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USS Piedmont (AD-17)
Encyclopedia
USS Piedmont (AD–17) was a Dixie class destroyer tender
built during World War II
for the U.S. Navy. Her task was to service destroyers in, or near, battle areas and to keep them fit for duty. She served in the Pacific Ocean
during World War II, the Korean War
, and the Vietnam War
. For her work in battle areas she won four battle stars for her Korean War efforts and one for Vietnam War service.
She was laid down by the Tampa Ship Building Co., Inc., Tampa, Florida
, 1 December 1941; launched 7 December 1942; sponsored by Mrs. Elsa Kauffman; and, commissioned 5 January 1944, Comdr. Malcolm D. MacGregor in command.
The ship's mascot was Doc, one of the dwarfs in Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
.
cruise. On 6 March she sailed for the Panama Canal
, San Diego, California
, and Pearl Harbor
. Less than 24 hours after her arrival at Pearl Harbor, Piedmont had taken his first U.S. Pacific Fleet destroyer alongside. Piedmont remained at Pearl Harbor throughout the months of April and May during the feverish preparations for the Marianas campaign. At one time, Piedmont had seven destroyers alongside and was working on jobs for more than 50 other destroyers moored in the stream.
in mid-June. July and August were months of great fleet activity at Eniwetok. Periodically, task groups from the huge Task Force
58, which was supporting the Marianas campaign, returned to Eniwetok for rest, replenishment, and repairs. Unlike his duty at Pearl Harbor, all jobs were now a race against the calendar and, in addition, shore facilities were no longer available. During the month of July, 99 ships were provisioned with 888 tons of stores. The month of August turned out much the same with ships returning from the invasion of Guam
.
In September 1944, with the Central Pacific campaign virtually completed, Piedmont sailed into the Southwest Pacific with the rest of the fleet in preparation for the Philippines
campaign. By early December, damaged ships began returning to Manus
and and , both severely damaged by Japanese suicide planes
, were assigned to Piedmont for repairs.
, Piedmont heard two explosions to port. , lying about 3500 yards (3,200.4 m) away, had blown up. No trace of Mount Hood remained. Between Mount Hood and Piedmont, was anchored and took terrible punishment from the explosion. Fire and rescue parties were immediately dispatched from Piedmont to Mindanao and ships alongside her. Though Piedmont suffered only superficial damage from the explosion, numerous 5 inches (127 mm) projectiles and steel fragments flew over Mindanao and landed on Piedmont’s decks and superstructure, most of them ricocheting off. One man suffered fatal injuries from a direct hit by the base of a 5 inches (127 mm) shell. One 250 pound aerial bomb penetrated the movie locker on the boat deck while another pierced the forecastle
and plowed through a tier of bunks. Fortunately neither bomb exploded and remarkably enough, personnel in both compartments escaped injury.
operations scheduled for early 1945 demanded the presence of all available tender strength at Ulithi
in the Caroline Islands
. Early in January Piedmont stood out of Manus Island for Ulithi with Service Squadron 10. January through April saw Piedmont in his most sustained effort. Those same months which witnessed the seaborne invasions of Lingayen
, Iwo Jima
, and Okinawa, found the repair department averaging more than 1,000 completed job orders and almost 100,000 man hours of work each month.
landings of November 1944, was patched, refloated, and towed to Ulithi for temporary repairs by Piedmont which would permit her return to the United States under her own power.
On 20 April made port with a 3-by-5 foot hole in her sheer strake, port side, for repair by Piedmont. , having suffered extensive damage to her port side bridge structure during a collision with a carrier
while refueling, came alongside 1 May.
The most badly battered of the battle damaged ships serviced by Piedmont at Ulithi was which came alongside 4 May. Her entire bridge superstructure was a mass of tangled wreckage, a bomb explosion had blown a 15-by-15 foot hole in her starboard side, main deck; her forward stack had been completely destroyed; extensive bomb damage extended down to her second platform; and her interior and fleet radio room had been destroyed. Numerous dead had still to be removed from the wreckage. All repairs effected were temporary and on 24 May Hazelwood sailed for the United States and a Navy Yard rebuilding.
, Philippine Islands, for much needed rest and repairs. However, her stay was short and on 30 June she sailed for Eniwetok again. At Eniwetok, the repair department was occupied chiefly with the construction and development of fleet recreation facilities ashore in anticipation of the fleet turn-around which had been scheduled for late August. The fleet did not return to Eniwetok for the anticipated August availability as on 14 August the Japanese government accepted Allied peace terms.
with the first naval units for occupation of Japanese ships. On 16 August the ship departed Eniwetok to rendezvous with the U.S. 3rd Fleet at about one day’s steaming from Japan. The long-awaited event took place on 28 August when Piedmont dropped her anchor in Sagami Wan, Honshū
, Japan. Early on the 30th, she moved into Tokyo Bay and on the following day moored to the dock at the Yokosuka Naval Base.
