Misplaced Pages

#50949

49-674: USS Frank Knox (DD-742) was a Gearing -class destroyer which served in the United States Navy from 1944 to 1971. She was then transferred to the Greek Navy and renamed Themistoklis (D-210) . The ship was decommissioned in 1992 and finally sunk as a target in 2001. Frank Knox was built at Bath , Maine and was named after Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox . Commissioned in December 1944, she arrived in

98-451: A Mark 37 Gun Fire Control System with a Mark 25 fire control radar linked by a Mark 1A Fire Control Computer stabilized by a Mark 6 8,500 rpm gyro. This fire control system provided effective long-range anti-aircraft (AA) or anti-surface fire. Twelve 40 mm (1.57 in) Bofors guns in two quad and two twin mounts and 11 20 mm (0.79 in) Oerlikon cannons in single mounts were also equipped. The initial design retained

147-492: A junior member of the committee could ask to one question per year of service on the committee. As chairman, Vinson oversaw the modernization of the military as its focus shifted to the Cold War . He was also committee chair when Congress authorized the procurement of the first nuclear-powered aircraft carriers , starting with USS  Enterprise  (CVN-65) in the late 1950s. A staunch segregationist, Vinson voted against

196-652: A long illness. Vinson did not have children, but his great-nephew, Sam Nunn , served as a Senator from Georgia for more than 24 years. Nunn followed in his great uncle's footsteps, serving on the Senate Armed Services Committee for nearly his entire tenure in the Senate. Sam Nunn's daughter, Michelle Nunn , ran unsuccessfully for one of Georgia's U.S. Senate seats in 2014. Vinson considered his longtime assistant Charles Tillman Snead, Jr. his surrogate son, and Snead's wife, Molly Staeman Snead,

245-464: A new radar system, Mark 32 torpedo tubes, DASH ASW drone, and variable depth sonar (VDS). Importantly, it did not include ASROC. FRAM II ships included six DDRs and six DDEs that retained their specialized equipment (1960–1961), as well as four DDRs that were converted to DDs and were nearly identical to the Allen M. Sumner class FRAM IIs (1962–1963). The FRAM II ships retained all six 5-inch guns, except

294-525: A position held for four years until the Republicans briefly returned to the majority for a single congressional term after the 1952 elections. After the Democrats retook congress in the 1954 midterms, Vinson again became chairman, a position he held until his retirement in 1965. In this role, Vinson adopted a committee rule that came to be known as the "Vinson rule", which limited the number of questions

343-665: A series of upgrades, until the 1970s. At that time many were sold to other nations, where they served many more years. 31 vessels were authorized on 9 July 1942: 4 vessels were authorized on 13 May 1942: 3 vessels were authorized on 27 March 1943 under the Vinson–Trammell Act : 114 vessels were authorized on 19 July 1943 under the 70% Expansion Act: (Of the missing numbers in this sequence - 722 to 741, 744 to 762, 770 to 781, and 857 were allocated to orders for Allen M. Sumner -class destroyers ; 792 to 804 were awarded to orders for Fletcher -class destroyers .) In March 1945,

392-617: A target 14 July 1999. After the Gearing -class ships were retired from USN service, many were sold abroad, including over a dozen to the Republic of China Navy (ROCN) in Taiwan . These ships, along with Fletcher -class destroyers and Allen M. Sumner -class destroyers also acquired then, were upgraded under the Wu ;Chin ( Chinese : 武進 ) I, II, and III programs and known throughout

441-417: Is also named after him, together with the related Mount Vinson and Vinson Plateau . Carl Vinson served 26 consecutive terms in the U.S. House, rarely running against significant opposition. He served for 50 years and one month, a record that stood until 1992, when the mark was surpassed by Jamie Whitten of Mississippi . For his commitment, Vinson was awarded the prestigious Sylvanus Thayer Award by

490-621: Is named for Vinson. The University of Georgia hosts the Carl Vinson Institute of Government . Athens, Georgia , is the site of Carl Vinson Park. Carl Vinson Parkway is located in Warner Robins, Georgia . Georgia Military College formerly had a barracks named for him. It was razed in the mid-2000s. Vinson Hall Retirement Community in McLean, Virginia , is named after Carl Vinson. US Federal Standard 595 names

