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USS Badger (FF-1071)
Encyclopedia
USS Badger (FF-1071) was a Knox-class
destroyer escort
, originally designated as DE-1071 and reclassified as a frigate
in 1975 in the United States Navy
. Her primary mission of ASW
remained unchanged. This ship was not the first to bear the name. The first was named for Commodore Oscar C. Badger
(a cousin of Secretary of the Navy
George Edmund Badger
), the father of Rear Admiral
Charles J. Badger
, the son of the commodore and the father of the admiral, was also honored by the naming of the destroyer (q.v.), and the grandfather of Admiral Oscar C. Badger
. This Badger (FF-1071) honors all four men.
, Inc.; launched on 7 December 1968; sponsored by Mrs. Oscar C. Badger; and commissioned at Long Beach, California
, on 1 December 1970, Commander William L. Britton in command.
Badger completed fitting out at the Long Beach Naval Shipyard
in January 1971 and then spent most of the spring engaged in tests and shakedown training. She completed final contract trials in May, during which Badger set the speed record for Knox class frigates, over 30 knots. The following month, entered the Long Beach Naval Shipyard for post-shakedown availability. During that availability, she received extensive modifications including the addition of a basic point defense missile system (BPDMS) and of an independent variable depth sonar system. Because of those changes, Badger underwent a post-shakedown availability that lasted until mid-November. From that time until mid-March 1972, the destroyer escort conducted a series of underway tests and training evolutions and underwent readiness inspections. On 16 March 1972, she weighed anchor and stood out of Long Beach on her way to the Far East. Along the way, Badger stopped at Pearl Harbor
, Midway, and Guam before arriving in Subic Bay
on 7 April.
zone. She arrived in Danang, South Vietnam
, two days later and, after a four-hour layover, again got underway, bound for the northern gunline near the mouth of the Cua Viet River. She began gunfire support missions on the 11th and, on the 13th, received her first counterbattery fire. Two days later, she suffered superficial damage from a communist shore battery
after her five-inch gun had been put out of action by a fouled bore and an overheated barrel. Later that day, the ship headed back to Danang to have her five-inch (127 mm) gun barrel replaced by the repair ship . She returned to sea on the 16th and soon arrived back on the gunline. On the 19th, Badger was switched to plane guard duty for the aircraft carrier
in the Gulf of Tonkin
. That assignment lasted two days short of a month. On 17 May, destroyer escort relieved her, and Badger shaped a course for Sasebo, Japan
.
Following upkeep, Badger headed back to the combat zone on 17 July 1972. Two days later, she resumed gunfire support duties. During that assignment, the ocean escort
joined five other American ships in providing gunfire support for operations carried out in Military Region II by the South Vietnamese Army's 22d Division. On 9 August, she was assigned duty interdicting communist waterborne logistics and remained so engaged until 12 August when she relieved guided missile frigate as plane guard for Midway, once again headed for Subic Bay. The two ships reached their destination on 14 August but departed again the next day bound for Hong Kong
. Badger conducted an upkeep and liberty period at that port from 17 to 23 August and got underway on the latter day to return to the Philippines. She arrived in Subic Bay on 24 August for repairs before putting to sea on the 30th, bound for Vietnamese waters.
Upon her return to the combat zone, the warship took up position as escort for the guided missile cruiser on the middle SAR station. During that tour of duty
, she also kept an eye on two Chinese merchantmen in the area. When the guided missile frigate relieved Long Beach, Badger continued on station until 10 September, when she was relieved of middle SAR station escort duties by her sistership and proceeded to rendezvous with the carrier . Badger provided plane guard services for the carrier as she made her final air strikes
of the war and then escorted Hancock to Subic Bay, arriving there on 15 September. After four days in port, the destroyer escort put to sea and shaped a course for Yokosuka, Japan
, where she made an overnight stop on 22 and 23 September before setting sail for the United States in company with Hancock. After a nonstop voyage across the Pacific, highlighted by several fueling-at-sea operations, Badger arrived back in Long Beach on 4 October. The usual post-deployment stand-down ensued as did a restricted availability at the Todd Shipyard in Los Angeles, California
. The latter began on 8 January 1973 and included the conversion of her main propulsion system to Navy distillate fuel and the installation of a light airborne multipurpose system (LAMPS).
operating area. Normal west coast operations out of Long Beach occupied her time until 9 July, the day she got underway for her new home port, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The warship made the voyage in six days, entering Pearl on 14 July. Training in the Hawaiian operating area occupied her until early September. On 11 September, Badger put to sea to participate in the four-nation Exercise RIMPAC
'73. However, a material casualty to her evaporators forced her to return to port for repairs on the 15th. She was back at sea the following afternoon; rejoined the exercise; and, following its conclusion, returned to Pearl on 21 September. Three days later, she set sail for Long Beach and arrived there on 1 October. The ship's crew then enjoyed a 16-day liberty call before the ship began her second deployment on the 17th.
Badger rendezvoused with the carrier to form Task Group (TG) 37.4, and the two ships then shaped a course for the western Pacific
. Augmented en route by the remainder of Destroyer Squadron
(DesRon) 35, TG 37.4 reached Subic on 5 November 1973. On the 9th, Badger departed Subic Bay in company with destroyer escort and ammunition ship
Kiska
bound for the Persian Gulf
and the CENTO
Exercise MIDLINK '73. On the way, the ships stopped at Singapore. They arrived at Bandar Abbas
, Iran, on the 23d. From that port, she participated in MIDLINK '73 until its conclusion on 2 December. After a brief liberty call at Bandar Abbas, Badger got underway on the 3rd to return to the Philippines, again in company with Brewton and Kiska. The voyage included another visit to Singapore, and Badger reentered Subic Bay on 21 December 1973. She immediately began a repair and upkeep period that lasted until 20 January 1974, when she headed for Guam. Four days later, the destroyer escort arrived at Guam whence she conducted special operations. Badger remained in the Mariana Islands
until 13 February when she departed Guam to return to Subic Bay. The warship steamed into that port on 17 February and, for the next month, conducted training operations in local waters.
On 18 March 1974, Badger put to sea from Subic Bay for a series of port calls beginning with a stop at Hong Kong from 21 March to 1 April. From there, she moved to Keelung, Taiwan
, for a visit between 3 and 8 April. On the 9th, she moored in the harbor at Kaohsiung, Taiwan
, for an eight-day stay before returning to Subic on the 18th. From 22 to 27 April, she operated in the South China Sea
shadowing two Soviet submarines. She returned to Subic on the 27th and remained there until 5 May when the destroyer escort began the voyage back home to Hawaii. After a stop at Guam, she reached Pearl Harbor on 18 May.
Following leave and upkeep, Badger got underway for tests on her main propulsion plant and associated equipment on 21 June 1974. She returned to Pearl that night and remained in port until returning to sea on 11 July for final tests. During the full power run, the ship suffered a casualty to her low pressure turbine and was taken in tow by the large harbor tug . Later, relieved Waxahachie and pulled the stricken destroyer escort into Pearl Harbor on the morning of the 12th. The warship underwent a restricted availability at the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard
lasting until late October and resumed normal operations in the Hawaiian Operating Area in November. That employment occupied her for the last two months of 1974 and for the first two months of 1975. On 11 March 1975, she put to sea to participate in Exercise RIMPAC '75, the multifaceted combat readiness exercise that brought together units of the American, Australian, Canadian, and New Zealand
navies. The exercise concluded on 21 March, and Badger returned to Pearl Harbor to prepare for overseas movement.
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Badger put to sea on 17 April to rendezvous with sistership and guided missile destroyer
escort , and Kiska for the voyage to the western Pacific. The task group stopped at Guam for fuel on 28 April but, immediately after completing the operation, continued on to Subic Bay where, after a short diversion to the South China Sea to assist in the evacuation of Vietnam, they arrived on 4 May. The next day, Badger was back at sea escorting Midway to Guam with a load of American aircraft removed from Vietnam. The two warships arrived there on 11 May, unloaded the planes, and returned to sea on the 12th. En route back to Subic Bay, she received orders diverting her to assist in the recovery of the American containership SS Mayagüez
that had been seized by the Cambodians. The merchantman, however, was freed before Badger's arrival on the scene, and the escort resumed her original course and reentered Subic Bay on the 17th. She spent two days escorting Hancock in the local operating area before returning to port on 22 May. After a week of upkeep, she put to sea for Guam. Arriving in Apra Harbor
on 2 June to begin another period of upkeep, she remained there until 13 June when she put to sea for special operations in company with Brewton.
