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USS Philip (DD-498)
Encyclopedia
USS Philip (DD/DDE-498), a , was the second ship of the United States Navy
to be named for Rear Admiral John W. Philip
(1840–1900).
Philip was laid down by the Federal Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co., Kearny, New Jersey
, 7 May 1942; launched
13 October 1942; sponsored by Mrs. Barrett Philip; and commissioned
21 November 1942, Commander Thomas C. Ragan in command. Among the junior officers at commissioning was Ensign Benjamin C. Bradlee
who later became Executive Editor of the Washington Post.
area in the southwest Pacific. Operating in the screen of the Second Transport Group, Philip, on 15 August 1943, made a good showing in her first scrape with the enemy. Several bomb splashes were seen near Barakoma Beach, Vella Lavella
, indicating that Japanese
bombers were attacking the LCI
s unloading there. A few minutes later, two dive bomber
s headed for Philip to unload their explosives. Each plane dropped a bomb but both missed. The first plane, taken under fire by the ship's guns, kept getting closer until a friendly Corsair
took over the fight. Guns were shifted to the second and they soon found their range, splashing the plane into the sea.
Japanese planes came back for another attack at nightfall. Silhouetted clearly against a full moon, Philip picked out the most desirable target. One torpedo
wake passed a few yards astern and another crossed parallel to the ship after it was seen in time to take evasive action. The ship's guns kept barking at one of the bombers, finally shooting it down.
Again during the next evening, Japanese planes came in to pay their regular visit. This time their objective proved to be the cumbersome LSTs withdrawing from Barakoma Beach. While laying a heavy smoke screen and shooting at the planes, Philip collided with under the cover of her own smoke. Although damage to both vessels resulted, damage control parties of both ships rigged up shoring to prevent flooding and stayed in the battle. Philip kept her guns blazing away at the swarming Japanese, one plane was shot down and another was claimed as a possible kill.
There was no let-up from enemy raids on the next day as the Japanese pressed their attempts to dislodge American forces from their toehold on the Solomons
. One dive bomber sent his torpedo flying between the ship's stacks and another went splashing into the sea 30 yards to port. A second attack brought another close call; two torpedoes dropped 15 yards astern. Philips gunners shot down one of the dive bombers.
Two days later, while leading a convoy out of Tulagi
, the destroyer launched a pair of attacks on what appeared to be a Japanese submarine
, without damage to the enemy.
On 27 October, the destroyer fired at mortar emplacements on Mono Island
and then came into Blanche Harbor
, Treasury Island, Solomons. Six Val
-type enemy planes zoomed into the harbor in an attempt to destroy the transports sitting there. The attack was repelled and Philip did her share by sending one plane away in flames.
A barge sweep off Bougainville
and bombardment of Choiseul Bay
was conducted on 8 January 1944; ten days later, the destroyer returned for another blow on Bougainville, raking the island's northeast shores with surface fire.
Leading a convoy of LCIs into Bougainville on 15 February, Philip weathered a bombing attack reminiscent of her earlier days; but she retaliated in like manner, damaging one plane and repelling the others.
After a methodical bombardment of Empress Augusta Bay
14 March, Philip left to take part in the Marianas campaign
. From 17 June to the end of July, the destroyer's guns blazed red hot as they hammered almost daily at enemy positions on Saipan
and Tinian
. Known gun emplacements, troop concentrations, and air fields were the main targets, although several swipes were also taken at small craft in Tinian and boats in Tanapag Harbor
.
came next. An assault on Mindoro
, 12–15 December, was her initial step. One airplane was damaged in the battle. More fierce airplane attacks came when Philip joined a screening force around a resupply echelon traveling from Leyte to Mindoro, later that month. Frequent raids with coordinated bombing and suicide attacks
by as many as six planes at one time greeted the slow convoy during its entire trip. Two of the attackers were shot down by the destroyer and another was damaged. A 20-millimeter shell, fired by an LCT
at a Japanese plane, landed upon the aluminum spray shield on the ship's starboard bridge wing, tearing a hole in the structure and wounding two men. One of the wounded men died five hours after the accident.
Many of the ships were not as fortunate as Philip which escaped with comparatively little damage. Suiciders had a field day in crashing into the not easily maneuverable merchant ships.
received a suicide hit and Philip steamed to her comrade's rescue. Two of her men, acting upon their own initiative boarded the crippled destroyer, set her depth charge
s on safe, and jettisoned them.
Steaming out of Leyte 5 January 1945, Philip sailed to join a task group which went on to invade Lingayen Gulf
, Luzon
Island, Philippines, 9 January. The destroyer remained in the area until 12 January, screening the transports as they unloaded. Several air attacks and suicide boat assaults were encountered during the journey from Leyte.
During the dark early morning of 10 January, the destroyer challenged a small boat which it picked up on radar
. The small craft, acting queerly, did not reply. After illuminating the small explosive-laden boat, Philip opened with its 20-millimeter and .45 sub-machine guns. The boat turned sharply, headed directly for the ship's port side amidships, but was exploded 20 yards short of her mark.
