Stribling (DD 867) - Naval Cruise Book

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d k riod, punctuated by an assignment as a training ship for the Fleet Shortly after the return- to Mayport began a much Reegedrlelawgel me EIQRTEIPISZ went To Norfolk for U Yard penod GT Portsmouth NWO' Shipyard, Sonar School, Key West, Florida, for two weeks during did hun plafes required replacement. Portsmouth being too busy to'do the required work, the and here it was discovered 'hm 0 number of higmy com k 'Ile where damage to the Sonar Dome and propellers were incurred while drydogking - - - - ' ' d in Jac sonvi . . . . , - Ship WGS 0599099 U Y0 d 9V9 0b 'TY at 0 pr'V01.e yur - h' d lo ed a very noticeable vibration during subsequent sea trials. A A Somewhat: p5ol?9id.peri3d iq the iggogg if:gi3312:Leiiiggfigsniigaigenidlrproiavutisign shaft appeared to reduce the vibration enough to allow the return to t e ry oc in or er o ms STRIBLING to make her next scheduled cruise. I I A t he departed for six weeks to Bermuda and Ponta Delgado on the Island of San Miguel in the Azores. This proved a very welcome n eary ugus s respite from the previous several months. Upon return from the Azores cruise she again went into drydock at another Jacksonville shipyard. Further work on the propulsion shaft finally corrected the vibration problems and in October STRIBLING could be considered ready for sea. The remainder of the fall saw the ship operating in the Mayport area conducting exercises and participating in one large fleet exercise off the Virginia Capes Much time was spent in port and in November STRIBLING received confirmation that she would deploy to the MED with Destroyer Division ONE FOUR TWO in early February I964. STRIBLING spent all of January 1964 in Mayport preparing for the forthcoming MED deployment, and on 8 February she departed Mayport with other units of Destroyer Division ONE FOUR TWO. PiraeuslAthens, Greece was the first liberty port in the MED in January. Early -in March STRIBLING.transitted the Suez Canal for duty with MIDEASTFOR, stopping at Jidda, Ethiopia, Diibouti, French Somaliland, Mona AI Ahmadi, Kuwait, the British Protectorate of Aden, Bahrein Island in the Persian Gulf, Karachi, Pakistan, and Kharg Island, Iran. While with MIDEASTFOR, STRIBLING participated in OPERATION DELAWAR and received a commendation from Rear Admiral A.F. SCHADE, USN, COMMIDEASTFOR, for outstanding performance in gunnery. On I May STRIBLING departed MIDEASTFOR and transitted the Suez Canal once again. She proceeded to Naples. and a tender availability period. During this time, on I6 May, Change of Command Ceremonies were held at which time CDR M.O. GEARY, USN, relieved CDR, R.B. JACOBS, USN as Commanding Officer. While in Naples STRIBLING received confirmation that she would participate in the 20th Anniversary Commemoration of the Normandy Invasions. This she did with units of the French, British, and Canadian Navies. Ports of interest which were visited were Portsmouth, England, and Cherbourg, France. In mid-June STRIBLING visited Bordeaux, France, to help celebrate the opening of the International Trade Fair. STRIBLING was the first United States Navy ship to visit Bordeaux in over three years. From mid-June to mid-July STRIBLING operated with units of the U.S. SIXTH Fleet, making calls it Ibiza, Baleric Island, and Valencia, Spain. After these operations she departed the MED for the return to the United States, a long but very enioyable MED cruise behind her. In late August STRIBLING ARRIVED AT Mayport for a period spent preparing for general overhaul. This stay was interrupted by Hurricane DORA, forcing STRIBLING to leave Mayport to evade the storm. In mid-September STRIBLING entered Charleston Naval Shipyard for a regular overhaul which extended into early 1965. b After completion of her first yard overhaul since FRAM, STRIBLING departed Charleston, South Carolina on I8 January 1965 for exercises in the Norfolk Operating Area and after more than four months absences, entered Mayport on 27 January. After