With the outbreak of the Korean War many were returned to active duty. Pictures and History in English", A Sailor's Diary: Artwork, diaries, and letters from a sailor aboard the, List of destroyers of the United States Navy, Articles with unsourced statements from July 2014, Articles with unsourced statements from November 2014, Articles incorporating text from Wikipedia, World War II destroyers of the United States, 4 Babcock & Wilcox oil-fired boilers; 2 General Electric geared steam turbines, 30,000shp (22MW) each; 2 screws. The Fletcher class was a class of destroyers built by the United States during World War II. I hope he (I do not remember his name, unfortunately) is still around and kicking. My own ship, the USS Halsey Powell (DD 686) had been struck by a Kamikaze while escorting the carrier USS Hancock (CV 19) off Okinawa in 1945. Required fields are marked *. Your email address will not be published. Laid down beginning in 1941, all 175 Fletchers were completed between June 1942 and February 1945, launched an average of 212 days after keel laying and commissioned after an average of 152 days more or 364 days totalnearly 10 per cent faster than the repeat Bensons and Gleaves that preceded them. The first ship to moor had to place a boat in the water which carried the mooring party. All rights reserved. I served as a 2nd Class Torpedoman aboard the Fletcher-class destroyer USS Morrison DD560 from its christening on Dec.18, 1943, until we were sunk by a Japanese kamikaze on May 4,1945. I served on 2 Fletchers as BT during Vietnam. Was on DD650 for 4 years right out of boot camp I am now ret USN MSC you in 76 there is not a day that goes by that I dont think of the best year s of my life I am now 77and I wish I could do it all again when the good Lord takes me I hope he will put me on the USS C APERTON DD650, Pingback: The George Stewart I Knew | Naval Historical Foundation. USS Taylor (DD/DDE-468) was a Fletcher-class destroyer of the United States Navy, named for Rear Admiral William Rogers Taylor (1811-1889). My dad (Richmond Thomas (RT) Ezzell) was on the TAYLOR DD468 during WWII .Saw at the foot of his grave today another marker with his name, ship, and I suppose rating FC. The USS Bush was a Fletcher class destroyer. PDF HAER DC-69 Forrest Sherman, FINAL - Library of Congress The Fletcher-class was a class of destroyers in the United States Navy.The ships were built from 1941 and served in the Navy from 1942. [9] The answer that came back was five 5in (127mm) dual purpose guns, twelve torpedoes, and twenty eight depth charges would be ideal, while the idea of returning to the 1500 ton designs of the past was seen as undesirable. The working part of the torch consisted of a rag wrapped around the end of the handle and secured by wire. and 2 racks, but cannot locate the number of charges in each rack (6-12?) The plant has to be started up from the Central Control Station below decks, but once it is ready for operation throttle control can be transferred to the bridge. The Fletcher class was a class of destroyers built by the United States during World War II. The nine ships came from three yards as follows: Capps (DD 550), David W. Taylor (DD 551), Evans (DD 552) and John D. Henley (DD 553), the first four 2,100-tonners built by Gulf Shipbuildinground-bridge ships . . As well as other tasks, most of the ships served on weather station patrols, monitoring conditions in specific areas of the Atlantic. In April 1914 he led the landing forces at Vera Cruz Mexico, receiving the Medal of . On a small ship, this is usually a collateral duty. Fletcher related story: After being in Baton Rouge, LA when the USS Kidd was put on public display, 15 years later I was living outside of Fort Lauderdale, FL. Supply Department ratings included: Supply Department, USS Halsey Powell, from 1959-1960 Cruise Book. Comissaryman (CS) These were the ships cooks. On Halsey Powell, our Ops Officer was also assigned as navigator, although that was not universal practice aboard destroyers. [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. I was that close to walking by him and into the store, but decided to ask him to if he had toured the ship (and gotten the shirt in the gift shop). Radarman (RD) This was a new rating that was established during World War II. The class was designed in 1939, as a result of dissatisfaction with the earlier destroyer leader types of the Porter and Somers classes. All sailors initially attended Boot Camp where they held the rating of Seaman Recruit (SR). The XO is often the resident bad guy in the wardroom because many COs like to play the Good Cop/Bad Cop game. Enjoyable and interesting read. Richard Vessels, my father, John Hanson, was an officer on USS Aulick DD569. Your email address will not be published. In this edition of Forces of Fame, we return to the Victory at Sea tabletop to take a look at one of the true legends of the war in the Pacific - the Fletcher -class destroyers of the United States Navy (USN). The engine room and fire room supervisors would man their stations. Introduced in 1942, the 2,100-ton Fletcher-class destroyers formed the core of the US Navys destroyer force from 1943. Together, these classes dominated the US Navys destroyer force over the next 25 years. Seaman/Seaman Apprentice (SN/SA) This takes some explanation. At least one GM was assigned to each mount as the Mount Captain and another would be in charge of loading operations. Under these conditions, a commissioned CIC Watch Officer (CICWO) was assigned. On the return trip we had to avoid the collision between the Oil Tanker and a Philippine Merchant ship . The Fletcher class destroyer came about in 1939 when the US Navy sought to create a superior new design addressing poor aspects found in previous destroyers. It seemed like there was always something going on out there in those days and port visits were few and far between. Is this Fire Controlman? The Navy started my lifes work e.g. But on destroyers and smaller vessels the Executive Officer often doubles as the navigator. During this time 39 were refitted under project SCB 74A, reducing their overall main armament and the number of torpedo tubes to accommodate other weapons. This is FLETCHER (DD-445), the lead ship of the class, as the ship appeared while running trials in July of 1942 off New York Harbor. 