While moored at Yokosuka, Piedmont supplied provisions and clothing to the landing forces and to the hospital ship
s standing by to care for released allied prisoners of war. Piedmont remained in the Tokyo area supporting the occupation forces until sailing for the United States, arriving at Alameda, California
, 15 March 1946.
for Commander United Nations
Blockading and Escort Force and provided tender services to ships of Canada
, Colombia
, New Zealand
, South Korea
and Thailand
as well as those of the U.S. Navy.
In February 1956 she returned from a six-month tour of duty in the Far East
which included visits to the Philippines, Hong Kong
, Formosa
, and Japan. In January 1957 Piedmont again departed CONUS
for her annual tour of duty in WestPac
, visiting Subic Bay
, Hong Kong, Singapore
, Sasebo
, Kobe
, and Yokosuka before returning again to San Diego, California, in August 1957.
On 23 June 1958 Piedmont departed San Diego and steamed for Yokosuka via Pearl Harbor, arriving there 12 July. When the Lebanon
crisis in the Middle East
erupted, Piedmont steamed 15 July for Subic Bay to stand ready and alerted to participate, if needed, in the Middle East action.
, Taiwan, to tend 7th Fleet units engaged in convoy and patrol duty in the Taiwan Straits to prevent Communist capture of the off-shore island of Quemoy. After returning to Yokosuka via Hong Kong, Piedmont steamed for San Diego 12 January 1959.
Between 1960 and 1962 Piedmont made two more cruises to WestPac. She received a Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization overhaul at Long Beach, California
, completed 31 January 1963. She again deployed to WestPac from February to September 1963 and from June to December 1964.
.
During her 1968 WestPac tour Piedmont was still servicing ships in Subic Bay, as well as Kaohsiung
, Taiwan.
Piedmont was decommissioned on 30 September 1982 and leased to the Turkish navy
on 18 October 1982 and renamed Derya (A-576). On 6 August 1987 Piedmont was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register
and purchased outright by Turkey. On 17 August she was transferred to Turkey
under the Security Assistance Program (SAP), Foreign Assistance Act (FAA) Section 516, Southern Region Amendment. She was deleted from the Turkish navy in 1994 and scrapped a year later.
Service Medal for the periods from February to 30 March 1947, from 2 March to 10 March 1948, and from 16 May to 30 May 1950.
During the Korean War
, she earned battle stars for: North Korea
n Aggression (25 September to 15 October 1950), Second Korean Winter (to 10 January 1952 and 6 to 7 February 1952), Korean Defense Summer-Fall 1952 (23 September to 3 October 1952 and 19 to 23 November 1952), and Third Korean Winter (28 to 30 December 1952 and 24 to 25 January 1953).
For the Vietnam War, Piedmont was awarded a star for: Vietnam Ceasefire (29 June to 8 July 1972).
Prior to decommissioning in 1982 the Piedmont was awarded for Battle Efficiency "E". A notable award after such a long service career.
Dixie class destroyer tender
The Dixie class destroyer tender was a class of United States Navy destroyer tenders used during World War II. This class' design was based on the specifications of and constructed based on drawings for that vessel plus ongoing modifications specified for each continued vessel of the class...
built during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
for the U.S. Navy. Her task was to service destroyers in, or near, battle areas and to keep them fit for duty. She served in the Pacific Ocean
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...
during World War II, 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...
, and 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...
. For her work in battle areas she won four battle stars for her Korean War efforts and one for Vietnam War service.
She was laid down by the Tampa Ship Building Co., Inc., Tampa, Florida
Tampa, Florida
Tampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
, 1 December 1941; launched 7 December 1942; sponsored by Mrs. Elsa Kauffman; and, commissioned 5 January 1944, Comdr. Malcolm D. MacGregor in command.
The ship's mascot was Doc, one of the dwarfs in Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937 film)
Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a 1937 American animated film based on Snow White, a German fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm. It was the first full-length cel-animated feature in motion picture history, as well as the first animated feature film produced in America, the first produced in full...
.
World War II Pacific Theatre operations
Early in February 1944 destroyer tender Piedmont stood out from Tampa, Florida, on her shakedownShakedown (testing)
A shakedown is a period of testing or a trial journey undergone by a ship, aircraft or other craft and its crew before being declared operational. Statistically, a proportion of the components will fail after a relatively short period of use, and those that survive this period can be expected to...
cruise. On 6 March she sailed for the Panama Canal
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
, 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...
