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General Characteristics Crew List Memorabilia Cruise Books About the Ship's Coat of Arms Accidents aboard the Ship History Patch Gallery About the Name "Moosbrugger" Image Gallery to end of page
USS MOOSBRUGGER was the 18th ship in the SPRUANCE class and was last homeported in Mayport, FL. Decommissioned on December 15, 2000, the ship spent the following years laid-up at the Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility (NISMF), Philadelphia, PA. In 2006, she was towed to Brownsville, TX., where she was scrapped.
| General Characteristics: | Awarded: January 15, 1974 |
| Keel laid: November 3, 1975 | |
| Launched: July 23, 1976 | |
| Commissioned: December 16, 1978 | |
| Decommissioned: December 15, 2000 | |
| Builder: Ingalls Shipbuilding, West Bank, Pascagoula, Miss. | |
| Propulsion system: four General Electric LM 2500 gas turbine engines | |
| Propellers: two | |
| Blades on each Propeller: five | |
| Length: 564,3 feet (172 meters) | |
| Beam: 55,1 feet (16.8 meters) | |
| Draft: 28,9 feet (8.8 meters) | |
| Displacement: approx. 9,200 tons full load | |
| Speed: 30+ knots | |
| Aircraft: two | |
| Armament: two | |
| Crew: approx. 340 |
back to top go to the end of the pageback to top go to the end of the pageCrew List:
This section contains the names of sailors who served aboard USS MOOSBRUGGER. It is no official listing but contains the names of sailors who submitted their information.
back to top go to the end of the pageback to top go to the end of the pageUSS MOOSBRUGGER Cruise Books:
back to top go to the end of the pageAbout the Ship's Coat of Arms:
The official crest of the USS MOOSBRUGGER symbolizes the dedication and courage displayed by her namesake, Admiral Moosbrugger, during World War II.
The trident, an attribute of Neptune, god of the seas, represents the awesome strength and dominance of the modern destroyer. It also resembles the letter "M," an allusion to the initial letter of MOOSBRUGGER, the ship's namesake.
Through the heraldic fountain for water, the grappling iron (a device used for close range, early naval encounters), and the torpedo, the crest commemorates the Vella Gulf incident in the South Pacific during World War II. The then Commander Moosbrugger led his ships into exceedingly close range against Japanese Naval Forces; took the enemy by surprise, and delivered a devastating torpedo attack, thereby annihilating the hostile force. For this action, he was awarded the Navy Cross. The gold laurel wreath is symbolic of Vice Admiral Frederick Moosbrugger's long and distinguished career.
back to top go to the end of the pageAccidents aboard USS MOOSBRUGGER:
| Date | Where | Events |
|---|---|---|
| November 25, 1985 | Guantanamo Bay area, Cuba | USS W. S. SIMS (FF 1059) and USS MOOSBRUGGER collide at sea in the Guantanamo Bay operating area. |
back to top go to the end of the pageAbout the Ship's Name, about Vice Admiral Fredrick Moosbrugger:
The late Fredrick Moosbrugger was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on October 9, 1900, son of Jacob and Rosina (Keier) Moosbrugger. He entered the U.S. Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland on June 25, 1919 and received his commission upon graduation on June 8, 1923. He subsequently advanced through the various grades to the rank of Rear Admiral. He was transferred to the Retired List of the U.S. Navy on October 1, 1956, and was advanced to the rank of Vice Admiral.
Following graduation from the Naval Academy in June 1923, Vice Admiral Moosbrugger was assigned to sea duty for four years in USS NEVADA and USS TRUXTUN, operating in the valley of the Yangtze River, China, from 1926 to 1927. He returned to the United States to serve briefly at Headquarters, 13th Naval District in May 1927. He served aboard USS BRAZOS from August 1927 to June 1929, after which he reported for submarine instruction. Completing the course in December 1929, he joined Submarine Division 12 and served in the USS S-6 until April 1931. He returned to Annapolis as an instructor where he remained for three years. He then joined USS HOUSTON and served aboard the cruiser from June 1, 1934 to May 29, 1937. He reported for his second tour of duty at the U.S. Naval Academy, where he was an instructor in the Department of Ordnance and Gunnery.
Returning to duty afloat in June 1939, he joined USS TENNESSEE as Gunnery Officer, and on April 28, 1941 assumed command of USS MCCALL. He was in command at the time of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, and directed the operations of that destroyer in close cooperation with a carrier task group to cover the reinforcement of Samoa, conduct raids on Wake and Marcus Islands, and perform escort and screening duties in the hazardous waters of the South Pacific.
