DESRON DESDIV Destroyer Squadrons & Divisions

[Salvage Sailor]

Around the World with the Greyhounds of DESRON 19 - Fletcher class Destroyer USS PRICHETT (DD-561)

[Salvage Sailor]

Reverse

 

[Sgt. Boghots]

.....and the Kama Aina squadron, DESRON 33 - homeport Pearl Harbor 1960's to 1970's

 

Great to see this patch!!

 

My patch is still sewn on my blue work jacket, along with a USS WHIPPLE DE-1062 (motto: "Resources Beyond Calculations") patch, and a 1062 ships tab on the shoulder. Later wore it in Lebanon on BB-62, NEW JERSEY. - Same skipper, oddly enough; RADM (ret) Richard D. Milligan. I Left my first period of active duty in '75, from the 1062, DESRON 33 Pearl Harbor -The Pineapple Fleet.

 

Thanks Salvage !!

 

Best regards,

Paul Walker

Klamath Falls, Oregon

[Sgt. Boghots]

Thought I'd follow up with a few pic's:

 

[Sgt. Boghots]

[Sgt. Boghots]

[Sgt. Boghots]

[Sgt. Boghots]

[Sgt. Boghots]

Around the World with the Greyhounds of DESRON 19 - Fletcher class Destroyer USS PRICHETT (DD-561)

 

From my uncle's CSC book. He was a Chief Machinist Mate aboard PRICHETT. -- Served from 1934-'54,

Retired as CMM.

 

Best regards,

Paul

 

[Salvage Sailor]

 

Great to see this patch!!

 

My patch is still sewn on my blue work jacket, along with a USS WHIPPLE DE-1062 (motto: "Resources Beyond Calculations") patch, and a 1062 ships tab on the shoulder. Later wore it in Lebanon on BB-62, NEW JERSEY. - Same skipper, oddly enough; RADM (ret) Richard D. Milligan. I Left my first period of active duty in '75, from the 1062, DESRON 33 Pearl Harbor -The Pineapple Fleet.

 

Thanks Salvage !!

 

Best regards,

Paul Walker

Klamath Falls, Oregon

 

Outstanding work jacket and ballcap Paul. I've posted mine elsewhere on the forum and it's always nice to see another swabbie who kept his all these years.

 

I'd see WHIPPLE quite often as I was with the Salvage squadron aboard GRASP and then BOLSTER at Alpha Docks along with HCU-1 and SERVRON FIVE

 

 

Here are both the Red & Black versions of DESRON TWELVE

[Sgt. Boghots]

Salvage & Others,

 

You got me motivated to dig into my old sea bag cache !! Please bear with me, I May not get this stuff categorized correcttly, so please move them where they need to be with my blessings and appreciation . . .

 

From ship's store in 1974. Bought several to mail home, etc. kept one to wear and a couple for trading stock.

[Sgt. Boghots]

If buckles go in another place, let me know. I've got mor buckles and lighters that don't pertain to the WHIPPLLE, 1O62. --- Ash trays too.

 

Paul

[Sgt. Boghots]

The backside . . .

[Sgt. Boghots]

So in Nov. / Dec. 1974 we went from Subic to Ambon, Indonesia on a "Project Hand Clasp" junket. You can find on the internet how it got a bit "complicated" by the presence of 3 Russian built frigates, and the international incident that followed. This is just prior to the Mayeguez incident by a couple months. But that's another story . . . I traded one of my Whipple Zippo buckles for an Indonesian buckle, and saved it in my Whipple buckle's Zippo box. During "Handclasp" we painted a grade school, visited a mosque, paid through the nose for high grade bunker charlie fuel, and got extorted for port fees. But the people were great. Other than the scrambling of F-4's from Clark Field in the Philippines, we had a great time. - Heineken had a subsidiary brewery there, as it was a former Dutch colony, so a warm seven pack of green bottle beer tied together with twine was only a couple bucks. -- the people were great. We entered the long channel to Ambon using Japanese hydrographic charts from 1944. Our escorts were porpoises in our 15 knot. wake. A truly beautiful place !!

[Sgt. Boghots]

Back side of Indonesian buckle:

[Sgt. Boghots]

 

From my uncle's CSC book. He was a Chief Machinist Mate aboard PRICHETT. -- Served from 1934-'54,

Retired as CMM.