Two brief fire support missions were conducted in the occupation of Zamboanga Peninsula
, Mindanao
, during March, and assaults on Sanga Sanga and Jolo Island
s, Sulu Archipelago
, Philippines, were successfully conducted by Philip during 2–10 April.
, N.E.I.
Major landings on Tarakan Island
followed a day later; enemy opposition in force was surprisingly absent.
Relieved of radar picket
duty off Brunei Bay
on 12 June, Philip rendezvoused with a minesweeping
group and left to clear the area of Miri
-Luton, Sarawak, Borneo, in preparation for an assault which was to come seven days later.
Having previously paved the way for an assault landing on Brunei Bay, Borneo, Philip covered the "sweeps" while preparations were made for the next invasion. A total of 246 mines
were cut loose from the heavily-planted area, not without loss of much valuable sweep gear. Hostile gun positions in the Miri area were softened by the destroyer while the minesweepers performed their chores.
Elements of the First Australian Corps, loaded at Morotai
, landed at Balikpapan
, Borneo, 1 July, while Philip stood guard for enemy attempts to hinder the invasion. Remaining in the area until 19 July, the destroyer bombarded the surrounding shores and helped repel such feeble air attacks as the Japanese could muster.
The end of the war followed the Borneo operation but it did not bring about immediate return to the United States for the busy destroyer. She was sent to China on mine destruction duty and remained in the Pacific area until late in 1945.
The veteran destroyer got back to the West Coast just in time to allow the crew to spend New Year's Eve
on home soil. She subsequently sailed to the Atlantic and, by Directive dated January 1947, was placed out of commission, in reserve, attached to the U.S. Atlantic Reserve Fleet, berthed at Charleston, South Carolina
Philips classification was changed to DDE-498 on 26 March 1949.
and San Diego enroute to her new home port, Pearl Harbor
. Here she arrived 10 September 1950, and immediately assumed her part in advanced hunter-killer exercises. During the autumn of 1950, Philip acted as plane-guard for the aircraft bearing President
Harry S. Truman
to his mid-ocean conference with General Douglas MacArthur
on Wake Island
, to discuss the conduct of the Korean War
.
Philip departed Pearl Harbor 1 June 1951 for Midway and Yokosuka, Japan. On 15 June, she joined Task Force 77 (TF 77) in the Sea of Japan
for duty screening the fast carrier
task force as it conducted air operations against enemy forces in North Korea
. She returned to Japan for anti-submarine warfare exercises from 30 June to 10 July, and next day sailed for Taiwan
and duty on patrol in the Taiwan Straits. A visit to Hong Kong
which began 29 July was interrupted by Typhoon Louise. Through August, Philip continued her patrol duties, and early in September conducted anti-submarine exercises off Okinawa until 11 September when she put into Yokosuka for upkeep.
On 24 September 1951 Philip was bound for the east coast of Korea. Here she had escort duty with TF 77 until 3 October, when she received orders which sent her to duty on the west coast of Korea
with the United Nations
Naval Forces which included Australian
and British
units. Here Philip screened the carrier group, and served to enforce the naval blockade on the 38th parallel
.
Fighting her way through the most devastating typhoon in years, Ruth, Philip steamed back to duty with TF 77, joining up 15 October. Released from this duty 31 October. Philip proceeded to Yokosuka, and departed 2 November for Pearl Harbor.
On arriving at Pearl Harbor, the ship commenced a yard period, which was followed by a period of refresher training. Underway training and planeguard duty continued until 27 October 1952, when Philip began a short drydock period, part of her preparation for another tour of duty in the Korean War. She departed Pearl Harbor 10 November, bound for Yokosuka, Japan, where she arrived ten days later.
Late in the afternoon of 25 November 1952 Philip joined Task Force 78, and began duty in the screen of the task force. Later duty included a shore bombardment patrol in company with in the vicinity of latitude 38'30'N off the east coast of Korea. On 5 December, the two vessels entered Wonsan
Harbor to fire on shore targets, and then returned to the bombline to carry out call fire missions. Steady steaming with TF-78 was resumed from 8 December until 27 December, interrupted only by a night search for a sonar
contact and two rescue missions for pilots of downed aircraft. After a period of tender availability in Yokosuka, Philip resumed similar duty until May 1953.
Philip returned to Pearl Harbor 29 May 1953, and operated for a month in training exercises. Late in June she began an intensive three month overhaul at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard. Overhaul completed, she returned to a busy schedule of operations in the Hawaii
an group which included search and rescue missions, anti-submarine exercises, practice shore bombardment, and carrier plane guard duties.
