USS Leonard F. Mason
| USS Leonard F. Mason U.S.S. Leonard F. Mason (DD-852), May 1974, 32nd Street Naval Station, San Diego, California. FRAM II configuration. | |
| Career | 
|
|---|---|
| Authorized: | |
| Laid down: | 2 May 1945 |
| Launched: | 4 January 1946 |
| Commissioned: | 28 June 1946 |
| Decommissioned: | |
| Fate: | Sold to Taiwan 10 March 1978, becoming Shuei-Yang (DDG 926). Decommissioned 16 February 2000 and sunk to create an artificial reef. |
| Struck: | 2 November 1976 |
| General Characteristics | |
| Displacement: | |
| Length: | 390 feet, 6 inches |
| Beam: | 41 feet, 1 inch |
| Draft: | 18 feet |
| Propulsion: | 4 boilers, 2 General Electric geared turbines, 2 screws, 65,464 shaft horsepower |
| Speed: | Reported as fastest Destroyer in USN Pacific fleet in the 1970s |
| Range: | 4500 nm @ 20 knots |
| Complement: | 11 officers, 325 crew |
| Armament: | (1973) two 5"/38 twin gun mounts, torpedo launchers, ASROC, CHAFFROC, Chaperral, 50-calibre machine guns |
| Motto: | |
USS Leonard F. Mason (DD-852) was a Gearing-class destroyer in the United States Navy.
The ship was laid down May 2, 1945 by the Bethlehem Steel Co. and named after Leonard F. Mason, a Marine Private First Class who gallantly gave his life while in action on the island of Guam during World War II. PFC Mason was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor posthumously for his bravery during this action.
Following shakedown in the Caribbean, DD-852 joined DesDiv 32 in the Pacific, completing two cruises in the Western Pacific. The destroyer participated chiefly in anti-submarine exercises for the latter part of the Korean Conflict, and on May 16, 1951, she joined the seige of Wonsan. The continuous bombardment of Wonsan by the Mason and other destroyers resulted in heavy damage to enemy troop formations and infrastructure.
After the end of Korean hostilities, the Mason sailed with the carrier group TF 11 during the Suez crisis.
Mason was the recovery ship that picked up the wayward Gemini 8 capsule that splashed down near Okinawa, instead of the intended Caribbean.
On February 12, 1973, Mason was the final U.S. warship of the Vietnam War to call at the base at Da Nang, Vietnam.
Following her striking, the destroyer was transferred to the government of Taiwan on March 10, 1978 and renamed the Shuei Yang.
The U.S.S. Leonard F. Mason received three battle stars for her Korean service.
An extensive history of the ship is available from this website: http://www.west.net/~ke6jqp/dd852.htm
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