USS ''Roy O. Hale'' (DE-336) was an in 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 1944 to 1946 and from 1957 to 1963. She was scrapped in 1975.

Namesake

Roy Orestus Hale Jr. was born on 10 May 1916 in Monroe, Louisiana. He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy and was commissioned ensign in the

on 2 June 1938. After a year at sea, Hale underwent aviation training at Pensacola, Florida,

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at ...

, Florida, and

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, California, and on 21 June 1941, joined Scouting Squadron 2 on board . Promoted to

lieutenant (junior grade) Lieutenant junior grade is a junior commissioned officer rank used in a number of navies. United States Lieutenant (junior grade), commonly abbreviated as LTJG or, historically, Lt. (j.g.) (as well as variants of both abbreviations), ...

in October, he remained on board that carrier after the

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entered

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 ...

. He participated in the Pacific raids of February and March 1942 and flew his scout plane in the Battle of the Coral Sea, 7–8 May. Failing to return from that mission, Hale was presumed killed in action and was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross for extraordinary achievement in aerial combat and his " ... courageous determination and aggressiveness ... attacking enemy aircraft in spite of fierce fighter opposition."

History

She was laid down on 13 September 1943 by the

Consolidated Steel Consolidated Steel Corporation (formed 18 December 1928) was an American steel and shipbuilding business. Consolidated built ships during World War II in two locations: Wilmington, California and Orange, Texas. It was created in 1929 by the merg ...

Corp.,

Orange, Texas Orange is a city and the county seat of Orange County, Texas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city population was 19,324. It is the easternmost city in Texas, located on the Sabine River at the border with Louisiana, and is from Hous ...

; launched 20 November 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Roy O. Hale, mother of ''Lieutenant (junior grade) Hale'' and commissioned on 3 February 1944.

World War II

Battle of the Atlantic

Following

shakedown Shakedown may refer to: * Shakedown (continuum mechanics), a type of plastic deformation * Shakedown (testing) or a shakedown cruise, a period of testing undergone by a ship, airplane or other craft before being declared operational * Extortion, ...

off

Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = "Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , es ...

, ''Roy O. Hale'' served as a

training ship A training ship is a ship used to train students as sailors. The term is mostly used to describe ships employed by navies to train future officers. Essentially there are two types: those used for training at sea and old hulks used to house class ...

for pre-commissioning details of escort crews in

Chesapeake Bay The Chesapeake Bay ( ) is the largest estuary in the United States. The Bay is located in the Mid-Atlantic region and is primarily separated from the Atlantic Ocean by the Delmarva Peninsula (including the parts: the Eastern Shore of Maryland / ...

and provided escort services between New York and Norfolk, Virginia. On 1 July 1944 she departed Norfolk, Virginia, on the first of seven

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convoys. Engaged in that duty until the surrender of Germany, her first

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 ...

consisted of 24 ships bound for

Taranto Taranto (, also ; ; nap, label= Tarantino, Tarde; Latin: Tarentum; Old Italian: ''Tarento''; Ancient Greek: Τάρᾱς) is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto, serving as an important com ...

, Italy. On 20 July 4 days after reaching her destination, she was at sea with the return convoy which she left at New York on 3 August. From 24 August to 27 September, she made another escort run to Italy, then shifted to the North Atlantic sealanes. Between 30 October 1944 and 3 June 1945, she escorted five transatlantic convoys from the United States to ports in the United Kingdom and France.

Pacific War

After an overhaul, the destroyer escort departed Norfolk for the Pacific on 13 July. She underwent refresher training off Cuba, then continued on to San Diego, and was engaged in further training when hostilities ceased. On 26 August, she sailed for

Pearl Harbor Pearl Harbor is an American lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. It was often visited by the Naval fleet of the United States, before it was acquired from the Hawaiian Kingdom by the U.S. with the signing of the R ...

, arriving on 2 September for a month of escort and plane guard duty. On 17 October she returned to San Diego with veterans awaiting discharge, then proceeded to Panama and the east coast. Back in the Norfolk area by 3 November, ''Roy O. Hale'' shifted to

Green Cove Springs, Florida Green Cove Springs is a city in and the county seat of Clay County, Florida, United States. The population was 5,378 at the 2000 census. As of 2010, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau was 6,908. The city is named after the portio ...

, in early December and began inactivation. She was decommissioned on 11 July 1946 and was berthed there, with the

Atlantic Reserve Fleet The United States Navy maintains a number of its ships as part of a reserve fleet, often called the "Mothball Fleet". While the details of the maintenance activity have changed several times, the basics are constant: keep the ships afloat and s ...

, until ordered activated to participate in the continental air defense program established in the 1950s.

Cold War

In December 1955, ''Roy O. Hale'' entered the

Boston Navy Yard The Boston Navy Yard, originally called the Charlestown Navy Yard and later Boston Naval Shipyard, was one of the oldest shipbuilding facilities in the United States Navy. It was established in 1801 as part of the recent establishment of t ...

for conversion to a

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 ...

escort. Redesignated DER-336 on 7 December 1955, she was recommissioned on 29 January 1957 and assigned to Atlantic Barrier Patrol duty. Based at

Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and northeast of New Yor ...

, as of 2 July, she continued that duty, steaming on alternate radar picket stations from Newfoundland to the

Azores ) , motto =( en, "Rather die free than subjected in peace") , anthem= ( en, "Anthem of the Azores") , image_map=Locator_map_of_Azores_in_EU.svg , map_alt=Location of the Azores within the European Union , map_caption=Location of the Azores wi ...

into the 1960s. Although primarily employed in the early warning program, she was called on to enforce an 1884 treaty for the protection of international

submarine cables Submarine cable is any electrical cable that is laid on the seabed, although the term is often extended to encompass cables laid on the bottom of large freshwater bodies of water. Examples include: *Submarine communications cable *Submarine power ...

in February 1959. On the 26th, she sent a party aboard the Russian trawler MV ''Novorossisk'' to investigate reports from the

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and

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companies that breaks had occurred in five transatlantic cables along the track of the trawler. There were no indications of intentions "other than fishing."

Decommissioning and fate

In late 1962, ''Roy O. Hale'' again prepared for inactivation. Decommissioned in April 1963, she was berthed with the Reserve Fleet at

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

, Pennsylvania, until struck from the

Navy list A Navy Directory, formerly the Navy List or Naval Register is an official list of naval officers, their ranks and seniority, the ships which they command or to which they are appointed, etc., that is published by the government or naval autho ...

1 August 1974 and sold for scrap to Union Minerals & Alloys Corp. on 1 April 1975.

References

External links

NavSource Online: Destroyer Escort Photo Archive – USS ''Roy O. Hale'' (DE-336)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roy O. Hale (DE-336) Edsall-class destroyer escorts Ships built in Orange, Texas 1943 ships World War II frigates and destroyer escorts of the United States