A major fleet exercise occupied Philip during the first months of 1954, and she then began preparations for another journey to the Western Pacific. On 14 June, she stood out for Yokosuka, Japan, where she arrived 23 June, mooring alongside for two days of tender availability. Philip then got underway for the Shimonoseki Straits and Chinhae, Korea. After reporting for duty with Task Force 95, Philip steamed to Inchon to join and act as planeguard for the British carrier on the United Nations Blockade. Philip escorted Warrior to Kure
, Japan, 4 July, and sailed on to Sasebo for a week's restricted availability.
until 15 March 1955, when she entered the yard for a comprehensive overhaul. Overhaul was followed by refresher training and preparation for another Far Eastern deployment. On 8 August 1955, she sailed for Yokosuka, Japan, arriving ten days later. On this tour of duty, she participated in large scale antisubmarine warfare exercises off Okinawa, operated with Task Force 77, and served on the Taiwan Patrol before heading for home 6 January 1956.
Operations in Hawaiian waters occupied Philip between 15 January 1956, and 30 October, when she once more took departure for the Far East. Serving primarily in Japanese waters, Philip completed a shorter tour than previously, and was back home in Pearl Harbor 22 January 1957.
Arriving in Yokosuka 5 January 1958 Philip served on exercises off Japan and Okinawa, in the Philippine Islands, and in the South China Sea
until 23 April, when her division began the homeward bound voyage, by an unusual route. Arriving in Brisbane, Australia 2 May, Philip visited Melbourne and Sydney, Australia; Wellington
, New Zealand
; and Pago Pago, American Samoa
, before returning to Pearl Harbor 29 May. Here she resumed her operations in the Hawaiian Group throughout the remainder of 1958.
From the latter part of June 1958 until the end of January 1959, Philip took part in hunter-killer operations, conducted shore bombardment, air and surface shoots, single and dual ship antisubmarine exercises, and fulfilled the duties of planeguard destroyer for the super carrier . On 18 February Philip and the other escort destroyers of DesDiv 252 got underway and proceeded to Yokosuka, Japan. Philip operated around Japan and in the South China Sea before arriving Brisbane, Australia, 11 July. The deployment ended at Pearl Harbor 30 July.
The division sailed from Honolulu again for Yokosuka 22 April 1960. After operating in the waters of Japan and Okinawa Philip returned to Pearl Harbor 29 October 1960. On 4 February 1962 Philip was off for Yokosuka again. This cruise was spent in the waters of Japan, the Philippines, and Vietnam
. Effective 1 July 1962 Philip was redesignated from DDE to DD. Philip returned to Pearl Harbor 18 July 1962.
Philip steamed again for Yokosuka 12 November 1963, operating again in Japanese, Philippine, and Vietnamese waters, and returning to Pearl Harbor 10 April 1964. After another period of operations out of Hawaii, Philip steamed for Yokosuka again 19 April 1965. This cruise was highlighted by duty on Yankee Station
off Vietnam and by patrol of the Taiwan straits. She returned home 1 October 1965.
The USS Philip was featured in the 1965 Otto Preminger
film In Harm's Way
starring John Wayne
. It makes its appearance as the destroyer
that steams out of Pearl Harbor at the beginning of the 7 Dec 1941 attack, joins up with the Wayne character's cruiser in an ad hoc task group, depth charges a Japanese submarine that attacks the task group, and pulls alongside the Wayne character's cruiser
to render aid after it has been torpedoed by the same Japanese submarine.
Philip decommissioned 30 September 1968 and was struck from the Navy List
1 October 1968. She was sold 15 December 1971, but sank in a storm on her way to be scrapped 2 February 1972.
Philip received nine battle stars for World War II service and five battle stars for Korean War service.
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...
to be named for Rear Admiral John W. Philip
John Woodward Philip
John Woodward Philip was an officer in the United States Navy during the Civil War and Spanish–American War.-Biography:...
(1840–1900).
Philip was laid down by the Federal Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Co., Kearny, New Jersey
Kearny, New Jersey
Kearny is a town in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. It was named after Civil War general Philip Kearny. As of the United States 2010 Census, the town population was 40,684. The town is a suburb of the nearby city of Newark....
, 7 May 1942; launched
Ship naming and launching
The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.-Methods of launch:There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely...
13 October 1942; sponsored by Mrs. Barrett Philip; and commissioned
Ship commissioning
Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...
21 November 1942, Commander Thomas C. Ragan in command. Among the junior officers at commissioning was Ensign Benjamin C. Bradlee
Benjamin C. Bradlee
Benjamin Crowninshield Bradlee is a vice president at-large of The Washington Post. As executive editor of the Post from 1968 to 1991, he became a national figure during the presidency of Richard Nixon, when he challenged the federal government over the right to publish the Pentagon Papers and...
who later became Executive Editor of the Washington Post.
