United States Seventh Fleet
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United States Seventh Fleet | |
---|---|
Founded | March 15, 1943 (81 years, 1 month) |
Country | United States |
Branch | United States Navy |
Type | Fleet |
Part of | United States Pacific Fleet |
Garrison/HQ | United States Fleet Activities Yokosuka |
Nickname(s) | 'Tonkin Gulf Yacht Club' (Vietnam War) |
Engagements |
|
Website | https://www.c7f.navy.mil/ |
Commanders | |
Commander | VADM Fred Kacher |
Vice Commander | RDML Joaquin J. Martinez de Pinillos |
Deputy Commander | RDML Amy Bauernschmidt |
Fleet Master Chief | CMDCM Daniel K. Field |
The Seventh Fleet is a
History
World War II
The Seventh Fleet was formed on 15 March 1943 in
Most of the ships of the
1945–1950
After the end of the war, the 7th Fleet moved its headquarters to
After the war, on 1 January 1947, the Fleet's name was changed to Naval Forces Western Pacific. In late 1948, the Fleet moved its principal base of operations from Qingdao to the Philippines, where the Navy, following the war, had developed new facilities at
On 19 August 1949 the force was designated as United States Seventh Task Fleet. On 11 February 1950, just prior to the outbreak of the Korean War, the force assumed the name United States Seventh Fleet, which it holds today.[4]
Korean War
Seventh Fleet units participated in all major operations of the
Over the next decade the Seventh Fleet responded to numerous crisis situations including contingency operations conducted in Laos in 1959 and Thailand in 1962. During September 1959, in the autumn of 1960, and again in January 1961, the Seventh Fleet deployed multiship carrier task forces into the South China Sea.[5] Although the Pathet Lao and North Vietnamese supporting forces withdrew in each crisis, in the spring of 1961 their offensive appeared on the verge of overwhelming the pro-American Royal Lao Army.
Once again the fleet moved into Southeast Asian waters. By the end of April 1961, most of the Seventh Fleet was deployed off the Indochinese Peninsula preparing to initiate operations into Laos. The force consisted of the Coral Sea and Midway carrier battle groups, antisubmarine support carrier Kearsarge, one helicopter carrier, three groups of amphibious ships, two submarines, and three Marine battalion landing teams. At the same time, shorebased air patrol squadrons and another three Marine battalion landing teams stood ready in Okinawa and the Philippines to support the afloat force. Although the administration of President John F. Kennedy already had decided against American intervention to rescue the Laotian government, Communist forces halted their advance and agreed to negotiations. The contending Laotian factions concluded a cease-fire on 8 May 1961, but it lasted only a year.
In June 1963 the Seventh Fleet held 'Flagpole '63,' a joint
Seventh Fleet represented the first official entrance of the United States into the
On 12 February 1965, USS Salisbury Sound (AV-13) became the first U.S. Navy ship to conduct operations inside Vietnam coastal waters.[9] Salisbury Sound set up a seadrome in Da Nang Bay and conducted seaplane patrols in support of Operation Flaming Dart, the bombing of North Vietnamese army camps.
Operating primarily from
- Task Force 73 included the fleet's logistics support vessels operating as an underway replenishment group (URG) containing an oiler, an ammunition ship, and other supply tenders.[11]
- Operation Lion's Den.[13] The Royal Australian Navy contributed a series of guided missile destroyers to the gun line, including Hobart, Perth, Brisbane, and Vendetta.[14][15] The naval gun line concept was made possible with deep waters for larger vessels well away from both the shoals and enemy coastal artillery.[16] Task Group 70.8, a cruiser-destroyer subset of the task force, began shelling Vietnam on 27 May 1965. The cruisers and destroyers mostly used 5-inch and 8-inch guns while USS New Jersey opened fire with her 16-inch guns.[17]
- Task Force 76 was the Amphibious Force, Seventh Fleet. Marines went ashore at Da Nang in March 1965 and patrolled throughout the I Corps area of responsibility during operations Starlite, Dagger Thrust, Double Eagle, and Jackstay.[18]
- Task Force 77 was the Carrier Battle Force, Seventh Fleet. It would participate in striking North Vietnamese targets, providing air support to US forces in South Vietnam, and mining Haiphong Harbor.[19]
- Task Force 78 was the fleet's minesweeper support. After the 1973 cease-fire, it was responsible for Operation End Sweep, removing naval mines dropped in Haiphong harbor only months earlier.[20]
- Task Forces 116 and 117 were brown-water riverine forces involved in the interdiction efforts Operation Market Time, Operation Game Warden, and Operation Sealords.[21]
In 1975, ships and aircraft of the Fleet evacuated thousands of U.S. citizens and refugees from South Vietnam and Cambodia as those countries fell to opposing forces.