Badger returned to Guam on 22 June, spent three days there, and headed back to Subic Bay on the 25th. On the last day of the month, she put to sea as a unit of TG 75.1 to begin a 60-day training cruise to the Indian Ocean
. One day out, on 1 July 1975, Badger was reclassified a frigate and redesignated FF-1071. That extended voyage brought exercises of all types: refueling, replenishment, towing, communications, gunnery, and engineering. She also made port calls at Singapore, Port Louis
in Mauritius, Mombasa in Kenya, Karachi in Pakistan, and Colombo in Sri Lanka
. The ship concluded that voyage at Subic Bay on 11 September. Upkeep there, including a period in drydock, lasted until 29 September. On 1 October, Badger headed to Hong Kong. She arrived there on 3 October and with the exception of two days at sea from 5 to 7 October to evade a typhoon, remained in port until the 9th when she shaped a course for Guam. The warship arrived there on 15 October for two weeks of upkeep and operations locally for sea trials. On 29 October. She set a course for Pearl Harbor and pulled into her home port on 8 November. Her post-deployment standdown period was followed, in turn, by a holiday leave and upkeep period.
Badger got underway for the west coast of the United States in company with DesRon 23 on 22 August 1977. Throughout the passage across the eastern Pacific, she joined the ships of DesRon 23 in a number of exercises. She arrived in San Diego, California
, on the last day of August and remained in port until 9 September at which time she put to sea to participate in local operations with San Diego-based units of the Fleet. Badger returned to San Diego on the 15th and stayed until the 19th when she returned to sea for Exercise Varsity Spirit conducted along the California coast. At the conclusion of that exercise, she headed back to Pearl where she arrived on 1 October and began preparations for overseas movement.
On 2 November 1977, Badger departed Pearl Harbor in company with and the other units of DesRon 25 bound for the western Pacific. The warships arrived in Yokosuka exactly three weeks later after an exercise-filled passage. Throughout that deployment, she conducted exercises with units of Allied navies as well as with 7th Fleet
units. She also made goodwill visits to Singapore and various Japanese and Korean ports. The frigate also frequently called at Subic Bay for upkeep and replenishment. She concluded the deployment at Pearl on 8 May 1978. Post-deployment standdown lasted until mid-June at which time she resumed local operations in the Hawaiian Islands.
Badger spent the next nine months engaged in exercises and drills conducted out of Pearl Harbor. On 17 March 1979, the warship departed her home port in company with Brewton, , , and , bound for another tour of duty with the 7th Fleet. After pausing at Guam for fuel on 29 March, the warships pulled into Subic Bay on 4 April and spent the rest of the month alternating exercises in the local operating area with periods of upkeep in port. During the first half of May, she joined Brewton and Rathburne in a round-trip voyage to Hong Kong for a goodwill and liberty call. Late in May and early in June, Badger operated with a task group in the South China Sea before returning to Subic Bay on the 11th. With the exception of a three-day period at sea in the local operating area, she spent the remainder of June in upkeep and preparations for an extended cruise to the Indian Ocean.
Badger departed Subic Bay on 1 July 1979 in company with Brewton, Rathburne, and USNS Mispillion. The task group stopped at Singapore for a four-day port visit before transiting the Strait of Malacca
on 8 July and entering the Indian Ocean, where intensive exercises and drills in all facets of ship's operations highlighted periods at sea punctuated by visits to Colombo, Sri Lanka
, and Mombasa. The latter stages of the operation were conducted in the Gulf of Aden
and in the Gulf of Oman
. The task group exited the Indian Ocean via the Strait of Malacca on 29 August and headed for the Gulf of Siam
where it joined units of the Thai Navy
for Exercise Sea Siamex X.
At the conclusion of that exercise on 7 September, the ships made a four-day visit to Pattaya Beach, Thailand, before shaping a course for the Philippines. En route, Badger was detached from the task group to proceed to Luzon independently. However, before reaching port, she was further diverted on a humanitarian mission: the rescue of 14 Vietnamese refugees adrift in a small boat. She finally arrived in Subic Bay on 15 September, all refugees safe.
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Badger remained at Subic less than a week; she got underway on the 21st, bound for Hawaii in company with Brewton and Rathburne. They stopped for fuel at Guam
and Midway
before arriving back in Pearl Harbor on 4 October. Following post-deployment standdown, the frigate resumed local operations out of Pearl late in December. On 7 January 1980, Badger began a seven-week availability at the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard. Her repairs were completed on 27 February, and she began sea trials in the local area. Over the next six months, Badger went through the usual trials and certifications as well as all types of exercises and drills. In mid-August, she began pre-deployment training with a carrier task group formed around . That training complete, the task group returned to Pearl Harbor on 23 September for a final liberty call before heading for the Far East.
On 26 September, Badger departed Pearl Harbor in company with the Ranger task group bound for an extended assignment with the 7th Fleet. The warships entered Subic Bay on 15 October, and Badger began a 10-day availability. Late in the evening of the 26th, she put to sea to rendezvous with the rest of the Ranger task group. On 30 October, the ships began the transit of the Strait of Malacca and, the next day, entered the Indian Ocean, the appearance of this task group in the Indian Ocean reflecting the seizure of the American embassy
in Tehran
by Iranian militants almost a year before and the holding of embassy personnel as hostages. Though the task group never entered the Persian Gulf
, its training evolutions kept it within rapid steaming time of that troubled area. Badger and the task group remained in the Indian Ocean through the end of the year and into 1981 conducting intensive training of all types including multilateral exercises with Allied navies.
The period in the ‘yard occupied Badger for the remainder of 1981 and the first quarter of 1982. She did not put to sea again until late May when she began refresher training, inspections, examinations, and certifications. From then on, the frigate busied herself with the never-ending cycle of readiness exercises and drills punctuated by the usual material inspections and proficiency examinations. She continued so engaged for the rest of 1982 and the first five weeks of 1983. On 8 February 1983, Badger embarked on a six-week cruise to the west coast in company with some other DesRon 25 units: , , and . After completing a COMPTUEX, a READIEX, and a naval gunfire support
requalification, Badger returned to Hawaii on 21 March and began a month of preparations for overseas movement. The frigate stood out of Pearl Harbor with and on 24 April. The three warships then carried out several exercises near Kauai on the Pacific missile range before beginning their voyage to the Far East on the 26th.
After a passage that included a variety of drills and exercises and a five-day layover at Guam for a short availability, Badger reached Manila
on 16 May 1983. Underway again on short notice, leaving behind some 52 men who had been on leave and liberty at the time of her sailing, she carried out surprise ASW operations west of Subic Bay between the 18th and the 20th, retrieving four of her men via the aircraft carrier on the latter date, and then headed for a liberty call at Hong Kong, where the remainder of the men left behind at her hurried departure joined her via the command ship
. Back at sea on 27 May, the warship conducted further ASW work in the South China Sea until the end of the month. Badger made a short stop at Subic Bay for fuel on 1 June and then set out for Japan. She took part in an amphibious exercise along the way near Okinawa before arriving in Yokosuka on 16 June. She spent eight days in repairs at Yokosuka and then set a course back to the South China Sea
where she carried out surveillance missions until the latter part of July. Badger then returned to Subic Bay where she made voyage repairs and requalified in naval gunfire support on the nearby Tabones range. On 27 July, she headed back to Yokosuka where she underwent still more repairs during the first 10 days of August.
Badger returned to sea on 11 August 1983, and took up surveillance duty again, this time in the Sea of Japan
. She concluded that assignment on 2 September and shaped a course for Sasebo, but received orders the following day to proceed north in the wake of the tragic downing, by a Soviet fighter, of Korean Air Lines Flight 007 over Sakhalin Island
on 1 September. Rear Admiral William A. Cockell, Commander, Task Force 71, and a skeleton staff, embarked in Badger on 9 September via LAMPS helo from Wakanai, Japan, for further transfer to the destroyer Elliot to assume duties as Officer in Tactical Command (OTC) of the Search and Rescue (SAR) effort. During the forenoon watch on 17 September, however, Badgers embarked SH-2F helicopter from HSL-37 (Detachment 2) went down at sea; USCGC Munro (WHEC-724), however, promptly rescued the four-man crew from the water. Badger ended her part in the KAL 007
SAR effort on the 20th and reached Yokosuka on the 21st to prepare for the voyage back to Hawaii. That journey began on 23 October and included participation in Exercise Battle Week 84-1 followed by a visit to nearby Apra, Guam, before Badger finally managed to return home on Armistice Day
1983. Admiral William J. Crowe
, Jr., Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Command
, visited the ship on 29 November and congratulated the ship's officers and men on their recent deployment, emphasizing their role during the KAL 007 SAR operation. Post-deployment leave and upkeep and holiday standdown, broken only by a brief period underway on 20 and 21 December to escort as she operated locally, kept Badger in port at Pearl for the rest of 1983.
(PhibRon) 5 for six weeks of drills and exercises in the waters along the west coast. She returned to Hawaii at the end of August and then, except for 17 days in drydock between 28 September and 15 October, spent September and October engaged in normal operations in Hawaiian waters.
