USS Carr
 USS Carr (FFG-52)
| |
| History | |
|---|---|
 US | |
| Name | USS Carr |
| Namesake | Gunner's Mate 3rd Class Paul H. Carr |
| Builder | Todd Pacific Shipyards, Seattle |
| Laid down | 26 March 1982 |
| Launched | 26 February 1983 |
| Commissioned | 27 July 1985 |
| Decommissioned | 15 March 2013(scheduled) |
| Homeport | Norfolk, Virginia |
| Motto | Courage, Will, Determination |
| Nickname(s) | Unofficially, The Carr-Toon or the Carr-tel |
| Status | in active service |
| Badge |  |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate |
| Displacement | 4,100 long tons (4,200 t), full load |
| Length | 453 feet (138 m), overall |
| Beam | 45 feet (14 m) |
| Draught | 22 feet (6.7 m) |
| Propulsion |
|
| Speed | over 29 knots (54 km/h) |
| Range | 5,000 nautical miles at 18 knots (9,300 km at 33 km/h) |
| Complement | 15 officers and 190 enlisted, plus SH-60 LAMPS detachment of roughly six officer pilots and 15 enlisted maintainers |
| Sensors and processing systems |
|
| Electronic warfare & decoys | AN/SLQ-32 |
| Armament |
|
| Aircraft carried | 2 × SH-60 LAMPS III helicopters |
USS Carr (FFG-52), an Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate, is a ship of the United States Navy named for Gunner's Mate 3rd Class Paul H. Carr (1924–1944). Carr was awarded a posthumous Silver Star for his heroism on the destroyer escort Samuel B. Roberts during the Battle off Samar.
Carr was laid down on 26 March 1982 by the Todd Pacific Shipyards Co., Seattle Division, Seattle, Wash.; launched on 26 February 1983; sponsored by Mrs. Goldie Carr Bensilhe, GM3 Carr's widow; and commissioned on 27 July 1985, Commander Robert J. Horne in command.
Service history
Operation Earnest Will
Carr's original homeport was Charleston, S.C. Her first operational deployment was to the Persian Gulf, where Carr was involved in Operation Earnest Will, escorting re-flagged oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz. While Commander, Destroyer Squadron 14, was the senior officer present, Commander Wade C. Johnson, the captain of the Carr, was the next senior officer in the area and was routinely assigned the duties of Convoy Commander during escort missions. During one of these, Iranian small boats approached the tankers and were chased off by bullets from Carr's deck-mounted M2 .50-caliber machine guns and the Bushmaster 25mm chain gun on the starboard main deck.
Bonefish disaster
Carr returned to Charleston in late March 1988, and 31 days later, was ordered underway to replace another ship that had been unable to get underway. Sent to sea to conduct anti-submarine exercises with the aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy and submarine Bonefish. On 24 April 1988, Carr was first on the scene to help rescue the crew of the attack submarine Bonefish, which had suffered a battery fire while submerged. Deploying her 26-foot whaleboat and five inflatable life rafts, Carr helped rescue 89 of the Bonefish's crew, using the whaleboat, life rafts, its embarked SH-60B Seahawk of Helicopter Squadron (Light) 44, and the SH-3H Sea King helicopters from the John F. Kennedy. The ship communicated to the land-based Commander, Atlantic Fleet watch center using the Joint Operational Tactical System's (JOTS) "opnote" capability. Crew muster lists were sent ashore as rescued crew members where identified. For her professionalism in the rescue, the Carr was awarded a Meritorious Unit Commendation.
Exercises in the Caribbean
In October 1988, Carr made a port visit to Tampa, Florida, at the request of the local Navy League chapter, mooring at Harbor Island pier. Public tours were held for several days in celebration of Navy Week, honoring the Navy's birthday. The commissioning commanding officer, Captain Robert Horne, was stationed at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa and was there to greet the ship.
In March 1989, Carr was sent to Fleet Training Group, Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for Refresher Training (REFTRA). While the ship conducted exercises in all departments, Mikhail Gorbachev was making a visit to Havana, Cuba. News crews from NBC, headed by Henry Champ, and ABC, by Bob Zelnic, each spent a day aboard Carr to observe the training.
