Benner (DD 807) - Naval Cruise Book

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1 I -u-vT-q.-X-- -,w.,,,. U I . ,., , ,,,4r,,.. , fm? j-N . Mug - Commendations and News ' 1 I I 1 1 1 1 I 1 1 1 1 i 1 I i I 1 1 1 1 r 1 it is Jan 19673 coMDEsD1v 232 Message . ' Off' d ' On departing BENNER, I congratulate the Capfalnf h 1091's in m'e13i0f Y0111' flue ship of a uniformly excelent performance of duty during t e two wee perio my pennant was flying on her. p t' 1 l impresse y teamls Vigisiclgifr aiilkagtledl to the broader needs of a task group commander and by the fine hospitality extended to me and my staff while on board. t Will look forward to seeing you often during th1S deplosfmen - d b the s lendid manner in which your radio and CIC 22 Jan 1967g RADM AURAND COMASWGRUONE. Successful recovery of battle tried Snoopy after completing another mission over hostile country continues to exhibit the can do spirit of BENO and her crew. Snoopy is not the only one that has earned a period of R 8z R. Looking forward to our meeting in Subic. 28 Feb 19673 Chief of Naval Information. All media report Hanoi claims U.S.warship Shelling civilian areas sunk and comment this is third U.S. warship sunk this month, Department of Defense fwhich media note normally does not reply to propagandaJ announced North Vietnamese have never sunk U.S. warships. Many papers note BENNER silenced North Vietnamese shore guns which fired at bombarding ships. 27 Feb 19673 Commander U.S. Military Assistance Group Vietnam. The Guided Missile Destroyer USS JOSEPH STRAUSS, the Destroyer USS BENNER and Heavy Guided Missile Cruiser USS CANBERRA struck targets in an area 15 to 20 miles southeast and northwest of Thaoh Hoa. They hit fuel storage, storage caves, coastal gunfire positions, rail sidings and anti-aircraft gun implacements. Damage reports for the targets were unavailable due to low lying clouds which prevented spotter aircraft from seeing their objectives. 1 Mal' 19673 Commander U.S. Military Assistance Group Vietnam, Vietln anthexpanded version of the Navy's Sea Dragon Operations off the coast of North 112111, G Gulded Missile Cruiser USS CANBERRA the Guided Missile Destroyer USS JOSEPH STRAUSS and the DGSUOYGP USS BENNER initiated shore bombardment activitieS in North Vietnam by striking t r t ' . t f Thanh Hoa, North Vietnam on Feb ia6ge s in an area 10 to 20 miles southeast and eas 0 P ' ' - . them Ziglziilriytiiislglig agile tcilonfmed their attacks to shore batteries that fire HPOH particularly south of Thanh Hoagin tiecgaejithaknkgl the new Policy is to hit infiltration routes, The firing was directed at - G' storage cave, Coastal defense Positiolis Ztiiglitisti of Objectives including a petroleum dump, -aircraft gunnery emplacements. i A-5 ' AM, , ,1:,.,,,, , YW, ,azagffk ' V- ' , ' -s

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,- t , , A .. ' --1 .jig-, 1 . j 1 , , 'V f ,W ,, -3- V-, -- 4 A-,Mil w -4' V ' - 'l -.142-7' .l'f.21f,,, sf. -..Q C5-fr--1 PM vffiatmdiirka 5. .g n 1l ' . CAPTAlN'S MESSAGE Upon the completion of a most successful WestPac Cruise I wish to extend my congratulations and appreciation to all hands for their consistently fine performance. BENNER never missed an operational commitment and successfully completed every assigned task. We steamed many thousands of miles and ports-of-call were few and far between, but we can look back on the cruise with a feeling of accomplishment and pride. The Weapons Department demonstrated their competence and fighting spirit in combat with the enemy and now display the Weapons E on the director. The Engineers were always ready to answer every bell. The Operations Department consistently performed their many functions in an outstanding manner. The Supply Department were always a can do bunch in providing us with everything from battle rations to spare parts when we needed them. To every member of the ship's company I say Well Done. BENNER has again proved her motto NUMBER ONE. GQCYMOKMD1 R. C. MAURER COMMANDER, USN Commanding Officer .--.......,,,, . . ' , - f-ff,

