USS Jenkins (DD-447)

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USS Jenkins (DD-447) off Mare Island on January 15, 1944
USS Jenkins (DD-447) off Mare Island on January 15, 1944
Overview
Type destroyer
Shipyard

Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company

Keel laying November 27, 1941
Launch June 21, 1942
1. Period of service flag
period of service

July 31, 1942 -
July 2, 1969

Whereabouts Sold for demolition on February 26, 1971
Technical specifications
displacement

2,100  ts

length

114.7 meters

width

12.2 meters

Draft

5.4 meters

crew

329

drive
speed

38 kn

Range

6,500  nautical miles (11,700 km) at 15 knots

Armament

When commissioning:
Nickname

Mighty J

The USS Jenkins (DD-447) was a destroyer for the US Navy . During her service between 1942 and 1969, she took part in World War II , the Korean War and the Vietnam War. She belonged to the Fletcher class consisting of 175 ships . In 1971 it was sold for demolition.

Namesake

Rear Admiral Thornton A. Jenkins (1811-1893) was an officer in the US Navy and served in the American-Mexican War and the American Civil War .

technology

Hull and drive

The hull of the USS Jenkins was 114.7 m long and 12.2 m wide. The draft was 5.4 m, the displacement was 2,100 tons . The ship was powered by two General Electric steam turbines, and the steam was generated in four Babcock & Wilcox boilers. The power was 60,000 shaft horsepower, the top speed was 38 knots .

Armament and Electronics

The main armament of the USS Jenkins when it was commissioned was its five 5-inch / 127-mm Mark 30 individual turrets. There were also various anti-aircraft guns , which were reinforced in the course of the war. In 1948/49 the ship was converted into a submarine destroyer and received increased anti-submarine armament, including a Mk. 108 anti-submarine rocket launcher in front of the bridge.

The USS Jenkins was equipped with radar . An SG and an SC radar were mounted on the mast above the bridge, with which aircraft could be located at distances between 15 and 30 nautical miles and ships between 10 and 22 nautical miles.

history

The USS Jenkins was laid down at Federal Shipbuilding & Drydock Co. in Kearny , NJ on November 27, 1941 , and launched on June 21, 1942. The godmother was Marion Parker Embry. On July 31, 1942, the destroyer was put into service under the command of Lieutenant Commander HF Miller.

1942

After completing training, USS Jenkins left Casco Bay , Maine on October 24, 1942 to escort a convoy to North Africa. On November 8, it secured the heavy units while bombarding land targets in the Casablanca area . After this successful mission, the destroyer returned to New York on November 19, where the USS Jenkins was equipped for transfer to the Pacific.

1943

On January 4, 1943 she reached Noumea , New Caledonia and was used for convoy and patrol service in the Solomon Islands and the Coral Sea. Her first landing operation began on June 29th when she and other units assisted the landing on New Georgia . During the Japanese air strikes, the USS Jenkins shot down several aircraft.

USS Jenkins was assigned to Task Group 36.1 and left Tulagi on July 5 to intercept a Japanese group of destroyers and transports that was supposed to bring reinforcements to Kolombangara . In the following battle in the Kula Gulf , a Japanese destroyer was sunk and another ran aground. On the American side, the light cruiser USS Helena was sunk by torpedoes. On July 18, 1943, the USS Jenkins was dispatched to support the damaged aircraft mother ship USS Chincoteague . Despite Japanese air strikes, the destroyer escorted the USS Chincoteague safely to Espiritu Santo . The next four months, the USS Jenkins spent convoy, exercises and preparations for the operation against the Gilbert Islands . During the landings at Makin and Tarawa on November 15, it secured Rear Admiral Radford's aircraft carrier group, which carried out air strikes on the islands. On December 4, the carrier group attacked Kwajalein and Wotje . During the attacks, the aircraft carrier USS Lexington was hit by a torpedo. USS Jenkins escorted the damaged carrier to Pearl Harbor, where they arrived on December 9th.

1944

The destroyer ran out again on January 25 and accompanied a group of tankers that supplied the ships used with fuel during the Battle of the Marshall Islands . USS Jenkins stayed with the group through February. In March, she used her artillery against targets on Bougainville . On April 20, she left Eagle Harbor to the Task Force 77 to meet the April 22 landings at Hollandia and Aitape in New Guinea conducted. During the summer, the USS Jenkins was involved in the bombardment of land targets during the landings at Noemfoor , Sansapor and Morotai and carried out patrols and escorts during these operations. During the Battle of Leyte it served as a radar outpost and was used as a fighter command ship. On December 28, the USS Jenkins was damaged by an enemy coastal battery while landing on Luzon .

1945

On January 12, 1945 she returned to Leyte. Ten days later she ran out for anti-submarine hunting operations in the Gulf of Lingayen . From February 13th, she covered minesweeping operations and fought land targets on Corregidor . It supported the landings in the Philippines through artillery and anti-submarine operations until the end of April . On April 24th, she left Subic Bay to cover minesweeping and amphibious operations in the Celebes Sea off Borneo. Before Tarakan , USS Jenkins ran into a mine and returned to Subic Bay for repairs. On June 18, 1945, she headed for the United States to complete the remaining repairs. She reached San Diego on July 8th and stayed on the west coast until the end of the war.

1946-1950

On May 1, 1946, the USS Jenkins was decommissioned and assigned to the reserve fleet.

Korean War

The outbreak of the Korean War led to the re-commissioning of the ship. On November 2, 1951, Commander CF McGivern took command of the destroyer, which was reclassified to the DDE . USS Jenkins left San Diego on February 25, 1952 for training voyages in Pearl Harbor. After completing her training, she moved to Japan, where she arrived on June 12th. During the summer she was part of Task Force 77 . On December 5, she returned to Pearl Harbor, where she stayed until November 10, 1953, to be used again in the Far East until June 15, 1954.

1954-1964

Between 1954 and 1964, the USS Jenkins was part of the US 7th Fleet in the Far East and had its home port in Pearl Harbor.

Vietnam War

The USS Jenkins in 1965

In April 1965, the ship was used to patrol the South Vietnamese coast off Da Nang and was part of Task Force 71.

On February 9, 1966, the ship left Hawaii to provide fire support to the U.S. Marines in South Vietnam on February 21. She entered Pearl Harbor on July 22nd and underwent a major overhaul between September 11th and February 6th, 1967.

From April 18, 1967 to October 4, she was again used in Taiwan and Vietnam. After reaching Pearl Harbor on October 23, 1967, the USS Jenkins operated in the waters around Hawaii. On August 5, 1968, she took course again on Southeast Asia and replaced the USS Rich on September 4, 1968 from the Search and Rescue Service (SAR) in the Gulf of Tonkin . She remained in SAR service until December 26, 1968. Then she was used for fire support. On January 18, 1969, she began her return journey to Pearl Harbor, where she entered on February 28, 1969.

USS Jenkins was decommissioned in San Diego on June 2, 1969, and removed from the fleet list on the same day

Whereabouts

Originally intended for sale to a friendly nation, the ship was sold to Campbell Machine Corp., San Diego for scrapping on February 26, 1971.

Awards

USS Jenkins received 14 Battle Stars during World War II, one Battle Star in the Korean War, and five Battle Stars for its service in Vietnam.

literature

Web links