Hull (DD 945) - Naval Cruise Book

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During the first three days on the gunline, HULL carried outshore bombardment missions against Viet Cong base camps and suspected enemy activity areas along an 80 mile stretch of the coast from Nha Trang north to Tuy Hoa. inflicting considerable damage including ll enemy KIA and 9 WIA. The ship providedidirect support for the 5th Special Foreee Gfgup QAirborneJ. This unit, in appreciation, presented HULL with a submachine gun found in an abandoned position destroyed by her gunfire. Mounted on the weapon was a plaque with the following inscription: From the officers and men of the 5th Special Forces Group QAirbornej in appreciation for a job well done- - -Vietnam 1968 . On 18 February, Captain C. E. MCMULLEN CCOMDESRON 155 shifted his flag aboard. The following day, he assumed duties as Commander of the Naval Gunfire Support Task Unit off Vietnam 'QCTU 70. 8. 91, and HULL's assignment was shifted from the south to the coastal areas along the DMZ. She at once began supporting units of the THIRD Marine Division with round-the-clock bombardment. During daylight hours call-for-fire missions came in from either airborne or shore based spotters. During the night, the ship normally fired at pre-selected targets in an attempt to harass and disrupt enemy operations in the DMZ. On 21 February, while conducting attacks against suspected enemy artillery sites and North Vietnamese army concentrations some five miles south of Cap Lay, the destroyer came under fire from enemy coastal defense sites nearby. No hits were sustained and the ship succeeded in silencing the attacking batteries. Later that night the ship was again fired on but the enemy aim was poor in the darkness and posed no serious threat. Daily bombardment continued and by the end of February, HULL had fired over 5, 000 rounds in support of U. S. and Allied troops ashore. During the first days of March enemy coastal defense activity became increas- ingly frequent. The ship came under enemy fire on the lst, 2nd, and 3rd. Some of the shells landed as close as ten yards off the bow. Through high speed evasive maneuvering the ship avoided incoming rounds while at the same time taking the enemy gun emplacements under fire with her own five-inch armament. On the 3rd, the destroyer also carried out attacks against enemy gun emplacements that had taken the cruiser NEWPORT NEWS under fire. This was an exciting action with Commodore MCMULLEN directing a coordinated attack by the Cruiser and Destroyer on the enemy gun emplacements in the DMZ. On 4 March HULL was directed to return to Subic Bay, Philippines to replace worn gun barrels on her two after mounts. The re-gunning was completed quite rapidly and the warship was back on the gun line four days later. However, mechan- ical trouble with the sophisticated, automatic guns began to plague the ship and on 13 March she again left the coastal waters of the DMZ and returned to the Philippines for repairs to her main battery. 132 .A