539-672: The 1964 Civil Rights Act and in 1956, signed "The Southern Manifesto" . Other Southern politicians signed this in resistance to the ruling by the United States Supreme Court in Brown v. Board of Education (1954) that segregated public education was unconstitutional, and that states needed to integrate their public schools. Vinson did not seek re-election in 1964 and retired from Congress in January 1965. Vinson married Mary Green of Ohio in 1921. She died in 1949 after

SECTION 10

#1732765596051

588-726: The Allen M. Sumner class's heavy torpedo armament of ten 21-inch (530 mm) torpedo tubes in two quintuple mounts, firing the Mark 15 torpedo . As the threat from kamikaze aircraft mounted in 1945, and with few remaining Japanese warships to use torpedoes on, most of the class had the aft quintuple 21-inch tube mounts replaced by an additional 40 mm quadruple mount (prior to completion on later ships) for 16 total 40 mm guns. Twenty-four ships (DD-742, DD743, 805-808, 829, 831-835, and 874-883) were ordered without torpedo tubes to allow for radar picket equipment; these were redesignated as DDRs in 1948. Following World War II most of

637-474: The Allen M. Sumner class, built from 1943 until 1945. The main differences were that the Gearing s were 14 ft (4.3 m) longer in the midship section, allowing for increased fuel tankage for greater range, an important consideration in Pacific War . More importantly in the long run, the increased size of the Gearing s made them much more suitable for upgrades than the Allen M. Sumner s, as seen in

686-624: The Gearing class were too small to accommodate. An upgraded version of DASH, QH-50D, remained in use by the United States Army until May 2006. FRAM I "A" Ships: (First 8 conversions) Removal of aft twin 5-inch gun mount (Mount 53). Group A ships also received two MK10/11 Hedgehogs fitted on each side of the bridge at the 01 level and had the MK-32 triple torpedo launchers aft of the second stack. FRAM I "B" Ships (remainder of conversions): Kept their forward 5-inch mount (Mount 51), lost

735-599: The House Armed Services Committee (this consolidation mirrored the establishment of the Department of Defense when the old Departments of War and of the Navy were consolidated). When the Republicans won control of Congress in the 1946 election , Vinson served as ranking minority member of the committee for two years before becoming chairman in early 1949, when the Democrats were again in majority;

784-585: The Taiwan Straits . Two more Korean War cruises followed in 1952 and 1953, and for the rest of the decade Frank Knox deployed regularly to WestPac for Seventh Fleet service. In 1960–1961 Frank Knox was modernized under the FRAM II program, which gave her updated radars and other new equipment. She was based in the Far East from late 1961 until mid-1964, then returned home via Australia and

833-727: The Third Vinson Act of 1940 (which was essentially a mere prelude to the Two-Oceans Act that followed a month later), as well as the Two-Ocean Navy Act of 1940. The ambitious program called for by this series of laws helped the U.S. Navy as the country entered World War II , as new ships were able to match the latest ships from Japan. At the end of World War II, Congress had authorized four Naval four-star officers to be promoted to Fleet Admiral . A staunch partisan of Admiral William Halsey, Jr. , Vinson blocked

882-923: The United States Military Academy . In 1964, President Lyndon B. Johnson awarded Vinson the Presidential Medal of Freedom with Special Distinction , the highest award the President can give to a civilian. During his own tenure in the House, Johnson had served for years as a junior member of the House Naval Affairs Committee under Vinson. The Department of Veterans' Affairs Medical Center in Dublin, Georgia , serving veterans in Central and Southern Georgia,

931-622: The DDEs retained four 5-inch guns and a trainable Hedgehog in the No. 2 position. All FRAM IIs retained two Hedgehogs alongside either the No. 2 5-inch mount or the trainable Hedgehog mount. The four DDRs converted to DDs were armed with two new 21-inch torpedo tubes for the Mk. 37 ASW homing torpedo. Photographs of the six retained DDRs show no markings on the DASH landing deck, as well as a much smaller deckhouse than

