USS Recruit (TDE-1)
Encyclopedia
USS Recruit (TDE-1, later TFFG-1) was a landlocked "dummy" training ship of the United States Navy
, located at the Naval Training Center
in the Point Loma
area of San Diego, California
. She was built to scale, two-thirds the size of a destroyer escort
, and was commissioned on July 27, 1949. Recruit was commissioned for 18 years, for much of that period the only landlocked ship to hold that status in the U.S. Navy.
"Sailing" on a sea of concrete
at the Naval Training Center, she assisted with the training of over 50,000 new recruits per year, providing an education in the fundamentals of shipboard drills and procedures, using standard deck and bridge gear like that found on all naval vessels, including lifelines, accommodation ladders, signal halyards, searchlights, the engine order telegraph
and the helm
. However, due to her landlocked status, Recruit lacked an engine
or screw
, and therefore was affectionately nicknamed the "USS Neversail." (The same nickname, "The Neversail," was also applied to the landlocked "ship" at NTC Bainbridge in Maryland
.) Reflecting her dual identity as both a ship and a building, she was also known as Building 430, located on Geary Drive between Evans and Chauncey roads.
Recruit was decommissioned in March 1967, due to the inability to classify the unique ship in a computerized registry of Navy vessels. However she was later recommissioned in 1982, and refurbished to look like a Oliver Hazard Perry class frigate
. Commissioned or otherwise, she served continuously as a training facility from her construction in 1949 until the base was closed by the BRAC
commission in 1997.
The Recruit still stands, currently unused, with the hope that she will someday become a maritime museum. She is included in the Naval Training Center's listing on the National Register of Historic Places. She now stands adjacent to a retail area of Liberty Station
, as the redeveloped base is known, and can be seen from North Harbor Drive. She appears to be the only surviving example of the Navy's landlocked ships, or "landships". Her predecessor , a wooden "battleship" built in Union Square
in New York City
in 1917, was dismantled in 1920. Her contemporary , located at the United States Naval Training Center, Bainbridge in Maryland, was dismantled when the base closed in the 1970s.
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...
, located at the Naval Training Center
Naval Training Center San Diego
Naval Training Center San Diego is a former United States Navy base located at the north end of San Diego Bay. The Naval Training Center site is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and many of the individual structures are designated as historic by the city of San Diego.The base...
in the Point Loma
Point Loma, San Diego, California
Point Loma is a seaside community of San Diego, California. Geographically it is a hilly peninsula that is bordered on the west and south by the Pacific Ocean, the east by the San Diego Bay and Old Town and the north by the San Diego River...
area of 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...
. She was built to scale, two-thirds the size of a 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...
, and was commissioned on July 27, 1949. Recruit was commissioned for 18 years, for much of that period the only landlocked ship to hold that status in the U.S. Navy.
"Sailing" on a sea of concrete
Concrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...
at the Naval Training Center, she assisted with the training of over 50,000 new recruits per year, providing an education in the fundamentals of shipboard drills and procedures, using standard deck and bridge gear like that found on all naval vessels, including lifelines, accommodation ladders, signal halyards, searchlights, the engine order telegraph
Engine order telegraph
An engine order telegraph or E.O.T., often also chadburn, is a communications device used on a ship for the pilot on the bridge to order engineers in the engine room to power the vessel at a certain desired speed...
and the helm
Helmsman
A helmsman is a person who steers a ship, sailboat, submarine, or other type of maritime vessel. On small vessels, particularly privately-owned noncommercial vessels, the functions of skipper and helmsman may be combined in one person. On larger vessels, there is a separate officer of the watch,...
. However, due to her landlocked status, Recruit lacked an engine
Engine
An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert energy into useful mechanical motion. Heat engines, including internal combustion engines and external combustion engines burn a fuel to create heat which is then used to create motion...
or screw
Propeller
A propeller is a type of fan that transmits power by converting rotational motion into thrust. A pressure difference is produced between the forward and rear surfaces of the airfoil-shaped blade, and a fluid is accelerated behind the blade. Propeller dynamics can be modeled by both Bernoulli's...
, and therefore was affectionately nicknamed the "USS Neversail." (The same nickname, "The Neversail," was also applied to the landlocked "ship" at NTC Bainbridge in Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
.) Reflecting her dual identity as both a ship and a building, she was also known as Building 430, located on Geary Drive between Evans and Chauncey roads.
Recruit was decommissioned in March 1967, due to the inability to classify the unique ship in a computerized registry of Navy vessels. However she was later recommissioned in 1982, and refurbished to look like a Oliver Hazard Perry class frigate
Oliver Hazard Perry class frigate
The Oliver Hazard Perry class is a class of frigates named after the American Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, the hero of the naval Battle of Lake Erie...
. Commissioned or otherwise, she served continuously as a training facility from her construction in 1949 until the base was closed by the BRAC
Base Realignment and Closure
Base Realignment and Closure is a process of the United States federal government directed at the administration and operation of the Armed Forces, used by the United States Department of Defense and Congress to close excess military installations and realign the total asset inventory to reduce...
commission in 1997.
The Recruit still stands, currently unused, with the hope that she will someday become a maritime museum. She is included in the Naval Training Center's listing on the National Register of Historic Places. She now stands adjacent to a retail area of Liberty Station
Liberty Station
Liberty Station is a project that involves the conversion of San Diego, California's former Naval Training Center into a mixed-use community that includes several distinct districts...
, as the redeveloped base is known, and can be seen from North Harbor Drive. She appears to be the only surviving example of the Navy's landlocked ships, or "landships". Her predecessor , a wooden "battleship" built in Union Square
Union Square (New York City)
Union Square is a public square in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York.It is an important and historic intersection, located where Broadway and the former Bowery Road – now Fourth Avenue – came together in the early 19th century; its name celebrates neither the...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 1917, was dismantled in 1920. Her contemporary , located at the United States Naval Training Center, Bainbridge in Maryland, was dismantled when the base closed in the 1970s.