, and 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...
. Less than 24 hours after her arrival at Pearl Harbor, Piedmont had taken his first U.S. Pacific Fleet destroyer alongside. Piedmont remained at Pearl Harbor throughout the months of April and May during the feverish preparations for the Marianas campaign. At one time, Piedmont had seven destroyers alongside and was working on jobs for more than 50 other destroyers moored in the stream.
Servicing the Mobile Fleet
Having served her apprenticeship, Piedmont sailed from Pearl Harbor to join the fleet in the Marshall IslandsMarshall Islands
The Republic of the Marshall Islands , , is a Micronesian nation of atolls and islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, just west of the International Date Line and just north of the Equator. As of July 2011 the population was 67,182...
in mid-June. July and August were months of great fleet activity at Eniwetok. Periodically, task groups from the huge Task Force
Task force
A task force is a unit or formation established to work on a single defined task or activity. Originally introduced by the United States Navy, the term has now caught on for general usage and is a standard part of NATO terminology...
58, which was supporting the Marianas campaign, returned to Eniwetok for rest, replenishment, and repairs. Unlike his duty at Pearl Harbor, all jobs were now a race against the calendar and, in addition, shore facilities were no longer available. During the month of July, 99 ships were provisioned with 888 tons of stores. The month of August turned out much the same with ships returning from the invasion of Guam
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...
.
In September 1944, with the Central Pacific campaign virtually completed, Piedmont sailed into the Southwest Pacific with the rest of the fleet in preparation for the Philippines
Philippines
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...
campaign. By early December, damaged ships began returning to Manus
Manus Island
Manus Island is part of Manus Province in northern Papua New Guinea and is the largest island of the Admiralty Islands. It is the fifth largest island in Papua New Guinea with an area of 2,100 km², measuring around 100 km × 30 km. According to the 2000 census, Manus Island had a...
and and , both severely damaged by Japanese suicide planes
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....
, were assigned to Piedmont for repairs.
Mount Hood explosion
On the morning of 10 November, while anchored in Seeadler HarborSeeadler Harbor
Seeadler Harbor, also known as Port Seeadler, is located on Manus Island, Admiralty Islands, Papua New Guinea and played an important role in World War II...
, Piedmont heard two explosions to port. , lying about 3500 yards (3,200.4 m) away, had blown up. No trace of Mount Hood remained. Between Mount Hood and Piedmont, was anchored and took terrible punishment from the explosion. Fire and rescue parties were immediately dispatched from Piedmont to Mindanao and ships alongside her. Though Piedmont suffered only superficial damage from the explosion, numerous 5 inches (127 mm) projectiles and steel fragments flew over Mindanao and landed on Piedmont’s decks and superstructure, most of them ricocheting off. One man suffered fatal injuries from a direct hit by the base of a 5 inches (127 mm) shell. One 250 pound aerial bomb penetrated the movie locker on the boat deck while another pierced the forecastle
Forecastle
Forecastle refers to the upper deck of a sailing ship forward of the foremast, or the forward part of a ship with the sailors' living quarters...
and plowed through a tier of bunks. Fortunately neither bomb exploded and remarkably enough, personnel in both compartments escaped injury.
Support Philippine Invasion operations
Lingayen GulfLingayen 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...
operations scheduled for early 1945 demanded the presence of all available tender strength at Ulithi
Ulithi
Ulithi is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about 191 km east of Yap. It consists of 40 islets totalling , surrounding a lagoon about long and up to wide—at one of the largest in the world. It is administered by the state of Yap in the Federated States of...
in the Caroline Islands
Caroline Islands
The Caroline Islands are a widely scattered archipelago of tiny islands in the western Pacific Ocean, to the north of New Guinea. Politically they are divided between the Federated States of Micronesia in the eastern part of the group, and Palau at the extreme western end...
. Early in January Piedmont stood out of Manus Island for Ulithi with Service Squadron 10. January through April saw Piedmont in his most sustained effort. Those same months which witnessed the seaborne invasions of Lingayen
Invasion of Lingayen Gulf
The Liberation of Lingayen Gulf was an Allied amphibious operation in the Philippines during World War II. In the early morning of 9 January 1945, an Allied force commanded by Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf began approaching the shores of Lingayen. U.S...
, Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima, officially , is an island of the Japanese Volcano Islands chain, which lie south of the Ogasawara Islands and together with them form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The island is located south of mainland Tokyo and administered as part of Ogasawara, one of eight villages of Tokyo...
, and Okinawa, found the repair department averaging more than 1,000 completed job orders and almost 100,000 man hours of work each month.