During the last week in October, Badger took part in the first phase of a major fleet exercise with a pair of carrier task groups built around and . After spending the period 2 to 6 November in port at Pearl Harbor, she returned to sea to conclude the exercise and then move on to the Far East for seven weeks of additional exercises. Travelling with the Carl Vinson task group, she participated in a series of training evolutions conducted in such diverse places as the Marianas, in the Philippine Sea
, and in Japanese waters. Badger completed her part in the exercises early in December and, after a visit to Yokosuka, Japan, set out on the voyage back to Hawaii on the 13th in company with Joseph Strauss. The two warships reentered Pearl Harbor on 22 December, and Badger spent the rest of 1984 in port.
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Following an unusually brief standdown, Badger resumed operations very early in 1985. She put to sea on 10 January for a two-week cruise to conduct operations in an area in the eastern Pacific about two-thirds of the way from Oahu to the northern California
coast. She returned to Hawaii from that mission on 24 January and settled into more than two months of local operations out of Pearl Harbor. Then, after a special assignment in the vicinity of Midway Island early in April, Badger completed a four-week restricted availability at Pearl Harbor. On 11 May, the frigate headed for the eastern Pacific once more. This time, however, she made it all the way to the west coast and took part in several exercises conducted in the southern California operating area. Concluding a four-week absence, Badger returned to Oahu on 14 June and began preparations to deploy overseas.
After six weeks of getting ready, Badger stood out of Pearl Harbor on 2 August and joined the Orient-bound task group built around ) the next evening. The exercise-filled, 17-day passage to the Philippines ended on the 19th at Subic Bay where Badger began five days of repairs and meetings before heading to duty in the Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea
on the 24 August. Along the way, she and parted company with the task group to transit the Malacca Strait and conduct Exercise MERLION 85 with units of the Singapore Navy
on 29 and 30 August. The two warships rejoined the task group in the Bay of Bengal
on 1 September and, after recovering debris from a helicopter crash, resumed the voyage to the Arabian Sea. Badger reached the patrol area in the northern Arabian Sea on 10 September and began four weeks of duty on that station. Early in October, she made a five-day port visit at Mombasa
and then sailed back to the Arabian Sea, where she completed a tender availability alongside at Al Masirah Island
. Early in November, she called at Karachi, Pakistan
, for a goodwill visit and carried out an ASW exercise with units of the Pakistani Navy
. On 17 November, she rejoined the Kitty Hawk task group again south of Sri Lanka on its way back to Subic Bay. The task group remained at Subic for six days before setting out on the voyage back to Hawaii on 1 December.
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Reaching Pearl Harbor on 12 December 1985, Badger spent the rest of that year and the first weeks of 1986 in port engaged, at first, in post-deployment and holiday standdown and, later, carrying out a six-week availability. She put to sea for the first time after her return on 1 February to participate in readiness exercises near Kauai. Similar training activities in the local operating area kept her busy until the second week in April. At that time, Badger stood out of Pearl Harbor for a six-week goodwill cruise to the South Pacific. During the voyage, she called at Pago Pago and Apia in the Samoan Islands
, Nukualofa and Vavau in the Tonga Islands
, and Funafuti
in the Tuvalu Islands
before returning to Hawaii by way of Apia. The warship arrived back in Pearl Harbor on 12 May and began a four-week period of relative inactivity in port. Early in June, she put to sea to participate in a phase of the multinational exercise RIMPAC 86 and then returned to Oahu on the 14th to prepare for an extended training cruise to the west coast. On 23 June, Badger embarked on the seven-week round of exercises punctuated with visits to west coast ports that constituted EASTPAC 86. During that space of time, she visited Vancouver in British Columbia
and the California ports of San Francisco and San Diego before returning to Hawaii on 9 August.
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For the remainder of 1986, the warship went to sea only rarely. She carried out some ASW exercises late in August and then spent five weeks in a maintenance availability. She returned to sea in mid-October for engineering drills and again early in November for more of the same and to complete a propulsion plant certification examination. When she reentered Pearl Harbor on 14 November, Badger started preparing for a three-month drydocking that began on 8 December. Although refloated on 2 March 1987, she did not resume active service for almost two more months. The repair work continued through March and during the first two weeks of April; and, although she returned to sea on two occasions during the second part of April, it was only for brief sea trials. Badger finally took up a more active schedule late in May with helicopter landing qualifications on the 20th and 21st and evolutions at sea during the last days of the month in connection with her material readiness inspection. In June, the frigate resumed a normal schedule of local training operations and continued so engaged for the rest of 1987.
Badger continued to carry out training missions in the Hawaiian operating area well into 1988. Late in March, she embarked on a series of battle readiness exercises that carried out during a four-week cruise to the west coast. The warship returned to Pearl Harbor from that assignment at the end of April and then spent the following five weeks in port. She resumed local training missions on 9 June, but those lasted less than a fortnight. On 22 June, Badger stood out of Pearl Harbor on her way to the Far East as part of a task group built around Carl Vinson. Though she made most of the crossing with the task group, Badger did not remain a part of it throughout the deployment. She parted company with the unit on 4 July and headed for Japan, arriving in Yokosuka on the 16th. After five days of repairs and upkeep, the frigate set sail for the Philippines on 22 July. She reached Subic Bay on the 27th but remained only three days, putting to sea again on the 30th bound for Singapore
. Her visit to Singapore, however, proved a brief one, shortened by orders on 6 August to rescue Vietnamese refugees in the vicinity of the Spratly Islands
. On the 9th, Badger took on board 57 survivors of a group that had originally numbered 104 and sailed for the Philippines.
The warship disembarked the refugees at Subic Bay on the 10th and, after several days of upkeep, set out for Japan again. During the remainder of August and the first part of September, Badger called at a succession of Japanese ports. On 12 September, she put to sea from Yokosuka for two weeks of operations in the East China Sea
with a task group formed around Midway. She then visited Pusan, South Korea, on 28 and 29 September, before returning to sea for two weeks of surveillance operations in the Sea of Japan. In mid-October, the frigate visited Chinhae, Korea, for five days and then carried out four days of training with units of the South Korean Navy
. Next came a call each at Pusan in late October and at Hong Kong early in November. Badger returned to Subic Bay on 11 November and made preparations for the voyage back to Hawaii. The last 7th Fleet assignment of her Navy career came to an end on 22 November when she embarked on that final western Pacific passage.
The warship returned to Pearl Harbor on 6 December 1988 and her post-deployment standdown lasted until 17 January 1989. She then resumed local operations in the Hawaiian Islands
on a schedule that kept her moderately busy through the end of May. On 30 May, the frigate began an availability with a civilian contractor that lasted nearly four months. Badger completed the repairs on 24 September, carried out the usual trials and examinations in October, and resumed normal training missions out of Pearl Harbor early in November. She remained so occupied for the rest of 1989 and well into 1990.
law enforcement detachment
to carry out drug traffic
interdiction operations. Her first taste of law enforcement duty lasted from 28 March to 12 April and then she resumed more familiar duty until mid-June. On 18 June, she embarked another Coast Guard detachment and set sail for the west coast to conduct another series of drug traffic interdiction missions in the eastern Pacific out of San Diego. That employment lasted until the beginning of September when she transferred her helicopter detachment to and disembarked the Coast Guardsmen at San Francisco. Badger arrived back at Oahu on 11 September and began a restricted availability on the 20th that immobilized her for most of the months remaining in 1990.
Badger took up active training again early in December 1990; but that lasted only about two weeks. The relative inactivity of holiday leave and upkeep commenced in mid-December and continued for about a month. In mid-January 1991, the warship resumed local training operations and pursued them until early June. During June and early July, Badger voyaged to the west coast one last time before being deactivated. She visited San Diego, California, Portland, Oregon, and Homer, Alaska
before returning to Oahu on 16 July. Once back in Pearl, the frigate did not get underway again except to shift berths. Badger was decommissioned at Pearl Harbor on 20 December 1991, and her name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register
in January 1995. The former warship performed her last service for the Navy on 22 July 1998 at which time she was sunk as a target during 3rd Fleet
exercise RIMPAC 98 at 22'51.1"N, 160'33"W.
Badger earned one battle star
during the Vietnam War
..
, the character Marlin Whitmore(Blake Clark
) wears a cap indicating he may have served on the USS Badger sometime in the past. The cap displays the original designation DE-1071.
Knox class frigate
Knox class frigates were United States Navy warships, originally laid down as ocean escorts , but were all redesignated as frigates on 30 June 1975 in the USN 1975 ship reclassification and their hull designation changed from DE to FF.A sub-class of the Knox class was built, commonly referred to as...
destroyer escort
Destroyer escort
A destroyer escort is the classification for a smaller, lightly armed warship designed to be used to escort convoys of merchant marine ships, primarily of the United States Merchant Marine in World War II. It is employed primarily for anti-submarine warfare, but also provides some protection...
