USS Fletcher (DD-445)

	Fletcher underway in the 1960s
History
United States
Name	Fletcher
Namesake	Admiral Frank F. Fletcher
Builder	Federal Shipbuilding, Kearny, New Jersey
Laid down	2 October 1941
Launched	3 May 1942
Commissioned	30 June 1942
Decommissioned	15 January 1947
Reclassified	DDE-445 on 26 March 1949
Recommissioned	3 October 1949
Decommissioned	1 October 1969
Reclassified	DD-445 on 30 June 1962
Stricken	1 October 1969
Identification	Hull symbol:DD-445; Hull symbol:DDE-445; Code letters:NEBG; ;
Honors and; awards	; 15 × battle stars WWII ; 5 × battle stars Korean War;
Fate	Sold 22 February 1972 and scrapped
General characteristics
Class and type	Fletcher-class destroyer
Displacement	2,100 long tons (2,134 t) (standard); 2,924 long tons (2,971 t) (max);
Length	376 ft 5 in (114.73 m) oa
Beam	39 ft 08 in (12.09 m)
Draft	13 ft 9 in (4.19 m) (max)
Installed power	60,000 shp (45,000 kW)
Propulsion	geared turbines; 2 × screws;
Speed	36 knots (67 km/h; 41 mph)
Range	6,500 nmi (12,000 km) at 15 kn (17 mph; 28 km/h)
Complement	273 officers and enlisted
Armament	5 × single (127 mm)/38 caliber Dual-purpose guns ; 2 × 40 mm (1.6 in) Bofors anti-aircraft guns; 6 × 20 mm (0.79 in) Oerlikon anti-aircraft cannons; 10 × 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes, ; 6 x K-guns, ; 2 x depth charge racks;
General characteristics
Armament	2 × 5 in/38 caliber; 2 x twin 3 in/50 caliber ; 1 x Weapon Alpha; 2 x depth charge racks;

USS Fletcher (DD/DDE-445), named for Admiral Frank Friday Fletcher, was the lead Fletcher-class destroyer, and served in the Pacific during World War II. She received fifteen battle stars for World War II service, and five for Korean War service.

Fletcher was laid down by the

launched on 3 May 1942; sponsored by Mrs. F. F. Fletcher, widow of Admiral Fletcher; and commissioned on 30 June 1942.^[1]

Service history

World War II

1942

Fletcher arrived at

Marine aircraft.^[1]

Fletcher retired to replenish at Espiritu Santo, arriving the day after the battle, and after patrolling against submarines off Nouméa, sortied on 30 November 1942, with a force of cruisers and destroyers, to intercept a force of enemy transports and destroyers expected to attempt a reinforcement of Guadalcanal that night. Fletcher led the force through Lengo Channel, and made the first radar contact with the enemy off Tassafaronga Point just before midnight. The resulting Battle of Tassafaronga saw one Japanese destroyer sunk, and one slightly damaged, and four American cruisers badly damaged, though all but one were saved by prompt damage control. Fletcher rescued survivors of Northampton, using cork-floated cargo nets to take great groups of them from the water.^[1]

1943

The destroyer continued to operate in the Solomon Islands, patrolling, shelling shore targets, driving off Japanese air attacks, rescuing downed aviators, sinking Japanese landing barges, and covering new landings on the northern coast of Guadalcanal. Out on patrol on 11 February 1943, Fletcher was alerted by a smoke float dropped by a plane from Helena, and sped to attack and sink I-18. She supported the landings on the Russell Islands on 21 February, bombarded Munda airfield on New Georgia during the night of 5/6 March, and then continued to guard the movement of transports in the Solomons.^[1]

From 23 April to 4 May 1943, Fletcher was in

Kwajalein island.^[1]

1944

U.S. Navy Museum

Fletcher returned to

Eniwetok.^[1]

After joining in training exercises off

Humboldt Bay landings, and by covering reinforcement landings on 30 April. After escorting a convoy to Nouméa, out of which she patrolled against submarines in late May, Fletcher arrived at Humboldt Bay on 5 June. She made one patrol against any attempt of the Japanese to reinforce their Biak garrison, then covered and provided shore bombardment for the invasions of Noemfoor, Sansapor, and Morotai, as well as patrolling and escorting reinforcements for these various operations through the summer.^[1]

Fletcher reached Manus on 9 October 1944 from Humboldt Bay to prepare for the invasion of

Leyte, for which she sortied 12 October screening transports. She covered them while they sent their boats ashore in the initial landings 20 October, and next day departed for New Guinea, thus clearing Leyte Gulf before the great battle for its control broke out. She returned to Leyte with transports carrying reinforcements 23 November, and through the next month, continued her support of the first phase of the liberation of the Philippines, escorting convoys, firing prelanding bombardments at Ormoc Bay and Mindoro, and firing on Japanese aircraft in several attacks.^[1]

1945

On 4 January 1945, Fletcher sortied from

Elmer C. Bigelow was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity" while fighting the fire on board the destroyer. Fletcher's firing in Manila Bay continued until the 17th.^[1]

Fletcher took part in the landings at

Tarakan, and gave local patrol and escort service in the Philippines until 13 May 1945, when she sailed for a West Coast overhaul. After exercises off San Diego and in Hawaii, she was docked at San Diego until placed in commission in reserve 7 August 1946, and out of commission in reserve 15 January 1947.^[1]

1949–1969

Recommissioned 3 October 1949 as a specialist in

Okinawa, or Sasebo, Japan. She also participated in the Battle of Inchon from 13 to 17 September, and returned to Pearl Harbor, her home port, on 11 November.^[1]

On 19 November 1951, Fletcher cleared Pearl Harbor for another tour of duty screening the carriers of the 7th Fleet in Korean operations. She also fired shore bombardment on two occasions, participated in

Taiwan Straits. Returning to Pearl Harbor on 20 June 1952, she was at sea again from 5 September to 24 November for Operation Ivy, then completed another tour of Far Eastern duty from 14 May to 30 November 1953.^[1]

Annually from 1954 to 1962, Fletcher sailed to the Far East for duty with the 7th Fleet, in 1955 providing antisubmarine screening for the evacuation of the

Tachen Islands. In both 1957 and 1958, she made her outward bound passage by way of Samoa and Australia. Intensive antisubmarine training was her major occupation during periods between deployment.^[1]

Fletcher was decommissioned and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 1 August 1969, and sold for scrap on 22 February 1972.

Awards

Fletcher received fifteen

most decorated US ships of World War II

.

battle stars
World War II Victory Medal
China Service Medal
National Defense Service Medal with star
Korean Service Medal with five battle stars
Philippine Presidential Unit Citation
Korean Presidential Unit Citation
Philippine Liberation Medal with two stars
United Nations Service Medal
Korean War Service Medal^[1]

On film

Fletcher appears in the 1960 comedy film The Wackiest Ship in the Army, starring Jack Lemmon (appears in the harbor when the USS Echo is first visited), and also in the film Down Periscope in stock footage as the ship that is targeted and sunk to end the film's war games.

References

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ "Fletcher (DD-445)". Naval History and Heritage Command. 30 March 2016. Retrieved 3 May 2016.

External links

[DANFS-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ "Fletcher (DD-445)". Naval History and Heritage Command. 30 March 2016. Retrieved 3 May 2016.

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