Solomon Islands campaign: June 1943 – March 1944
Philips first mission came during the early morning of 30 June 1943, when she bombarded installations in the Shortland IslandsShortland Islands
The Shortland Islands are group of islands belonging to the Western Province of the Solomon Islands, at . Named by John Shortland, they lie in the extreme northwest of the country's territory, close to the island of Bougainville, Papua New Guinea. The largest island is Shortland Island...
area in the southwest Pacific. Operating in the screen of the Second Transport Group, Philip, on 15 August 1943, made a good showing in her first scrape with the enemy. Several bomb splashes were seen near Barakoma Beach, Vella Lavella
Vella Lavella
Vella Lavella is an island in the Western Province of the Solomon Islands. It lies to the west of New Georgia, but is considered one of the New Georgia Group...
, indicating that Japanese
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
bombers were attacking the LCI
Landing Craft Infantry
The Landing craft, Infantry or LCI were several classes of sea-going amphibious assault ships of the Second World War utilized to land large numbers of infantry directly onto beaches. They were developed in response to a British request for a vessel capable of carrying and landing substantially...
s unloading there. A few minutes later, two dive bomber
Dive bomber
A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy for the bomb it drops. Diving towards the target reduces the distance the bomb has to fall, which is the primary factor in determining the accuracy of the drop...
s headed for Philip to unload their explosives. Each plane dropped a bomb but both missed. The first plane, taken under fire by the ship's guns, kept getting closer until a friendly Corsair
F4U Corsair
The Vought F4U Corsair was a carrier-capable fighter aircraft that saw service primarily in World War II and the Korean War. Demand for the aircraft soon overwhelmed Vought's manufacturing capability, resulting in production by Goodyear and Brewster: Goodyear-built Corsairs were designated FG and...
took over the fight. Guns were shifted to the second and they soon found their range, splashing the plane into the sea.
Japanese planes came back for another attack at nightfall. Silhouetted clearly against a full moon, Philip picked out the most desirable target. One torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
wake passed a few yards astern and another crossed parallel to the ship after it was seen in time to take evasive action. The ship's guns kept barking at one of the bombers, finally shooting it down.
Again during the next evening, Japanese planes came in to pay their regular visit. This time their objective proved to be the cumbersome LSTs withdrawing from Barakoma Beach. While laying a heavy smoke screen and shooting at the planes, Philip collided with under the cover of her own smoke. Although damage to both vessels resulted, damage control parties of both ships rigged up shoring to prevent flooding and stayed in the battle. Philip kept her guns blazing away at the swarming Japanese, one plane was shot down and another was claimed as a possible kill.
There was no let-up from enemy raids on the next day as the Japanese pressed their attempts to dislodge American forces from their toehold on the Solomons
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
. One dive bomber sent his torpedo flying between the ship's stacks and another went splashing into the sea 30 yards to port. A second attack brought another close call; two torpedoes dropped 15 yards astern. Philips gunners shot down one of the dive bombers.
Two days later, while leading a convoy out of Tulagi
Tulagi
Tulagi, less commonly Tulaghi, is a small island in the Solomon Islands, just off the south coast of Florida Island. The town of the same name on the island Tulagi, less commonly Tulaghi, is a small island (5.5 km by 1 km) in the Solomon Islands, just off the south coast of Florida...
, the destroyer launched a pair of attacks on what appeared to be a Japanese submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
, without damage to the enemy.
On 27 October, the destroyer fired at mortar emplacements on Mono Island
Mono Island
Mono Island is the largest island of the Treasury Islands, Solomon Islands, at .- Geography :Mono island is a volcanic island in the northwest of the Solomon Islands. It is separated by the Blanche Harbour from Stirling Island and the other coral islands surrounding it. The village of Falamai is...
and then came into Blanche Harbor
Blanche Harbor
Blanche Harbor is a natural harbour between Mono and Stirling Islands of the Treasury Islands, Solomon Islands, at .-External links:*...
, Treasury Island, Solomons. Six Val
Aichi D3A
The , Allied reporting name "Val") was a World War II carrier-borne dive bomber of the Imperial Japanese Navy . It was the primary dive bomber in the Imperial Japanese Navy, and participated in almost all actions, including Pearl Harbor....
-type enemy planes zoomed into the harbor in an attempt to destroy the transports sitting there. The attack was repelled and Philip did her share by sending one plane away in flames.
A barge sweep off Bougainville
Bougainville Island
Bougainville Island is the main island of the Autonomous Region of Bougainville of Papua New Guinea. This region is also known as Bougainville Province or the North Solomons. The population of the province is 175,160 , which includes the adjacent island of Buka and assorted outlying islands...
and bombardment of Choiseul Bay
Choiseul Bay
Choiseul Bay is a bay in the northwestern part of Choiseul Island, Solomon Islands, at ....
was conducted on 8 January 1944; ten days later, the destroyer returned for another blow on Bougainville, raking the island's northeast shores with surface fire.
Leading a convoy of LCIs into Bougainville on 15 February, Philip weathered a bombing attack reminiscent of her earlier days; but she retaliated in like manner, damaging one plane and repelling the others.