Since the end of the Vietnam War, the Seventh Fleet has participated in a joint/combined exercise called
1971 Indo-Pakistan War
A carrier task force of the Seventh Fleet, Task Force 74 (TF 74), entered the Bay of Bengal at the height of the war in December 1971.[22] Its mission was to support Pakistan during the war. TF 74 comprised the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Enterprise; the amphibious assault carrier Tripoli; the destroyers Decatur, McKean, and Orleck; the guided-missile escorts Waddell, King, and Parsons; the nuclear-powered attack submarine Gurnard; and supply ship Wichita. On 15 December, a day before the surrender of Pakistan to the joint force of India and Bangladesh, the task force entered the Bay of Bengal, at a distance of some 1,760 km (950 nmi; 1,090 mi) from Dhaka.
The Soviet Union, in favor of India, dispatched the 10th Operative Battle Group of its Pacific Fleet under Admiral Vladimir Kruglyakov from Vladivostok to the area. This caused the United States Seventh Fleet to abort its mission and leave the Bay of Bengal. At the same time, the Royal Navy had forces in the Arabian sea with a similar goal as the Seventh Fleet, but that mission was also aborted. India won the war and Bangladesh was liberated amid US and UK's naval support to Pakistan.[23][24][25]
Gulf War and 1990s
In response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait on 2 August 1990, General
Naval Forces Central Command included six aircraft carrier battle groups, two battleships (Missouri and Wisconsin), two hospital ships, 31 amphibious assault ships, four minesweeping vessels and numerous combatants in support of allied air and ground forces. After a decisive allied victory in the
Following months of tension as well as the death of North Korean leader Kim Il-Sung, in July 1994, the Kitty Hawk battle group was diverted from a Southern Watch deployment to the Persian Gulf and remained in the Western Pacific (the Seventh Fleet's operation area) for the entire deployment.[27] The Independence also conducted operations near the Peninsula during the crisis.[28][29]
In 1996, two aircraft carrier battle groups were sent to the
USS John S. McCain and Alnic MC collision
On 21 August 2017, while on a routine visit to Singapore,
Operations
Of the 50–60 ships typically assigned to Seventh Fleet, 18 operate from U.S. facilities in Japan and Guam. These forward-deployed units represent the heart of Seventh Fleet, and the centerpieces of American forward presence in Asia. They are seventeen steaming days closer to locations in Asia than their counterparts based in the continental United States. It would take three to five times the number of rotationally-based ships in the U.S. to equal the same presence and crisis response capability as these 18 forward deployed ships. On any given day, about 50% of Seventh Fleet forces are deployed at sea throughout the area of responsibility.
Following the end of the Cold War, the two major military scenarios in which the Seventh Fleet would be used would be in case of conflict in Korea or a conflict between People's Republic of China and Taiwan (Republic of China) in the Taiwan Strait.
It was reported on 10 May 2012 that USS Freedom (LCS-1) would be dispatched to Singapore in the northern spring of 2013 for a roughly 10-month deployment.[34] On 2 June 2012 the U.S. and Singaporean Defense Ministers announced that Singapore has agreed 'in principle' to the US request 'to forward deploy up to four littoral combat ships to Singapore on a rotational basis.'[35] Officials stressed however that vessels will not be permanently based there and their crews will live aboard during ship visits.
Fleet organization
The Seventh Fleet is organized into specialized task forces.
Task Force 70 – TF 70 is the Battle Force of 7th Fleet and is made up of two distinct components: Surface Combatant Force 7th Fleet, composed of
The CSG 5 Commander also serves as Battle Force Seventh Fleet and Commander, Task Force (CTF 70) for 7th Fleet. In these responsibilities, CSG 5 serves as the Commander of all surface forces (carrier strike groups, independently deploying cruisers, destroyers and frigates) in the 7th Fleet area of responsibility. CTF 70 also serves as the Theater Surface Warfare Commander (TSUWC) and Theater Integrated Air Missile Defense Commander (TIAMDC) for Seventh Fleet.
During the Korean War, Captain Charles L. Melson was the commanding officer of the flagship of the Seventh Fleet, the battleship USS New Jersey (BB-62) from 20 October 1952. He also served during that time as Commander, Task Group 70.1.
Task Force 71 – TF 71 includes all Naval Special Warfare (NSW) units and Explosive Ordnance Disposal Mobile Units (EODMU) assigned to 7th Fleet. It is based in Guam.