 

Best regards,

Paul

 

PRICHETT Uncle Mac.jpg

 

Back from PRITCHETT DD-561, to be plank owner on RICHARD B. ANDERSON, DD-786. --- ANDERSON-786 shows up in some scenes from movie The Caine Mutiny Humphrey Bogart.

 

And with my Dad, Ken Walker on same trip home. First time they'd seen each other in four years. Back home on the ranch in Oregon.

 

Best regards,

Paul

[Sgt. Boghots]

 

Back from PRITCHETT DD-561, to be plank owner on RICHARD B. ANDERSON, DD-786. --- ANDERSON-786 shows up in some scenes from movie The Caine Mutiny Humphrey Bogart.

 

And with my Dad, Ken Walker on same trip home. First time they'd seen each other in four years. Back home on the ranch in Oregon.

 

Best regards,

Paul

 

[Sgt. Boghots]

 

 

[Salvage Sailor]

Very nice Paul, thanks for posting those

 

When DESRON 33 was disestablished, the remaining ships and sailors were folded into the other Pearl Harbor destroyer squadron, DESRON 31

 

You can see the 33 mask and canoe in their earlier patch

[Salvage Sailor]

DESRON 31 & 33 - Pearl Harbor Naval Station, Hawaii 1970's

[Salvage Sailor]

Gearing class USS BENNER (DD-807) DESRON 9 In service 1945 to 1970

 

[Salvage Sailor]

DESRON 6 - COMDESFLOT SIX - Naval Station Charleston, SC Cold War era

[Salvage Sailor]

Difficult to collect this older Korean War to Market Time version

 

DESRON 7 - USS LOFBERG (DD-759) Flagship during the Korean War - DESRON 7 is now forward deployed overseas at Singapore

 

Destroyer Squadron SEVEN was first established in September 1920 as a reserve squadron of 15 ships home-ported at Charleston, South Carolina. The squadron was deactivated from July 1922 until April 1939 when it was reorganized in San Diego, California.

In December 1940, the squadron was reformed at Newport, Rhode Island and, until the end of the European War, was actively engaged in escort duties throughout the Atlantic and Mediterranean Theaters. In May 1945, the squadron was reformed at San Diego, California and operated with Pacific Fleet for the remainder of World War II.

In November 1945, the squadron was deactivated and in January 1946, DESRON SIXTY was re-designated DESRON SEVEN. Ships of the squadron participated in the atomic bomb tests at Bikini Atoll and saw extended action during the Korean War, including the invasion of Inchon. During the Vietnam conflict, the squadron again saw action on the Market Time patrol and engaged in the bombardment of North Vietnam.

In January and February 1979, the squadron participated in the evacuation of Americans from Iran. During Operation Desert Storm, COMDESRON SEVEN saw extensive combat action. As the North Arabian Gulf Local Anti-Surface Warfare Commander, COMDESRON SEVEN directed multi-national forces in offensive operations which eliminated the Iraqi Navy.

In May 2004 COMDESRON SEVEN embarked USS RONALD REAGAN, the Navy’s newest aircraft carrier, to serve as the Sea Combat Commander for the RONALD REAGAN STRIKE GROUP. As Sea Combat Commander the DESRON is responsible to the Strike Group Commander for the overall planning and execution of maritime operations including Surface and Subsurface Warfare, Maritime Interdiction Operations, Mine Warfare, and Force Protection.

In December 2012, COMDESRON SEVEN executed a historic homeport shift to Southeast Asia in support of America's Rebalance to the Pacific. COMDESRON 7 is currently tasked as tactical commander of Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) rotationally deployed to Singapore, and also leads the execution of the entire Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) series for Commander, Task Force 73.

 

[Salvage Sailor]

Pearl Harbor based USS LOFBERG (DD-759) Vietnam era DESRON 31 - Decommissioned in 1973

[Salvage Sailor]

Interesting that that these two DD/DE reserve squadrons (RESDESRON 34 and RESCORTRON 4) have the same heraldry

 

Bearmons 34, topcdnuts 34, my 4

 

PS - the CORTRON topic for Destroyer Escort Squadrons is here http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/forums/index.php?/topic/287363-cortron-destroyer-escort-squadrons-post-yours-too/