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USS ''Nelson'' (DD-623), a ''Gleaves''-class destroyer, was the only ship of the United States Navy to be named for Rear Admiral Charles P. Nelson, who served during the Spanish–American War and World War I. ''Nelson'' was laid down 7 May 1942 at the Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company, Kearny, New Jersey, launched 15 September 1942 sponsored by Mrs. Nelson Stewart, daughter of R.Adm. Nelson, and commissioned 26 November 1942, Lieutenant Commander M. M. Riker in command. After shakedown along the Atlantic coast, ''Nelson'' reported to the U.S. Atlantic Fleet 21 January 1943. Through 29 May, she operated on convoy duty as flagship of Destroyer Squadron 17, making runs to Bermuda, Port of Spain, Trinidad, Dakar, French West Africa; Aruba, Netherlands West Indies; Casablanca; and Gibraltar. == Invasion of Sicily, 1943 == Upon completion of a short training period at Norfolk, Virginia, ''Nelson'' got underway 7 June to take part in the invasion of Sicily. During the crossing she screened the cruiser ''Boise'' (CL-47), arriving at Algiers on 20 June. Serving as flagship for Commander Task Force 81 (TF 81) during the Sicily operation, ''Nelson'' was assigned duty with the central part of the Western Task Force. This group was to land assault troops on beachheads near Gela, Sicily, to expand the captured area, and to seize the nearby airfield at Ponte Olivo. At 02:46 on 10 July the first assault waves hit the Gela beaches. Plunging in through the breakers, the shock troops encountered light opposition. But furious gunfire raked the follow-up waves. Caught in the blue-white glare of searchlights, landing craft were subjected to intense fire, and LCIs took direct hits. At 03:00 ''Nelson'' commenced figure eight patrols to the east of the transports. Shortly after dawn Axis aircraft joined the fight, flying out of the Acate River valley on the eastern coast and attempting to bomb and strafe Allied ships, landing craft, and beaches. ''Nelson'' fired sporadically at the planes throughout the day. At 12:30 she received word that ''Maddox'' (DD-622) had been sunk. Enemy aircraft continued the attack the next day, delivering a high level bombing attack on the ''Nelson''s area and obtaining a direct hit on the Liberty ship ''Robert Rowan''. By 23:02 the ships commenced laying a heavy smoke screen, and the Axis attacks were beaten off. German dive bombers buzzed in on a surprise attack from the northeast at 17:33 on the 12th, dropping bombs and making strafing runs. ''Nelson'' splashed one plane at 17:42 and an hour later departed in convoy for Algiers, North Africa. Returning to the battle area the 17th, she took up antisubmarine patrol station around Gela and Scoglitti until the 23rd, when she returned to Algiers. Later, on the 30th, she escorted troop ships into Palermo Harbor on the north coast of Sicily. During this operation she was harassed by constant German air attacks. At 05:48 on 1 August she opened fire on a single plane, splashing it with the third salvo. ''Nelson'' returned to New York 22 August, where Lt. Comdr. Thomas D. McGrath relieved Lt. Comdr. Riker of command 3 September. The ship was assigned to North Atlantic convoy runs for the winter. This duty took the destroyer to Belfast, Northern Ireland three times and to Greenock Bay, Scotland, and Gibraltar once each. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「USS Nelson (DD-623)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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