USS McFaul

USS McFaul (DDG-74) is an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer in the United States Navy. She is named for U.S. Navy SEAL Chief Petty Officer Donald L. McFaul. This ship is the 24th destroyer of her class. USS McFaul was the 11th ship of this class to be built at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi, and construction began on 26 January 1996. She was launched on 18 January 1997 and was christened on 12 April 1997. On 25 April 1998 she had her commissioning ceremony at the Garden City Terminal in Savannah, Georgia. As of July 2020 the ship is part of Destroyer Squadron 26 based out of Naval Station Norfolk.

USS McFaul (DDG-74) underway in the Atlantic Ocean.
History
United States
Name: USS McFaul
Namesake: Donald L. McFaul
Ordered: 21 January 1993
Builder: Ingalls Shipbuilding, Pascagoula, Mississippi
Laid down: 26 January 1996
Launched: 18 January 1997
Acquired: 23 February 1998
Commissioned: 25 April 1998
Motto: Courage, Honor, Sacrifice
Status: in active service
Badge:
General characteristics
Class and type: Arleigh Burke-class destroyer
Displacement:
  • Light: approx. 6,783 tons
  • Full: approx. 8,915 tons
Length: 505 ft (154 m)
Beam: 66 ft (20 m)
Draft: 31 ft (9.4 m)
Propulsion: 4 General Electric LM2500-30 gas turbines, two shafts, 100,000 total shaft horsepower (75 MW)
Speed: >30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph)
Range:
Complement:
Sensors and
processing systems:
Electronic warfare
& decoys:
  • AN/SLQ-32(V)2 Electronic Warfare System
  • AN/SLQ-25 Nixie Torpedo Countermeasures
  • MK 36 MOD 12 Decoy Launching System
  • AN/SLQ-39 CHAFF Buoys
Armament:
Aircraft carried: Cannot embark rotary wing aircraft, but is equipped with a flight deck that allows a single SH-60 Seahawk helicopter to conduct underway replenishment.

[1]

History

On 22 August 2005, McFaul was involved in a minor collision with the destroyer USS Winston S. Churchill off the coast of Jacksonville, Florida. Both ships suffered minor damage, and no injuries were reported. Both ships returned to their homeport at Naval Station Norfolk under their own power.[2]

On 16 February 2007, McFaul was awarded the 2006 Battle "E" award.[3]

Humanitarian supplies being loaded on McFaul 20 August 2008, at Souda Bay, Crete for delivery to Georgia

On 24 August 2008, McFaul arrived in Batumi, Georgia, as part of Operation Assured Delivery to "deliver humanitarian relief supplies ... as part of the larger United States response to the government of Georgia request for humanitarian assistance" in the wake of the 2008 South Ossetia war.[4] McFaul offloaded nearly 155,000 pounds (70,000 kg) of supplies—including hygiene items, baby food and care supplies, bottled water, and milk—donated by the United States Agency for International Development.[4][5]

On 5 April 2010, McFaul responded to a distress call from the merchant vessel MV Rising Sun after she was attacked by pirates. McFaul was able to neutralize the threat, and captured ten suspected pirates and successfully rescued eight crewmembers from on board a dhow near Salalah, Oman. The pirates were then transferred to the destroyer USS Carney for a week before they were transferred back to McFaul where 30 days later they were turned over to the Somali Transitional Federal Government for subsequent prosecution.[6]

On 12 September 2012, McFaul was ordered to the coast of Libya in what the Pentagon called a "contingency" in case a strike was ordered. This was in response to the 2012 diplomatic missions attacks.[7]

Awards

Upgrade

On 12 November 2009, the Missile Defense Agency announced that McFaul would be upgraded during fiscal 2013 to RIM-161 Standard Missile 3 (SM-3) capability in order to function as part of the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System.[8]

Coat of arms

Shield

The shield has background of dark blue with Neptune being pulled by seahorses in a chariot over sea waves.

The traditional Navy colors were chosen for the shield because dark blue and gold represents the sea and excellence respectively. Neptune, God of the Sea, symbolizes maritime prowess and swift mobilization. Waves represent the coastline and highlight Chief Petty Officer McFaul's enclosure from sea by rubber raiding craft to block General Noriega's escape from Panama.

Crest

The crest consists of the shape of an array with a gold cross center. The array is split into quarters with palm leaves surrounding.

The crests AEGIS shape highlights the USS McFAUL's modern multi-mission warfare operations. The cross honors the Navy Cross awarded to Platoon Chief Petty Officer Donald L. McFaul for extraordinary heroism in action under fire and saving his teammate's life. The quarter colored crest are adapted from the Panamanian flag to represent operation "Just Cause" in the Republic of Panama. The quartered sections also honor McFaul's SEAL team, SEAL Team Four. The laurel symbolizes achievement and honor. The palm indicates to the location of Panama while symbolizing victory.

Motto

The motto is written on a scroll of blue that has a gold reverse side.

The ships motto is "Courage Honor Sacrifice".

Seal

The coat of arms in full color as in the blazon, upon a white background enclosed within a dark blue oval border edged on the outside with a gold rope and bearing the inscription "USS McFAUL" at the top and "DDG 74" in the base all gold.

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References
  1. "Our Ships". Destroyer Squadron 26. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  2. "USS MCFAUL (DDG 74) and USS WINSTON S. CHURCHILL (DDG 81) Collision". Damage Control Museum. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  3. Ludwick, Paula M. (19 February 2007). "Surface Force Ships, Crews Earn Battle "E"" (Press release). United States Navy. Retrieved 9 October 2015.
  4. "USS McFaul Brings Aid to Batumi, Georgia". U.S. Sixth Fleet (CNE-C6F) Public Affairs. 24 August 2008. Archived from the original on 27 August 2008. Retrieved 24 August 2008.
  5. "US warship reaches Georgian port". BBC News. 24 August 2008. Retrieved 24 August 2008.
  6. McMarr, Rachel (4 April 2010). "USS McFaul Captures Suspected Pirates, Rescues Crew" (Press release). United States Navy. Retrieved 20 September 2010.
  7. Starr, Barbara (12 September 2012). "US moving Navy destroyers off coast of Libya". CNN. Retrieved 12 September 2012.
  8. Ewing, Philip (12 November 2009). "MDA announces next 6 BMD ships". Navy Times. Retrieved 9 October 2015.
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