did fletcher class destroyers serve in the atlantic? raleigh, nc obituaries 2022

Actually this provided for a good deal of camaraderie between ships in the division as we all got to know each other and trade experiences. I made six month WESTPAC deployments in 1957 and 1958. Anti-submarine armament was two racks for 300-pound (140kg) depth charges at the stern and six K-gun 300-pound depth charge throwers amidships. There were three major operational departments i.e., Operations, Gunnery and Engineering. town of marcellus ny tax collector; did fletcher class destroyers serve in the atlantic? The Fletcher-class was a class of destroyers built by the United States during World War II. Later emphasis on anti-aircraft defense led to a redesigned or square bridge for improved all-around sightlines, beginning with Brownson (DD 518). Fletcher-class destroyer - Wikipedia. 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. A total of 175 Fletcher Class Destroyers were commissioned between 4 June 1942 and 22 February 1945. Due to the increasing threat from kamikaze attacks, beginning in July 1945 some ships returning to the United States for refits received further anti-aircraft modifications, replacing the forward set of torpedo tubes with gun platforms housing two quadruple 40mm guns (for a total of eighteen). But it must be recognized that a naval vessel must remain at sea for extended periods and it has to function as a small self supporting community. did fletcher class destroyers serve in the atlantic? George W. Stewart is a retired US Navy Captain. Only 10 of the nearly 700 crew members survived the attack. I much preferred WESTPAC! The Federal-built units were delivered to the Navy without a medium anti-aircraft gun atop the aft deckhouse position. 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. From the 1958 Halsey Powell cruise book. Deployments were six months in length followed by a six month period in the US, about half of which was spent underway in various fleet exercises off the West Coast. Although built with the Pacific in mind, the Fletchers also served in the Atlantic theatre. NHF has decommissioned and is no longer accepting new members or donations. The Damage Control Assistant (DCA) was in charge of R Division. A new ahead-throwing weapon called Weapon Alpha was installed in many of the ships. The ship had to approach very carefully directly into the current and hold itself in position during this process. Transportation was by a combination of ships boats and private water taxis. This officer was responsible for forms of exterior communications, both radio and visual. I had been transferred before the sinking a stroke of luck. The CIC included radar repeaters, voice radios, electronic warfare equipment, plotting boards, logging facilities, etc. Your email address will not be published. During this era, no other class of destroyer had more ships built. The Fletcher class was a class of destroyers built by the United States during World War II. Below this level, the ship was organized into departments. Thanks for the experience. He was usually the only qualified lathe operator on board. 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. If we were backing out of a slip you would hear a prolonged blast on the whistle. The only ports we got to visit during my deployments were Yokosuka and Sasebo in Japan, Hong Kong, Kaoshung Taiwan, and Subic Bay in the Philippines. 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. This is how I met my wife. The other rated BMs were generally assigned individual sections of the ship to maintain. In this article I will attempt to describe how a World War II Destroyer was manned and organized. Fittings marked with a Red Z, Black Y, and Black Z are all closed. On Nov. 13, 1942, the USS Juneau light cruiser was torpedoed and sunk by a Japanese submarine. Heres how to join! Many of the ships were sold to other navies during the mid-1950s, including: Any remaining were broken up in the 1970s. Ships office personnel such as Yeoman (YN) and Personnelmen (PN) and the ships Postal Clerk (PC) are assigned to this division. After a year on board they were advanced to the grade of Seaman (SN), from which they could strike for assignment to other ratings. The Fletcher class (named for Admiral Frank F. Fletcher) was the largest class of destroyer ordered, and was also one of the most successful and popular with the destroyer men themselves. I served on 2 Fletchers as BT during Vietnam. The class was designed in 1939, as a result of dissatisfaction with the earlier destroyer leader types of the Porter and Somers classes. The Chief Gunners Mate (GMC) normally acted as a roving troubleshooter. The three destroyers were later converted to the normal Fletcher-class configuration. A Liberty Ship or T-2 Tanker of the same era had a crew of about 40 people, plus a naval armed guard. Your email address will not be published. In fact, they served almost exclusively in the Pacific Theater of Operations during World War II, during which they accounted for 29 Imperial Japanese Navy submarines sunk. Ten 21in (530mm) torpedo tubes were fitted in two quintuple mounts amidships, firing the 21-inch Mark 15 torpedo. Chief or First Class petty officers of this rating were normally assigned to Engineering Officer of the Watch (EOOW) duties in the Forward Engine Room where they were directly responsible for the operation of the engineering plant during their watch. The Fletcher class was a class of destroyers built by the United States during World War II. 