After a methodical bombardment of Empress Augusta Bay
Empress Augusta Bay
Empress Augusta Bay is a major bay on the western side of the island of Bougainville, in Papua New Guinea, at . It is a major subsistence fishing area for the people of Bougainville. It is named after Augusta Viktoria of Schleswig-Holstein, wife of German Emperor William II.In November 1943, the...
14 March, Philip left to take part in the Marianas campaign
Mariana and Palau Islands campaign
The Mariana and Palau Islands campaign, also known as Operation Forager, was an offensive launched by United States forces against Imperial Japanese forces in the Mariana Islands and Palau in the Pacific Ocean between June and November, 1944 during the Pacific War...
. From 17 June to the end of July, the destroyer's guns blazed red hot as they hammered almost daily at enemy positions on Saipan
Saipan
Saipan is the largest island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of . The 2000 census population was 62,392...
and Tinian
Tinian
Tinian is one of the three principal islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.-Geography:Tinian is about 5 miles southwest of its sister island, Saipan, from which it is separated by the Saipan Channel. It has a land area of 39 sq.mi....
. Known gun emplacements, troop concentrations, and air fields were the main targets, although several swipes were also taken at small craft in Tinian and boats in Tanapag Harbor
Tanapag Harbor
Tanapag Harbor is the primary harbor of Saipan, and is located on the western side of the island. It is separated from the Philippine Sea by a barrier reef,located about 3 km off the shore. This reef forms the Saipan Lagoon....
.
Philippines campaign, December 1944 – April 1945
The PhilippinesPhilippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
came next. An assault on Mindoro
Mindoro
Mindoro is the seventh-largest island in the Philippines. It is located off the coast of Luzon, and northeast of Palawan. The southern coast of Mindoro forms the northeastern extremum of the Sulu Sea.-History:...
, 12–15 December, was her initial step. One airplane was damaged in the battle. More fierce airplane attacks came when Philip joined a screening force around a resupply echelon traveling from Leyte to Mindoro, later that month. Frequent raids with coordinated bombing and suicide attacks
Kamikaze
The were suicide attacks by military aviators from the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, designed to destroy as many warships as possible....
by as many as six planes at one time greeted the slow convoy during its entire trip. Two of the attackers were shot down by the destroyer and another was damaged. A 20-millimeter shell, fired by an LCT
Landing craft tank
The Landing Craft, Tank was an amphibious assault ship for landing tanks on beachheads. They were initially developed by the British Royal Navy and later by the United States Navy during World War II in a series of versions. Initially known as the "Tank Landing Craft" by the British, they later...
at a Japanese plane, landed upon the aluminum spray shield on the ship's starboard bridge wing, tearing a hole in the structure and wounding two men. One of the wounded men died five hours after the accident.
Many of the ships were not as fortunate as Philip which escaped with comparatively little damage. Suiciders had a field day in crashing into the not easily maneuverable merchant ships.
received a suicide hit and Philip steamed to her comrade's rescue. Two of her men, acting upon their own initiative boarded the crippled destroyer, set her depth charge
Depth charge
A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare weapon intended to destroy or cripple a target submarine by the shock of exploding near it. Most use explosives and a fuze set to go off at a preselected depth in the ocean. Depth charges can be dropped by either surface ships, patrol aircraft, or from...
s on safe, and jettisoned them.
Steaming out of Leyte 5 January 1945, Philip sailed to join a task group which went on to invade Lingayen Gulf
Lingayen Gulf
The Lingayen Gulf is an extension of the South China Sea on Luzon in the Philippines stretching . It is framed by the provinces of Pangasinan and La Union and sits between the Zambales Mountains and the Cordillera Central...
, Luzon
Luzon
Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...
Island, Philippines, 9 January. The destroyer remained in the area until 12 January, screening the transports as they unloaded. Several air attacks and suicide boat assaults were encountered during the journey from Leyte.
During the dark early morning of 10 January, the destroyer challenged a small boat which it picked up on radar
Radar
Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
. The small craft, acting queerly, did not reply. After illuminating the small explosive-laden boat, Philip opened with its 20-millimeter and .45 sub-machine guns. The boat turned sharply, headed directly for the ship's port side amidships, but was exploded 20 yards short of her mark.
Two brief fire support missions were conducted in the occupation of Zamboanga Peninsula
Zamboanga Peninsula
Zamboanga Peninsula / Western Mindanao is a peninsula and an administrative region in the Philippines. Designated as Region IX, the region consists of three provinces, namely, Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur, and Zamboanga Sibugay, its component cities of Dipolog, Dapitan, Pagadian, and...
, Mindanao
Mindanao
Mindanao is the second largest and easternmost island in the Philippines. It is also the name of one of the three island groups in the country, which consists of the island of Mindanao and smaller surrounding islands. The other two are Luzon and the Visayas. The island of Mindanao is called The...
