USS Joseph Hewes (FF-1078)

ROCS Lan Yang (FFG-935) is a Chi Yang-class frigate of the Republic of China Navy. She was formerly in service as the USS Joseph Hewes (FF-1078), a Knox-class frigate of the United States Navy.

For other ships with the same name, see USS Joseph Hewes.

USS Joseph Hewes (FF-1078)
History
United States
NameJoseph Hewes
NamesakeJoseph Hewes
Ordered25 August 1966
BuilderAvondale Shipyard, Westwego, Louisiana
Laid down14 May 1969
Launched7 March 1970
Acquired6 April 1971
Commissioned24 April 1971
Decommissioned30 June 1994
Stricken11 January 1995
FateTransferred to Taiwan
General characteristics
Class and typeKnox-class frigate
Displacement3,211 tons (4,192 full load)
Length438 ft (134 m)
Beam46 ft 9 in (14.25 m)
Draught24 ft 9 in (7.54 m)
Propulsion
  • 2 × CE 1200psi boilers
  • 1 Westinghouse geared turbine
  • 1 shaft, 35,000 SHP (26 MW)
Speedover 27 knots
Complement18 officers, 267 enlisted
Sensors and
processing systems
  • AN/SPS-40 Air Search Radar
  • AN/SPS-67 Surface Search Radar
  • AN/SQS-26 Sonar
  • AN/SQR-18 Towed array sonar system
  • Mk68 Gun Fire Control System
Electronic warfare
& decoys		AN/SLQ-32 Electronics Warfare System
Armament
Aircraft carriedone SH-2 Seasprite (LAMPS I) helicopter

Construction

Constructed by Avondale Shipyard, Westwego, Louisiana and laid down 14 May 1969, launched 7 March 1970, and delivered 6 April 1971. She was commissioned 24 April 1971, christened by Mrs. Caroline Groves Gayler.

Design and description

The Knox class design was derived from the Brooke-class frigate modified to extend range and without a long-range missile system. The ships had an overall length of 438 feet (133.5 m), a beam of 47 feet (14.3 m) and a draft of 25 feet (7.6 m). They displaced 4,066 long tons (4,131 t) at full load. Their crew consisted of 13 officers and 211 enlisted men.[1]

The ships were equipped with one Westinghouse geared steam turbine that drove the single propeller shaft. The turbine was designed to produce 35,000 shaft horsepower (26,000 kW), using steam provided by 2 C-E boilers, to reach the designed speed of 27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph). The Knox class had a range of 4,500 nautical miles (8,300 km; 5,200 mi) at a speed of 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph).[2]

The Knox-class ships were armed with a 5"/54 caliber Mark 42 gun forward and a single 3-inch/50-caliber gun aft. They mounted an eight-round ASROC launcher between the 5-inch (127 mm) gun and the bridge. Close-range anti-submarine defense was provided by two twin 12.75-inch (324 mm) Mk 32 torpedo tubes. The ships were equipped with a torpedo-carrying DASH drone helicopter; its telescoping hangar and landing pad were positioned amidships aft of the mack. Beginning in the 1970s, the DASH was replaced by a SH-2 Seasprite LAMPS I helicopter and the hangar and landing deck were accordingly enlarged. Joseph Hewes had the first deployed LAMPS helicopter in the history of the Navy. Aft of the flight deck was an eight-cell BPDMS missile launcher for Sea Sparrow missiles, later replaced by Phalanx CIWS.[3]

Modifications

The USS Joseph Hewes (FF-1078) and subsequent ships of the Knox-class frigate class were modified to enable them to serve as flagships. The primary change was a slightly different arrangement of the "Officer's Country" staterooms with additional staterooms in a new 01 level structure which replaced the open deck between the boats. The stateroom on the port side under the bridge was designated as a "flag" stateroom, with additional staterooms for flag staff when serving as a flagship. These ships have been referred to as the Joseph Hewes-sub-class .

Service history

On 15 February 1985, Joseph Hewes arrived to the scene where the M/V A. Regina, a passenger cargo ferry ran aground on a reef off Isla de Mona. Due to surf conditions, Joseph Hewes was unable to use its boats to transport the evacuees which had landed on the nearby island. Joseph Hewes remained on scene to assist and using its helicopter, delivered hot food, soft drinks, and water to the A. Regina evacuees on Mona Island.[4]

ROCN Lan Yang (FFG-935) Leaving Keelung Harbor
ROCN Hughes 500 6910 Carried on Lan Yang (FFG-935) Helicopter Deck

The ship was decommissioned 30 June 1994 and struck 11 January 1995. She was disposed of through the Security Assistance Program (SAP), transferred, cash sale, ex-US fleet hull foreign military sale, transferred to as Taiwan as Lan Yang (FF-935).

Awards

See also

Notes
  1. Friedman, pp. 357–60, 425
  2. Gardiner, Chumley & Budzbon, p. 598
  3. Friedman, pp. 360–61; Gardiner, Chumley & Budzbon, p. 598
  4. https://www.ntsb.gov/safety/safety-recs/recletters/M86_17.pdf

References
  • Friedman, Norman (1982). U.S. Destroyers: An Illustrated Design History. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-733-X.
  • Gardiner, Robert; Chumbley, Stephen & Budzbon, Przemysław (1995). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1947-1995. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-132-7.
  • This article includes information collected from the Naval Vessel Register, which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain. The entry can be found here.
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