a short stay, STRIBLING got underway for Guantanamo Bay and six grueling weeks of refresher training. The work at GITMO was hard, but the STRIBLING crew put forth its best effort and made a fine mark on her final ORI. STRlBLlNG's grade on her ASW ORI was the highest ever awarded by the professionals at Fleet Training Group Guantanamo Bay to a FRAM I destroyer. After completion of shore bombardment qualifications at Culebra, STRIBLING returned to Mayport on 22 March and commenced preparations for another deployment to SIXTH Fleet. Departing for the MED on I7 May, STRIBLING arrived in Rota, Spain ten days later. From there, STRIBLING pro- ceeded via Souda Bay, Crete, and the Suez Canal to the Middle East. Successive ports of call during operations with Middle East Force were Port Sudan, Aden, and Diego Suarez and Tamatave in Madagascar. En route to Madagascar, STRIBLING crossed the equator and the ceremonies attendant to the creation of shellbacks from pollywogs were most colorful. Returning to the Mediterranean again via Aden and the Suez Canal, STRIBLING put into Piraeus, Greece, for liberty and then moved on to.Naples for a tender availability period. Early August was spent operating with the SIXTH Fleet, some fine liberty in Palma, Spain, and turning over t th USS NORRIS in Pallensa Bay. 0 e DASH ...L

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'K ' 'P IX 'Y if, . ei .. so-til' -ilu- ,,' I 1 NIH, Ogg.. 000009. .OO Q.. , Nga. ' . . W ar, . 5, 4 s . l,'L9,5l Secretary ofthe Navy John ll. CIIAFEE, lrightl, and Assistant Secretary ofthe Navy For Financial Management Charles A. BOWSIIER sit in high line chairs aboard the Destroyer USS STRIBLING IDD-8671. It was a smooth trip across the Atlantic and only a few days could be considered rough as the ship ioined others of the American, French, and British Navies for Exercise RIPTIDE Ill in the Atlantic. Prior to transitting the Suez Canal on I September to report for duty with the Middle East Forces, the ship visited Naples and Athens. On 7 September the ship moored at Djibouti, French Somaliland, and on the l6th at Bahrein Island in the Pursian Gulf. On the l9th, the STRIBLING, USS PERRY, and USS GREENWICH BAY, with units of the Iranian Navy, conducted exercises off Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf. On the 24th of September, the STRIBLING broke the COMIDEAST FORCE flag as Rear Admiral SEMMES and his aide rode the ship that day. b f th Saudi Arabian Navy came aboard for an inspection and underway exercise in On 29 September, at Ras Tanura, Saudi Arabia, mem ers o e which they observed S 138 gun firing, and took part in fire drills, and were allowed to maneuver the ship for man overboard drill. The sound of the Arabic Language over the IMC system was very strange indeed. Before departing from the Middle East, the ship visited Aden, and then having been relieved on I 5 October, transitted the Suez Canal for the Sth time, and reioined the SIXTH Fleet. During the period I5 October to I December, while operating with the SIXTH Fleet, the ship visited Golfe Juan, France, Gaeta and Naples, Italy, and Messina, Sicily. Homeward bound in the latter part of February I963, STRIBLING arrived at Mayport on 2 March. The cruise had been rewarding in many respects From Kharg Island, Iran, and Diibouti, French Somaliland, to Barcelona, Spain, STRIBLING had come in contact with many different climates ' ' ' ' d'ff tf m our own. In addition the and peoples, conveying to these people an insight to America and gaining an awareness of cultures and ideas I eren ro , t with the SIXTH Fleet gave the ship important experience in the complex and demanding operations and logistics of a mobile strike group and the our pride of being a part of a very vital and effective element of this country's first lme of defense. lronically but understandably, the most enioyable part of such an experience is the homecoming. STRIBLING had been gone from 3 August 1962 to 2 March l9'63, a period covering nearly two-thirds of a year but which seemed longer to many.

