The ''Rudderow''-class destroyer escorts were
destroyer escort
Destroyer escort (DE) was the United States Navy mid-20th-century classification for a warship designed with the endurance necessary to escort mid-ocean convoys of merchant marine ships.
Development of the destroyer escort was promoted by th ...
s launched in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
in 1943 to 1945. Of this class, 22 were completed as destroyer escorts, and 50 were completed as s and were re-classified as
high speed transport
High-speed transports were converted destroyers and destroyer escorts used in US Navy amphibious operations in World War II and afterward. They received the US Hull classification symbol APD; "AP" for transport and "D" for destroyer. In 1969, the ...
APDs. One ship was converted to an APD after completion. They served in
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
as
convoy
A convoy is a group of vehicles, typically motor vehicles or ships, traveling together for mutual support and protection. Often, a convoy is organized with armed defensive support and can help maintain cohesion within a unit. It may also be used ...
escorts and
anti-submarine warfare
Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are t ...
ships.
History
The lead ship was which was launched on 14 October 1943. The ships had
General Electric
General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable en ...
steam turbo-electric drive
engine
An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy.
Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power ...
s. The ships were built at various shipyards in the United States, including the
Philadelphia Navy Yard
The Philadelphia Naval Shipyard was an important naval shipyard of the United States for almost two centuries.
Philadelphia's original navy yard, begun in 1776 on Front Street and Federal Street in what is now the Pennsport section of the ci ...
and
Defoe Shipbuilding Company
The Defoe Shipbuilding Company was a small ship builder established in 1905 in Bay City, Michigan, United States. It ceased to operate in 1976 after failing to renew its contracts with the United States Navy. The site of the former company is ...
. They were very similar to the , having the same hull and machinery. The main differences were the ''Rudderow''s had two enclosed guns and two twin-
40 mm mounts, instead of the three open guns and one twin-40 mm or
one quad mount of the ''Buckley''s. Another major difference is the style of the configuration of the area of the bridge and pilothouse which is low and enclosed compared to the Buckley Class which is tall and enclosed. The Rudderow Class is similar to the John C. Butler Class in this case and a distinguishing feature between these two class DEs is the size and number of the portholes in the pilothouse. The Rudderow class has seven 16-inch portholes and the John C. Butler Class has nine 12-inch portholes, with both classes having three portholes facing the bow. The class was also known as the TEV type from their Turbo-Electric drive and 5-inch (V) guns.
[U.S. Destroyers, an illustrated design history by Norman Friedman, Chapter 7]
The final 180 of the class were canceled near the end of the war. After World War II, some of the surviving units of this class were transferred to
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the nort ...
,
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...
,
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
,
Colombia,
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
, and other countries. The rest were retained by the
US Navy's reserve fleet until they were decommissioned.
File:View forward from mast of USS Chaffee (DE-230).jpg, View forward from the mast of ''Rudderow''-class USS ''Chaffee'' (DE-230) showing 5in and 40mm guns.
File:View aft from mast of USS Chafee (DE-230).jpg, View aft from the mast of ''Rudderow''-class USS ''Chaffee'' (DE-230) showing rear 5in and 40mm guns, depth charge racks, depth charge projectors and torpedo tubes.
Ships in Class
See also
*
List of destroyer escorts of the United States Navy
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby union ...
*
List of frigates of the United States Navy subset of above with hull numbers DE/FF 1037 and higher plus all DEG/FFGs because of the
United States Navy 1975 ship reclassification
The United States Navy reclassified many of its surface vessels in 1975, changing terminology and hull classification symbols for cruisers, frigates, and ocean escorts.
Classification prior to 1975
From the 1950s to 1975, the US Navy had thre ...
*
List of frigates
References
External links
Destroyer History.org - Rudderow-class destroyer escort* http://www.desausa.org/ Destroyer Escort Sailors Association (DESA).
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rudderow Class Destroyer Escort