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USS ''Williams'' (DE-372) was a acquired by the U.S. Navy during World War II. The primary purpose of the destroyer escort was to escort and protect ships in convoy, in addition to other tasks as assigned, such as patrol or radar picket. She was named in honor of Rear Admiral George Washington Williams, who was awarded the Navy Cross for his World War I efforts. She was laid down on 5 June 1944 at Orange, Texas, by the Consolidated Steel Corp.; launched on 22 August 1944; sponsored by Mrs. E. Willoughby Middleton, the first cousin of ''Rear Admiral Williams''; and commissioned on 11 November 1944, Lt. Comdr. L. F. Loutrel in command. == World War II Pacific Theatre operations == Following shakedown out of Great Sound, Bermuda, ''Williams'' underwent post-shakedown availability at Boston, Massachusetts, before shifting to New London, Connecticut, on 11 January 1945. Departing on the 19th, she moved to Newport, Rhode Island, to rendezvous with , and got underway on the 30th for Panama. ''Williams'' escorted the attack transport to Balboa, in the Panama Canal Zone, and subsequently sailed for the U.S. West Coast in company with , arriving at San Diego, California, on 7 February. ''Williams'' soon steamed independently to Hawaii, arriving at Pearl Harbor on 16 February. Following a period of training and minor repairs, the destroyer escort pushed on for the New Hebrides before escorting a group of LCI's from Espiritu Santo to Lunga Point from 25 to 27 March. Returning via Tulagi to Espiritu Santo on the 30th, ''Williams'' shifted to Noumea soon thereafter, to rendezvous with and escort the repair ship to Ulithi where they arrived on 15 April. After shifting to Manus Island, in the Admiralties, upon the conclusion of this escort mission, ''Williams'' convoyed to Guam which she reached on 25 April, before escorting to Eniwetok, and eventually returning to Manus on 6 May. Four days later, the busy escort vessel departed the Admiralties with , , and , bound for the Philippines escorting Transport Division 11. While en route on the afternoon of 15 May, ships in the group sighted a derelict mine and sank it with gunfire. The escorts delivered their charges at Leyte on 16 May, and ''Williams'' subsequently sailed for Hollandia and Manus, arriving at the latter on 30 May. Her respite in the Admiralties ended on 4 June when she got underway again and joined sister ship ''Presley'' in escorting a task unit bound for Tinian with ground forces of the Army Air Force 20th Bomber Command embarked. Completing this mission on the 7th, ''Williams'' operated between Manus and the Marshalls into the latter part of June when she escorted to Eniwetok. 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 Williams (DE-372)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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