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1 ,. Q 'f On I September STRIBLING returned to Mayport after another successful MED deployment, including her third successive Middle East Assignment. Only two days after arrival STRIBLING was again underway to avoid Hurricane BETSY. Evasion efforts were successful and STRIBLING returned to Mayport on 11 September and spent the remainder of the month in o tender availability period. October was spent in preparation for and performance of special operations under the operational control of COMSUBLANT. Returning to Mayport from these operations on 12 November, STRIBLlNG's crew was permitted to remain in port until 8 December for some well-earned time with families and friends. The period 8 to 17 December was spent at sea plane guarding for USS INDEPENDENCE and USS SARATOGA and after return to Mayport, STRIBLING commenced another tender availability period in preparation for her next scheduled operation to commence in mid-January 1966. USS STRIBLING celebrated her 21 st birthday in 1966 and completed a busy year highlighted by two important events, First, successful imple- mentation of the DASH weapons system in April and second, an historic visit to Port Said, United Arab Republic, in September. By visiting Port Said STRIBLING helped to perform an important diplomatic service in American efforts to improve relations with the United Arab Republic. On the other hand, the installation of the drone anti-submarine helicopters provided STRIBLING with another lethal weapon to be used against possible submarine threats arising in time of war. On 4 January STRIBLING began a three-week cruise to the Caribbean to participate in 1966 SPRINGBOARD exercises. One of the highlights of these exercises was the impressive performance of STRIBLlNG's two 5-inch 38 gun mounts, which fired more than 1400 rounds in various gunnery exercises. Not only did STRIBLING qualify again as a naval shore bombardment ship, she also demonstrated her versatility by scoring very high in anti-air gunnery exercises. During the cruise, the ports of St. Thomas, St. Croix, and San Juan were visited. On 4 April, STRIBLING sailed north to Virginia, this time to receive the DASH Ship Qualification Team at Norfolk. The preparation of the ship for DASH was so thorough that STRIBLING was able to cut the normal time of one week in Norfolk to less than three days, sailing for Mayport and arriving on 9 April. The remainder of April was spent in ond out of home port as STRIBLING, assisted by technicians from Gyrodyne Corp., successfully tested her new drone anti-submarine helicopters. STRIBLING officially became a DASH-qualified ship without restrictions on 4 May. Departing on 20 June, STRIBLING and the other Mayport-based destroyers arrived in Gibraltar on 30 June. During her stay in the MED, STRIBLING had the opportunity to visit and take liberty in the ports of Genoa, Siracuse, Colion, and Taranto, Italy. In Taranto STRlBlING's motor whale boat handily defeated the USS BAlLEY's in a race around the USS SARATOGA ICVA-601. Following the great race STRIBLING paid calls to Naples, Argostoli Bay, Port Said, Piraeus, Ibiza and Palma in the Baleric Islands, and Valencia. The most memorable and important port of call was Port Said. On a hot Friday morning of 2 September, the two ships steamed up to the mouth of the Suez Canal. STRIBLING fired a 21 -gun solute as she followed behind the INGRAM. A hectic schedule of social events and tours followed for all members of the crew. Saturday, more than 500 residents of Port Said came aboard both ships for tours. After a busy three day visit, which earned both ships high praise from various military commandslin the Mediterranean Area as well as diplomatic officials, STRIBLING and INGRAM set sail for Athens. On 9 October, STRIBLING and the other five DESRON 14 ships arrived in Gibraltar to be relieved by ships of Destroyer Squadron FOUR. Finally on the morning of 20 October, STRIBLING entered homeport, thus completing her ninth deployment to the Mediterranean. Three weeks later STRI8I.lNG accompanied by USS NOA got underway for eight days of plane-guarding for USS AMERICA ICVA 661, returning to Mayport In time for Thanksgiving. On Monday, 28 November, STRIBLING again left port for her last maior evolution of the year, a unit of Task Unit 29.2.3 in LANTFLEX 66. On 16 ..,,. ..