Corronade (IFS 1) - Naval Cruise Book

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■m !.. -•• EzdSfeTt- r V - ' U CaiioKa MESSAGE FROM THE CAPTAIN Our cruise to WestPac, while in retrospect may look more like a Cook ' s tour to the Far East than a military operation, has done much to improve our capabili- ties as Sailors as well as to prove that the Inshore Fire Support Vessel is an in- tegral part of the Amphibious Fleet. Your conduct ashore and avid interest in our country ' s People -to -People Program was most gratifying to me. It is a pleasure to be associated with men like you. As we head homeward to those who have waited patiently for us, our hearts are saddened somewhat by the future in store for our ship. When she is tied up with the rest of the Fleet -In -Being and we all go on to new duties, don ' t feel too sorry for her, for she never will be alone - there will be a little bit of each of us aboard forever.

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f DEDICATION M. O. CAREY, Jr., GMl, USN It seems most fitting with the passing of this small but mighty vessel to the in- active list, that our Cruise Book be dedicated to the only plank owner remaining aboard, Marvin O. CAREY, Jr. , Gunners Mate First Class, U. S. Navy. This GMl through his outstanding leadership and technical knowledge of rocketry, has served his ship in a manner most becoming of a Petty Officer in the United States Navy.

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SHIP ' S HISTO RY The U. S. S. CARRONADE is the only ship of her kind in the U.S. Navy today. She has a complement of 10 officers and 132 crew mem- bers. Designed and developed to fire rockets at close inshore targets, she has become a major weapon in providing the tremendous fire- power necessary to support and protect landing troops in amphibious warfare. The idea for constructing a special rocket -launching ship originated during the closing of World War II. Eight years later, in May 1953, the hull of the CARRONADE was launched at Seattle, Wash- ington. She is a vast improvement over the old Landing Ship Medium Rocket, her predecessor. CARRONADE ' S eight dual launchers can fire her five inch rockets at tremendous speed, which gives her fire- power almost equivalent to that of a cruiser. Her Fire Control Sys- tem, built around a new type computer, makes possible a shotgun bar- rage of rocket fire. When ready for fire, her deserted decks present a deceiving picture. However, in the decks below, handlers in the magazines load the rockets into a hoist and the rockets are lifted into position in their launchers, ready for firing. Simultaneously, an el- ectronic brain is digesting such information as speed, course and roll of the ship, and distance and direction of the target. Seconds later, the flaming rockets roar skyward, arch and dive with almost human like control , exploding on the target. The 1 , 500 ton CARRONADE , comparatively small to the punch she throws, is a sleek vessel de- signed along cruiser lines and built in accordance with the power characteristics of the cumbersome Scottish Gun from which she takes her name. This gun was quite small, but could fire a 32-pound ball, a weight considerably large for this size cannon. Only 245 feet long, CARRONADE boasts of many moder n facilities, both in fighting qual- ities and habitability. Decorative colors are used throughout the living spaces and the crew ' s mess is like a small cafe.