USS Laub (DD-613)

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USS Laub (DD-613)
USS Laub (DD-613)
Overview
Shipyard

Bethlehem Steel Co

Keel laying May 1, 1941
Launch April 28, 1942
1. Period of service flag
Commissioning October 24, 1942
Decommissioning February 2, 1946
Whereabouts scrapped
Technical specifications
displacement

1620  ts

length

106.20 m

width

11.00 m

Draft

5.40 m

crew

17 officers, 228 men

drive

4 boilers, 2 steam turbines , 2 shafts , 50,000 hp

speed

35  kn (65.8 km / h)

Armament


1 × fire control computer Mk 37 above the bridge
4 × 5 "guns (127 mm, L / 38) in stand-alone installation,
1 × 2 40 mm MK-1 machine cannons
2 × 5 21" torpedo tubes (533 mm, 3 × 4),
4 × 20 mm MK 4
automatic cannons, 2 × depth charge drain racks, 4 × depth charge launchers.

The USS Laub (DD-614) was a destroyer of the Benson-class destroyer of the US Navy . It was named after midshipman Henry Laub and the second ship to bear that name. The ship was christened by Miss Barbara Mohun Handley, a descendant of the namesake. First in command was Commander JF Gallaher.

After the necessary training trips, the "Laub" passed the Panama Canal and first reached Norfolk ( Virginia ). She left then New York ( New York escort) on February 5, a convoy to North Africa. After arriving in Casablanca, she first patrolled the African coast and then returned to the USA as an escort ship on March 14th . During this voyage on the way to the USA, the destroyer joined a group of escort ships on May 26, 1943, which was hunting a German submarine.

On June 11, the ship left New York again to join the Allied forces in the Mediterranean Sea, which were preparing for the invasion of Sicily . On July 5, the ship left Oran to secure the transport ships on the way to the Sicilian coast.

Four days later the landing in Sicily took place and the next day the "Laub" fended off a German bombing raid on the Allied landing zone together with other forces. Land target bombardments followed, severely damaging some strategic bridges. During this period, the "Laub" and other units managed to shoot down an enemy aircraft on July 11th.

The destroyer then moved to Mers-el-Kébir , where it arrived on July 15 and took on other tasks in the Mediterranean until it set off with a convoy to the USA on July 28 . After several voyages between North Africa and Great Britain, the ship returned to Oran to be used again in support of the Allied movements in the Mediterranean.

On November 6, 1943, six torpedo planes attacked a convoy protected by the "Laub" and were able to score several hits. The destroyer rushed to the aid of the torpedoed ships "Beatty", "Maraix", and "Ruys" and was able to save a total of 341 survivors.

From November 1943 to April 1944, the destroyer continued to perform escort duties in the Mediterranean and Atlantic, making several trips from the USA to Great Britain.

Back in Oran on May 2, the "Laub" sailed 10 days later together with the light cruiser USS Philadelphia off the Italian coast to bombard land targets in the Anzio area . She collided with the “Philadelphia” on May 23 and had to call for a temporary repair in Naples before moving to a shipyard in Boston . On December 22nd, 1943 the ship was back in Oran.

For the remainder of the war in Europe, the destroyer drove in a convoy and shot at land targets on the Franco-Italian coast. Then the ship left Oran on May 15, 1945 and returned to the United States, where it arrived in Boston on May 23. The move to the Caribbean followed with a training program for use against Japan. After the Japanese surrender, the "Laub" first went to Casco Bay, ( Maine ) and then to Charleston (South Carolina) for decommissioning , where it arrived on November 2, 1946. The ship was decommissioned on February 2, 1946 and assigned to the " Atlantic Reserve Fleet ".

On July 1, 1971, the "USS Laub" was removed from the list of ships and sold on January 14, 1974 for $ 160,667 to Boston Metals in Baltimore for demolition.

The foliage were awarded four Battle Stars .

Commanders

  • LCDR John Francis Gallaher: October 24, 1942 - September 1943 Oct 24 1942 - Sep 1943 (later Rear Admiral)
  • LCDR Alexander Guion Hay: September 1943 - March 1944
  • CDR Anthony Carroll Roessler: March 1944 - August 1945
  • LCDR Moore P. Huffman: August 1945-February 1946

Web links