USS Knox (FF-1052)
 USS Knox (FF-1052) | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States
| |
| Namesake: | Commodore Dudley Wright Knox |
| Ordered: | 22 July 1964 |
| Builder: | Todd Pacific Shipyards, Seattle, Washington |
| Laid down: | 5 October 1965 |
| Launched: | 19 November 1966 |
| Sponsored by: | Mrs. Peter A. Sturtevant, granddaughter of Commodore Knox |
| Acquired: | 28 March 1969 |
| Commissioned: | 12 April 1969 |
| Decommissioned: | 14 February 1992 |
| Reclassified: | As frigate (FF) 30 June 1975 |
| Struck: | 11 January 1995 |
| Fate: | Sunk as target, 7 August 2007 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type: | Knox-class frigate |
| Displacement: | 3020 tons standard, 4163 tons full |
| Length: |
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| Beam: | 47′ (14 m) |
| Draft: | 24.75′ (7.5m) |
| Propulsion: |
|
| Speed: | 27+ knots |
| Range: | 4,500 miles (7,242 km) |
| Complement: | 13 officers, 211 men |
| Sensors and processing systems: |
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| Electronic warfare & decoys: | AN/SLQ-32 Electronics Warfare System |
| Armament: |
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| Aircraft carried: | 1 DASH drone helicopter, later 1 SH-2 LAMPS I helicopter |
USS Knox (DE-1052/FF-1052) was the prototype and lead ship in a new class of destroyer escorts in the United States Navy. She was named for Commodore Dudley Wright Knox and was the second US Navy ship named USS Knox.
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″/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. Most ships also had the 3-inch (76 mm) gun replaced by an eight-cell BPDMS missile launcher in the early 1970s.[3]
Construction and career
Knox was laid down 5 October 1965, by Todd Pacific Shipyards, Seattle, Washington; launched 19 November 1966; sponsored by Mrs. Peter A. Sturtevant, granddaughter of Commodore Knox; and was commissioned on 12 April 1969 with Commander William A. Lamm in command.
Knox performed search and rescue operations and provided evacuation, blockade, and surveillance support, when necessary, for the Pacific Fleet. In April 1975 Knox participated in Operation Eagle Pull, the evacuation of Phnom Penh, Cambodia.[4] Knox was redesignated a frigate on 30 June 1975 as FF-1052.
Disposition
Decommissioned on 14 February 1992, Knox was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 11 January 1995. NAVSEA temporarily placed the Knox on the donation hold list but removed her from the list around 2003.
Knox was sunk as a target off Guam during an exercise on 7 August 2007.
Awards, citations and campaign ribbons
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Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation (with two bronze service stars) |
 |
Navy Expeditionary Medal |
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National Defense Service Medal (with one bronze service star) |
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Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (with one bronze service star) |
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Vietnam Service Medal (with one bronze service star) |
 |
Humanitarian Service Ribbon |
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Sea Service Deployment Ribbon |
 |
Vietnam Campaign Medal |
Reference : USS Knox on NavSource.org
Gallery
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_underway_in_1969.jpg)
Knox in 1969.
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USS Chicago (CG-11) passes tow line to Knox after Knox was disabled by a JP-5 fire in engineering spaces on 4 March 1971 while en route from Guam to Hawaii.
Notes
- ↑ Friedman, pp. 357–60, 425
- ↑ Gardiner, Chumley & Budzbon, p. 598
- ↑ Friedman, pp. 360–61; Gardiner, Chumley & Budzbon, p. 598
- ↑ By Sea, Air and Land: An Illustrated History of the U.S. Navy and the war in Southeast Asia Chapter 5: The Final Curtain, 1973–1975
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 incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here.
- 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.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to USS Knox (FF-1052). |
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