Task Force 74 – TF 74 was the designation used for the Enterprise battle group in 1971. Today, it is the Fleet Submarine Force responsible for planning and coordinating submarine operations within 7th Fleet's area of operations.
Task Force 76 – Amphibious assault task force currently headquartered at U.S. Fleet Activities Sasebo, mainly responsible for supporting Marine landing operations. It is composed of units capable of delivering ship-to-shore assault troops, such as America-class and Wasp-class amphibious assault ships, and landing craft.
The ceasefire was signed on 23 January 1973, and the day afterwards, major components of TF 78 deployed from Subic Bay to Haiphong. These included four ocean minesweepers (MSO), USS Inchon, and four amphibious ships, including two with docking capabilities to handle the minesweeping sleds towed by the CH-53Ms. During the six months of Operation End Sweep, ten ocean minesweepers, nine amphibious ships, six fleet tugs, three salvage ships, and nineteen destroyers operated in Task Force 78 in the vicinity of Haiphong.'[41]
As of 2010,
Task Force 79 – The Marine expeditionary unit or Landing Force assigned to the fleet, consisting of at least a reinforced Marine battalion and its equipment. This unit is separate from the Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) normally embarked in USS Bonhomme Richard Amphibious Readiness Group (ARG). Marine units serving in 7th Fleet are normally drawn from III Marine Expeditionary Force based in Okinawa, Japan.
Forward-deployed Seventh Fleet ships
U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, Japan
- Carrier Strike Group Five: USS Ronald Reagan (CVN-76) and USS Robert Smalls (CG-62).
- Destroyer Squadron 15: USS Benfold (DDG-65), USS Milius (DDG-69), USS Higgins (DDG-76), USS Howard (DDG-83), USS McCampbell (DDG-85), USS Shoup (DDG-86), USS Dewey (DDG-105), USS John Finn (DDG-113), USS Ralph Johnson (DDG-114) and USS Rafael Peralta (DDG-115).
- USS Blue Ridge (LCC-19) (flagship)
U.S. Fleet Activities Sasebo, Japan
- USS America (LHA-6)
- USS New Orleans (LPD-18)
- USS Green Bay (LPD-20)
- USS Rushmore (LSD-47)
- USS Ashland (LSD-48)
- USS Patriot (MCM-7)
- USS Pioneer (MCM-9)
- USS Warrior (MCM-10)
- USS Chief (MCM-14)
Apra Harbor, Guam
Fleet commanders
The Commander of the 7th Fleet is known as COMSEVENTHFLT.[42]
Vice Adm. Arthur S. Carpender | 15 March 1943 | 26 November 1943 |
Vice Adm. Thomas C. Kinkaid | 26 November 1943 | 20 November 1945 |
Vice Adm. Daniel E. Barbey | 20 November 1945 | 2 October 1946 |
Vice Adm. Charles M. Cooke, Jr. |
2 October 1946 | 28 February 1948 |
Vice Adm. Oscar C. Badger II | 28 February 1948 | 28 August 1949 |
Vice Adm. Russell S. Berkey | 28 August 1949 | 5 April 1950 |
Rear Adm. Walter F. Boone | 5 April 1950 | 20 May 1950 |
Vice Adm. Arthur D. Struble |
20 May 1950 | 28 March 1951 |
Vice Adm. Harold M. Martin | 28 March 1951 | 3 March 1952 |
Vice Adm. Robert P. Briscoe | 3 March 1952 | 20 May 1952 |
Vice Adm. Joseph. J. Clark |
20 May 1952 | 1 December 1953 |
Vice Adm. Alfred M. Pride | 1 December 1953 | 9 December 1955 |
Vice Adm. Stuart H. Ingersoll | 19 December 1955 | 28 January 1957 |
Vice Adm. Wallace M. Beakley | 28 January 1957 | 30 September 1958 |
Vice Adm. Frederick N. Kivette | 30 September 1958 | 7 March 1960 |
Vice Adm. Charles D. Griffin | 7 March 1960 | 28 October 1961 |
Vice Adm. William A. "Bill" Schoech |
28 October 1961 | 13 October 1962 |
Vice Adm. Thomas H. Moorer |
13 October 1962 | 15 June 1964 |
Vice Adm. Roy L. Johnson | 15 June 1964 | 1 March 1965 |
Vice Adm. Paul P. Blackburn | 1 March 1965 | 9 October 1965 |
Rear Adm. Joseph W. Williams, Jr. | 9 October 1965 | 13 December 1965 |
Vice Adm. John J. Hyland | 13 December 1965 | 6 November 1967 |
Vice Adm. William F. Bringle | 6 November 1967 | 10 March 1970 |
Vice Adm. Maurice F. Weisner | 10 March 1970 | 18 June 1971 |
