Fechteler (DD 870) - Naval Cruise Book

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SHIP ' S HISTORY Originally the ship was to be named in honor of Rear Admiral Augustus F. Fechteler, USN, who commanded a battleship division in World War I. Prior to commissioning the name was shortened to its present form and honors both the Admiral and his son, LT Frank C. Fechteler, and early naval aviator who was killed in a plane crash in 1922. USS FECHTELER (DD870) was constructed by the Bethlehem Steel Company, Staten Island, N.Y., was commissioned on 2 March 1946, and assigned to duty with the Atlantic Fleet. In January 1947, the ship proceeded to the Pacific area via the Panama Canal and reported for duty with the Pacific Fleet. In 1952 FECHTELER completed her fourth tour in the Western Pacific having operating with Task Forces 95 and 77 as a component of the 7th Fleet. She operated in the San Diego-Long Beach area until April 1953 when she was decommissioned for major overhaul and conversion to a radar picket destroyer. The new FECH TELER emerged and was commissioned at Long Beach in December 1953. In May 1954 she headed west on an around-the-world cruise which terminated five months later in Newport, Rhode Island. Enroute she stopped in WestPac long enough to operate with the Seventh Fleet. Upon her arrival at Newport, FECHTELER was assigned to Destroyer Division 102. In May 1956 she was once again assigned to the Paci fic, now sporting the coveted Battle Efficiency E awarded for her outstanding performance with DesRon 10 of the Atlantic Fleet. After only a few days in Long Beach FECHTELER deployed to WestPac as a unit of Destroyer Squadron 23, the Little Beaver Squadron of World War II fame. In the early spring of 1963 FECHTELER entered the Long Beach Naval Shipyard to undergo a Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization MK1 conversion, which was completed in December, 1963. During the conversion FECHTELER was re- commissioned a DD. Upon completion of her shipyard work, FECHTELER underwent a series of tests, trials, and exercises which were completed satisfactorily in March, 1964. A month later, on 5 May, she deployed for WestPac, a member of Destroyer Squadron 19, a ready unit of the powerful U.S. Pacific Fleet. She is a proud ship; proud of her ability, of her outstanding reputation in both the Atlantic and Pacific Fleets, and even more proud of the men who breath life and soul into her steel.

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EXECUTIVE OFFICER LCDR Douglas B Robertson, USN, is the ship ' s Executive Officer and Nav- igator. His previous duty stations include Headquarters United Nations Command in Korea, destroyers, a heavy cruiser, an LSM, Fleet Operations Control Center, Pacific and the NROTC Unit at North- western University. The Commander was born in Detroit, Michigan and is a graduate of the Naval Academy. He not only serves the ship in his professional capacities but had added his own personal touch as creator of Fechdog . COMMANDING OFFICER Captain Myers reported to FECHTELER from two years duty in the Pentagon. A graduate of the Naval Academy and the U.S. Naval War College, he has spent over nine of his fifteen years com- missioned service in sea billets. Since reporting aboard, Capt. Myers has taken the ship through the final stages of the Fram I conversion, a rigorous Refresher Training, and a distinguished deployment with the 7th Fleet. The Captain and his wife reside in Long Beach with their two children. In his leisure time, he is a member of the ship ' s top-notch bowling team.