Benner (DD 807) - Naval Cruise Book

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'Q' Richard C. Maurer COMMANDER UNITED STATES NAVY

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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'

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any ,'A. ' ' f.'-YT? coMMANDlNe oFHcER Commander Richard C. Maurer, Jr., USN, was born in Douglas, Wyoming on January 29, 1926. In June of 1943 he enlisted in the Navy as an apprentice seam an in the V-12 program. In 1944 he won an appointment to the United States Naval Academy, Annapolis, Maryland where he began studies that eventually led to a Bachelor of Science Degree and a commission as Ensign in the United States Navy. Upon commissioning, ENS Maurer served on board USS TOLEDO QCA 1335 as Gunnery Division Officer and CIC Division Officer. He was transfered in December 1949 to Uss DIPHDA fAKA 591 and served as Navigator,Communica- tions Officer, and CIC Officer. It was while serving on board DIPHDA that he was promoted to Lieutenant fJunior Gradej in June 1950. After a two year tour, LTJG Maurer was ordered to USS ROGERS fDDR 8761 as CIC Officer and Gunnery Officer. It was for duty on board ROGERS during the Korean Conflict that LTJG Maurer was awarded the Korean Service Medal. In July of 1953, he was promoted to Lieutenant. LT Maurer's next tour of duty took him to the office of the Commander Western Sea Frontier, at San Francisco where he served as aide and Flag Lieuten- ant from 1953 until 1955. In November 1955, LT Maurer return- ed to sea, this time in command of USS ENDURANCE QMSO 4351. He remained in command of ENDURANCE until January of 1958 when he was detached from his command. In March 1958, he became a Staff Officer for the Commander Allied Naval Forces Central Europe. While attached to the NATO Command he was -. -A T -Q ry .'.v' ' I ,Al: N.-F4142 Q ' h S Q ing, ':f4:,5ffa-a.,.4-x ffm.-.' 8,5 1 Q ' g ' I ' L ' promoted to Lieutenant Commander on June 1, 1958. In March of 1961, LCDR Maurer returned to sea as Executive Officer of USS MCCAFFERY QDD 8605 where he served until January of 1963 when he became a student at the Armed Forces Staff College. Upon completion of his studies and promotion to Commander, he returned to the Naval Academy for his second tour of duty. He served as Battalion Officer and remained at the Academy until June 1966. On August 12, 1966 CDR Maurer relieved CDR Robert J. Tribble as the Commanding Officer of USS BENNER fDD 8075 and became the fifteenth CO of BENNER. Commander Maurer is married and has two children, Michael and Linda. He and his family now reside in Torrance, California.