In summer 1989, while the Carr was heading to the Puerto Rican Operation Area (PROA) for the Middle East Force Exercise (MEFEX), both of the ship's laundry washers broke down. With the permission of the Squadron Commodore running MEFEX, the Carr's Seahawk helicopter flew into Naval Station Roosevelt Roads, PR, and the Supply Officer purchased a household washing machine from the Navy Exchange. The washer was unboxed on the ramp at the airfield, loaded in the helicopter and flown to the ship, where it was plumbed in to the water system and served as the crew laundry for the next several weeks.
Hurricane Hugo
On 1989-09-18, Carr sailed from Charleston to be on station off the Naval Station Mayport for the week to provide a practice flight deck for the SH-60B Seahawk squadrons. That night, an officer of HSL-44 came aboard and informed the captain that the helicopters would be flying to Georgia the following day in preparation for the impending arrival of Hurricane Hugo. On the morning of 19 September, Carr entered Naval Station Mayport and moored, awaiting further instructions. At midnight on the 19th/20th, Carr got underway and headed south to the Strait of Florida to avoid the storm. Once the hurricane was safely past, the captain ordered the ship to sail towards Charleston.
Carr was the first Navy vessel to return to the port of Charleston the morning after Hurricane Hugo made landfall there. Carr remained anchored for three days, unable to enter port, as essentially all navigation aids were moved or destroyed by the hurricane. One of the Coast Guard ships at anchor sent a small boat to the USCG Station in Charleston, taking along Carr's Sonar Technician Chief Petty Officer Steven Hatherly. STGC Hatherly made his way to the Naval Station, where he phoned most of the crew's families and reported their status to the ship via bridge-to-bridge VHF radio that evening. From their anchorage, the crew could easily see the bridge between the Isle of Palms and the mainland in the air, as well as the demolished houses along the shore. Local television stations were returning the transmitting and the crew had little to do besides consider the condition of their families and possessions ashore.
Carr was ordered to proceed to Naval Station Mayport. Arriving the next morning, the local community had staged relief supplies to be taken to Charleston. The next day, Carr was directed to return to her homeport. Upon arrival, there were no shore services, so the Engineering Department kept the engineering plant on line to provide power, air-conditioning, fresh water and other support services. Crew members were dispatched, during the day, to assist in the clean up of the Naval Station, the Naval Weapons Station and the local community. As time permitted, they also helped each other's families secure their belongings and clean up their homes. For this response the natural disaster, Carr was awarded the Humanitarian Service Medal.
Change of command and return to the Persian Gulf
In early October, the first formal ceremony of any type at the Naval Station held was the change of command for Carr, with Commander Edward "Ned" Bagley, III, USN relieving Commander Wade C. Johnson, USN. The Change of Command was held in the morning and that afternoon, Commander, Destroyer Squadron 4 held their change of command.
On 31 October, Carr sailed from Charleston for her second operation deployment, assigned to the Commander, Middle East Force. En route the Persian Gulf, Carr made port visits to the Azores, Palma Majorca, Spain, then transited the Suez Canal. During this deployment, Carr spend the first half assigned to tanker escort duties in the Strait of Hormuz. The later part of the cruise was spent operating in the Northern Persian Gulf, conducting electronic surveillance and early warning duties for the units operating to the south. Carr left the Persian Gulf the end of March 1990 and returned to Charleston a month later.
As of 2005, Carr is homeported at NS Norfolk, Virginia, and is part of Destroyer Squadron 2.
As of 14 March 2012, Carr is scheduled to be decommissioned on 15 March 2013.[1]
References
 | This article includes a list of references, related reading, or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. (November 2009) |
This article includes information collected from the Naval Vessel Register, which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain. The entry can be found here.
External links
- USS Carr official website
- navsource.org: USS Carr
- navysite.de: USS Carr
- MaritimeQuest USS Carr FFG-52 pages
