USS Dewey (DDG-45)

USS Dewey (DLG-14/DDG-45) was a Farragut-class guided missile destroyer in the United States Navy. She was named in honor of George Dewey, the United States' only Admiral of the Navy.[1] She was the third of four ships whose namesake was Admiral Dewey.[2] The ship's motto was The First and Finest.

For other ships with the same name, see USS Dewey.

USS Dewey (DDG-45)
History
United States
Name:	Dewey
Namesake:	George Dewey
Builder:	Bath Iron Works
Laid down:	10 August 1957
Launched:	30 November 1958
Acquired:	2 December 1959
Commissioned:	7 December 1959
Decommissioned:	31 August 1990
Stricken:	20 November 1992
Identification:	DLG-14/DDG-45
Motto:	Pax Propter Vim
Fate:	sold for scrapping, 15 April 1994
Badge:
General characteristics
Class and type:	Farragut-class guided missile destroyer
Displacement:	5,800 tons
Length:	512.5 ft (156.2 m)
Beam:	52 ft (16 m)
Draft:	25 ft (7.6 m)
Propulsion:	4 x 1200psi boilers 2 geared turbines
Speed:	36.5 knots (67.6 km/h; 42.0 mph)
Range:	4,500 nautical miles (8,300 km; 5,200 mi) at 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph)
Complement:	377 (21 officers + 356 enlisted)
Sensors and processing systems:	AN/SPS-48C air-search radar AN/SPS-49 air-search radar AN/SPG-55B fire control radar AN/SPG-53F gun fire control radar
Electronic warfare & decoys:	AN/SLQ-32
Armament:	1 x Mk 42 5 in (130 mm)/54 caliber gun Mark 46 torpedoes from two Mk-32 triple mounts 1 x Mk 16 ASROC missile launcher 1 x Mk 10 Mod.0 missile launcher for RIM-2 Terrier / Standard (ER) Missiles 2 x Mk 141 Harpoon missile launchers

Construction and design

Dewey was laid down on 10 August 1957 by Bath Iron Works of Bath, Maine.[1] She was launched on 30 November 1958, sponsored by Mrs. K. St. George, the United States Representative from New York State.[1] Dewey was commissioned on 7 December 1959, Commander Elmo R. Zumwalt, Jr., in command.[1] Dewey was the ninth Farragut-class destroyer (also known as the Coontz class).[3]

Commander Zumwalt later, in 1970, became the youngest man to serve as Chief of Naval Operations.[3]

The design of the Farragut-class destroyers was closer in size to a World War II cruiser rather than a destroyer; this type was originally termed "frigate" by the U.S. Navy.[4] Other navies used the term "frigate" for destroyer-sized ships specialized in anti-submarine warfare; the U.S. Navy used this term for fast-carrier anti-aircraft warfare ships.[4] The DLGs succeeded the missile-less DLs.[4]

Service

USS Dewey in 1960.

For the first sixth months of 1960, Dewey was engaged in training operations off the New England coast, the Virginia Capes, and in the Caribbean Sea, preparing Dewey for her role in the Atlantic Fleet.[3] She was decommissioned on 21 November 1969, and recommissioned 31 March 1971.[5] On 30 June 1975, Dewey, then commissioned as a guided missile frigate, hull number DLG-14, was reclassified as a guided missile destroyer, receiving hull number DDG-45.[3]

Decommissioning

Dewey was decommissioned 31 August 1990 and struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 20 November 1992. Dewey was sold to J&L Metals, Wilmington, North Carolina on 15 April 1994 for $255,459.43 and was scrapped shortly afterwards.

References

Citations

1. "Dewey". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Department of the Navy. Retrieved 7 June 2009.
2. "USS Dewey - DDG 105". globalsecurity.org. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
3. "USS Dewey (DDG 45)". navysite.de. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
4. "Destroyer OnLine - The Destroyer Leader - Coontz (DLG) class". Destroyers OnLine. Retrieved 8 June 2009.
5. Willshaw, Fred; Paul R. Yarnall. "Destroyer Photo Index DL-14 / DLG-14 / DDG-45". navsource.org. Retrieved 8 June 2009.

Sources

• Media related to USS Dewey (DDG-45) at Wikimedia Commons
• 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.
• This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.