Vice Adm. William P. Mack | 18 June 1971 | 23 May 1972 |
Vice Adm. James L. Holloway III | 23 May 1972 | 28 July 1973 |
Vice Adm. George P. Steele | 28 July 1973 | 14 June 1975 |
Vice Adm. Thomas B. Hayward | 14 June 1975 | 24 July 1976 |
Vice Adm. Robert B. Baldwin | 24 July 1976 | 31 May 1978 |
Vice Adm. Sylvester Robert Foley, Jr. |
31 May 1978 | 14 February 1980 |
Vice Adm. Carlisle A.H. Trost |
14 February 1980 | 15 September 1981 |
Vice Adm. M. Staser Holcomb | 15 September 1981 | 9 May 1983 |
Vice Adm. James R. Hogg | 9 May 1983 | 4 March 1985 |
Vice Adm. Paul F. McCarthy, Jr. | 4 March 1985 | 9 December 1986 |
Vice Adm. Paul D. Miller | 9 December 1986 | 21 October 1988 |
Vice Adm. Henry H. Mauz, Jr. |
21 October 1988 | 1 December 1990 |
Vice Adm. Stanley R. Arthur |
1 December 1990 | 3 July 1992 |
Vice Adm. Timothy W. Wright | 3 July 1992 | 28 July 1994 |
Vice Adm. Archie R. Clemins | 28 July 1994 | 13 September 1996 |
Vice Adm. Robert J. Natter | 13 September 1996 | 12 August 1998 |
Vice Adm. Walter F. Doran |
12 August 1998 | 12 July 2000 |
Vice Adm. James W. Metzger | 12 July 2000 | 18 July 2002 |
Vice Adm. Robert F. Willard | 18 July 2002 | 6 August 2004 |
Vice Adm. Jonathan W. Greenert |
6 August 2004 | 12 September 2006 |
Vice Adm. William Douglas Crowder | 12 September 2006 | 12 July 2008 |
Vice Adm. John M. Bird | 12 July 2008 | 10 September 2010 |
Vice Adm. Scott R. Van Buskirk | 10 September 2010 | 7 September 2011 |
Vice Adm. Scott H. Swift | 7 September 2011 | 31 July 2013 |
Vice Adm. Robert L. Thomas Jr. | 31 July 2013 | 7 September 2015 |
Vice Adm. Joseph Aucoin | 7 September 2015 | 22 August 2017[43] |
Vice Adm. Phillip G. Sawyer | 22 August 2017 | 12 September 2019 |
Vice Adm. William R. Merz | 12 September 2019 | 8 July 2021[44] |
Vice Adm. Karl O. Thomas | 8 July 2021[45] | 15 February 2024 |
Vice Adm. Fred Kacher | 15 February 2024 | present |
See also
- NOAA Pacific Islands Fleet
Citations
- ^ "Fact Sheet". US Navy 7th Fleet. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
- ^ "U.S. 7th Fleet forces". U.S. Navy, 7th Fleet. 2014. Archived from the original on 8 October 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
- ^ Naval History and Heritage Command website. "Commander Seventh Fleet". Naval History and Heritage Command. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
- Naval History & Heritage Command. 29 April 2005. Archived from the originalon 2 October 2013. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
- ^ Marolda, Edward J. (8 November 1997). "By Sea, Air, and Land". Naval History & Heritage Command. Retrieved 22 April 2017.
- ^ Willis, Warren (2009). "USS Bexar APA-237". oldbluejacket.com. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
- LCCN 77604776.
- ^ "Narrative History of the USS Enterprise (CVA(N)65) 1 Jan – 31 Dec 66" (PDF). United States Navy. 10 July 1967: 1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 13 January 2012.
The presence of USS Enterprise in the Gulf of Tonkin was well-known around the world by January 1966. Her own prestige as the largest and most powerful warship of the fleet had followed her to Yankee and Dixie Station, and there was more to the emerging legend than this; she and USS Bainbridge, her frigate "smallboy", had put a watershed date in naval history merely by being the first nuclear-powered ships to engage in combat. Their unmatched speed, detection systems, and operational capacity potential were proving their worth far beyond the original estimates during the first weeks "on the line at the Tonki Gulf Yacht Club."
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: Cite journal requires|journal=
(help) - ^ "History of the USS Salisbury Sound (AV-13)". USS Salisbury Sound (AV-13). USS Salisbury Sound Association. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
- ^ Cavendish 1989, p. 11.
