USS Henry A. Wiley

History
United States
Name	Henry A. Wiley
Namesake	Henry A. Wiley
Builder	Staten Island, New York
Launched	21 April 1944
Commissioned	31 August 1944
Decommissioned	29 January 1947
Stricken	15 October 1970
Fate	Sold for scrapping, 30 May 1972
General characteristics
Class and type	Robert H. Smith-class destroyer
Displacement	2,200 tons
Length	376 ft 5 in (114.73 m)
Beam	41 ft (12 m)
Draft	15 ft 8 in (4.78 m)
Speed	34 knots (63 km/h; 39 mph)
Complement	336 officers and enlisted
Armament	3 x 5 in (127 mm)/38 cal. guns 8 x 20 mm cannons

USS Henry A. Wiley (DD-749/DM-29/MMD-29) was a

After shakedown in the Caribbean Sea, the new minelayer rendezvoused with the battleships Texas, Arkansas, and Missouri and sailed 8 November for the Pacific to earn her nickname "Hammering Hank." Henry A. Wiley reached Pearl Harbor on 9 December to prepare for the impending Iwo Jima campaign. As escort to the battleship New York, she rendezvoused with other ships of the Gunfire and Covering Force off the rocky Japanese island on 16 February 1945, three days before the initial landings. She remained there until 9 March, to provide fire support and screen ships often operating a mere 400 yards (370 m) from Mount Suribachi. The minelayer poured some 3,600 rounds into the Japanese fortress.

A second and even more arduous campaign followed for Henry A. Wiley—Okinawa, the largest amphibious operation of the Pacific war. Reaching her position 23 March, D-day minus eight, she began to screen minesweepers as they cleared channels for transports and support ships. Japanese resistance was fierce and air attacks were almost unceasing. On 28 March, Henry A. Wiley downed two kamikaze planes, and the next morning in 15 hectic minutes saw a bomb explode 50 yards (46 m) astern, downed two more kamikazes, and rescued a downed fighter pilot. While screening transports on 1 April, D-day at Okinawa, Henry A. Wiley destroyed her fifth kamikaze.

The battle-tried ship then shifted to

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

External links

• Photo gallery at Navsource.org