, originally designated as DE-1071 and reclassified as a frigate
Frigate
A frigate is any of several types of warship, the term having been used for ships of various sizes and roles over the last few centuries.In the 17th century, the term was used for any warship built for speed and maneuverability, the description often used being "frigate-built"...
in 1975 in the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
. Her primary mission of ASW
Anti-submarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare is a branch of naval warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, or other submarines to find, track and deter, damage or destroy enemy submarines....
remained unchanged. This ship was not the first to bear the name. The first was named for Commodore Oscar C. Badger
Oscar C. Badger
Oscar C. Badger received appointment as a midshipman in the United States Navy on 9 September 1841 and, after a tour of duty in Independence, served in Saratoga along the Atlantic coast of Africa.-Service in Africa and during the Mexican-American War:While serving in the latter ship, he saw his...
(a cousin of Secretary of the Navy
United States Secretary of the Navy
The Secretary of the Navy of the United States of America is the head of the Department of the Navy, a component organization of the Department of Defense...
George Edmund Badger
George Edmund Badger
George Edmund Badger was a Whig U.S. senator from the state of North Carolina.Badger was born on April 17, 1795 in New Bern, North Carolina. Following a partial college education at Yale University, he studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1814...
), the father of Rear Admiral
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...
Charles J. Badger
Charles J. Badger
Charles Johnston Badger was an admiral in the United States Navy. His active-duty career included service in the Spanish-American War and World War I.-Biography:...
, the son of the commodore and the father of the admiral, was also honored by the naming of the destroyer (q.v.), and the grandfather of Admiral Oscar C. Badger
Oscar C. Badger II
Oscar Charles Badger II was an admiral of the United States Navy who served in both World Wars, and, as a junior officer, received the Medal of Honor.-Early history:...
. This Badger (FF-1071) honors all four men.
Commissioning
Badger was laid down on 17 February 1968 at San Pedro, California, by Todd ShipyardsTodd Shipyards
Todd Shipyards was an American soccer club based in Brooklyn, New York that was an inaugural member of the American Soccer League. The team was formed when the Todd Shipyard company decided to merge the Brooklyn Robins Dry Dock with Tebo Yacht Basin F.C....
, Inc.; launched on 7 December 1968; sponsored by Mrs. Oscar C. Badger; and commissioned at Long Beach, California
Long Beach, California
Long Beach is a city situated in Los Angeles County in Southern California, on the Pacific coast of the United States. The city is the 36th-largest city in the nation and the seventh-largest in California. As of 2010, its population was 462,257...
, on 1 December 1970, Commander William L. Britton in command.
Badger completed fitting out at the Long Beach Naval Shipyard
Long Beach Naval Shipyard
thumb|right|300px|Long Beach Naval Shipyard in 1993The Long Beach Naval Shipyard, which closed in 1997, was located at Terminal Island between the city of Long Beach and the San Pedro district of Los Angeles and approximately 23 miles south of the Los Angeles International Airport.The Long Beach...
in January 1971 and then spent most of the spring engaged in tests and shakedown training. She completed final contract trials in May, during which Badger set the speed record for Knox class frigates, over 30 knots. The following month, entered the Long Beach Naval Shipyard for post-shakedown availability. During that availability, she received extensive modifications including the addition of a basic point defense missile system (BPDMS) and of an independent variable depth sonar system. Because of those changes, Badger underwent a post-shakedown availability that lasted until mid-November. From that time until mid-March 1972, the destroyer escort conducted a series of underway tests and training evolutions and underwent readiness inspections. On 16 March 1972, she weighed anchor and stood out of Long Beach on her way to the Far East. Along the way, Badger stopped at Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
, Midway, and Guam before arriving in Subic Bay
Subic Bay
Subic Bay is a bay forming part of Luzon Sea on the west coast of the island of Luzon in Zambales, Philippines, about 100 kilometers northwest of Manila Bay. Its shores were formerly the site of a major United States Navy facility named U.S...
on 7 April.
1970s
On the following evening, Badger stood out of Subic bound for the Vietnam WarVietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
zone. She arrived in Danang, South Vietnam
South Vietnam
South Vietnam was a state which governed southern Vietnam until 1975. It received international recognition in 1950 as the "State of Vietnam" and later as the "Republic of Vietnam" . Its capital was Saigon...
, two days later and, after a four-hour layover, again got underway, bound for the northern gunline near the mouth of the Cua Viet River. She began gunfire support missions on the 11th and, on the 13th, received her first counterbattery fire. Two days later, she suffered superficial damage from a communist shore battery
Artillery battery
In military organizations, an artillery battery is a unit of guns, mortars, rockets or missiles so grouped in order to facilitate better battlefield communication and command and control, as well as to provide dispersion for its constituent gunnery crews and their systems...
after her five-inch gun had been put out of action by a fouled bore and an overheated barrel. Later that day, the ship headed back to Danang to have her five-inch (127 mm) gun barrel replaced by the repair ship . She returned to sea on the 16th and soon arrived back on the gunline. On the 19th, Badger was switched to plane guard duty for the aircraft carrier
Aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
in the Gulf of Tonkin
Gulf of Tonkin
The Gulf of Tonkin is an arm of the South China Sea, lying off the coast of northeastern Vietnam.-Etymology:The name Tonkin, written "東京" in Hán tự and Đông Kinh in romanised Vietnamese, means "Eastern Capital", and is the former toponym for Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam...
. That assignment lasted two days short of a month. On 17 May, destroyer escort relieved her, and Badger shaped a course for Sasebo, Japan
Sasebo, Nagasaki
is a city located in Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan. As of 2011, the city has an estimated population of 259,800 and the density of 609 persons per km². The total area is 426.47 km². The locality is famed for its scenic beauty. The city includes a part of Saikai National Park...
.
1972
Following a week of availability and liberty, Badger departed Sasebo on 29 May 1972 and, on 2 June, joined guided missile cruiser on the middle sea-air rescue (SAR) station in the Gulf of Tonkin. Four days later, however, she was reassigned to plane guard duty, this time for the ASW support carrier . After spending 20 days supporting the carrier, Badger returned to gunfire support missions on 26 June. On 7 July, the warship resumed plane guard duties, this time for the carrier , and departed Vietnamese waters in company with that carrier. The following day, the ships moored in Subic Bay.Following upkeep, Badger headed back to the combat zone on 17 July 1972. Two days later, she resumed gunfire support duties. During that assignment, the ocean escort
Ocean escort
Ocean Escort was a type of United States Navy warship.Ocean Escorts were an evolution of the World War II destroyer escort types. They were intended as convoy escorts and were designed for mobilization production in wartime or low-cost mass production in peacetime.Their hull classification symbol...
joined five other American ships in providing gunfire support for operations carried out in Military Region II by the South Vietnamese Army's 22d Division. On 9 August, she was assigned duty interdicting communist waterborne logistics and remained so engaged until 12 August when she relieved guided missile frigate as plane guard for Midway, once again headed for Subic Bay. The two ships reached their destination on 14 August but departed again the next day bound for Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
. Badger conducted an upkeep and liberty period at that port from 17 to 23 August and got underway on the latter day to return to the Philippines. She arrived in Subic Bay on 24 August for repairs before putting to sea on the 30th, bound for Vietnamese waters.
Upon her return to the combat zone, the warship took up position as escort for the guided missile cruiser on the middle SAR station. During that tour of duty
Tour of duty
In the Navy, a tour of duty is a period of time spent performing operational duties at sea, including combat, performing patrol or fleet duties, or assigned to service in a foreign country....
, she also kept an eye on two Chinese merchantmen in the area. When the guided missile frigate relieved Long Beach, Badger continued on station until 10 September, when she was relieved of middle SAR station escort duties by her sistership and proceeded to rendezvous with the carrier . Badger provided plane guard services for the carrier as she made her final air strikes
Airstrike
An air strike is an attack on a specific objective by military aircraft during an offensive mission. Air strikes are commonly delivered from aircraft such as fighters, bombers, ground attack aircraft, attack helicopters, and others...
of the war and then escorted Hancock to Subic Bay, arriving there on 15 September. After four days in port, the destroyer escort put to sea and shaped a course for Yokosuka, Japan
Yokosuka, Kanagawa
is a city located in Kanagawa, Japan. As of 2010, the city had an estimated population of 419,067 and a population density of 4,160 people per km². It covered an area of 100.62 km²...
, where she made an overnight stop on 22 and 23 September before setting sail for the United States in company with Hancock. After a nonstop voyage across the Pacific, highlighted by several fueling-at-sea operations, Badger arrived back in Long Beach on 4 October. The usual post-deployment stand-down ensued as did a restricted availability at the Todd Shipyard in Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. The latter began on 8 January 1973 and included the conversion of her main propulsion system to Navy distillate fuel and the installation of a light airborne multipurpose system (LAMPS).