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 . The Fletcher class was the first generation of destroyers designed after the series of naval treaties that had limited ship designs heretofore. In May 1942, before the first Fletcher was even commissioned, it approved a six-gun ship in which the Fletchers five 5-inch single mounts were replaced with three 5-inch twinsthe 2,200-ton Allen M. Sumner class, with 20 per cent more firepower on a Fletcher hull widened by 14 inches. Eighteen ships were redesignated as escort destroyers (DDE), optimized for anti-submarine warfare; these reverted to destroyer (DD) designation in 1962. Since his retirement from active naval service in 1986 he has been employed in the ship design industry where he has specialized in the development of concept designs of propulsion and powering systems, some of which have entered active service. The tenders could then supply us with power, thereby allowing us to shut down and go Cold Iron. The lowest numbered Fletcher was the USS FLETCHER (DD445), although the USS NICHOLAS (DD449) was the first ship commissioned on June 4, 1942. . 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 duties of conning officer were rotated around. The actual hookup was made by detaching one of the anchor chains from its anchor and passing it down to the mooring crew on the buoy, who would then connect it to a shackle. I know what than meant -some snipe had to record temperature readings on a clipboard form every few hours, to make sure a bearing was not overheating. Civilian vessels have always had much smaller crews and made far greater use of automation and labor saving devices. Thank you! It is set when a ship is in the harbor. The peacetime manning was 14 officers and 236 enlisted men. Maneuvers conducted in January 1915 made it clear that the US Atlantic Fleet lacked the fast cruisers necessary to provide information on the enemy's position, deny the enemy information of the fleet's own position, and screen friendly forces. There were three major operational departments i.e., Operations, Gunnery and Engineering. The Fletcher-class is almost synonymous with the term destroyer within the context of WWII. The answer to your question (if you havent already received it) is 12 depth charges in each of the two racks. He is assisted by personnel of the Quartermaster (QM) rating. Some went. Edit. 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. But by 1956 they were more appropriately assigned to the Ops Department. All Destroyer classes. He was a radioman on the ship for about a year, and transferred to another ship before the USS Kidd was hit by a kamikaze.the sailor I was talking to lost a few friends in that attack. 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. It was an honor to serve on Fletchers as the brave sailors of WWII. Destroyers were normally tied up to a pier with six mooring lines, numbered consecutively from forward to aft. First (Deck), Second (Guns), and Fox (Fire Control, Sonar, and Anti-Submarine Armament). Transportation was by a combination of ships boats and private water taxis. Once the first burner was lit, subsequent burners could be lit from the adjacent burner. At this point, we were underway. Obviously they were the people who were most likely to take heat from the other crew members for their efforts, or lack thereof. The other rated BMs were generally assigned individual sections of the ship to maintain. Previously the USS Anthony (DD-515), Ringold (DD-500), Waldsworth (DD-515), Claxton (DD-571), Dyson (DD-572), and Charles Ausburne (DD-570). By 1971, all ships remaining in the US Navy had decommissioned but not until 2001 was Mexicos Cuitlhuac, the former John Rodgers and the last active Fletcher, retired. He has passed on and I need information for a claim with the VA. The Chief Boatswains Mate (BMC) was expected to be the most capable seaman on board. Aboard Halsey Powell, the Chief Boatswains Mate also functioned as the Chief Master at Arms. Fletcher-class destroyer - Wikipedia. It was still a great ship .. Miss it .. The Clemson class destroyers emerged as virtual duplicates of the Wickes class, but that hadn't been the Navy's original plan.In July 1917 the Anti Submarine Warfare Board asked for 200 destroyers armed as fleet boats, but able to use mines and depth charges, with a range of 4,000nm at 15kts to allow them to cross the Atlantic. It is set under battle conditions. The design parameters were the armaments desired of the next destroyer. Regardless of rank, the Commanding Officer was always referred to as Captain. He bears total responsibility for the ship and had commensurate authority over everyone on board. I was in the ROC program, but trained as a Radioman. In combat, commanders often requisitioned additional guns with some ships mounting up to thirteen 20mm cannons. 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. 