- Holloway, James L. "Tactical Command and Control of Carrier Operations". Naval Historical Foundation. Archived from the originalon 30 May 2004.
- ^ "Vietnam War: Afloat and Ashore: Operation Sea Dragon". Naval Historical Foundation.
- ISBN 978-1-61251-008-8.
- ^ Cavendish 1989, pp. 29, 46–49.
- ^ Perryman, John (10 August 2006). "Towing the line". Navy. 49 (14).
- ^ Bonsall, George (1997). "The Impact of Advanced Naval Surface Fire Support on Joint Force Fire Coordination". Federation of American Scientists. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
- ^ "U.S. warships begin bombardment of Viet Cong targets – 27 May 1965". This Day in History. 2014. Archived from the original on 5 July 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
- ^ Cavendish 1989, pp. 42–45.
- ^ Cavendish 1989, pp. 24–40.
- ^ Cavendish 1989, pp. 61.
- ^ Cavendish 1989, pp. 50–59.
- ^ "CIAO". www.ciaonet.org.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Simha, Rakesh Krishnan (31 August 2013). "Sweeping mines, salvaging looted gold after the 1971 War". Russia & India Report. Archived from the original on 29 June 2015. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
- ^ Mahfuz, Asif (16 December 2013). "US Fleet in Bay of Bengal: A game of deception". The Daily Star. Retrieved 2 December 2022.
- ^ Pokrant, Marvin (1999). Desert Storm at Sea: What the Navy Really Did. Greenwood Publishing Group.
- ^ USS Kitty Hawk CV-63 - 1994 Command Operations Report (PDF). United States Navy. 14 January 1995.
- ^ "Reading the North Korean Tea Leaves: The Perpetual Struggle to Fathom Pyongyang's Motives and Goals". nsarchive2.gwu.edu. Retrieved 21 August 2022.
- ^ "CVW-5 No19". www.webmodelers.com. Retrieved 21 August 2022.
- ^ "USS John McCain collides with merchant ship east of Singapore, 10 sailors missing, US Navy says". ABC News (Australia). 21 August 2017. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
- ^ Smith, Alexander; Flanagan, Ed (21 August 2017). "U.S. Destroyer Collides With Tanker Off Singapore; 10 Missing". NBC News. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
- ^ McKirdy, Euan; Lendon, Brad (23 August 2017). "US Navy 7th Fleet commander dismissed, Navy says". CNN. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
- ^ Slavin, Erik (17 May 2017). "Sawyer nominated to head Yokosuka-based 7th Fleet". Stars and Stripes. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
- ^ Wolf, Jim (10 May 2012). "U.S. plans 10-month warship deployment to Singapore". Reuters. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
- ^ "US sailors to stay off-shore in Singapore deal: officials". AsiaOne. 2 June 2012. Archived from the original on 4 June 2012. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
- ^ "Carrier Strike Group Five". Navy Data. U.S. Navy Outlets. 2013. Archived from the original on 3 November 2013. Retrieved 30 December 2011.
- ^ "The Carrier Strike Group". Navy Data. U.S. Navy. 2013. Retrieved 1 November 2013.
- ^ "Korean War Naval Chronology, May–July 1953". Naval History & Heritage Command. 2012. Archived from the original on 4 December 2013. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
- ISBN 978-1-59114-391-8. Note that Admiral Holloway appears to have made a mistake with the identification of the CH-53M squadron referred to on page 327. The squadron referred to appears to have been HM-12.
- ^ Van Nortwick, John. "Operation End Sweep". Marine Corps Gazette (May 1974). Archived from the original on 13 November 2013. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
- ISBN 978-1-59114-391-8.
- ^ "Home". www.c7f.navy.mil. Archived from the original on 20 November 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2017.
- ^ Lubold, Gordon (22 August 2017). "U.S. Navy Relieves Admiral of Command After Collisions". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
- ^ "Commander, U.S. 7th Fleet, Vice Adm. William R. Merz". US Navy. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
- ^ "COMMANDER, U.S. 7th FLEET TO HOLD CHANGE OF COMMAND". U.S. Navy. 6 July 2021. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
References
- War at Sea. The Vietnam War. Vol. 9. New York: ISBN 0863078648.
Further reading
- Marolda, Edward J. (2011). Ready Seapower: A History of the U.S. Seventh Fleet. Washington, DC: Naval History & Heritage Command, Department of the Navy. ISBN 9780945274674.
- Marolda, Edward J. (1994). By Sea, Air, and Land: An Illustrated History of the U.S. Navy and the War in Southeast Asia. Washington, DC: Naval Historical Center. ISBN 0160359384. Archived from the originalon 3 July 1998.
External links