1973-1975
Badger completed those modifications on 18 May 1973 and put to sea for trials and single ship exercises in the southern CaliforniaSouthern California
Southern California is a megaregion, or megapolitan area, in the southern area of the U.S. state of California. Large urban areas include Greater Los Angeles and Greater San Diego. The urban area stretches along the coast from Ventura through the Southland and Inland Empire to San Diego...
operating area. Normal west coast operations out of Long Beach occupied her time until 9 July, the day she got underway for her new home port, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The warship made the voyage in six days, entering Pearl on 14 July. Training in the Hawaiian operating area occupied her until early September. On 11 September, Badger put to sea to participate in the four-nation Exercise RIMPAC
RIMPAC
RIMPAC, the Rim of the Pacific Exercise, is the world's largest international maritime exercise. Conducted biennially , it is hosted and administered by the United States Navy, with the United States Marine Corps, United States Coast Guard, and Hawaii National Guard forces under the leadership of...
'73. However, a material casualty to her evaporators forced her to return to port for repairs on the 15th. She was back at sea the following afternoon; rejoined the exercise; and, following its conclusion, returned to Pearl on 21 September. Three days later, she set sail for Long Beach and arrived there on 1 October. The ship's crew then enjoyed a 16-day liberty call before the ship began her second deployment on the 17th.
Badger rendezvoused with the carrier to form Task Group (TG) 37.4, and the two ships then shaped a course for the western Pacific
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
. Augmented en route by the remainder of Destroyer Squadron
DESRON
A destroyer squadron is a naval squadron or flotilla usually consisting of destroyers rather than other types of vessel. In some navies other vessels, such as frigates, may be included. In English the word "squadron" tends to be used for larger and "flotilla" for smaller vessels, both may be used...
(DesRon) 35, TG 37.4 reached Subic on 5 November 1973. On the 9th, Badger departed Subic Bay in company with destroyer escort and ammunition ship
Ammunition ship
An ammunition ship is a warship specially configured to carry ammunition, usually for Navy ships and aircraft. Their cargo handling systems, designed with extreme safety in mind, include ammunition hoists with airlocks between decks, and mechanisms for flooding entire compartments with sea water in...
Kiska
USNS Kiska (T-AE-35)
The USNS Kiska is one of five ammunition ships operated by Military Sealift Command, and one of the 41 ships in the Naval Fleet Auxiliary Force. The ship was laid down on 8 April 1971 at Ingalls Shipbuilding, Pascagoula, MS as the USS Kiska and was launched on 11 March 1972...
bound for the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
and the CENTO
Central Treaty Organization
The Central Treaty Organization was formed in 1955 by Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Turkey, and the United Kingdom. It was dissolved in 1979.U.S...
Exercise MIDLINK '73. On the way, the ships stopped at Singapore. They arrived at Bandar Abbas
Bandar Abbas
Bandar-Abbas or Bandar-e ‘Abbās , also Romanized as Bandar ‘Abbās, Bandar ‘Abbāsī, and Bandar-e ‘Abbās; formerly known as Cambarão and Port Comorão to Portuguese traders, as Gombroon to English traders and as Gamrun or Gumrun to Dutch merchants) is a port city and capital of Hormozgān Province on...
, Iran, on the 23d. From that port, she participated in MIDLINK '73 until its conclusion on 2 December. After a brief liberty call at Bandar Abbas, Badger got underway on the 3rd to return to the Philippines, again in company with Brewton and Kiska. The voyage included another visit to Singapore, and Badger reentered Subic Bay on 21 December 1973. She immediately began a repair and upkeep period that lasted until 20 January 1974, when she headed for Guam. Four days later, the destroyer escort arrived at Guam whence she conducted special operations. Badger remained in the Mariana Islands
Mariana Islands
The Mariana Islands are an arc-shaped archipelago made up by the summits of 15 volcanic mountains in the north-western Pacific Ocean between the 12th and 21st parallels north and along the 145th meridian east...
until 13 February when she departed Guam to return to Subic Bay. The warship steamed into that port on 17 February and, for the next month, conducted training operations in local waters.
On 18 March 1974, Badger put to sea from Subic Bay for a series of port calls beginning with a stop at Hong Kong from 21 March to 1 April. From there, she moved to Keelung, Taiwan
Keelung
Keelung City is a major port city situated in the northeastern part of Taiwan. It borders New Taipei and forms the Taipei–Keelung metropolitan area, along with the Taipei and New Taipei. Nicknamed the Rainy Port for its frequent rain and maritime role, the city is Taiwan's second largest seaport...
, for a visit between 3 and 8 April. On the 9th, she moored in the harbor at Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Kaohsiung
Kaohsiung is a city located in southwestern Taiwan, facing the Taiwan Strait on the west. Kaohsiung, officially named Kaohsiung City, is divided into thirty-eight districts. The city is one of five special municipalities of the Republic of China...
, for an eight-day stay before returning to Subic on the 18th. From 22 to 27 April, she operated in the South China Sea
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around...
shadowing two Soviet submarines. She returned to Subic on the 27th and remained there until 5 May when the destroyer escort began the voyage back home to Hawaii. After a stop at Guam, she reached Pearl Harbor on 18 May.
Following leave and upkeep, Badger got underway for tests on her main propulsion plant and associated equipment on 21 June 1974. She returned to Pearl that night and remained in port until returning to sea on 11 July for final tests. During the full power run, the ship suffered a casualty to her low pressure turbine and was taken in tow by the large harbor tug . Later, relieved Waxahachie and pulled the stricken destroyer escort into Pearl Harbor on the morning of the 12th. The warship underwent a restricted availability at the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard
Shipyard
Shipyards and dockyards are places which repair and build ships. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance and basing activities than shipyards, which are sometimes associated more with initial...
lasting until late October and resumed normal operations in the Hawaiian Operating Area in November. That employment occupied her for the last two months of 1974 and for the first two months of 1975. On 11 March 1975, she put to sea to participate in Exercise RIMPAC '75, the multifaceted combat readiness exercise that brought together units of the American, Australian, Canadian, and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
navies. The exercise concluded on 21 March, and Badger returned to Pearl Harbor to prepare for overseas movement.
Guided missile destroyer
A guided missile destroyer is a destroyer designed to launch guided missiles. Many are also equipped to carry out anti-submarine, anti-air, and anti-surface operations. In the U.S...
escort , and Kiska for the voyage to the western Pacific. The task group stopped at Guam for fuel on 28 April but, immediately after completing the operation, continued on to Subic Bay where, after a short diversion to the South China Sea to assist in the evacuation of Vietnam, they arrived on 4 May. The next day, Badger was back at sea escorting Midway to Guam with a load of American aircraft removed from Vietnam. The two warships arrived there on 11 May, unloaded the planes, and returned to sea on the 12th. En route back to Subic Bay, she received orders diverting her to assist in the recovery of the American containership SS Mayagüez
Mayagüez incident
The Mayaguez incident between the Khmer Rouge and the United States from May 12–15, 1975, was the last official battle of the Vietnam War. The names of the Americans killed, as well as those of three Marines who were left behind on the island of Koh Tang after the battle and who were subsequently...
that had been seized by the Cambodians. The merchantman, however, was freed before Badger's arrival on the scene, and the escort resumed her original course and reentered Subic Bay on the 17th. She spent two days escorting Hancock in the local operating area before returning to port on 22 May. After a week of upkeep, she put to sea for Guam. Arriving in Apra Harbor
Apra Harbor
Apra Harbor is a deep-water port on the western side of Guam in the Mariana Islands. The harbor is formed by Orote Peninsula in the south and Cabras Island in the north. To the south, the harbor narrows and then widens again to form an inner harbor. The southern end of the harbor is the location...
on 2 June to begin another period of upkeep, she remained there until 13 June when she put to sea for special operations in company with Brewton.
Badger returned to Guam on 22 June, spent three days there, and headed back to Subic Bay on the 25th. On the last day of the month, she put to sea as a unit of TG 75.1 to begin a 60-day training cruise to the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
. One day out, on 1 July 1975, Badger was reclassified a frigate and redesignated FF-1071. That extended voyage brought exercises of all types: refueling, replenishment, towing, communications, gunnery, and engineering. She also made port calls at Singapore, Port Louis
Port Louis
-Economy:The economy is dominated by its port, which handles Mauritius' international trade. The port was founded by the French who preferred Port Louis as the City is shielded by the Port Louis/Moka mountain range. It is the largest container handling facility in the Indian Ocean and can...
in Mauritius, Mombasa in Kenya, Karachi in Pakistan, and Colombo in Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
. The ship concluded that voyage at Subic Bay on 11 September. Upkeep there, including a period in drydock, lasted until 29 September. On 1 October, Badger headed to Hong Kong. She arrived there on 3 October and with the exception of two days at sea from 5 to 7 October to evade a typhoon, remained in port until the 9th when she shaped a course for Guam. The warship arrived there on 15 October for two weeks of upkeep and operations locally for sea trials. On 29 October. She set a course for Pearl Harbor and pulled into her home port on 8 November. Her post-deployment standdown period was followed, in turn, by a holiday leave and upkeep period.
