USS ''Buckley'' (DE-51) was the

lead ship The lead ship, name ship, or class leader is the first of a series or class of ships all constructed according to the same general design. The term is applicable to naval ships and large civilian vessels. Large ships are very complex and may ...

of her class of

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 in the service with the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

from 1943 to 1946. After spending 23 years in reserve, she was scrapped in 1969.

History

USS ''Buckley'' was named in honor of Aviation Ordnanceman John D. Buckley (1920–1941), who was killed in action during the

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

ese attack on the Hawaiian Islands on 7 December 1941. ''Buckley'' was launched on 9 January 1943, by

Bethlehem-Hingham Shipyard The Bethlehem Hingham Shipyard of Hingham, Massachusetts, was a shipyard in the United States from 1941 until 1945. Located on Weymouth Back River, it was owned by the Bethlehem Shipbuilding Company and operated by the nearby Fore River Shipyard. ...

, Inc.,

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, sponsored by Mrs. James Buckley, mother of Aviation Ordnanceman Buckley; and commissioned on 30 April 1943.

Battle of the Atlantic

Between July 1943 and 22 April 1944, ''Buckley'' operated along the eastern seaboard as training ship for prospective officers and nucleus crews of other destroyer escorts. On 22 April 1944, she joined hunter-killer Task Group 21.11 (TG 21.11) for a sweep of the

North Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the "Old World" of Africa, Europe and ...

and

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

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 ...

routes. On the morning of 6 May, aircraft from the

escort carrier The escort carrier or escort aircraft carrier (U.S. hull classification symbol CVE), also called a "jeep carrier" or "baby flattop" in the United States Navy (USN) or "Woolworth Carrier" by the Royal Navy, was a small and slow type of aircraft ...

reported an enemy

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

near ''Buckley''. She steamed toward the surfaced submarine, evading her

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, su ...

es and gunfire, and commenced firing. At 0328 ''Buckley'' rammed the

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submarine and then backed off. Shortly thereafter, the submarine struck ''Buckley'', opening a hole in the escort vessel's starboard side. Hand-to-hand combat ensued between crew members of the two combatants on ''Buckleys foredeck, involving, among other weapons, coffee mugs and shell casings. The ''U-66'' drew astern of ''Buckley'' and sank at 0341 in , after hand grenades were dropped down its hatch. ''Buckley'' picked up 36 German survivors, transferred them to the ''Block Island'' and then retired to New York where she underwent repairs until 14 June 1944. For this most interesting action, regarded by several high naval officers as being the most "exciting" anti-submarine kill in the

Battle of the Atlantic The Battle of the Atlantic, the longest continuous military campaign in World War II, ran from 1939 to the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945, covering a major part of the naval history of World War II. At its core was the Allied naval blockade ...

, ''Buckley'' personnel were authorized to wear a combat star in the European-African Theater ribbon. The then commanding officer, Lt. Comdr. Brent M. Abel, USNR, of

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, was awarded the Navy Cross for his part in its execution. After completing refresher training at

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, in July 1944, ''Buckley'' escorted two convoys to

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(14 July – 7 November 1944). She then operated on anti-submarine and convoy escort duty along the eastern seaboard and in the North Atlantic until June 1945. During this period ''Buckley'' and sank the on 19 April 1945 in . ''Buckley'' escorted one more convoy to Algeria during June–July 1945, before returning to the United States.

Conversion and fate

Upon her return to the east coast, she commenced conversion to a

radar picket ship A radar picket is a radar-equipped station, ship, submarine, aircraft, or vehicle used to increase the radar detection range around a nation or military (including naval) force to protect it from surprise attack, typically air attack, or from cr ...

. In October 1945, she participated in the

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ceremonies at

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, and then on 31 October reported to the 16th Fleet at

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. ''Buckley'' was placed out of commission in reserve on 3 July 1946. On 26 April 1949 her

classification Classification is a process related to categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated and understood. Classification is the grouping of related facts into classes. It may also refer to: Business, organizat ...

was changed to DER-51 (

radar picket A radar picket is a radar-equipped station, ship, submarine, aircraft, or vehicle used to increase the radar detection range around a nation or military (including naval) force to protect it from surprise attack, typically air attack, or from cr ...

destroyer escort), and on 29 September 1954, she was reclassified back to DE-51. ''Buckley'' was stricken from the

Naval Vessel Register The ''Naval Vessel Register'' (NVR) is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from t ...

on 1 June 1968; she was sold for scrapping July 1969.

In popular culture

Some scenes in the 1957 movie ''

The Enemy Below ''The Enemy Below'' is a 1957 DeLuxe Color war film in CinemaScope about a battle between an American destroyer escort and a German U-boat during World War II. Produced and directed by Dick Powell, the movie stars Robert Mitchum and Curt J� ...

'' (starring

Robert Mitchum Robert Charles Durman Mitchum (August 6, 1917 – July 1, 1997) was an American actor. He rose to prominence with an Academy Award nomination for the Best Supporting Actor for ''The Story of G.I. Joe'' (1945), followed by his starring in ...

and

Curt Jurgens Kurt is a male given name of Germanic or Turkish origin. ''Kurt'' or ''Curt'' originated as short forms of the Germanic Conrad, depending on geographical usage, with meanings including counselor or advisor. In Turkish, Kurt means "Wolf" and i ...

) seem to be inspired by ''Buckleys battle with ''U-66'', particularly near the end of the movie where the U.S. Navy destroyer escort grounds on the deck of the submarine. The ship used in the film was the USS ''Whitehurst'' (DE-634). The battle with ''U-66'' is detailed in an episode of the

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channel ''The History Guy: History Deserves to Be Remembered''.

Awards

Navy Unit Commendation The Navy Unit Commendation (NUC) is a United States Navy unit award that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944. History Navy and U.S. Marine Corps commands may recommend any Navy or Marine Co ...

(for sinking ''U-66'') *

American Campaign Medal The American Campaign Medal is a military award of the United States Armed Forces which was first created on November 6, 1942, by issued by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The medal was intended to recognize those military members who had perfo ...

with one

battle star A service star is a miniature bronze or silver five-pointed star inch (4.8 mm) in diameter that is authorized to be worn by members of the eight uniformed services of the United States on medals and ribbons to denote an additional award or ser ...

* European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with two battle stars *

World War II Victory Medal The World War II Victory Medal is a service medal of the United States military which was established by an Act of Congress on 6 July 1945 (Public Law 135, 79th Congress) and promulgated by Section V, War Department Bulletin 12, 1945. The Wor ...

References

* A 1/249 scale plastic model kit of the USS ''Buckley'' is available by

Revell Revell GmbH is an American-origin manufacturer of plastic scale models, currently based in Bünde. The original Revell company merged with Monogram in 1986, becoming "Revell-Monogram". The business operated until 2007, when American Revell was ...

Models.

External links

Historical Record of the USS Buckley
*
Youtube video
''USS Buckley vs U-66 during the Battle of the Atlantic''

- National Museum of Naval History {{DEFAULTSORT:Buckley (DE-51)

Buckley Buckley may refer to: Businesses and organizations * Buckley's, a Canadian pharmaceutical corporation * Buckley Aircraft, an American aircraft manufacturer * Buckley Broadcasting, an American broadcasting company * Buckley School (California), ...

World War II frigates and destroyer escorts of the United States 1943 ships