USS Kittiwake (ASR-13)

USS ''Kittiwake'' (ASR-13) was a United States Navy in commission from 1946 to 1994.

Construction and commissioning

''Kittiwake'' was launched 10 July 1945, by Savannah Machine & Foundry Co., Savannah, Georgia; sponsored by Mrs. Howard S. Rue, Jr.; and commissioned 18 July 1946.

Service history

After shakedown, ''Kittiwake'' departed Charleston, South Carolina, 3 October for Balboa, Canal Zone, arriving 8 October. Assigned to support and rescue duty with Submarine Squadron 6, the submarine rescue ship accompanied submarines during sea trials and maneuvers to monitor diving operations, practice underwater rescue procedures, and recover practice torpedoes. While based at Balboa, her operations carried her to the Virgin Islands, to Puerto Rico, and along the Atlantic coast to the Davis Strait.

Departing Balboa 31 May 1949, ''Kittiwake'' arrived at Norfolk, Virginia, 6 June to continue duty with SUBRON 6. From 17 January to 1 February 1950, she provided divers and equipment during salvage operations to free the battleship , grounded in tidal banks off Thimble Shoals, Virginia. During the 1950s, she cruised the Atlantic from New England to the Caribbean while supporting ships of Submarine Force U.S. Atlantic Fleet. While on station off the coast of Cape Canaveral, Florida, 20 July 1960, she stood ready to assist the fleet ballistic missile submarine as ''George Washington'' successfully launched the first two Polaris ballistic missiles ever fired from a submerged submarine.

''Kittiwake'' continued operating from Norfolk until 1 August 1961, when she departed for the Mediterranean. Arriving at Rota, Spain, on 15 August, she cruised the Mediterranean from Spain to Greece while deployed with the United States Sixth Fleet. After supporting submarine maneuvers from Piraeus, Greece, from 20 September to 9 October, she departed the Mediterranean on 8 November and arrived in Norfolk on 18 November. She then conducted operations from Norfolk for the next 18 months. While on duty off Key West 2 February 1963, she sighted a Cuban boat, ''Jose Maria Perez'' and took on board 12 refugees (including three children) fleeing Cuba; they were carried to safety at Key West.

Departing Charleston, South Carolina, 16 April, ''Kittiwake'' arrived at St. Nazaire, France, 3 May with two Landing Craft Utility (LCU's) in tow. She proceeded to the Mediterranean on 10 May and reached Rota on the 14th. She participated in fleet operations for more than two months before departing Rota 31 July for the United States. Returning to Norfolk on 10 August 1963, she resumed training and support operations with submarines along the Atlantic coast. Through 1964 and 1965, ''Kittiwake'' continued her role in maintaining the readiness of individual submarines, which were to carry out their defense and deterrence missions effectively. She escorted them as they left the United States East Coast shipyards for sea trials, standing ready to come to their rescue should difficulties arise. Constant exercise in using weapons by submarines was furnished by ''Kittiwake'', such as running as a target and recovering exercise torpedoes and mines. The operations ranged from the Virginia Capes to the Atlantic missile range off Florida. On 6 April 1965, she departed Norfolk with submarines for exercises off the coast of Spain, thence to the Mediterranean Sea.

''Kittiwake'' departed Toulon 31 May 1965, to operate from Rota, Spain, in support of the fleet ballistic missile submarines of Submarine Squadron 16: , , , and . Following torpedo recovery and training off the coast of Spain, she sailed for Holy Loch, Scotland 30 June 1965, to give support to Submarine Squadron 14 there. She recovered torpedoes for the fleet ballistic missile submarines and , provided underway training for men of the submarine tender , then sailed 20 July for Norfolk, arriving 30 July 1965. During the autumn months, ''Kittiwake'' guarded new Polaris submarines, and , during their builder's sea trials prior to commissioning.