, during March, and assaults on Sanga Sanga and Jolo Island
Jolo Island
Jolo is a volcanic island in the southwest Philippines. It is located in the Sulu Archipelago, between Borneo and Mindanao, and has a population of approximately 300,000 people....
s, Sulu Archipelago
Sulu Archipelago
The Sulu Archipelago is a chain of islands in the southwestern Philippines. This archipelago is considered to be part of the Moroland by the local rebel independence movement. This island group forms the northern limit of the Celebes Sea....
, Philippines, were successfully conducted by Philip during 2–10 April.
Borneo campaign, April – July 1945
On 30 April, the destroyer joined a special attack unit to transport, protect, and establish units of the 26th Australian Brigade on Sauau, BorneoBorneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
, N.E.I.
Dutch East Indies
The Dutch East Indies was a Dutch colony that became modern Indonesia following World War II. It was formed from the nationalised colonies of the Dutch East India Company, which came under the administration of the Netherlands government in 1800....
Major landings on Tarakan Island
Tarakan Island
Tarakan is an island off the coast of East Kalimantan, Indonesia. It is a marshy island situated in the eastern Celebes Sea, off the northeastern coast of Borneo. The island occupies an area of .-Petroleum:...
followed a day later; enemy opposition in force was surprisingly absent.
Relieved of radar picket
Radar picket
A radar picket is a radar-equipped ship, submarine, aircraft, or vehicle used to increase the radar detection range around a force to protect it from surprise attack. Often several detached radar units encircle a force to provide increased cover in all directions.-World War II:Radar picket ships...
duty off Brunei Bay
Brunei Bay
Brunei Bay is the gateway to Brunei and Borneo. It is located 4°45'-5°02'N, 114°58'-115°10'E; east of Bandar Seri Begawan. The Brunei portion of the bay is in two sections separated by a finger of Sarawak about 6km wide at the coast...
on 12 June, Philip rendezvoused with a minesweeping
Minesweeper (ship)
A minesweeper is a small naval warship designed to counter the threat posed by naval mines. Minesweepers generally detect then neutralize mines in advance of other naval operations.-History:...
group and left to clear the area of Miri
Miri
Miri is a city in northern Sarawak, Malaysia, on the island of Borneo. It is the second largest city in Sarawak, with a population of about 300,000, and the government administrative centre of Miri District in Miri Division....
-Luton, Sarawak, Borneo, in preparation for an assault which was to come seven days later.
Having previously paved the way for an assault landing on Brunei Bay, Borneo, Philip covered the "sweeps" while preparations were made for the next invasion. A total of 246 mines
Naval mine
A naval mine is a self-contained explosive device placed in water to destroy surface ships or submarines. Unlike depth charges, mines are deposited and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, or contact with, an enemy vessel...
were cut loose from the heavily-planted area, not without loss of much valuable sweep gear. Hostile gun positions in the Miri area were softened by the destroyer while the minesweepers performed their chores.
Elements of the First Australian Corps, loaded at Morotai
Morotai
Morotai Island Regency is a regency of North Maluku province, Indonesia, located on Morotai Island. The population was 54,876 in 2007.-History:...
, landed at Balikpapan
Balikpapan
Balikpapan is a seaport city on the eastern coast of the island of Borneo, Indonesia, in the East Kalimantan province, a resource-rich region well known for its timber, mining, and petroleum export products. Two harbors, Semayang and Kariangau , and the Sepinggan International Airport are the main...
, Borneo, 1 July, while Philip stood guard for enemy attempts to hinder the invasion. Remaining in the area until 19 July, the destroyer bombarded the surrounding shores and helped repel such feeble air attacks as the Japanese could muster.
The end of the war followed the Borneo operation but it did not bring about immediate return to the United States for the busy destroyer. She was sent to China on mine destruction duty and remained in the Pacific area until late in 1945.
The veteran destroyer got back to the West Coast just in time to allow the crew to spend New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve
New Year's Eve is observed annually on December 31, the final day of any given year in the Gregorian calendar. In modern societies, New Year's Eve is often celebrated at social gatherings, during which participants dance, eat, consume alcoholic beverages, and watch or light fireworks to mark the...
on home soil. She subsequently sailed to the Atlantic and, by Directive dated January 1947, was placed out of commission, in reserve, attached to the U.S. Atlantic Reserve Fleet, berthed at Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
Philips classification was changed to DDE-498 on 26 March 1949.
Korean War, 1950 – 1954
Philip recommissioned at Charleston, South Carolina 30 June 1950, and sailed to the Panama Canal ZonePanama Canal Zone
The Panama Canal Zone was a unorganized U.S. territory located within the Republic of Panama, consisting of the Panama Canal and an area generally extending 5 miles on each side of the centerline, but excluding Panama City and Colón, which otherwise would have been partly within the limits of...
and San Diego enroute to her new home port, 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...
