USS Acadia (AD-42)

Command Master Chiefs

hip Details

*Purpose: Destroyer Tenders fall into the class of Intermediate Level Maintenance Support Facilities (or IMF's) and provide a mobile base, battle damage repair, maintenance and logistics support, refueling, munitions reloading, berthing, medical, dental, power, and galley to destroyers, cruisers, and frigates.

*Propulsion: two boilers, steam turbines.

*Shaft(s): one

*Horsepower: 20,000 shaft horsepower

*Speed: 20 knots

*Aircraft: None. Helo deck/platform and hangar aft, no Helo-det complement assigned. Enabling "fly-away" repair team support, as well as resupply and emergency airlifts.

*Cranes: two 30 ton, and two 6 ton.

*Moorage: Can provide nesting of up to 5 ships alongside.

History

1981-1987

"Acadia" completed her outfitting at her builders yard on 6 July and then made the brief trip to the Naval Station, San Diego. After a month clearing details and getting ready, the destroyer tender embarked upon her shakedown cruise on 7 August. That voyage took her to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, and back to San Diego where she arrived on 28 August. When the ship returned to her home port, her crew concentrated their efforts on honing their skills as repairmen; and, except for a few brief periods at sea for underway training and propulsion plant certification, "Acadia" spent the rest of the year in port at San Diego.

The destroyer tender began 1982 as a fully operational mobile repair facility of the Pacific Fleet. She provided her services at San Diego until the beginning of February when she moved to the Naval Air Station, Alameda. At the end of the month, she steamed back to San Diego. Late in May, the ship embarked Naval Academy and NROTC midshipmen for their summer training cruise. On 14 June, "Acadia" stood out of San Diego on her way to Hawaii. The destroyer tender repaired ships of the Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor from 22 June to 25 July. Returning to San Diego in August, she spent the remainder of the year in the immediate vicinity of her home port. Though she put to sea occasionally for training purposes, the majority of the time, she was in San Diego doing repair work for the fleet.

In December of 1982, "Acadia" began preparations for the first overseas assignment of her career. On 4 January 1983, the destroyer tender put to sea for a journey that took her not only to the Orient but into the Indian Ocean and to the east coast of Africa as well. "Acadia" stopped at Pearl Harbor between 12 January and 14 January and, after another 10 days at sea, arrived in Yokosuka, Japan, on 24 January. "Acadia" remained at Yokosuka for almost a month then visited Sasebo before setting a course for the Philippines on 23 February. The ship entered Subic Bay, Luzon on 27 February and performed repairs until 3 March when she put to sea for duty in the Indian Ocean. She reached the American outpost on Diego Garcia Island on 13 March and worked at that location for 16 days. On 29 March, "Acadia" headed for the east coast of Africa. She visited Mombasa, Kenya from 4 April to 11 April, called at Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia, between the 13 April and 16 April, and paused overnight at Al Masirah, an island off the coast of Oman near the Horn of Africa, on 22 April and 23 April. The destroyer tender returned to the base at Diego Garcia on 29 April and spent the next month there repairing warships on duty in the troubled waters of the Arabian Sea and the Persian Gulf.

On 2 June 1983, "Acadia" departed Diego Garcia on her way to Pattaya, Thailand. The ship arrived at Pattaya on 11 June. For the rest of the deployment, she operated in Far Eastern waters proper. From Pattaya, she steamed back to Subic Bay where she provided repair services to ships of the US 7th Fleet during the latter part of June. During July, "Acadia" called at Hong Kong, Pusan in Korea, and at Sasebo, Japan. On 16 July, the destroyer tender stood out of Sasebo on her way back to the United States. She took the usual break in the transpacific voyage at Pearl Harbor between the 27 July and 29 July and reentered San Diego harbor on 4 August.

"Acadia" remained at San Diego for about two months after her return from the Orient. Post-deployment stand down consumed the first month, but she got back to work providing repair service during the second. Near the middle of October, the destroyer tender voyaged north to Bremerton, Washington, where she carried on her duties until 4 November. Returning south by way of San Francisco, "Acadia" reached San Diego again on 12 November. She resumed repair work at San Diego upon her return and remained so occupied through the end of 1983 and well into 1984. In fact, the ship did not get underway again until late in March 1984 when she put to sea for three days in the southern California operating area. She returned to port on 23 March and resumed repair work until June. During the week of 11 June to 18 June, "Acadia" made the round-trip to Monterey and back. In July, she participated in a midshipman summer training cruise and, in August, carried out refresher training in the local operating area. During the remaining months of 1984, the destroyer tender concentrated on repair work and preparations for her second deployment overseas.

"Acadia" embarked upon the voyage to the Far East on 5 January 1985. She stopped over in Pearl Harbor from 12 January to 14 January and then resumed her journey west. Steaming by way of Guam, the destroyer tender arrived in Subic Bay on 2 February. She conducted repairs there for about a week and voyaged to Hong Kong for a port visit. The ship returned to Subic Bay during the latter part of February and stayed there until 8 March. At that time, she headed for Japan. During March, she called at Sasebo and at the Korean ports of Pusan and Chinhae. On 28 March, the tender returned to Japan at Yokosuka. "Acadia" spent the remainder of her tour of duty with the 7th Fleet at Yokosuka carrying out an extremely heavy schedule of repairs on warships assigned to that fleet. On 12 June, she set out upon the voyage home. "Acadia" stopped at Pearl Harbor as usual and pulled into San Diego on 3 July. After a month of leave and upkeep, the destroyer tender began preparations for her first regular overhaul. On 16 September, she moved to South West Marine shipyard in San Diego where she underwent repairs until mid-December.

