Fletcher (DD 992) - Naval Cruise Book

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dmiral Frank Jack Fletcher Frank Jack Fletcher was bom in Marshalltown, Iowa, on April 29, 1885. Appointed to the U.,S. Naval Academy from his native state in 1902, he was graduated from Annapolis on February 12, 1906 and commissioned an Ensign on February 13, 1908 following two years at sea. The early years of his career were spent on the battleships RHODE ISLAND, OHIO, and MAINE. He also spent time on USS EAGLE and USS FRANKLIN. In November 1909 he was assigned to USS CHAUNCEY, a unit of the Asiatic Torpedo Fiotilla. He assumed command of USS DALE in April 1910 and in March 1912 returned to CHAUNCEY as Commanding Officer. Transferred to USS FLOR- IDA in December 1912, he was aboard that battleship during the occupation of Vera Cruz, Mexico, in April 1914. For distinguished conduct in battle engage- ments in Vera Cruz he was awarded the Medal of Honor. He became Aide and Flag Lieutenant on the staff of the Commander in Chief, U. S. Atlantic Fleet in July 1914. After a year at this post, he returned to the Naval Academy for duty in the Executive Department. Upon the outbreak of World War I he served as Gunnery Officer of USS 'KEARSARGE until September 1917, after which he assumed command of USS MARGARET. He was assigned to USS ALLEN in February 1918 before taking command of USS BENHAM in May of 1918. For distinguished service as Com- manding Officer USS BENHAM, engaged in the important, exacting, and hazard- ous duty of patroling European waters and protecting vitally important convoys, he was awarded the Navy Cross. From October 1918 to February 1919 he assisted in fitting out USS CRANE at San Francisco. He then became Commanding Officer of USS GRIDLEY upon her commissioning. Retuming to Washington, he was head of the Detail Section, Enlisted Personnel Division in the Bureau of Navigation from April 1919 until September 1922. He returned to Asiatic Station, having consecutive command of the USS WHIPPLE, USS SACRAMENTO, USS RAINBOW, and Submarine Base, Cavite. He served at the Washington Navy Yard from March 1925 to August 1927, became Executive Officer of USS COLORADO, and completed the Senior Course at he 'Naval War College, Newport in .Iune 1930. He became Chief of Staff to the Commander in Chief, U. S. Atlantic Fleet in August 1931. In the summer of 1933 he was transferred to the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations. Following this assignment he had duty from November 1933 to May 1936 as Aide to the Secretrary of the Navy, the Honorable Claude A Swanson. He assumed command of USS NEW MEXICO, flagship of Battleship Division, THREE in June 1936. In December 1937 he became a member of the Naval Examining Board, and became Assistant Chief of the Bureau of Navigation in June 1938. Retuming to the Pacific between September 1939 and December 1941 he became Commander Cruiser Division THREE, Commander Cruiser Division SIX, Commander Cruisers, Scouting Force, and Commander Cruiser Division FOUR. He was in command of one of the two Task Forces participating in the Marshall-Gilbert Islands in February 1942 and was second in command during the Salamaua-Lae operations. On April 19, 1942 he was designated Commander Cruisers, Pacific Fleet. He was in command in May 1942 during the Battle of the Coral Sea. In June during the Battle of Midway, he was Senior Task Force Commander, his flag flying in USS YORKTOWN. It was in this battle that the Japanese suffered the first decisive defeat in three hundred and fifty years, restoring the balance of naval power in the Pacific. During the Guadacanal-Tulagi landings on August 7 and 8, 1942, he commanded two of the three Task Forces engaged as well as the American Task Forces in the ensuing battle of the Eastern Solomons. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal for exceptionally meritorious service as Task Force Commander, United States Pacific F1eet... during the battles in the Coral Sea and off Midway Island in .Iune 1942. In November 1942 he became Commandant, Thirteenth Naval District Seattle, Washington, and Commander Northwestern Sea Frontier. He was relieved as Commandant in October 1943, and later became'Commander, Alaskan Sea Frontier, with additional duty as Commander North Pacific Force and North Pacific Ocean Area. It was revealed in .luly 1945, that a Task Force under his overall command had made the first penetration through the Kurile Islands into the sea of Okhtosk on March 3 and 4, 1945, and the same task force on February 4, 1944 bombarded Paramushire in the first sea bombardment of the Kurile Islands. