USS Mason (DDG 87)

The Mason at the side of the porter Eisenhower
Overview
Order	December 13, 1996
Keel laying	January 20, 2000
Launch	June 23, 2001
1. Period of service
Commissioning	April 12, 2003
Technical specifications
displacement	9200 tons
length	156 meters
width	20 metres
Draft	9.5 meters
crew	32 officers, 350 men
drive	2 propellers, driven by 4 gas turbines; 100,000 wave horsepower
speed	31 knots
Armament	96 VLS cells 2 triple torpedo launchers 1 127 mm gun 1 Phalanx CIWS 2 25 mm guns

The USS Mason (DDG-87) is a destroyer in the United States Navy and belongs to the Arleigh Burke class . She was named explicitly in honor of the destroyer USS Mason (DE-529) , which sailed with a crew of mostly African-American sailors during World War II .

history

The DDG-87 was commissioned in late 1996 and laid down at Bath Iron Works in early 2000 . After a year and a half in dry dock, the ship was launched on June 23, 2001 and was christened. Godmother was Olympia Snowe , the Maine State Senator. Until April 12, 2003, the final equipment followed, then the shipyard's test drives, and finally the Mason was officially put into service. Immediately afterwards, the destroyer carried out exercises with the Spanish Álvaro de Bazán (F 101) , the lead ship of the Álvaro de Bazán class .

The ship was first laid with USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) in 2005 in the Persian Gulf . In October 2006, the second transfer began with USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) . In August 2008, the destroyer moved as escort of the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) towards the Mediterranean. After Somali pirates released the captured cargo ship Faina in February 2009 after several months of occupation, the Mason provided the crew with medical and food support. In early 2011, the destroyer moved alongside the USS Enterprise (CVN-65) in European waters and further into the Indian Ocean, where the group was used to keep the sea lanes clear. After the unrest in Libya , the Mason was withdrawn from the Enterprise combat group in March 2011 with the USS Providence (SSN-719) and sent back to the Mediterranean through the Suez Canal.

The Mason was the target of a missile attack in the Red Sea off Yemen on October 9, 2016 , in which two missiles were launched in the direction of the ship, which was at least twelve nautical miles from the coast. Both missiles crashed into the sea before reaching the destroyer. Another attack took place on October 12th, the same day the US Navy deployed Tomahawk cruise missiles from the destroyer USS Nitze against three radar stations on the Jeminite coast, which were believed to have the fire control data for the previous attacks on the USS Mason delivered.

Armament

For defense against approaching missiles, the ship received the RIM-162 Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile (ESSM) anti - aircraft missiles, which are fired from the Vertical Launching System . For further air defense, a close-in-weapon system in the form of the Phalanx MK 15 RAM was subsequently installed behind the aft chimney structure in 2007 , which was not originally intended for construction from DDG 85 (Block IV).

Web links

Commons : USS Mason  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Entry in the Naval Vessel Register (Engl.)
• official website (English).

Individual evidence

1. ^ Dan Lamothe: Missiles from rebel-held Yemen territory fired at US Navy destroyer, Saudi military base. Washington Post October 10, 2016
2. ↑ Phil Stewart: US military strikes Yemen after missile attacks on US Navy ship. Reuters October 13, 206