980-589: The District, and repealing the Fifteenth Amendment . During his tenure in the U.S. House, Vinson was a champion for national defense and especially the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Marine Corps . He joined the House Naval Affairs Committee shortly after World War I and became the ranking Democratic member in the early 1920s. He was the only Democrat appointed to the Morrow Board , which reviewed

1029-596: The FRAM II ships were disposed of in 1969–1974. With ASROC continuing to provide a standoff ASW capability, the Gearing FRAM Is were retained in service for several years, with most being decommissioned and transferred to foreign navies 1973–1980. They were replaced as ASW ships by the Spruance -class destroyers , which were commissioned 1975–1983. These had the same ASW armament as a Gearing FRAM destroyer, with

SECTION 20

#1732765596051

1078-466: The Mk 32 torpedo tubes and ASROC launched Mk. 44 homing ASW torpedoes . ASROC could also launch a nuclear depth charge . On 11 May 1962, Agerholm tested a live nuclear ASROC in the " Swordfish " test. In Navy slang, the modified destroyers were called "FRAM cans", "can" being a contraction of "tin can", the slang term for a destroyer or destroyer escort. The Gyrodyne QH-50C DASH was an unmanned anti-submarine helicopter, controlled remotely from

1127-927: The ROCN as the Yang-class ( Chinese : 陽字號 ) destroyers as they were assigned names that all end with the word "Yang". The last batch of 7 WC-III program vessels, all of them Gearing class, were retired in the early 2000s. Under the most advanced Wu Chin III upgrade program, all World War II vintage weapons were removed and replaced with four Hsiung Feng II surface-to-surface missiles, ten SM-1 (box launchers), one 8-cell ASROC, one 76 mm (3 in) Otobreda gun , two Bofors 40 mm AA, one 20 mm Phalanx CIWS and two triple 12.75 in (324 mm) torpedo tubes . The DASH ASW drones were not acquired, but hangar facilities aboard those ships that had them were later used to accommodate of MD 500/ASW helicopters . After

1176-767: The Vinson–Trammell Navy Act was provided by the Emergency Appropriations Act of 1934 . This was necessary as during the previous administration, not a single major warship was laid down and the US Navy was both aging and losing ground to the Japanese Navy . Japan repudiated the naval treaties in late 1934. Vinson later was primarily responsible for additional naval expansion legislation, the Naval Act of 1938 ("Second Vinson Act") and

1225-774: The Yang-class destroyers were decommissioned, the SM-1 launch boxes were moved to Chi Yang -class frigates to improve their anti-air capability. DDR-878 Five Gearing -class destroyers are preserved as museum ships: two in the United States, one in South Korea, one in Taiwan, and one in Turkey. The ROKS Jeon Buk (DD-916) (formerly the USS ; Everett F. Larson ) was scrapped in December 2021, leaving five survivors out of

1274-713: The addition of improved sonar and a piloted helicopter, initially the Kaman SH-2 Seasprite , and from 1984, the Sikorsky SH-60 Seahawk . Some Gearing s served in the Naval Reserve Force (NRF) from 1973, remaining in commission with a partial active crew to provide training for Naval reservists. The last Gearing -class destroyer in US naval service was William C. Lawe , a FRAM I, decommissioned and struck 1 October 1983, and expended as

1323-418: The class had their AA and anti-submarine warfare (ASW) armament upgraded. The 40 mm and 20 mm guns were replaced by two to six 3-inch (76 mm)/50 caliber guns in up to two twin and two single mountings. One depth charge rack was removed and two Hedgehog ASW mortar mounts added. The K-guns were retained. Nine additional (for a total of 35) ships were converted to radar picket destroyers (DDR) in

1372-443: The early 1950s; these typically received only one 3-inch twin mount to save weight for radar equipment, as did the wartime radar pickets. Nine ships were converted to escort destroyers (DDE), emphasizing ASW. Carpenter was the most thorough DDE conversion, with 4 3-inch/70 caliber guns in twin enclosed mounts, two Weapon Alpha launchers, four new 21-inch torpedo tubes for the Mark 37 ASW torpedo , and one depth charge rack. In