1976-1979
During the first five months of 1976, Badger alternated training operations at sea with periods in port at Pearl Harbor preparing for her first regular overhaul. Late in May, the crew moved off the ship to quarters ashore; and, on 7 June, the ship officially commenced overhaul at the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard. This work occupied her for the remainder of 1976 and through the first few days of 1977. She emerged from the yard on 11 January 1977 and conducted sea trials the following day. Further trials, inspections, and readiness ensued. In July, she began refresher training that lasted until the first week in August when she returned to Pearl Harbor.Badger got underway for the west coast of the United States in company with DesRon 23 on 22 August 1977. Throughout the passage across the eastern Pacific, she joined the ships of DesRon 23 in a number of exercises. She arrived in San Diego, California
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
, on the last day of August and remained in port until 9 September at which time she put to sea to participate in local operations with San Diego-based units of the Fleet. Badger returned to San Diego on the 15th and stayed until the 19th when she returned to sea for Exercise Varsity Spirit conducted along the California coast. At the conclusion of that exercise, she headed back to Pearl where she arrived on 1 October and began preparations for overseas movement.
On 2 November 1977, Badger departed Pearl Harbor in company with and the other units of DesRon 25 bound for the western Pacific. The warships arrived in Yokosuka exactly three weeks later after an exercise-filled passage. Throughout that deployment, she conducted exercises with units of Allied navies as well as with 7th Fleet
United States 7th Fleet
The Seventh Fleet is the United States Navy's permanent forward projection force based in Yokosuka, Japan, with units positioned near Japan and South Korea. It is a component fleet force under the United States Pacific Fleet. At present, it is the largest of the forward-deployed U.S. fleets, with...
units. She also made goodwill visits to Singapore and various Japanese and Korean ports. The frigate also frequently called at Subic Bay for upkeep and replenishment. She concluded the deployment at Pearl on 8 May 1978. Post-deployment standdown lasted until mid-June at which time she resumed local operations in the Hawaiian Islands.
Badger spent the next nine months engaged in exercises and drills conducted out of Pearl Harbor. On 17 March 1979, the warship departed her home port in company with Brewton, , , and , bound for another tour of duty with the 7th Fleet. After pausing at Guam for fuel on 29 March, the warships pulled into Subic Bay on 4 April and spent the rest of the month alternating exercises in the local operating area with periods of upkeep in port. During the first half of May, she joined Brewton and Rathburne in a round-trip voyage to Hong Kong for a goodwill and liberty call. Late in May and early in June, Badger operated with a task group in the South China Sea before returning to Subic Bay on the 11th. With the exception of a three-day period at sea in the local operating area, she spent the remainder of June in upkeep and preparations for an extended cruise to the Indian Ocean.
Badger departed Subic Bay on 1 July 1979 in company with Brewton, Rathburne, and USNS Mispillion. The task group stopped at Singapore for a four-day port visit before transiting the Strait of Malacca
Strait of Malacca
The Strait of Malacca is a narrow, stretch of water between the Malay Peninsula and the Indonesian island of Sumatra. It is named after the Malacca Sultanate that ruled over the archipelago between 1414 to 1511.-Extent:...
on 8 July and entering the Indian Ocean, where intensive exercises and drills in all facets of ship's operations highlighted periods at sea punctuated by visits to Colombo, Sri Lanka
Colombo
Colombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital of the country, since Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is a satellite city of Colombo...
, and Mombasa. The latter stages of the operation were conducted in the Gulf of Aden
Gulf of Aden
The Gulf of Aden is located in the Arabian Sea between Yemen, on the south coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and Somalia in the Horn of Africa. In the northwest, it connects with the Red Sea through the Bab-el-Mandeb strait, which is about 20 miles wide....
and in the Gulf of Oman
Gulf of Oman
The Gulf of Oman or Sea of Oman is a strait that connects the Arabian Sea with the Strait of Hormuz, which then runs to the Persian Gulf. It is generally included as a branch of the Persian Gulf, not as an arm of the Arabian Sea. On the north coast is Pakistan and Iran...
. The task group exited the Indian Ocean via the Strait of Malacca on 29 August and headed for the Gulf of Siam
Gulf of Thailand
The Gulf of Thailand , also known in to Malays as Teluk Siam literally meant Gulf of Siam, is a shallow arm of the South China Sea.-Geography:...
where it joined units of the Thai Navy
Royal Thai Navy
The Royal Thai Navy is the navy of Thailand and part of the Royal Thai Armed Forces, it was established in the late 19th century. Admiral Prince Abhakara Kiartiwongse is "The Father of Royal Thai Navy". Similar to the organizational structure of the United States, the Royal Thai Navy includes the...
for Exercise Sea Siamex X.
At the conclusion of that exercise on 7 September, the ships made a four-day visit to Pattaya Beach, Thailand, before shaping a course for the Philippines. En route, Badger was detached from the task group to proceed to Luzon independently. However, before reaching port, she was further diverted on a humanitarian mission: the rescue of 14 Vietnamese refugees adrift in a small boat. She finally arrived in Subic Bay on 15 September, all refugees safe.
1980s
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
and Midway
Midway Atoll
Midway Atoll is a atoll in the North Pacific Ocean, near the northwestern end of the Hawaiian archipelago, about one-third of the way between Honolulu, Hawaii, and Tokyo, Japan. Unique among the Hawaiian islands, Midway observes UTC-11 , eleven hours behind Coordinated Universal Time and one hour...
before arriving back in Pearl Harbor on 4 October. Following post-deployment standdown, the frigate resumed local operations out of Pearl late in December. On 7 January 1980, Badger began a seven-week availability at the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard. Her repairs were completed on 27 February, and she began sea trials in the local area. Over the next six months, Badger went through the usual trials and certifications as well as all types of exercises and drills. In mid-August, she began pre-deployment training with a carrier task group formed around . That training complete, the task group returned to Pearl Harbor on 23 September for a final liberty call before heading for the Far East.
On 26 September, Badger departed Pearl Harbor in company with the Ranger task group bound for an extended assignment with the 7th Fleet. The warships entered Subic Bay on 15 October, and Badger began a 10-day availability. Late in the evening of the 26th, she put to sea to rendezvous with the rest of the Ranger task group. On 30 October, the ships began the transit of the Strait of Malacca and, the next day, entered the Indian Ocean, the appearance of this task group in the Indian Ocean reflecting the seizure of the American embassy
Iran hostage crisis
The Iran hostage crisis was a diplomatic crisis between Iran and the United States where 52 Americans were held hostage for 444 days from November 4, 1979 to January 20, 1981, after a group of Islamist students and militants took over the American Embassy in Tehran in support of the Iranian...
in Tehran
Tehran
Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
by Iranian militants almost a year before and the holding of embassy personnel as hostages. Though the task group never entered the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
, its training evolutions kept it within rapid steaming time of that troubled area. Badger and the task group remained in the Indian Ocean through the end of the year and into 1981 conducting intensive training of all types including multilateral exercises with Allied navies.
1981-83
Iran's release of the American hostages occurred on 19 January 1981, but Badger and the task group to which she was assigned, continued training evolutions in the Indian Ocean for eight weeks thereafter. On 11 March, group retransited the Strait of Malacca and left the Indian Ocean behind. The warships reentered Subic Bay on 23 March, and Badger began a 12-day upkeep. Just under a month later on 16 April, the Ranger task group put to sea to return to Hawaii. After 12 days at sea, the frigate reentered her home port on 28 April. During the month of May, the warship combined the customary post-deployment standdown period with preparations for the periodic visit by the inspection and survey team. After the team's visit early in June, Badger resumed normal training duty in the Hawaiian operating area. That employment lasted through the summer and ended in September with her entry into the Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard for overhaul.The period in the ‘yard occupied Badger for the remainder of 1981 and the first quarter of 1982. She did not put to sea again until late May when she began refresher training, inspections, examinations, and certifications. From then on, the frigate busied herself with the never-ending cycle of readiness exercises and drills punctuated by the usual material inspections and proficiency examinations. She continued so engaged for the rest of 1982 and the first five weeks of 1983. On 8 February 1983, Badger embarked on a six-week cruise to the west coast in company with some other DesRon 25 units: , , and . After completing a COMPTUEX, a READIEX, and a naval gunfire support
Naval gunfire support
Naval gunfire support is the use of naval artillery to provide fire support for amphibious assault and other troops operating within their range. NGFS is one of a number of disciplines encompassed by the term Naval Fires...
requalification, Badger returned to Hawaii on 21 March and began a month of preparations for overseas movement. The frigate stood out of Pearl Harbor with and on 24 April. The three warships then carried out several exercises near Kauai on the Pacific missile range before beginning their voyage to the Far East on the 26th.
