USS Gearing

Last updated

USS Gearing (DD-710) in the Mediterranean Sea in 1960.jpg
USS Gearing (DD-710) in the Mediterranean Sea in 1960
History
Flag of the United States.svgUnited States
NameGearing
Namesake Gearing family
BuilderFederal Shipbuilding & Drydock Co. of Kearny, New Jersey
Laid down10 August 1944
Launched18 February 1945
Commissioned3 May 1945
Decommissioned1973
Stricken1 July 1973
IdentificationDD-710
FateSold for scrap on 6 November 1974.
General characteristics
Class and type Gearing-class destroyer
Displacement
  • 2,616 tons standard
  • 3,460 tons full load
Length390.6 ft (119.1 m)
Beam40.10 ft (12.22 m)
Draft14.4 ft (4.4 m)
Propulsion
  • 2 shafts
  • General Electric steam turbines
  • 4 boilers
  • 60,000 shp (45 MW)
Speed36.8 knots (68.2 km/h; 42.3 mph)
Range4,500 nmi (8,330 km) at 20 knots (37 km/h)
Complement336 [1]
Armament

USS Gearing (DD-710) was the lead ship of her class of destroyers in the United States Navy. She was named for three generations of the Gearing family, Commander Henry Chalfant Gearing Sr., Captain Henry Chalfant Gearing Jr. and Lieutenant Henry Chalfant Gearing, III. [2]

Contents

Construction

Gearing was launched on 18 February 1945 by the Federal Shipbuilding & Drydock Co., Kearny, New Jersey. Gearing was sponsored by Mrs. Thomas M. Foley, daughter of Commander Gearing and commissioned 3 May 1945.

History

After shakedown off Cuba, Gearing reached Norfolk 22 July 1945 and trained precommissioning crews for other destroyers until putting in at Casco Bay, Maine, 5 October. Gearing put in at Pensacola, Florida, 4 November to screen the aircraft carrier Ranger during carrier qualification operations.

Returning to Norfolk 21 March 1946, she conducted peacetime operations along the Atlantic coast of North and South America, in the Caribbean, visiting Montevideo, Uruguay; and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Gearing sailed 10 November 1947 on her first Mediterranean cruise, [3] calling at Algeria, Malta, Italy, and France before mooring again at Norfolk 11 March 1948.

Peacetime operations along the eastern seaboard and in the Caribbean prepared her for a second cruise to European waters; the destroyer visited most of the nations washed by the Mediterranean from 10 November 1947 to 11 March 1948 and duplicated this long voyage from 4 January to 23 May 1949.

During the fall of 1949 Gearing took part in Operation Frostbite, an Arctic cruise test and development of cold weather techniques and equipment. She continued operations off the east coast of the United States and in the Caribbean through 1950. Another voyage from 10 January to 17 May 1951 brought her from Norfolk to the Mediterranean and return; the remainder of the year was occupied by training cruises as far north as Halifax and south to Cuban waters.

By now Gearing had established the pattern of peacetime operations she followed well into the 1960s: "Med" cruises usually once a year, and exercise in the Atlantic and Caribbean. These kept her in fighting trim for the ceaseless duties of seapower. She also took part in negotiations during the Santa Maria hijacking, and was modernized and overhauled late 1961 through early 1962 at Boston.

Gearing after her FRAM I modernisation, in 1967. USS Gearing (DD-710) underway at sea on 27 January 1967 (KN 14675).jpg
Gearing after her FRAM I modernisation, in 1967.

In October 1962 [4] Gearing took part in the American naval blockade of Cuba in response to Cuban Missile Crisis, the basing of Soviet ballistic missiles on that island, and was the first to intercept a Soviet vessel. [2] After diplomatic negotiations ended this crisis, Gearing returned to Norfolk on 1 November 1962. Through the remainder of 1962 she continued operations in the Atlantic.

After participating in Operation "Springboard-63" early in 1963, Gearing sailed for the Mediterranean in March serving with the 6th Fleet during the summer. She returned to Newport in September for a "FRAM I" overhaul. Following operations in the Caribbean and North Atlantic in the spring and summer of 1964, Gearing entered the Mediterranean on 4 October to rejoin the 6th Fleet. After returning home early in 1965, she continued operating in the Atlantic Fleet into 1967.

She was decommissioned in 1973, stricken on 1 July 1973 and sold for scrap on 6 November 1974.

Related Research Articles

USS <i>John King</i> Charles F. Adams-class destroyer

USS John King (DD-953/DDG-3) was a Charles F. Adams-class guided missile armed destroyer in the United States Navy named for Medal of Honor recipient John King.

USS <i>Lawrence</i> (DDG-4) Charles F. Adams-class destroyer

USS Lawrence (DD-954/DDG-4) was a Charles F. Adams class guided-missile destroyer in the United States Navy. It was the fifth ship named after Captain James Lawrence USN (1781–1813). The USS Lawrence served on blockade duty during the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962 and, in 1972, was part of Operation Linebacker in the west Pacific.

USS <i>Furse</i> Gearing-class destroyer

USS Furse (DD-882/DDR-882) was a Gearing-class destroyer of the United States Navy.

USS <i>John Paul Jones</i> (DD-932) Forrest Sherman-class destroyer

USS John Paul Jones (DD-932/DDG-32), named for John Paul Jones, was a Forrest Sherman-class destroyer of the United States Navy.