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). In those days they were nearly all Filipinos. This division contained a variety of ratings including: Engineering Officer This was my assignment. The class was designed in 1939, as a result of dissatisfaction with the earlier destroyer leader types of the Porter and Somers classes. This officer stood no underway watches. Posted by ; On . Friedman, Norman "US Destroyers: An Illustrated Design History (Revised Edition)", Naval Institute Press, Annapolis:2004, p.111-112. His direct superior in the chain of command was his squadron or division commander who was normally a Captain with the honorary title of Commodore. The Chief Engineer bears responsibility for operation of the ships engineering plant, electrical generation and distribution, auxiliary machinery, and interior communications. The design parameters were the armaments desired of the next destroyer. Without question, the most famous destroyer-class to serve in World War II was the Fletcher. i was a radarman on the Hopewell from 65through 67. Nineteen Fletchers were lost during World War II; six more were damaged, evaluated as constructive total losses, and not repaired. [1] Postwar, the remainder were decommissioned and put into reserve. The growth in the design was in part a response to the challenge that had dogged U.S. Navy designs in coping with long range operations in the Pacific Ocean. First Division provided the majority of the bridge watch standers and the gun crews. While some changes had taken place since 1945, most of the procedures were carryovers from . 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. About 12 of the enlisted men were Chief Petty Officers. As a side note when raising steam in a boiler, the first burner had to be lit with a hand torch. If you Google Imperial Submarine I-8, you can read through the article for an account of our sinking of that sub. He is a 1956 graduate of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy. Thanks for shedding additional light on my fathers service and that of his comrades-in-arms. This alteration was not a success in service and was not repeated. The Fletcher-class was a class of destroyers built by the United States during World War II. Storekeeper (SK) Responsible for ensuring that the required quantities of spare parts and consumables were on board and maintaining the required records. The ship was the first of the Fletcher-class destroyers that were built during World War II. Went active in 1969. Some 2,100-tonners served off Korea in the 1950s and some even off Vietnam in the 60s. raddish kids recipes; . Required fields are marked *. Heres how to join! Four Fletcher-class destroyers are preserved as museum ships. [6] Compared to earlier classes built for the Navy, they carried a significant increase in anti-aircraft weapons and other weaponry, which caused displacements to rise. Very helpful article to sort out naval manning. The Steering Gear room (After Steering) would be manned. Displacement: 2600 tons. First (Deck), Second (Guns), and Fox (Fire Control, Sonar, and Anti-Submarine Armament). Communications had previously been a stand alone department and electronics repair had belonged to the Chief Engineer. 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. As such, the questions were of how many guns, torpedoes, and depth charges were seen as desirable. But by 1956 that responsibility had been transferred to the Chief Engineer. Enjoyable and interesting read. Fred Edwards, Destroyer Type Desk, Bureau of Ships, 1942, quoted in Holland, Rear Admiral W. J., Jr., USN (Ret), ed. did fletcher class destroyers serve in the atlantic? The ships Master at Arms force reports directly to the Executive Officer. On the return trip we had to avoid the collision between the Oil Tanker and a Philippine Merchant ship . 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 class was designed in 1939, as a result of dissatisfaction with the earlier destroyer leader types. Not a member of the Naval Institute? [10] No design can be perfect and the Fletchers were no exception. Military Wiki is a FANDOM Lifestyle Community. Postwar, the remainder were decommissioned and put into reserve. All wardroom officers had to take their turn at crypto duty, which involved going into the crypto shack, setting up the crypto machine by inserting a set of rotors corresponding to the date and time, and typing out the message. During this era, no other class of destroyer had more ships built. While I did not serve in a Fletcher class destroyer, I did serve in a FRAM II destroyer, the USS ROWAN DD-782. During World War II, the commanding officer was frequently a Lieutenant Commander with far less experience. The USS KIDD (DD-661) is a Fletcher-class destroyer, the six hundred sixty-first destroyer built by the United States Navy. If memory serves me, I think we moved from station 2 to 1 right behind Luce. Most Non-Designated Strikers were assigned to the Deck Force where they spent much of their time standing bridge watches underway, engaged in seamanship evolutions, or chipping paint. These three destroyers were later converted to the regular Fletcher-class configuration. Anti-aircraft armament initially was light, with a quadruple 1.1"/75 caliber gun located in an elevated tub between the number three and four 5-inch gun mounts and six Oerlikon 20 mm cannons (two in front of and below the bridge and four amidships). Some naval historians will tell you that the Fletcher class destroyer was the most successful ship of World War 2 . He is a 1956 graduate of the Massachusetts Maritime Academy. Did they use both teletype and morse for ship to shore and ship to ship communications? There were 175 of them built during World War II. Note that both the terms is and was are used interchangeably in this discussion because many of these practices still exist today. A . For this reason, all sailors of the Boiler Technician (BT) rating were meticulous about carrying a book of matches around with them at all times. There, the earliest ones saw action in the nighttime surface battles in the Solomon Islands, many fought at Leyte and all completed in time for fleet screening and shore bombardment assignments and the notorious anti-kamikaze radar picket duty at Okinawa. The Fletcher class was a class of destroyers built by the United States during World War II. The RD ratings stood watch in the Combat Information Center (CIC). The class was designed in 1939, as a result of dissatisfaction with the earlierdestroyer leader types. Pilots were only used when absolutely necessary in a strange port and most maneuvers were accomplished without tug assistance. 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As BT during Vietnam II, the questions were of how many Guns, torpedoes, and Fox ( Control...

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