After a passage that included a variety of drills and exercises and a five-day layover at Guam for a short availability, Badger reached Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
on 16 May 1983. Underway again on short notice, leaving behind some 52 men who had been on leave and liberty at the time of her sailing, she carried out surprise ASW operations west of Subic Bay between the 18th and the 20th, retrieving four of her men via the aircraft carrier on the latter date, and then headed for a liberty call at Hong Kong, where the remainder of the men left behind at her hurried departure joined her via the command ship
Command ship
Command ships serve as the flagships of the Commander of a fleet. They provide communications, office space, and accommodations for a fleet commander and his staff, and serve to coordinate fleet activities....
. Back at sea on 27 May, the warship conducted further ASW work in the South China Sea until the end of the month. Badger made a short stop at Subic Bay for fuel on 1 June and then set out for Japan. She took part in an amphibious exercise along the way near Okinawa before arriving in Yokosuka on 16 June. She spent eight days in repairs at Yokosuka and then set a course back to the South China Sea
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around...
where she carried out surveillance missions until the latter part of July. Badger then returned to Subic Bay where she made voyage repairs and requalified in naval gunfire support on the nearby Tabones range. On 27 July, she headed back to Yokosuka where she underwent still more repairs during the first 10 days of August.
Badger returned to sea on 11 August 1983, and took up surveillance duty again, this time in the Sea of Japan
Sea of Japan
The Sea of Japan is a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean, between the Asian mainland, the Japanese archipelago and Sakhalin. It is bordered by Japan, North Korea, Russia and South Korea. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it has almost no tides due to its nearly complete enclosure from the Pacific...
. She concluded that assignment on 2 September and shaped a course for Sasebo, but received orders the following day to proceed north in the wake of the tragic downing, by a Soviet fighter, of Korean Air Lines Flight 007 over Sakhalin Island
Sakhalin
Sakhalin or Saghalien, is a large island in the North Pacific, lying between 45°50' and 54°24' N.It is part of Russia, and is Russia's largest island, and is administered as part of Sakhalin Oblast...
on 1 September. Rear Admiral William A. Cockell, Commander, Task Force 71, and a skeleton staff, embarked in Badger on 9 September via LAMPS helo from Wakanai, Japan, for further transfer to the destroyer Elliot to assume duties as Officer in Tactical Command (OTC) of the Search and Rescue (SAR) effort. During the forenoon watch on 17 September, however, Badgers embarked SH-2F helicopter from HSL-37 (Detachment 2) went down at sea; USCGC Munro (WHEC-724), however, promptly rescued the four-man crew from the water. Badger ended her part in the KAL 007
Korean Air Flight 007
Korean Air Lines Flight 007 was a Korean Air Lines civilian airliner that was shot down by Soviet interceptors on 1 September 1983, over the Sea of Japan, near Moneron Island just west of Sakhalin island...
SAR effort on the 20th and reached Yokosuka on the 21st to prepare for the voyage back to Hawaii. That journey began on 23 October and included participation in Exercise Battle Week 84-1 followed by a visit to nearby Apra, Guam, before Badger finally managed to return home on Armistice Day
Armistice Day
Armistice Day is on 11 November and commemorates the armistice signed between the Allies of World War I and Germany at Compiègne, France, for the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front of World War I, which took effect at eleven o'clock in the morning—the "eleventh hour of the eleventh day...
1983. Admiral William J. Crowe
William J. Crowe
Admiral William James Crowe, Jr. was a United States Navy Admiral who served as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush, and as the ambassador to the United Kingdom under President Bill Clinton.-Biography:Crowe was born in La Grange, Kentucky...
, Jr., Commander in Chief, U.S. Pacific Command
United States Pacific Command
The United States Pacific Command is a Unified Combatant Command of the United States armed forces responsible for the Pacific Ocean area. It is led by the Commander, Pacific Command , who is the supreme military authority for the various branches of the Armed Forces of the United States serving...
, visited the ship on 29 November and congratulated the ship's officers and men on their recent deployment, emphasizing their role during the KAL 007 SAR operation. Post-deployment leave and upkeep and holiday standdown, broken only by a brief period underway on 20 and 21 December to escort as she operated locally, kept Badger in port at Pearl for the rest of 1983.
1984-85
Badger got underway for the first time in 1984 on 9 January when she put to sea for three days of tests and training with . Following an inspection and survey to gauge her fitness for further service, she began a two-month restricted availability. On 21 March, she finished the repair work and launched into a succession of post-availability trials, inspections, examinations, and certifications that continued through the middle of June. After that came refresher training in the local operating area until late July. On the 20th, Badger stood out of Pearl in company with and Amphibious SquadronPHIBRON
PHIBRON is an abbreviation for Amphibious Squadron. In the U.S. and NATO, it is a tactical and administrative organization composed of amphibious assault shipping to transport troops and their equipment for an amphibious assault operation....
(PhibRon) 5 for six weeks of drills and exercises in the waters along the west coast. She returned to Hawaii at the end of August and then, except for 17 days in drydock between 28 September and 15 October, spent September and October engaged in normal operations in Hawaiian waters.
During the last week in October, Badger took part in the first phase of a major fleet exercise with a pair of carrier task groups built around and . After spending the period 2 to 6 November in port at Pearl Harbor, she returned to sea to conclude the exercise and then move on to the Far East for seven weeks of additional exercises. Travelling with the Carl Vinson task group, she participated in a series of training evolutions conducted in such diverse places as the Marianas, in the Philippine Sea
Philippine Sea
The Philippine Sea is a marginal sea east and north of the Philippines occupying an estimated surface area of 2 million mi² on the western part of the North Pacific Ocean...
, and in Japanese waters. Badger completed her part in the exercises early in December and, after a visit to Yokosuka, Japan, set out on the voyage back to Hawaii on the 13th in company with Joseph Strauss. The two warships reentered Pearl Harbor on 22 December, and Badger spent the rest of 1984 in port.
Northern California
Northern California is the northern portion of the U.S. state of California. The San Francisco Bay Area , and Sacramento as well as its metropolitan area are the main population centers...
coast. She returned to Hawaii from that mission on 24 January and settled into more than two months of local operations out of Pearl Harbor. Then, after a special assignment in the vicinity of Midway Island early in April, Badger completed a four-week restricted availability at Pearl Harbor. On 11 May, the frigate headed for the eastern Pacific once more. This time, however, she made it all the way to the west coast and took part in several exercises conducted in the southern California operating area. Concluding a four-week absence, Badger returned to Oahu on 14 June and began preparations to deploy overseas.
After six weeks of getting ready, Badger stood out of Pearl Harbor on 2 August and joined the Orient-bound task group built around ) the next evening. The exercise-filled, 17-day passage to the Philippines ended on the 19th at Subic Bay where Badger began five days of repairs and meetings before heading to duty in the Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea
Arabian Sea
The Arabian Sea is a region of the Indian Ocean bounded on the east by India, on the north by Pakistan and Iran, on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, on the south, approximately, by a line between Cape Guardafui in northeastern Somalia and Kanyakumari in India...
on the 24 August. Along the way, she and parted company with the task group to transit the Malacca Strait and conduct Exercise MERLION 85 with units of the Singapore Navy
Republic of Singapore Navy
The Republic of Singapore Navy is the naval component of the Singapore Armed Forces , responsible for the defence of Singapore against sea-borne threats and protection of its sea lines of communications. Operating within the crowded littoral waters of the Singapore Strait, the RSN is regarded as...
on 29 and 30 August. The two warships rejoined the task group in the Bay of Bengal
Bay of Bengal
The Bay of Bengal , the largest bay in the world, forms the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. It resembles a triangle in shape, and is bordered mostly by the Eastern Coast of India, southern coast of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka to the west and Burma and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to the...
on 1 September and, after recovering debris from a helicopter crash, resumed the voyage to the Arabian Sea. Badger reached the patrol area in the northern Arabian Sea on 10 September and began four weeks of duty on that station. Early in October, she made a five-day port visit at Mombasa
Mombasa
Mombasa is the second-largest city in Kenya. Lying next to the Indian Ocean, it has a major port and an international airport. The city also serves as the centre of the coastal tourism industry....
and then sailed back to the Arabian Sea, where she completed a tender availability alongside at Al Masirah Island
Masirah Island
Masirah is an island off the East coast of Oman, 95 km long north-south, between 12 and 14 km wide, with an area of about 649 km², and a population estimated at 12,000 in 12 villages mainly in the north of the island...
