Rudderow-class destroyer escort

USS Rudderow (DE-224)
Class overview
Name: Rudderow class destroyer escort
Operators:  United States Navy
 Republic of China Navy
 Republic of Korea Navy
 Colombian Navy
Preceded by: Edsall-class destroyer escort
Succeeded by: John C. Butler-class destroyer escort
Planned: 252
Completed: 22
Cancelled: 180
General characteristics
Type:Destroyer Escort
Displacement:1,740 tons (1,770 metric tons) (fully loaded)
Length:306 ft (93.3 m) (overall)
Beam:36 ft 6 in (11.1 m)
Draft:11 ft (3.4 m) (fully loaded)
Propulsion:General Electric steam turbo-electric drive engine
Two 3-bladed propellers solid manganese-bronze 8 ft 5 in (2.6 m) diameter
Speed:24 knots (most ships could attain 26/27 knots)
Range:5,500 nautical miles at 15 knots (10,200 km at 28 km/h)
Sensors and
processing systems:
  • Radar: Type SL surface search fixed to mast above yard arm and type SA air search only fitted to certain ships.
  • Sonar: Type 128D or Type 144 both in retractable dome..
  • Direction Finding: MF direction finding antenna fitted in front of the bridge and HF/DF Type FH 4 antenna fitted on top of mast.
Armament:
  • Main guns: 2 x 5 inch /38 dual purpose mount
  • Anti-aircraft guns: 4 x 40 mm Bofors were fitted in the twin mounts in the 'B' and 'X' position. 10 x 20 mm single mount Oerlikon cannon positioned four next to the bridge behind 'B' gun mount, two on each side of the ship in sponsons just abaft the funnel, and two on the fantail just forward of the depth charge racks.
  • Torpedo tubes: three 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes in a triple mount were mounted just aft of the stack.
  • Hedgehog: British-designed ahead-throwing anti-submarine mortar which fired 24 bombs ahead of the ship, this was situated on the main deck just aft of 'A' gun mount.
  • Depth charges: Approximately 200 were carried. Two sets of double rails each side of the ship at the stern, each set held 24 charges; eight K gun depth charge throwers each holding 5 charges, were situated each side of the ship just forward of the stern rails.

The Rudderow class destroyer escorts were destroyer escorts launched in the United States in 1943 to 1945. Of this class, 22 were completed as destroyer escorts, and 50 were completed as Crosley-class high speed transport and were re-classified as high speed transport APDs. One ship was converted to an APD after completion. They served in World War II as convoy escorts and anti-submarine warfare ships.

History

The lead ship was USS Rudderow (DE-224) which was launched on 14 October 1943. The ships had General Electric steam turbo-electric drive engines. The ships were built at various shipyards in the United States, including the Philadelphia Navy Yard and Defoe Shipbuilding Company. They were very similar to the Buckley-class destroyer escort, having the same hull and machinery. The main differences were the Rudderows had two 5-inch guns and two twin-40 mm mounts, instead of the three 3-inch guns and one twin-40 mm or one quad-1.1 inch mount of the Buckleys. The class was also known as the TEV type from their Turbo-Electric drive and 5-inch (V) guns.[1]

The final 180 of the class were canceled near the end of the war. After World War II, some of the surviving units of this class were transferred to Taiwan, South Korea, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and other countries. The rest were retained by the US Navy's reserve fleet until they were decommissioned.

Ships

Name Number Launched Commissioned Decommissioned Fate
Rudderow DE-224 14 October 1943 15 May 1944 15 January 1947 scrapped 1970
Day DE-225 14 October 1943 10 June 1944 16 May 1946 sunk as target, March 1969
Chaffee DE-230 27 November 1943 9 May 1944 15 April 1946 scrapped 1948
Hodges DE-231 12 December 1943 27 May 1944 22 June 1946 scrapped 1973
Riley DE-579 20 October 1943 13 March 1944 15 January 1947 Taiwanese Tai Yuan, 1968, scrapped 1992
Leslie L.B. Knox DE-580 8 January 1944 22 March 1944 15 June 1946 scrapped 1973
McNulty DE-581 8 January 1944 31 March 1944 2 July 1946 sunk as target in November 1972
Metivier DE-582 12 January 1944 7 April 1944 1 June 1946 scrapped 1969
George A. Johnson DE-583 12 January 1944 15 April 1944 September 1957 scrapped 1966
Charles J. Kimmel DE-584 15 January 1944 20 April 1944 15 January 1947 sunk as target in November 1969
Daniel A. Joy DE-585 15 January 1944 28 April 1944 1 May 1965 scrapped 1966
Lough DE-586 22 January 1944 2 May 1944 24 June 1946 scrapped 1970
Thomas F. Nickel DE-587 22 January 1944 9 June 1944 26 February 1958 scrapped 1973
Peiffer DE-588 26 January 1944 15 June 1944 1 June 1946 sunk as target in May 1967
Tinsman DE-589 29 January 1944 26 June 1944 11 May 1946 scrapped 1973
DeLong DE-684 23 November 1943 31 December 1943 8 August 1969 sunk as target in February 1970
Coates DE-685 9 December 1943 24 January 1944 30 June 1962 sunk as target in September 1971
Eugene E. Elmore DE-686 23 December 1943 4 February 1944 31 May 1946 scrapped 1969
Holt DE-706 15 February 1944 9 June 1944 2 July 1946 Korean Chung Nam, June 1963, scrapped 1984
Jobb DE-707 4 March 1944 4 July 1944 13 May 1946 scrapped 1970
Parle DE-708 25 March 1944 29 July 1944 1 July 1970 sunk as target in October 1970

See also

References

  1. ↑ U.S. Destroyers, an illustrated design history by Norman Friedman, ISBN 1-55750-442-3 Chapter 7

External links

Media related to Rudderow Class Destroyer Escorts at Wikimedia Commons