''Kittiwake'' operated on the U.S. East Coast and in the Caribbean until sailing for the Mediterranean 8 July 1966. She reached the Bay of Cádiz on the 20th and transited the straits two days later. She operated in the Mediterranean until emerging at Rota, Spain, 1 September. She headed for Holy Loch on the 6th and arrived on the 11th. Four days later she was ordered to the North Sea to assist in locating and salvaging the German submarine ''Hai'' (S-171). She reached the scene of the tragedy on 17 September and remained on hand assisting salvage operations until the 20th. She continued to operate off Western Europe until returning to Norfolk on 13 November. ''Kittiwake'' operated on the U.S. East Coast into 1967.

In May 1968, USS Kittiwake was sent to the mid-Atlantic as part of the fleet searching for the missing attack submarine . ''Kittiwake'' was assigned to the search until August 1968.

On 23 April 1984, ''Kittiwake'' collided with the attack submarine at Norfolk, Virginia, while ''Bergall'' was moored to the pier astern of her. ''Kittiwake'' was getting underway for the first time since she had undergone maintenance, during which her main drive motor was re-wired improperly, causing it and the screw it drove to rotate in the opposite direction from that ordered by personnel on ''Kittiwake''s bridge. This was unknown to ''Kittiwake''s bridge personnel, who found that ''Kittiwake'' started to move astern when they were expecting her to move forward. Noting the backward motion, they ordered an increase in the motor drive speed to correct it and get ''Kittiwake'' moving forward. However, they unwittingly caused ''Kittiwake'' to move farther astern and at a higher speed. Still not realizing that ''Kittiwake''s main drive motor was operating in reverse of what they expected, ''Kittiwake''s bridge personnel then ordered another increase in ''Kittiwake''s forward speed, which served only to increase her speed astern. This continued until ''Kittiwake''s stern backed into ''Bergall''s sonar dome, causing damage to the Bergall's sonar dome and the USS Kittiwake's propeller.

In 1986, the ''Kittiwake'' recovered the black box from the Space Shuttle ''Challenger'' disaster.

On 5 December 1989, the USS ''Kittiwake'' provided surface support during a Navy Trident missile test in the Atlantic Ocean. Greenpeace had found out about the testing and had sent ships to protest this exercise. Greenpeace attacked the USS ''Kittiwake'' by hitting her aft port side with the bow of the Greenpeace ship. The USS ''Kittiwake'' returned the aggression by ramming the Greenpeace ship and disabling the engines by shooting water down the engine stack of the Greenpeace ship, making her dead in the water.

Decommissioning and disposal

''Kittiwake'' was decommissioned on 30 September 1994 and struck from the Naval Vessel Register on the same day. Her title was transferred in November 2008 for an undisclosed amount to the government of the Cayman Islands for the purpose of using ''Kittiwake'' to form a new artificial reef. Originally intended to be sunk in June 2009, she was finally sunk off Seven Mile Beach, Grand Cayman, on 5 January 2011 in Marine Park. The wreck has since become one of the most popular dive and snorkel sites in Grand Cayman, with its moorings often in constant daily use by local dive operators.

A 2011 episode of the documentary television series ''Monster Moves'' covered moving and sinking the ship. Divers are not allowed to touch or take anything from the dive site. At its most shallow, the wreck of ''Kittiwake'' was below the water's surface and at its deepest, below the surface. In October 2017, the wreck moved towards a nearby natural reef. It fell to its port side due to wave action from passing Tropical Storm Nate. The wreck is now approximately deeper at its most shallow.

Awards

* World War II Victory Medal
* National Defense Service Medal with two stars

References

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External links

Video "Exploring the Wreck of the U.S.S. Kittiwake" on YouTube

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kittiwake (Asr-13)
Chanticleer-class submarine rescue ships
Cold War auxiliary ships of the United States
Ships built in Savannah, Georgia
Maritime incidents in 1984
Maritime incidents in 2011
Ships sunk as artificial reefs
1945 ships