1421-546: The late 1950s and early 1960s, 79 of the Gearing -class destroyers underwent extensive modernization overhauls, known as FRAM I , which were designed under project SCB 206 to convert them from an anti-aircraft destroyer to an anti-submarine warfare platform. FRAM I removed all of the DDR and DDE equipment, and these ships were redesignated as DDs. FRAM I and FRAM II conversions were completed 1960–1965. Eventually all but three Gearing s received FRAM conversions. The FRAM I program

1470-546: The ninety eight ships built. Vinson%E2%80%93Trammell Act USS  Carl Vinson , the third Nimitz -class aircraft carrier , is named after him. Vinson was born in Baldwin County, Georgia , where he attended local schools and Georgia Military College . He graduated with a law degree from Mercer University in 1902 and was a member of the Kappa Alpha Order . After some years of practice, he

1519-515: The nomination of Admiral Raymond A. Spruance several times, although the majority thought him more deserving, to ensure that Halsey got the fourth billet. Congress eventually responded by passing an unprecedented act that specified that Spruance would remain on a full admiral's pay once retired until his death. Following World War II, the House Naval Affairs Committee was merged with the Military Affairs Committee to become

USS Frank Knox - Misplaced Pages Continue

1568-509: The orders for 36 of the above vessels were cancelled, and 11 more orders were cancelled in August 1945. Following the close of World War II , 7 further vessels were cancelled in 1946: The first ship was laid down in August 1944, while the last was launched in March 1946. In that time the United States produced 98 Gearing -class destroyers. The Gearing class was a seemingly minor improvement of

1617-567: The region during the later 1940s and was reclassified as a radar picket destroyer DDR-742 , in March 1949. Frank Knox again steamed across the Pacific to take part in hostilities in early July 1950, shortly after the outbreak of the Korean War . During this combat tour, which lasted into 1951, her missions included support of the Inchon invasion , shelling enemy targets ashore and patrolling

1666-508: The second mount (Mount 52) and kept their aft 5-inch mount (Mount 53). In place of mount 52, a practice 5-inch reloading machine was installed with the MK-32 triple torpedo launchers aft of the loader. Group B ships also received greater ASROC and torpedo storage areas next to the port side of the DASH hangar. The FRAM II program was designed primarily for the Allen M. Sumner class destroyer, but sixteen Gearing s were upgraded as well. This upgrade program included life-extension refurbishment,

1715-517: The ship. The drone could carry two Mark 44 homing ASW torpedoes. During this era the ASROC system had an effective range of only 5 nautical miles (9.3 km; 5.8 mi), but the DASH drone allowed the ship to deploy ASW attack to sonar contacts as far as 22 nmi (41 km; 25 mi) away. However, DASH proved unreliable in shipboard service, with over half of the USN's 746 drones lost at sea. This

1764-575: The south Pacific. Again deployed in June 1965, she briefly served off Vietnam conducting naval gunfire support and coastal patrol operations. Via Tsoying Naval Base, Taiwan while underway in the South China Sea on 18 July, Frank Knox ran aground on Pratas Reef , and was only freed after a very difficult salvage effort. Though she was badly damaged, and relatively elderly, her command and control capabilities justified an extensive repair job, which

1813-651: The status of aviation in America in the mid-1920s. In 1931, Vinson became chairman of the House Naval Affairs Committee. In 1934, Vinson helped push the Vinson–Trammell Act, along with Democratic Senator Park Trammell of Florida . The bill authorized the replacement of obsolete vessels by new construction and a gradual increase of ships within the limits of the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922 and London Naval Treaty of 1930. Initial funding for

1862-505: The wartime radar picket subclass, the 1950s radar picket destroyer (DDR) and escort destroyer (DDE) conversions, and the Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization (FRAM) conversions 1960-1965. As designed, the Gearing class's armament was identical to that on the Allen M. Sumner class. Three twin 5 in (127 mm)/38 caliber Mark 38 dual purpose (DP) mounts constituted the main battery. The 5-inch guns were guided by

1911-617: The western Pacific war zone in mid-June 1945, in time to participate in the final carrier air raids on the Japanese home islands as part of Task Force 38. During the Battle of Okinawa she acted as a radar picket destroyer giving early warnings of incoming air raids. She was present in Tokyo Bay when Japan formally surrendered on 2 September 1945 and remained in the Far East until early February 1946. The ship made additional deployments to