. Here she arrived 10 September 1950, and immediately assumed her part in advanced hunter-killer exercises. During the autumn of 1950, Philip acted as plane-guard for the aircraft bearing President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...
to his mid-ocean conference with General Douglas MacArthur
Douglas MacArthur
General of the Army Douglas MacArthur was an American general and field marshal of the Philippine Army. He was a Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s and played a prominent role in the Pacific theater during World War II. He received the Medal of Honor for his service in the...
on Wake Island
Wake Island
Wake Island is a coral atoll having a coastline of in the North Pacific Ocean, located about two-thirds of the way from Honolulu west to Guam east. It is an unorganized, unincorporated territory of the United States, administered by the Office of Insular Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior...
, to discuss the conduct of the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
.
Philip departed Pearl Harbor 1 June 1951 for Midway and Yokosuka, Japan. On 15 June, she joined Task Force 77 (TF 77) 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...
for duty screening the fast 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...
task force as it conducted air operations against enemy forces in North Korea
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
. She returned to Japan for anti-submarine warfare exercises from 30 June to 10 July, and next day sailed for Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
and duty on patrol in the Taiwan Straits. A visit to 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...
which began 29 July was interrupted by Typhoon Louise. Through August, Philip continued her patrol duties, and early in September conducted anti-submarine exercises off Okinawa until 11 September when she put into Yokosuka for upkeep.
On 24 September 1951 Philip was bound for the east coast of Korea. Here she had escort duty with TF 77 until 3 October, when she received orders which sent her to duty on the west coast of Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
with the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
Naval Forces which included Australian
Royal Australian Navy
The Royal Australian Navy is the naval branch of the Australian Defence Force. Following the Federation of Australia in 1901, the ships and resources of the separate colonial navies were integrated into a national force: the Commonwealth Naval Forces...
and British
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
units. Here Philip screened the carrier group, and served to enforce the naval blockade on the 38th parallel
38th parallel north
The 38th parallel north is a circle of latitude that is 38 degrees north of the Earth's equatorial plane. It crosses Europe, the Mediterranean Sea, Asia, the Pacific Ocean, North America, and the Atlantic Ocean...
.
Fighting her way through the most devastating typhoon in years, Ruth, Philip steamed back to duty with TF 77, joining up 15 October. Released from this duty 31 October. Philip proceeded to Yokosuka, and departed 2 November for Pearl Harbor.
On arriving at Pearl Harbor, the ship commenced a yard period, which was followed by a period of refresher training. Underway training and planeguard duty continued until 27 October 1952, when Philip began a short drydock period, part of her preparation for another tour of duty in the Korean War. She departed Pearl Harbor 10 November, bound for Yokosuka, Japan, where she arrived ten days later.
Late in the afternoon of 25 November 1952 Philip joined Task Force 78, and began duty in the screen of the task force. Later duty included a shore bombardment patrol in company with in the vicinity of latitude 38'30'N off the east coast of Korea. On 5 December, the two vessels entered Wonsan
Wonsan
Wŏnsan is a port city and naval base in southeastern North Korea. It is the capital of Kangwŏn Province. The population of the city is estimated to have been 331,000 in 2000. Notable people from Wŏnsan include Kim Ki Nam, diplomat and Secretary of the Workers' Party.- History :The original name of...
Harbor to fire on shore targets, and then returned to the bombline to carry out call fire missions. Steady steaming with TF-78 was resumed from 8 December until 27 December, interrupted only by a night search for a sonar
Sonar
Sonar is a technique that uses sound propagation to navigate, communicate with or detect other vessels...
contact and two rescue missions for pilots of downed aircraft. After a period of tender availability in Yokosuka, Philip resumed similar duty until May 1953.
Philip returned to Pearl Harbor 29 May 1953, and operated for a month in training exercises. Late in June she began an intensive three month overhaul at Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard. Overhaul completed, she returned to a busy schedule of operations in the Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
an group which included search and rescue missions, anti-submarine exercises, practice shore bombardment, and carrier plane guard duties.
A major fleet exercise occupied Philip during the first months of 1954, and she then began preparations for another journey to the Western Pacific. On 14 June, she stood out for Yokosuka, Japan, where she arrived 23 June, mooring alongside for two days of tender availability. Philip then got underway for the Shimonoseki Straits and Chinhae, Korea. After reporting for duty with Task Force 95, Philip steamed to Inchon to join and act as planeguard for the British carrier on the United Nations Blockade. Philip escorted Warrior to Kure
Kure, Hiroshima
is a city in Hiroshima prefecture, Japan.As of October 1, 2010, the city has an estimated population of 240,820 and a population density of 681 persons per km². The total area is 353.74 km².- History :...
, Japan, 4 July, and sailed on to Sasebo for a week's restricted availability.
1954 – 1957
After further service in Korean waters, Philip left Japan for Pearl Harbor, arriving home 29 August 1954 for a month's overhaul, She resumed operations in the Hawaiian IslandsHawaiian 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...
until 15 March 1955, when she entered the yard for a comprehensive overhaul. Overhaul was followed by refresher training and preparation for another Far Eastern deployment. On 8 August 1955, she sailed for Yokosuka, Japan, arriving ten days later. On this tour of duty, she participated in large scale antisubmarine warfare exercises off Okinawa, operated with Task Force 77, and served on the Taiwan Patrol before heading for home 6 January 1956.