Holiday leave and upkeep occupied the last half of December 1985, but "Acadia" launched into a full schedule of repair services in January 1986. Except for occasional brief periods at sea and a port visit to San Francisco in June, she remained at San Diego until September. Early in the month she put to sea for refresher training and, on the 28th, embarked upon the passage to Alameda. "Acadia" arrived at the Naval Air Station, Alameda, on 1 October and began a busy six weeks of repair work there. The destroyer tender returned to San Diego in the middle of November and spent the remainder of 1986 in preparations for overseas movement.

Although originally slated to deploy in January 1987, "Acadia" provided repair services to ships in the San Diego area into the spring. On 14 April, the tender sailed for the western Pacific, and after touching at Pearl Harbor (21 April-22 April) and Subic Bay (8 May-18 May), was en route to Diego Garcia when she was rerouted to the Persian Gulf.

An Iraqi Mirage F.1 had mistakenly attacked and severely damaged the guided missile frigate USS "Stark" on 17 May 1987. The crippled ship had limped into Bahrain, where "Acadia" was dispatched soon thereafter. Between 1 June and 27 June, "Acadia" provided berthing, messing, and repair services to "Stark", "doing what she (Acadia) was designed to do, providing forward deployed support and battle damage repair..."

1987-1994

Deployed to the Persian Gulf during Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm. She was responsible for the first reload of shipboard Tomahawk missiles outside the continental U.S. while pierside in Mina Jebel Ali. The reload recipient was The USS John Paul Jones (DDG-53).

On 18 February 1991, the USS Princeton (CG-59) struck two influence mines in the Persian Gulf just forward of her after 5" gun mount during Operation Desert Storm, resulting in a cracked superstructure, a jammed port rudder and leaking port shaft seal. Despite severe damage to her stern, her forward weapon systems and Aegis combat system were back online within fifteen minutes. Princeton remained on station for 30 hours until relieved. Repairs in the Mina Jebel Ali near Dubai took five weeks, performed by the Destroyer Tender on duty: The USS ACADIA (AD-42) after which, the "Princeton" returned to the United States under her own power for additional repairs.

Ports of Call by Cruise 1990-1991 West-Pac

*Pearl Harbor, Hawaii
*Subic Bay, Philippines (Arrived 13 Sept 1990)
*Sembawang, Singapore (4 days transit from Subic to Sembawang, then 1.5 days in port)

*At Anchor, Al Fujairah, U.A.E.

*Mina Rashid, Dubai, U.A.E.

*Mina Jebel Ali, Dubai, U.A.E.

*Mina Sulman Pier, Al Manama, Bahrain
*At Anchor, Phuket, Thailand

*Hong Kong (Departed April 1991)

*Pearl Harbor, Hawaii

*San Diego, CA. 1992 West-Pac
*Pearl Harbor, Hawaii

*Guam (< 1 day taking on stores)

*Sembawang, Singapore

*(Swettenham Pier) Penang, Malaysia

*At Anchor, Al Fujairah, U.A.E.

*Mina Sulman Pier, Al Manama, Bahrain

*Mina Jebel Ali, Dubai, U.A.E.

*At Anchor, Hong Kong

*Pearl Harbor, Hawaii

*San Diego, CA.

Awards, Citations, and Campaign Ribbons

Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
* Top row - Navy Unit Commendation
* Second row - Navy Battle "E" Ribbons (5), Navy Expeditionary Medal (2-Persian Gulf), National Defense Service Medal
* Bottom row - Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (2-Persian Gulf, 1-Somalia), Southwest Asia Service Medal, Defense and Liberation of Kuwait Medal (Kuwait)

Trivia

USS Acadia was known for having just over one third of her crew as women. In 1991, when the ship returned to San Diego from deployment in the Middle East, thirty-six women were missing from the ship, the result of medical transfers for pregnancy. It was a particular embarrassment for the Navy, who had to look at the success on the battlefield of the other military branches during the Gulf War while hearing one of its vessels was derisively called 'The Love Boat.'

This Day In Military History

1990 September 5 - USS Acadia (AD-42) departs San Diego for first war-time deployment of male-female crew on combat vessel.

External links

* [http://ussacadia.org/ USS ACADIA (AD-42) Ship's Website]
* [http://www.ussyellowstone.org/ USS YELLOWSTONE (AD-41) Ship's Website]
* [http://www.ussacadia.org/content/view/38/46/ USS CAPE COD (AD-43) USSCAPECOD.ORG]
* [http://www.usssamuelgompers.org/ USS SAMUEL GOMPERS (AD-37) Ship's Website]
* [http://mckee.rayplumlee.com/ USS MCKEE (AS-41) Ship's Website]
* [http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/03/03idx.htm Destroyer Tender Index]
* [http://www.history.navy.mil/wars/datessep.htm Dates in American Naval History: September]

References