. Early in November, she called at Karachi, Pakistan
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
, for a goodwill visit and carried out an ASW exercise with units of the Pakistani Navy
Pakistan Navy
The Pakistan Navy is the naval warfare/service branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces. Pakistan's Navy is responsible for Pakistan's coastline along the Arabian Sea and the defense of important civilian harbors and military bases...
. On 17 November, she rejoined the Kitty Hawk task group again south of Sri Lanka on its way back to Subic Bay. The task group remained at Subic for six days before setting out on the voyage back to Hawaii on 1 December.
1986-89
Samoan Islands
The Samoan Islands or Samoa Islands is an archipelago covering in the central South Pacific, forming part of Polynesia and the wider region of Oceania...
, Nukualofa and Vavau in the Tonga Islands
Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...
, and Funafuti
Funafuti
Funafuti is an atoll that forms the capital of the island nation of Tuvalu. It has a population of 4,492 , making it the most populated atoll in the country. It is a narrow sweep of land between 20 and 400 metres wide, encircling a large lagoon 18 km long and 14 km wide, with a surface of...
in the Tuvalu Islands
Tuvalu
Tuvalu , formerly known as the Ellice Islands, is a Polynesian island nation located in the Pacific Ocean, midway between Hawaii and Australia. Its nearest neighbours are Kiribati, Nauru, Samoa and Fiji. It comprises four reef islands and five true atolls...
before returning to Hawaii by way of Apia. The warship arrived back in Pearl Harbor on 12 May and began a four-week period of relative inactivity in port. Early in June, she put to sea to participate in a phase of the multinational exercise RIMPAC 86 and then returned to Oahu on the 14th to prepare for an extended training cruise to the west coast. On 23 June, Badger embarked on the seven-week round of exercises punctuated with visits to west coast ports that constituted EASTPAC 86. During that space of time, she visited Vancouver in British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
and the California ports of San Francisco and San Diego before returning to Hawaii on 9 August.
Badger continued to carry out training missions in the Hawaiian operating area well into 1988. Late in March, she embarked on a series of battle readiness exercises that carried out during a four-week cruise to the west coast. The warship returned to Pearl Harbor from that assignment at the end of April and then spent the following five weeks in port. She resumed local training missions on 9 June, but those lasted less than a fortnight. On 22 June, Badger stood out of Pearl Harbor on her way to the Far East as part of a task group built around Carl Vinson. Though she made most of the crossing with the task group, Badger did not remain a part of it throughout the deployment. She parted company with the unit on 4 July and headed for Japan, arriving in Yokosuka on the 16th. After five days of repairs and upkeep, the frigate set sail for the Philippines on 22 July. She reached Subic Bay on the 27th but remained only three days, putting to sea again on the 30th bound for Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
. Her visit to Singapore, however, proved a brief one, shortened by orders on 6 August to rescue Vietnamese refugees in the vicinity of the Spratly Islands
Spratly Islands
The Spratly Islands are a group of more than 750 reefs, islets, atolls, cays and islands in the South China Sea. The archipelago lies off the coasts of the Philippines and Malaysia , about one third of the way from there to southern Vietnam. They comprise less than four square kilometers of land...
. On the 9th, Badger took on board 57 survivors of a group that had originally numbered 104 and sailed for the Philippines.
The warship disembarked the refugees at Subic Bay on the 10th and, after several days of upkeep, set out for Japan again. During the remainder of August and the first part of September, Badger called at a succession of Japanese ports. On 12 September, she put to sea from Yokosuka for two weeks of operations in the East China Sea
East China Sea
The East China Sea is a marginal sea east of China. It is a part of the Pacific Ocean and covers an area of 1,249,000 km² or 750,000 square miles.-Geography:...
with a task group formed around Midway. She then visited Pusan, South Korea, on 28 and 29 September, before returning to sea for two weeks of surveillance operations in the Sea of Japan. In mid-October, the frigate visited Chinhae, Korea, for five days and then carried out four days of training with units of the South Korean Navy
Republic of Korea Navy
The Republic of Korea Navy or the ROK Navy is the branch of the South Korean armed forces responsible for conducting naval operations and amphibious landing operations. The ROK Navy includes the Republic of Korea Marine Corps, which is a quasi-autonomous organization...
. Next came a call each at Pusan in late October and at Hong Kong early in November. Badger returned to Subic Bay on 11 November and made preparations for the voyage back to Hawaii. The last 7th Fleet assignment of her Navy career came to an end on 22 November when she embarked on that final western Pacific passage.
The warship returned to Pearl Harbor on 6 December 1988 and her post-deployment standdown lasted until 17 January 1989. She then resumed local operations in the Hawaiian Islands
Hawaiian Islands
The Hawaiian Islands are an archipelago of eight major islands, several atolls, numerous smaller islets, and undersea seamounts in the North Pacific Ocean, extending some 1,500 miles from the island of Hawaii in the south to northernmost Kure Atoll...
on a schedule that kept her moderately busy through the end of May. On 30 May, the frigate began an availability with a civilian contractor that lasted nearly four months. Badger completed the repairs on 24 September, carried out the usual trials and examinations in October, and resumed normal training missions out of Pearl Harbor early in November. She remained so occupied for the rest of 1989 and well into 1990.
1990s
Late in March 1990, however, Badger undertook a new mission when she embarked a Coast GuardUnited States Coast Guard
The United States Coast Guard is a branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven U.S. uniformed services. The Coast Guard is a maritime, military, multi-mission service unique among the military branches for having a maritime law enforcement mission and a federal regulatory agency...
law enforcement detachment
Law Enforcement Detachments
Law Enforcement Detachments or LEDETs are specialized, deployable maritime law enforcement teams of the United States Coast Guard. First established in 1982, their primary mission is to deploy aboard U.S. and allied naval vessels to conduct and support law enforcement, interdiction, or security...
to carry out drug traffic
Illegal drug trade
The illegal drug trade is a global black market, dedicated to cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of those substances which are subject to drug prohibition laws. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types of drugs by drug prohibition laws.A UN report said the...
interdiction operations. Her first taste of law enforcement duty lasted from 28 March to 12 April and then she resumed more familiar duty until mid-June. On 18 June, she embarked another Coast Guard detachment and set sail for the west coast to conduct another series of drug traffic interdiction missions in the eastern Pacific out of San Diego. That employment lasted until the beginning of September when she transferred her helicopter detachment to and disembarked the Coast Guardsmen at San Francisco. Badger arrived back at Oahu on 11 September and began a restricted availability on the 20th that immobilized her for most of the months remaining in 1990.
Badger took up active training again early in December 1990; but that lasted only about two weeks. The relative inactivity of holiday leave and upkeep commenced in mid-December and continued for about a month. In mid-January 1991, the warship resumed local training operations and pursued them until early June. During June and early July, Badger voyaged to the west coast one last time before being deactivated. She visited San Diego, California, Portland, Oregon, and Homer, Alaska
Homer, Alaska
Homer is a city located in Kenai Peninsula Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population was 5,364. One of Homer's nicknames is "the cosmic hamlet by the sea"; another is "the end of the road"...
before returning to Oahu on 16 July. Once back in Pearl, the frigate did not get underway again except to shift berths. Badger was decommissioned at Pearl Harbor on 20 December 1991, and her name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register
Naval Vessel Register
The Naval Vessel Register is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from the time a vessel is authorized through its life cycle and...
in January 1995. The former warship performed her last service for the Navy on 22 July 1998 at which time she was sunk as a target during 3rd Fleet
United States 3rd Fleet
The Third Fleet is one of seven numbered fleets in the United States Navy. Third Fleet's area of responsibility includes approximately fifty million square miles of the eastern and northern Pacific ocean areas including the Bering Sea, Alaska, the Aleutian Islands and a sector of the Arctic...
exercise RIMPAC 98 at 22'51.1"N, 160'33"W.
Badger earned one battle star
Service star
A service star, also referred to as a battle star, campaign star, or engagement star, is an attachment to a United States military decoration which denotes participation in military campaigns or multiple bestowals of the same award. Service stars are typically issued for campaign medals, service...
during the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
..
Popular Culture
In the movie 50 First Dates50 First Dates
50 First Dates is a 2004 American romantic comedy film directed by Peter Segal and written by George Wing. The film stars Adam Sandler as a woman-chasing veterinarian and Drew Barrymore as an amnesiac, along with Rob Schneider, Sean Astin, Lusia Strus, Blake Clark, and Dan Aykroyd.Most of the film...
, the character Marlin Whitmore(Blake Clark
Blake Clark
Blake Clark is an American actor, voice artist, comedian, and veteran of the Vietnam War, having served as a Captain with the 101st Airborne Division....
) wears a cap indicating he may have served on the USS Badger sometime in the past. The cap displays the original designation DE-1071.