Operations in Hawaiian waters occupied Philip between 15 January 1956, and 30 October, when she once more took departure for the Far East. Serving primarily in Japanese waters, Philip completed a shorter tour than previously, and was back home in Pearl Harbor 22 January 1957.
1957 – 1968
During 1957, she joined Destroyer Squadron 25, unique in its three divisions, rather than the usual two. The escort destroyers of Destroyer Squadron 25 were so deployed that one division of the three was in the Far East at any given time, and it was on this schedule that Philip once more sailed for the Orient 27 December.Arriving in Yokosuka 5 January 1958 Philip served on exercises off Japan and Okinawa, in the Philippine Islands, and 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...
until 23 April, when her division began the homeward bound voyage, by an unusual route. Arriving in Brisbane, Australia 2 May, Philip visited Melbourne and Sydney, Australia; Wellington
Wellington
Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
, 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...
; and Pago Pago, American Samoa
Pago Pago, American Samoa
Pago Pago , also spelled ', is the capital of American Samoa. In 2000, its population was 11,500. The city is served by Pago Pago International Airport. Tourism, entertainment, food, and tuna canning are the primary industries here. From 1878 to 1951, this was a coaling and repair station for the...
, before returning to Pearl Harbor 29 May. Here she resumed her operations in the Hawaiian Group throughout the remainder of 1958.
From the latter part of June 1958 until the end of January 1959, Philip took part in hunter-killer operations, conducted shore bombardment, air and surface shoots, single and dual ship antisubmarine exercises, and fulfilled the duties of planeguard destroyer for the super carrier . On 18 February Philip and the other escort destroyers of DesDiv 252 got underway and proceeded to Yokosuka, Japan. Philip operated around Japan and in the South China Sea before arriving Brisbane, Australia, 11 July. The deployment ended at Pearl Harbor 30 July.
The division sailed from Honolulu again for Yokosuka 22 April 1960. After operating in the waters of Japan and Okinawa Philip returned to Pearl Harbor 29 October 1960. On 4 February 1962 Philip was off for Yokosuka again. This cruise was spent in the waters of Japan, the Philippines, and Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
. Effective 1 July 1962 Philip was redesignated from DDE to DD. Philip returned to Pearl Harbor 18 July 1962.
Philip steamed again for Yokosuka 12 November 1963, operating again in Japanese, Philippine, and Vietnamese waters, and returning to Pearl Harbor 10 April 1964. After another period of operations out of Hawaii, Philip steamed for Yokosuka again 19 April 1965. This cruise was highlighted by duty on Yankee Station
Yankee Station
Yankee Station was a point in the Gulf of Tonkin off the coast of Vietnam used by the U.S. Navy aircraft carriers of Task Force 77 to launch strikes in the Vietnam War. While its official designation was "Point Yankee," it was universally referred to as Yankee Station...
off Vietnam and by patrol of the Taiwan straits. She returned home 1 October 1965.
The USS Philip was featured in the 1965 Otto Preminger
Otto Preminger
Otto Ludwig Preminger was an Austro–Hungarian-American theatre and film director.After moving from the theatre to Hollywood, he directed over 35 feature films in a five-decade career. He rose to prominence for stylish film noir mysteries such as Laura and Fallen Angel...
film In Harm's Way
In Harm's Way
In Harm's Way is a 1965 American epic war film produced and directed by Otto Preminger and starring John Wayne, Kirk Douglas, Patricia Neal, Tom Tryon, Paula Prentiss, Stanley Holloway, Burgess Meredith, Brandon De Wilde, Jill Haworth, Dana Andrews, and Henry Fonda.It was the last black-and-white...
starring John Wayne
John Wayne
Marion Mitchell Morrison , better known by his stage name John Wayne, was an American film actor, director and producer. He epitomized rugged masculinity and became an enduring American icon. He is famous for his distinctive calm voice, walk, and height...
. It makes its appearance as the destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
that steams out of Pearl Harbor at the beginning of the 7 Dec 1941 attack, joins up with the Wayne character's cruiser in an ad hoc task group, depth charges a Japanese submarine that attacks the task group, and pulls alongside the Wayne character's cruiser
Cruiser
A cruiser is a type of warship. The term has been in use for several hundreds of years, and has had different meanings throughout this period...
to render aid after it has been torpedoed by the same Japanese submarine.
Philip decommissioned 30 September 1968 and was struck from the Navy List
Navy List
A Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval authorities of a country....
1 October 1968. She was sold 15 December 1971, but sank in a storm on her way to be scrapped 2 February 1972.
Philip received nine battle stars for World War II service and five battle stars for Korean War service.