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal by the War Depart- ment for ...his professional ability and able leadership in the vast wartime expansion and organization of naval installations in the North Pacific Area...be- tween October 1943 and August 1945. In September 1945, following the cessation of hostilities in the Far East, he proceeded to Ominto, Japan, with the North Pacific Force for the emergency naval occupation of Northern Japan. He remained there until ordered to retum to the United States, and on December 17, 1945, reported for duty as a member of the General Board, Navy Department. On May 1, 1946, as senior Member of the Board he became Chairman, and continued to serve in that capacity until relieved of all active duty pending his retirement on May 1, 1947. In addition to the Medal of Honor, Navy Cross, Distinguished Service Medal, Army Distinguished Service Medal and the Purple Heart Medal, Admiral Fletcher was awarded the Mexican Service Medal, World War I Victory Medal, Destroyer Clasp, Yangtze Service Medal, American Defense Service Medal, Fleet Clasp, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, American Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal, and the Navy Occupation Service Medal, Asia Clasp. He also held the Sulu Mindanao Campaign Badge, presented bythe Philippine Govemment in 1924, the Order of an Officer of the Imperial Order of the Dragon of Annam, and the Order of the Bath with the grade of Companion, awarded by Great Britain CCanadaj. Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher died April 25, 1973.

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Uss FLETCHER mn-sezp USS FLETCHER CDD-992D is the thirtieth SPRUANCE Class Destroyer to be designed and built by the lngalls Shipbuilding Division of Litton Industries, Pascagoula, Mississippi. Homeported in San Diego, FLETCHER is assigned to Destroyer Squadron F'lVE. The SPRUANCE Class Destroyer is unique among today's warships in that it is the first major class to be powered exclusively by gas turbine engines - four General Electric LM-2500 engines which produce 20,000 shaft horsepower each. Twin controllable-reversible pitch propellers work in conjunction with the engines to move FLETCHER through the water at speeds in excess of 30 knots and give her a degree of maneuverability unequated by any other warship her size. Built with future growth in mind, FLETCHER's design is modular. This allows for easy installation of entire subsystems within the ship. This ease of installation also will allow new weapons and electronics systems to be placed on FLETCHER, thus allowing the ship to be used as a proving ground for new military technology. FLETCHER is truly a ship of the future as well as the present. Crew comfort and habitability were also a prime consideration in FLETCHER's design. Berthing areas are spacious and considerable care has been taken to equip the ship with features uncommon to most destroyers. Such features include: a ship's libraryg a crew's lounge, a gymnasium, a hobby shop, and many other items which enhance crew comfort. In addition to these specifically designed-in comforts, the many automated weapons and engineering systems onboard Fl..ETCHER allow for reduced manning levels. This results in more space and easier living conditions for all. As a highly versatile multi-mission destroyer, FLETCHER is capable of opera- ting independently or in company with amphibious or carrier task forces. Although equipped to handle a wide variety of mission areas, FLETCHER's primary mission is that of Antisubmarine Warfare. FLETCHER canies the most advanced ASW equipment in existence to facilitate her accomplishment of this complex and demanding task. The ship is equipped with a sophisticated sonar, the SQS-53, which is directly integrated with a third generation digital computer system, the Naval Tactical Data System. In addition to her sonar, FLETCHER's ASW weapons suit include an Antisubmarine Rocket CASROCJ and two triple barreled Mark 32 torpedo tubes. This integrated combat systems provides FLETCHER with an enhanced target information processing capability and an extremely fast threat reaction time. FLETCHER also boasts two 5 inch 54 caliber Mark 45 fully automatic gun mounts controlled by the digital Mark 86 Fire Control System. Also integrated with NTDS, these systems allow FLETCHER to excell in her secondary mission areas of Naval Gunfire Support Surface Warfare, and Anti-Air Warfare. ln conclusion, USS FLETCHER constitutes a destroyerman's dream. She incorporates the best of modern technology. Her exceptional propulsion system and fully integrated combat system combine with her modular construction to make FLETCHER a platform not be surpassed.