|
USS ''Wickes'' (DD-578), a ''Fletcher''-class destroyer, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for Captain Lambert Wickes (1735–1777), who served in the Continental Navy. ''Wickes'' was laid down on 15 April 1942 at Orange, Tex., by the Consolidated Steel Corporation; launched on 13 September 1942, sponsored by Miss Catherine Young Wickes, the great-great-grandniece of Capt. Wickes; and commissioned on 16 June 1943, Lieutenant Commander William Y. Allen, Jr., in command. Departing New Orleans. La. on 13 July, ''Wickes'' sailed for Cuban waters and reached Guantanamo Bay three days later. She conducted shakedown training until 11 August, when she set sail for Charleston, S.C., where she commenced her post-shakedown availability. ''Wickes'' then trained into the autumn, ranging from Trinidad, in the British West Indies to Casco Bay, Maine; and from Norfolk, Virginia, to NS Argentia, Newfoundland, from 1 September to 6 November. Between drills at sea, the ship underwent brief periods of repair in the navy yards at Boston and Norfolk. On 6 November, ''Wickes'' departed the Boston Navy Yard in company with the small aircraft carrier ''Cabot'' (CVL-28) and sister destroyer ''Bell'' (DD-587)—their destination: the Canal Zone. Transiting the Panama Canal between 12 and 15 November, the destroyer reached San Diego, California, on the 22d, but pushed on for the Hawaiian Islands and reached Pearl Harbor on the 27th. Over the ensuing days, the destroyer exercised in those local waters, conducting antisubmarine and antiaircraft drills. On several occasions during this training, her routine was interrupted by orders to rendezvous with and augment the screens of various task groups returning from the operations which wrested the Gilbert Islands from Japan. == North Pacific campaign December 1943 – August 1944 == ''Wickes''—in company with sister-ships ''Charles J. Badger'' (DD-657) and ''Isherwood'' (DD-520)—departed Pearl Harbor on 10 December 1943 and set a course for the Aleutian Islands. Over the next few months, ''Wickes'' operated in the Aleutians. To her commanding officer and crew, the duties performed seemed "uneventful", their "greatest battles", he recalled were fought against the elements and the "dreary monotony of Aleutian duty". Such an enervating routine was interrupted by three bombardments conducted by Task Force 94 (TF 94) against the Kuril Islands, Paramushiro and Matsuwa. The first raid hit Paramushiro on 4 February 1944 and marked the first time that ''Wickes'' made contact with the enemy. She bombarded Japanese targets in the town of Kurabuzaki on the southern tip of the island. Early in March, ''Wickes''—in company with other units of TF 94—made another sweep into Japan's backyard. On the lookout for Japanese shipping as they steamed through the Sea of Okhotsk, the task force found slim pickings before again shelling targets on Paramushiro on 4 March. Another bombardment was slated to take place there, but unfavorable weather made it impossible. Two months later, ''Wickes guns once more joined in a cannonade against Japanese facilities on Paramushiro and at Matsuwa, on 26 May and 13 June, respectively. Darkness and fog presented difficulties for the American forces but did not constitute insurmountable difficulties. On 2 August, while TF 94 was again steaming to shell Matsuwa, ''Wickes'' made visual contact with a "snooper", a Mitsubishi G4M "Betty" bomber. On van picket station, the destroyer opened fire on the intruder—the ship's first antiaircraft action. Unfortunately, the plane managed to escape and, together with the worsening weather, nullified TF 94's chances of making an undetected approach to Matsuwa. The bombardment was accordingly canceled. ''Wickes tour in one of the most difficult operating areas on the globe finally ended when she "very happily" departed Adak, Alaska, on 7 August, headed south in company with other units of Destroyer Squadron 49 (DesRon 49). Reaching San Francisco on 16 August, ''Wickes'' moored at Pier 36. There, she received minor repairs from the facilities and workmen of the Matson Navigation Company, under the eye of the Assistant Industrial Manager, Mare Island Navy Yard. During the refit, the ship received a "dazzle" camouflage pattern, designed to confuse observers as to the ship's heading and speed. 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 Wickes (DD-578)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|