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. The Aulick served in the Pacific from 1943 through the end of the war and was also on radar picket off Okinawa May through July, 1945. As the first big ships to appear and because there were so many of them, however, the Fletchers are remembered as the signature US Navy destroyer class of the Pacific war. Some went on to serve during the Korean War and into the Vietnam War. Aboard a destroyer, the Chief Hospital Corpsman (HMC, referred to as Doc) is the only medical person assigned, although there was a Squadron Doctor who rode the flagship and was available for advice. I assumed all destroyers had a least one medical officer aboard. During this era, no other class of destroyer had more ships built. Postwar, the remainder were decommissioned and put into reserve. The individual rating groups are very specialized. Designed in the late 1930s and early 1940s . Fox Division This division was headed by either the Fire Control Officer or Anti-Submarine Officer, whoever was senior. In 1942 and 1943, the number of Oerlikon cannons was steadily increased with ships modified before leaving the shipyard with a seventh 20mm mount in front of the bridge behind the number two 5" gun mount and anywhere from one to three mounts on the flying bridge depending upon the configuration of the ship. X-RAY provides the least protection. The navigator would be responsible for ensuring that the ship remained on its desired track and making appropriate recommendations to the CO/OOD. Engineers were always referred to as Snipes. This term originated in the British Navy when a visiting Admiral said that the engine room on a battleship resembled a snipe marsh. In June and July 1943, two more twin Bofors mounts were added in place of the 20mm cannons in front of and below the bridge, giving a total of ten. If we were backing out of a slip you would hear a prolonged blast on the whistle. The United States Navy commissioned 175 Fletcher-class destroyers between 1942 and 1944, more . Thanks for sticking your neck out for us youngsters. That number was necessary to allow around the clock manning of gun mounts, repair parties, and other watch stations. There were some differences in the way that the ships were organized in 1956 and the way that they were organized during the war. Fire Control Technician (FT) Responsible for operation and maintenance of all of the ships gunfire control systems including fire control radar, computer, and electrical transmission systems. 175 of these were . A major reason for these differences was the greater reliance on radar that developed during the war and the establishment of the Combat Information Center (CIC). First Division provided the majority of the bridge watch standers and the gun crews. Thanks for the experience. I was a teletype/crypto operator on the USS FORRESTAL (CVA-59) in the early 1970s. [10] Typically, Babcock & Wilcox boilers and General Electric geared steam turbines were equipped, although other designs and manufacturers were probably used to maximize the rate of production. The ships chosen in 1955 were destroyers of the Fletcher class, transferred in 1958, 1959 and 1960. i was a radarman on the Hopewell from 65through 67. The Fletcher class was a class of destroyers built by the United States during World War II. She was a rough riding ship with a crew of dedicated men. Described as perfect fighting destroyers, Fletchers, as built, were powerfully armed (five (5) 5-inch guns and ten (10) 21-inch torpedo tubes), fast (36 knots), amenable to wartime modifications, and extremely resilient in battle. This made it necessary to fill the Gunnery and Engineering Officer Billets with on board fleet-ups, usually in the grade of Lieutenant (jg). Thanks for shedding additional light on my fathers service and that of his comrades-in-arms. However the department heads were directly answerable to the CO for all purely operational matters relating to their departments. List of Fletcher-class destroyers and their dispositions. Also asked was at what point would the design grow large enough to become a torpedo target instead of a torpedo delivery system. I hope youre still here. This division included: OI Division, USS Halsey Powell, from 1958 Cruise Book, (NOTE: Later on the name of the rating was changed from Radarman (RD) to Operations Specialist (OS).). When he answered 1943 I had to change gears in a hurry! Meanwhile, medium-size Coast Guard cutters and U.S. Navy destroyers covered waters closer inshore. One my ships was USS OBannon DD-450 , the most decorated destroyer of WWII. Fletcher-Class Destroyer. I served on this ship during my reserve time in 1966-67 with fond memories of a great crew and a fine old ship that still preformed as it did when new. Thank you. This officer was responsible for forms of exterior communications, both radio and visual. The ship was named to honor Admiral Frank Friday Fletcher, who received the Medal of Honor for his leadership during the Mexican-American War. Any help would be appreciated. The seven single 20mm guns were replaced with six twin mounts (four amidships and two on the fantail. I was aboard the Morrison when we started at radar picket station 11 and moved into station 1, nicknamed coffin corner where we were sunk. [11] During both of my XO tours, I served as navigator. Underway operations will be described in the next section. The Fletchers had a design speed of 38 knots (70km/h; 44mph) and a principal armament of five 5-inch (127mm) guns in single mounts with ten 21-inch (530mm) torpedo tubes in two quintuple centerline mounts. All rights reserved. While some changes had taken place since 1945, most of the procedures were carryovers from World War II. Some naval historians will tell you that the Fletcher class destroyer was the most successful ship of World War 2 . [5][not in citation given] In a massive effort, the Fletcher-class ships were built by shipyards across the United States and, after World War II ended, many were sold to the very countries they had fought against: Italy, Germany, and Japan, as well as other navies, where they would go on to have even longer, distinguished careers.
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