USS <i>Hawkins</i> Gearing-class destroyer

USS Hawkins (DD-873) was a Gearing-class destroyer in the United States Navy during World War II. Following the war, the ship saw service in the Korean War and in the 1970s, was transferred to the Republic of China Navy as Tze Yang. She remained in service until the 1990s. The ship was then scrapped with the exception of her superstructure, which became part of a display and training ground at the Zuoying Naval Academy.

USS <i>Leary</i> (DD-879) Gearing-class destroyer

USS Leary (DD/DDR-879), one of the longest-lasting Gearing-class destroyers, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for Lieutenant Clarence F. Leary USNRF (1894–1918), who lost his life in the line of duty. He was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross.

USS <i>Vogelgesang</i> (DD-862) Gearing-class destroyer

USS Vogelgesang (DD-862) was a Gearing-class destroyer in the United States Navy. She was named for Rear Admiral Carl Theodore Vogelgesang USN (1869–1927).

USS <i>Harold J. Ellison</i> (DD-864) Gearing-class destroyer

USS Harold J. Ellison (DD-864) was a Gearing-class destroyer in service with the United States Navy from 1945 to 1983. She was then transferred to Pakistan and renamed Shah Jahan (D-164). The ship was finally sunk as a target in 1994.

USS <i>Warrington</i> (DD-843) Gearing-class destroyer

USS Warrington (DD-843) was a Gearing-class destroyer that served the U.S. Navy from the end of World War II to the Vietnam War, when she was damaged by two underwater explosions, causing her to be listed as "beyond repair" and excessed to the Navy of the Republic of China.

USS <i>Henley</i> (DD-762) Allen M. Sumner-class destroyer

USS Henley (DD-762), an Allen M. Sumner-class destroyer, was the fourth ship of the United States Navy to be named Henley, was named after Captain Robert Henley ; an officer in the United States Navy during the Quasi-War with France, the War of 1812 and the Second Barbary War.

USS <i>Bearss</i> Fletcher-class destroyer

USS Bearss (DD-654) was a Fletcher-class destroyer of the United States Navy, named for Brigadier General Hiram I. Bearss (1875–1938), USMC, who was awarded the Medal of Honor during the Philippine–American War.

USS <i>Rich</i> (DD-820) Gearing-class destroyer

USS Rich (DD-820/DDE-820) was a Gearing-class destroyer in the United States Navy during the Korean War and the Vietnam War. She was the second ship named in honor of Lieutenant Ralph McMaster Rich (1916–1942), who was awarded the Navy Cross for his leadership as a naval aviator aboard USS Enterprise during the Battle of Midway.

USS <i>William M. Wood</i> (DD-715) Gearing-class destroyer, sunk as a target

USS William M. Wood (DD/DDR-715) was a Gearing-class destroyer in the United States Navy during the final year of World War II. She was in commission for 31 years, from 1945 through 1976, serving in both the Pacific and Atlantic Fleets. She was the second Navy ship named for Navy Surgeon-General William M. Wood (1809–1880).

USS <i>Keppler</i> (DD-765) Gearing-class destroyer

The third USS Keppler (DD/DDE-765) was a Gearing-class destroyer in the United States Navy during the Korean War and the Vietnam War. She was named for Boatswain's Mate First Class Reinhardt J. Keppler (1918–1942), who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for "extraordinary heroism" during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal.

USS <i>Holder</i> (DD-819) Gearing-class destroyer

USS Holder (DD/DDE-819) was a Gearing-class destroyer of the United States Navy, the second Navy ship named for Lieutenant (jg) Randolph Mitchell Holder, a Navy pilot who was killed during the Battle of Midway.

USS <i>Lloyd Thomas</i> (DD-764) Gearing-class destroyer

The third USS Lloyd Thomas (DD/DDE-764) was a Gearing-class destroyer in the United States Navy during the Korean War and the Vietnam War.

USS <i>Goodrich</i> Gearing-class destroyer

USS Goodrich (DD/DDR-831) was a Gearing-class destroyer of the United States Navy, named for Rear Admiral Caspar F. Goodrich (1847–1925), and his son, Lieutenant Caspar Goodrich.

USS <i>Ernest G. Small</i> Gearing-class destroyer

USS Ernest G. Small (DD/DDR-838) was a Gearing-class destroyer of the United States Navy, named for Rear Admiral Ernest G. Small (1888–1944).

USS <i>Glennon</i> (DD-840) Gearing-class destroyer, sunk as a target

USS Glennon (DD-840) was a Gearing-class destroyer of the United States Navy, the second Navy ship named for Rear Admiral James H. Glennon (1857–1940).

USS <i>Robert L. Wilson</i> Gearing-class destroyer

USS Robert L. Wilson (DD/DDE-847) was a Gearing-class destroyer of the United States Navy, named for Marine Private First Class Robert L. Wilson (1920–1944), who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for "conspicuous gallantry" in the Battle of Tinian.

References

  1. ↑ "USS Gearing". hullnumber.com. Retrieved 21 April 2013.
  2. 1 2 "USS Gearing". destroyers.org. Retrieved 21 April 2013.
  3. ↑ "USS Gearing (DD-710)". mesothelioma.com. Retrieved 21 April 2013.
  4. ↑ "Fifty years ago". proflyersinc.com. Retrieved 21 April 2013.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.