1960-597: Was Vinson's wife's nurse for 34 years. Snead's son and grandchildren maintained this familial bond to Vinson until his death in 1981. Vinson returned to Baldwin County, Georgia , where he lived in retirement until his death on June 1, 1981. He is buried in Memory Hill Cemetery in Milledgeville, Georgia . At the time of his death, Vinson was the last living member of the House of Representatives who

2009-573: Was a series of 98 destroyers built for the U.S. Navy during and shortly after World War II . The Gearing design was a minor modification of the Allen M. Sumner class , whereby the hull was lengthened by 14 ft (4.3 m) at amidships, which resulted in more fuel storage space and increased the operating range. The first Gearings were not ready for service until mid-1945 and saw little service in World War II. They continued serving, with

USS Frank Knox - Misplaced Pages Continue

2058-607: Was an extensive conversion for the Gearing -class destroyers. This upgrade included rebuilding the ship's superstructure, electronic systems, radar, sonar, and weapons. The second twin 5-inch gun mount and all previous AA guns and ASW equipment were removed. On several ships the two forward 5-inch mounts remained and the aft 5-inch mount was removed. Upgraded systems included SQS-23 sonar, SPS-10 surface search radar, two triple Mark 32 torpedo tubes , an 8-cell Anti-Submarine Rocket ( ASROC ) box launcher, and one QH-50C DASH ASW drone helicopter, with its own landing pad and hangar . Both

2107-514: Was carried out at Yokosuka , Japan, over the next year. Frank Knox rejoined the active forces in November 1966 and resumed her pattern of nearly all annual Seventh Fleet cruises, frequently taking part in Vietnam combat missions. Redesignated DD-742 at the beginning of 1969, she completed her final deployment in November 1970 and was decommissioned at the end of January 1971. USS Frank Knox

2156-578: Was elected to the Georgia House of Representatives in 1908. After losing a third term following redistricting, he was appointed as judge of the Baldwin County court. Following the sudden death of U.S. Senator Augustus Bacon , Representative Thomas W. Hardwick of Georgia's 10th congressional district was nominated to fill Bacon's Senate seat. Vinson announced his candidacy for Hardwick's seat in Congress. Vinson defeated three opponents. Vinson

2205-541: Was possibly due to inadequate maintenance support, as other services had few difficulties with DASH. By 1970, DASH had been withdrawn from FRAM I ships, though it was retained into the early 1970s on FRAM II ships, which lacked ASROC. A limitation of drones in ASW was the need to re-acquire the target at ranges beyond the effectiveness of the controlling ship's sonar. This led to shift to the LAMPS program of manned helicopters, which

2254-457: Was serving at the time of the United States' declaration of war against the German Empire , which precipitated the United States' entry into World War I . In recognition of his efforts on behalf of the U.S. Navy, a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier was named the USS  Carl Vinson , an honor rarely given to a person while living . On March 15, 1980, at age 96, he attended the ship's launching. Vinson Massif , Antarctica's highest mountain,

2303-457: Was the youngest member of Congress (30 years old) when he was sworn in on November 3, 1914. Vinson served as a Representative from November 3, 1914, to January 3, 1965. He was repeatedly re-elected by Democratic voters for this seat. Vinson's first term in congress was characterized by his support for segregation sponsoring bills to establish separate street cars and apartments for Blacks in the District of Columbia , banning interracial marriage in

2352-462: Was transferred to the Greek Navy a few days later. Renamed Themistoklis (D210) (from Themistocles Athenian statesman who persuaded Athens to build a navy and then led it to victory over the Persians), she served for another two decades before being placed out of commission in the early 1990s. The ship was sunk as a torpedo target by the Greek Submarine Nireus (S-111) on 12 September 2001. Gearing class destroyer The Gearing class

2401-412: Was usually provided for DASH, so they may not have been equipped with DASH. Many of the Gearing s provided significant gunfire support in the Vietnam War . They also served as escorts for Carrier Battle Groups ( carrier strike groups from 2004) and Amphibious Ready Groups ( Expeditionary Strike Groups from 2006). DASH was withdrawn from ASW service in 1969, due to poor reliability. Lacking ASROC,

#50949