AA suite required the deletion of the forward quintuple torpedo mount, a change done under the 4 April 1945 anti-kamikaze program. A whole bunch of information is conveyed very concisely. 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