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, . ,Y A ,. . ,.,f 1 , uw.,-,,-., , , ,, S- 1-,.g-.,v5,:-,Edu ,,m...,,w.......-iq.,-Y,-, -.,- ,,- V. , 3 ... sw Y - I - -1 - , . .h . ,- I- - ,U -A ,J n S ijilff,-7 7' gg A' QQ Q V .. . 7: The STRAUSS had the position of delivering the first rounds on the North Vietnamese targets, followed two minutes later by CANBERRA The Cruiser, which is the only ship in the Seventh Fleet- with eight inch Guns fired 167 rounds of eight and 109 rounds of five inch ammunition on a total of 12 targets while STRAUSS hit six targets with 89 rounds of five inch and BENNER struck four with 65 more rounds of five inch BENNER, whose primary assignment during the mission was-suppressing hostile shore batteries also silenced a North Vietnamese shore gun which opened up on the bombarding ships ,None of the vessels sustained any damage 2 Mar 1967 Commander U.S Military Assistance Group Vietnam Three Seventh Fleet ships were taken under fire by North Vietnamese shore batteries 15 miles north of Dong Hoi The Heavy Guided Missile Cruiser USS CANBERRA received two superficial hits to her superstructure, there were no personnel casualties She was in company with the Destroyers USS JOSEPH STRAUSS fDDG 165 and USS BENNER QDD 8073. All three ships immediately commended firing on the shore batteries Firing five and eight 1nch projectiles the ships knocked out the batter1es Late reports from Tuesday, two Seventh Fleet y Destroyers were taken under fire by North Vietnamese shore batteries located on the Island of Hon Me 40 kilometers South Southeast of Thanh Hoa Both ships headed seaward and out of range of fire Neither ship was hit 6 Mar 1967 Commander U S Military Assistance Group Vietnam The Seventh Fleet Heavy Guided Missile Cruiser USS CANBERRA and Destroyers USS BENNER and USS JOSEPH STRAUSS shelled enemy transhipment points warehouse areas and coastal defense sites in North Vietnam yesterday All three ships were taken under fire by the shore batteries, but immediate action by the ships silenced the guns None of the ships were hit 10 April 1967 RADM FREEMAN Commander Cruiser Destroyer Pacific Fleet USS BENNER fDD-8075 is awarded the Weapons E for outstanding performance during the period April 66 to March 67 Attainment of this award is obviously the result of superior leadership and a dedicated effort by all hands Ships company can exhibit great pride in their achievement WELL DONE RADM FREEMAN 20 Mar 1967 Commodore WALSH fDESRON 251 Regret early departure of f1rst Little Beaver to leave reservation Tribe will not be the same without BENO Your shotgun actlons in the land of the Sioux and Apache will long be remembered Goodbye Good Luck and a fast voyage home 17 Apr 1967 RADM WOOD Commander Cruiser Destroyer Forces Seventh Fleet I wish to commend you on a Job exeptionally well done Your material readiness condition was always high and operationally you carried out assigned tasks in an outstanding manner Your operations were characterized by 1n1t1at1ve daring foresight Please extend my well done to all hands on your fine ship Warm regards RADM MARK W WOOD Ay 7A an .5 O O O 0 u - . . , - . . n 0. I . 0 - I l , - I ' ' A A . . ' I I u u o S . . u . . . v s . .. . l 0 5 ' 0 ll 0 ll l c . - - . 0 . - Q Q 0 n . - , 0 0 . 0 u 0 0 . -. . . 3 00 l Q .0 Q Q 0 9 0 . - , U . . Q . Q 0 f . 0 - 9 o S D l 0- 0 O O O I U 5 ' , o 0 0 S , , . . . n , Q a o I 0 o g ' . . 9 9 . 0 I ' . 0 on a 0 ' ' ' ' , . 0... . Q 0 9 ! ' , , 0 0 3 i A 'WVR'