Supporting the Fleet at Iwo Jima and Okinawa
During the long, bitter weeks of the Iwo-Okinawa operations, the United States Fleet suffered more damage than at any other time in its history. , beached and abandoned after being hit by a suicide plane during the MindoroMindoro
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:...
landings of November 1944, was patched, refloated, and towed to Ulithi for temporary repairs by Piedmont which would permit her return to the United States under her own power.
On 20 April made port with a 3-by-5 foot hole in her sheer strake, port side, for repair by Piedmont. , having suffered extensive damage to her port side bridge structure during a collision with a 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...
while refueling, came alongside 1 May.
The most badly battered of the battle damaged ships serviced by Piedmont at Ulithi was which came alongside 4 May. Her entire bridge superstructure was a mass of tangled wreckage, a bomb explosion had blown a 15-by-15 foot hole in her starboard side, main deck; her forward stack had been completely destroyed; extensive bomb damage extended down to her second platform; and her interior and fleet radio room had been destroyed. Numerous dead had still to be removed from the wreckage. All repairs effected were temporary and on 24 May Hazelwood sailed for the United States and a Navy Yard rebuilding.
Post-Okinawa operations
With the cessation of all organized resistance on Okinawa in June Piedmont moved to the Naval Base at LeyteLeyte
Leyte is a province of the Philippines located in the Eastern Visayas region. Its capital is Tacloban City and occupies the northern three-quarters of the Leyte Island. Leyte is located west of Samar Island, north of Southern Leyte and south of Biliran...
, Philippine Islands, for much needed rest and repairs. However, her stay was short and on 30 June she sailed for Eniwetok again. At Eniwetok, the repair department was occupied chiefly with the construction and development of fleet recreation facilities ashore in anticipation of the fleet turn-around which had been scheduled for late August. The fleet did not return to Eniwetok for the anticipated August availability as on 14 August the Japanese government accepted Allied peace terms.
In Tokyo Bay at War’s End
On top of this electrifying news the ship received orders to prepare for getting underway. Piedmont had been selected from the Pacific Fleet destroyer tenders as the one to move into Tokyo BayTokyo Bay
is a bay in the southern Kantō region of Japan. Its old name was .-Geography:Tokyo Bay is surrounded by the Bōsō Peninsula to the east and the Miura Peninsula to the west. In a narrow sense, Tokyo Bay is the area north of the straight line formed by the on the Miura Peninsula on one end and on...
with the first naval units for occupation of Japanese ships. On 16 August the ship departed Eniwetok to rendezvous with the U.S. 3rd Fleet at about one day’s steaming from Japan. The long-awaited event took place on 28 August when Piedmont dropped her anchor in Sagami Wan, Honshū
Honshu
is the largest island of Japan. The nation's main island, it is south of Hokkaido across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyushu across the Kanmon Strait...
, Japan. Early on the 30th, she moved into Tokyo Bay and on the following day moored to the dock at the Yokosuka Naval Base.
While moored at Yokosuka, Piedmont supplied provisions and clothing to the landing forces and to the hospital ship
Hospital ship
A hospital ship is a ship designated for primary function as a floating medical treatment facility or hospital; most are operated by the military forces of various countries, as they are intended to be used in or near war zones....
s standing by to care for released allied prisoners of war. Piedmont remained in the Tokyo area supporting the occupation forces until sailing for the United States, arriving at Alameda, California
Alameda, California
Alameda is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. It is located on Alameda Island and Bay Farm Island, and is adjacent to Oakland in the San Francisco Bay. The Bay Farm Island portion of the city is adjacent to the Oakland International Airport. At the 2010 census, the city had a...
, 15 March 1946.
Korean War operations
When the Korean campaign began 27 June 1950, Piedmont was on station in Japan carrying out her normal schedule providing tender services to ships of the U.S. 7th Fleet where she remained until relieved in November. During the Korean campaign Piedmont completed four tours in the Western Pacific: 4 September 1950 to 27 October 1950; 1 August 1951 to 12 February 1952; 9 September 1952 to 9 March 1953 and 11 April 1954 to 27 July 1954; when she acted as flagshipFlagship
A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, reflecting the custom of its commander, characteristically a flag officer, flying a distinguishing flag...
for Commander 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...
Blockading and Escort Force and provided tender services to ships of Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Colombia
Colombia
Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia , is a unitary constitutional republic comprising thirty-two departments. The country is located in northwestern South America, bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea; to the...
, 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...
, South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
and Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
as well as those of the U.S. Navy.