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THE YEAR 1968 The early days of January 1968 meant only the beginning of a new year for most people, but it meant the completion of preparations for a deployment to the Western Pacific to the officers and men of HULL. The monumental task of gathering and storing tons of supplies, overhauling and maintaining the ship's weapons and engineering equipment, and training inexperienced crewmen to a combat-ready level was nearly finished as the middle of the month approached. Scheduled departure date was 16 january. But with only a week left, a serious boiler problem was discovered by the COMCRUDESPAC Engineering Inspection Team. Repair work was begun immediately and continued around the clock in an effort to complete the job prior to the scheduled departure date. The work, however, could not be completed until the morning of 19 january. With everything finally ready, the last line was taken in at 0744 and HULL steamed out of San Diego harbor and headed west at 20 knots. JOUETT CDLG 295 and PREBLE QDLG 153, who with HULL were to form Task Element 15.4. 2. 1, had departed on the 16th. The rendezvous would take place in Pearl Harbor. lt would take nearly two and a half weeks to cross the Pacific, but good use would be made of this time. lt would be the last chance to get the ship and the men ready for combat. Gunners mates tested, checked, lubricated and re-tested the massive, complex five-inch, fifty-four caliber guns. Radar technicians, radiomen, and gun- fire-control specialists brought their equipment up to peak operating condition. Tactical lectures and briefings covering shore bombardment procedures, various types of missions anticipated, and the threat of North Vietnamese coastal defense batteries were given daily. General quarters drills came often, and with each one, the emergence of an effective, unified fighting unit became more evident. On the morning of 24 January, HULL arrived in Pearl Harbor, paused briefly for refueling and briefings and then departed, on the morning of the 25th, along with PREBLE and JOUETT. Captain A. T. EMERSON, Jr., CCOMDESRON ONEJ, serving as Commander Task Element 15. 4. 2. 1, was embarked in HULL from 25 to 27 january. He then returned to JOUETT for the remainder of the transit period to WESTPAC. On 1 February, HULL reported in to Commander SEVENTH Fleet for duty in the Western Pacific areas. Two days later, on 3 February, she made a fuel stop in Guam, and then proceeded on to Subic Bay, Philippines, arriving on the 7th. Leaving the Philippines on 11 February, the ship continued steaming west independently and on 13 February reported to the Commander Naval Gunfire Support Unit QCTG 70. 8. 95 ready for action. She immediately took station near Nha Trang in the Southern ll Corps zone of South Vietnam. 131

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Steaming westward again on19 March, the guns test fired satisfactorily and HULL reassumed her shore bombardment station. The continual shooting, day and night, with almost no time for preventive maintenance eventually took its toll and on 27 March the ship found herself without any operable five-inch armament. She was assigned to plane guard duty for the USS RANGER QCVA. 611 on Yankee Station in the Tonkin Gulf for the final four days of the month. Nevertheless, despite considerable problems with the main battery, her gun crews and magazine teams had managed to pump out over 5, 200 rounds during the month. On the morning of 2 April, HULL was released by RANGER and began steaming toward Subic Bay for what would be a lengthy and much needed repair period. She arrived the following day. On 8 April, Captain C. E. MCMULLEN CCOMDESRON 155 shifted his flag to the USS DALE QDLG 191. The following message was received from him as he departed: 1 take great pleasure in commending you for the outstanding support you gave my staff and me during the period you served as my flagship. Most noteworthy was the support 1 received in the area of communications. This performance has been superior to that of any other flagship in which I have been embarked. The profession- alism displayed by your gunnery department and combat information center in delivering high volume, accurate gunfire and your rapid response to counter hostile fire directed at HULL and NEWPORT NEWS was particularly gratifying. The excellence of ship-handling demonstrated during replenishment evolutions was in keeping with the highest standards of destroyermen. Your accomplishments should be a source of pride to all who serve in HULL. It has been a distinct pleasure to have HULL serve as my flagship. The following day, the 9th, Captain J. M. MASON CCOMDESRON 95 shifted his flag to HULL and prepared to assume the duties of Commander Task Unit 70. 8. 9. Repairs were not completed until 22 April when the ship departed the Philippines and headed for a shore bombardment station some 20 miles south of DaNang. On 24 and 25 April she destroyed some 140 Viet Cong targets while working with the Second Brigade, Republic of Korea Marine Corps. On 26 April the ship moved north to once again take station off the DMZ coast. Although she was only on the gun line eight days during the month, the destroyer fired more than 2, 100 rounds from her main battery. As May arrived, the pace, if anything, seemed to become more frenzied. During the twenty-four hour period that made up the first day of the month HULL fired over 300 rounds of five-inch shells at enemy targets in the DMZ, replenished from both an ammunition ship and an oiler, and was attacked once again by a North Vietnamese coastal defense gun. This then, was the tempo of operations. Some days crewmen had to onload as much as 100, 000 pounds of shells and powder during a single replenish- ment from a SEVENTH Fleet ammunition ship. Crew members became very adept at this task. So much so, that the Commanding Officer of the USS PARACUTIN QAE 185 dubbed the destroyer Hustlin' HULL . 133