Firedrake (AE 14) - Naval Cruise Book

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The USS Firedrake (AE-14), named after a mythical volcano, was built by the North Carolina Shipbuilding Com- pany of Wilmington, N. C. in June 1944. Originally intended to be a merchant vessel, the Navy acquired the S.S. Winged Racer, converted her to Naval use and renamed her the Firedrake. She was commissioned December 27, 1944. With the primary duty of carrying explosives and designed to operate with underway replenishment groups in delivering the means of war to forces afloat, the Firedrake saw action in the Okinawa invasion during the latter part of World War II. From her commissioning until the termination of the War, she replenished Allied forces in the Ameri- can and Pacific Theaters. Following the war, the ship was decommissioned at Orange, Texas, July 23, 1946 and rested there until the out- break of the Korean hostilities. She was then recommissioned October 11, 1951 and soon thereafter sailed for the Far East. Arriving in WESTPAC, the Firedrake was assigned to Mobile Logistic Support Group Able and conducted re- arming operations with combatant ships of the United Nations Naval Forces off the coast of Korea. After a six month tour of duty she returned to the States. Since 1952 the Firedrake has regularly returned to the Western Pacific to rearm units of the powerful Seventh Fleet. The current WESTPAC Cruise marks her twelfth journey to the Far East. Captain Costagliola is the twelfth skipper to command the Firedrake since 1952. The history of the Firedrake may not be as dramatic as many of the Navy ' s combatants, but her mission of de- livering ammunition to the fleet is nonetheless a vital one. The Firedrake ' s motto, IN OMNIA PARATUS, (in all ways prepared) is a fitting tribute to a ship ready to serve where needed.

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!« ■,,£ ••V • i-V FROM THE CAPTAIN WE LIVE BUT ONCE. AND WE ARE FORTUNATE TO BE LIVING IN SUCH EXCITING AND FAST CHANGING TIMES AS MEMBERS OF THE NAVY OF THE MOST POWERFUL NATION ON EARTH. FIREDRAKE HAS HAD A SMALL BUT ESSENTIAL PART IN CARRYING OUT OUR COUNTRY ' S POLICIES AS THE LEADER OF THE FREE WORLD. I HOPE THAT THIS BOOK WILL, IN THE FUTURE YEARS, SERVE AS A REMINDER NOT ONLY OF A PLEASANT CRUISE, BUT OF THE EFFORT AND TEAMWORK IT TAKES TO PRESERVE THOSE FREEDOMS OUR PEOPLE ENJOY AND WHICH WE TAKE FOR GRANTED. : CAPTAIN F. COSTAGLIOLA iftffitfitt m it ■ •• ■ •■■-- - ■■ ■■ ■ ■ ■

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FRANCESCO COSTAGLIOLA CAPTAIN, USN COMMANDING OFFICER Captain Francesco Costagliola, a 1941 graduate of the U. S Naval Academy, assumed command of the FIRE- DRAKE on July 11, 1962. Prior to this duty he served as military assistant to the assistant Secretary of Defense for Atomic Energy. Upon graduation from the Naval Academy, Captain Costagliola reported aboard the USS PHOENIX (CL-46) where he served until after World War II. The PHOENIX, a survivor of Pearl Harbor, was a mainstay in the Allied offensive in the southwest Pacific, earning nine battle stars In 1946 Captain Costagliola returned to Annap- olis and subseguently to Massachusetts Institute of Technology as an ordnance Post Graduate student specializ- ing in nuclear physics. In 1949 he became Executive Officer of the Atlantic Fleet destroyer BROWNSON (DD-868). Two years later he assumed command of the USS HALSEY POWELL (DD-686), seeing action in the Korean Conflict. Since 1952, with the exception of a two year tour aboard the USS SARATOGA (CVA-60) as Gunnery Officer and a two year stint with CINCPACFLT Staff, Captain Costagliola has been assigned to the Washington D.C area in various capacities as- sociated with the Atomic Energy program Married to the former Miss Agnes Ross of Methuen, Massachusetts, Captain Costagliola has four young daugh- ters