In February 1956 she returned from a six-month tour of duty in the Far East
Far East
The Far East is an English term mostly describing East Asia and Southeast Asia, with South Asia sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons.The term came into use in European geopolitical discourse in the 19th century,...
which included visits to the Philippines, 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...
, Formosa
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 Japan. In January 1957 Piedmont again departed CONUS
Conus
Conus is a large genus of small to large predatory sea snails, marine gastropod molluscs, with the common names of cone snails, cone shells or cones. This genus is placed in the subfamily Coninae within the family Conidae. Geologically speaking, the genus is known from the Eocene to the Recent ...
for her annual tour of duty in WestPac
Westpac
Westpac , is a multinational financial services, one of the Australian "big four" banks and the second-largest bank in New Zealand....
, visiting 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...
, Hong Kong, 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...
, Sasebo
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...
, Kobe
Kobe
, pronounced , is the fifth-largest city in Japan and is the capital city of Hyōgo Prefecture on the southern side of the main island of Honshū, approximately west of Osaka...
, and Yokosuka before returning again to San Diego, California, in August 1957.
On 23 June 1958 Piedmont departed San Diego and steamed for Yokosuka via Pearl Harbor, arriving there 12 July. When the Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
crisis in the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
erupted, Piedmont steamed 15 July for Subic Bay to stand ready and alerted to participate, if needed, in the Middle East action.
Quemoy and Matsu Conflict
On 28 August 1958 Piedmont steamed to KaohsiungKaohsiung
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...
, Taiwan, to tend 7th Fleet units engaged in convoy and patrol duty in the Taiwan Straits to prevent Communist capture of the off-shore island of Quemoy. After returning to Yokosuka via Hong Kong, Piedmont steamed for San Diego 12 January 1959.
Between 1960 and 1962 Piedmont made two more cruises to WestPac. She received a Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization overhaul 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...
, completed 31 January 1963. She again deployed to WestPac from February to September 1963 and from June to December 1964.
Vietnam War Activity
Three months of the latter tour were spent at Subic Bay servicing destroyers and other 7th Fleet ships serving in the Tonkin Gulf and off VietnamVietnam
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 –...
.
During her 1968 WestPac tour Piedmont was still servicing ships in Subic Bay, as well as Kaohsiung
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...
, Taiwan.
End of US service
After an extensive refit in San Pedro, California, Piedmont transferred to the Atlantic fleet and was homeported in Naples, Italy from December 1974 until June 1976. While in the Mediterranean, Piedmont provided services to the fleet and to the navies of Spain, France, Turkey, and Tunisia. Piedmont transferred to Norfolk, VA in June 1976.Piedmont was decommissioned on 30 September 1982 and leased to the Turkish navy
Turkish Navy
The Turkish Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the Turkish Armed Forces.- Ottoman fleet after Mudros :Following the demise of the Ottoman Empire in the aftermath of World War I, on November 3, 1918, the fleet commander of the Ottoman Navy, Liva Amiral Arif Pasha, ordered all flags to be...
on 18 October 1982 and renamed Derya (A-576). On 6 August 1987 Piedmont was stricken 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...
and purchased outright by Turkey. On 17 August she was transferred to Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
under the Security Assistance Program (SAP), Foreign Assistance Act (FAA) Section 516, Southern Region Amendment. She was deleted from the Turkish navy in 1994 and scrapped a year later.
Awards
Piedmont earned the Navy Occupation Service Medal, Pacific, for the periods from 2 September 1945 to 24 February 1946, from 11 June 1946 to 2 February 1947, and from 12 September 1948 to 15 September 1948. Piedmont also earned the ChinaChina
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
Service Medal for the periods from February to 30 March 1947, from 2 March to 10 March 1948, and from 16 May to 30 May 1950.
During 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...
, she earned battle stars for: 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...
n Aggression (25 September to 15 October 1950), Second Korean Winter (to 10 January 1952 and 6 to 7 February 1952), Korean Defense Summer-Fall 1952 (23 September to 3 October 1952 and 19 to 23 November 1952), and Third Korean Winter (28 to 30 December 1952 and 24 to 25 January 1953).
For the Vietnam War, Piedmont was awarded a star for: Vietnam Ceasefire (29 June to 8 July 1972).
Prior to decommissioning in 1982 the Piedmont was awarded for Battle Efficiency "E". A notable award after such a long service career.
See also
- List of United States Navy ships
- World War IIWorld War IIWorld War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
- Destroyer tenderDestroyer tenderA destroyer tender is a ship designed to provide maintenance support to a flotilla of destroyers or other small warships. The use of this class has faded from its peak in the first half of the 20th century as the roles of small combatants have evolved .Due to the increased size and automation of...
- DestroyerDestroyerIn 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...