From May 1942 until September 1943, Vice Admiral Moosbrugger assumed the successive command of Destroyer Divisions 12 and 15, in which he carried out patrol and escort missions to Guadalcanal and the Russel Islands, New Georgia, Rendova, Vangunu, and the Solomon Islands. He later served as escort commander for the invasion forces of Iwo Jima and Okinawa, protecting aircraft carriers, battleships, and troopships from kamikaze and submarine attack. Returning to the United States, he assumed command of the U.S. Naval School, General Line, in Newport, Rhode Island on April 5, 1946. From June 1949 to June 1952, he commanded USS SPRINGFIELD (CL 66), served as Commander Destroyer Flotilla One, and Commander Military Sea Transportation Service, Pacific Area. In December 1952, he became Superintendent of the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey California. Finally in December 1955, Vice Admiral Moosbrugger served his last assignment as Commander Training Command, U.S. Pacific Fleet, from which he retired in October 1956.
In addition to the Navy Cross, the Distinguished Service Medal, the Legion of Merit with Combat "V," and the Commendation Ribbon, Vice Admiral was awarded the Yangtze Service Medal; American Defense Service Medal, Fleet Clasp; the American Campaign Medal; Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal; the World War II Victory Medal; the Philippine Liberation Ribbon; the Navy Occupation Service Medal, Asia Clasp; the National Defense Service Medal; the Korean Service Medal; and the United States Service Medal.
back to top go to the end of the pageUSS MOOSBRUGGER Patch Gallery:
 |  |  contributed by Jonathon Charfauros |
back to top go to the end of the pageHistory of USS MOOSBRUGGER:
USS MOOSBRUGGER was laid down at Ingalls Shipbuilding, Pascagoula, Mississippi, on November 3, 1975, launched on July 23, 1977, and commissioned on December 16, 1978. She shifted promptly to her first home port at Charleston, South Carolina, just before Christmas 1978, becoming the first SPRUANCE-class destroyer based there. In early 1979, she conducted shakedown and refresher training out of Guantanamo Bay with port visits at Port-au-Prince and Charlotte Amalie. During her post-shakedown availability at Pascagoula in September 1979, she executed an emergency sortie into the Gulf of Mexico to clear the yard for Hurricane Frederic, then returned and even provided electrical power ashore to help complete the refit.
MOOSBRUGGER began her first extended overseas cruise on July 14, 1980, deploying to the Mediterranean as flagship for Commander, Destroyer Squadron 20. The Sixth Fleet tour emphasized anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and amphibious support during a period of intense Soviet undersea activity in the Mediterranean approaches. Her port sequence included Rota; Naples, Cagliari, and La Spezia; Marseille; Benidorm and Cartagena; and Palma de Mallorca. She returned to Charleston on December 11, 1980, closing a classic Cold War Mediterranean deployment that refined team proficiency across air defense, ASW, and replenishment at sea.
In mid-1982, the destroyer entered a pivotal test role when the first operational prototype AN/SQR-19(V) Tactical Towed Array Sonar (TACTAS) was installed for combined operational and technical evaluation. She towed and trialed the array from mid-1982 into early 1983, identifying deficiencies that were corrected during follow-on test and evaluation. This work helped set the baseline for fleetwide adoption of the long-range passive array within the SQQ-89 ASW combat system and established MOOSBRUGGER's reputation as an ASW-specialty platform.
By early 1984, she was forward again with Sixth Fleet during the most kinetic phase of U.S. naval fire support off Lebanon. On February 9, 1984, MOOSBRUGGER delivered approximately 150 rounds of 5-inch naval gunfire against Syrian/Druze artillery positions in the hills east of Beirut - daytime counter-battery fires ordered after incoming shelling of the capital. The strike fit into a 48-hour surge that also saw battleship NEW JERSEY (BB 62)'s heaviest bombardment of the war the previous day, illustrating how destroyer NGS and capital-ship salvos were orchestrated to suppress batteries threatening Beirut and coalition forces.
After that winter's combat support, MOOSBRUGGER shifted into a major stateside maintenance phase. By mid-August 1984, industry reporting recorded a full overhaul underway on the destroyer (alongside sister ship JOHN RODGERS (DD 983)), resetting hull, mechanical and electrical systems and folding in incremental combat-system improvements that followed her TACTAS evaluation. This availability bridged late 1984 into 1985, with the ship emerging to requalify and certify for fleet operations.
Her post-overhaul work-up culminated in the standard Guantanamo Bay refresher sequence in the last quarter of 1985. While operating in the GTMO training boxes on November 25, 1985, MOOSBRUGGER and frigate W. S. SIMS (FF 1059) made contact during night operations in the GuantAnamo operating area. The collision caused modest damage; the incident nonetheless punctuated the intensity of close-quarters drills and evolutions that framed REFTRA in that era. The destroyer completed inspections and repairs and pressed on to pre-deployment training.
The first months of 1986 were consumed by high-end Atlantic Fleet special operations and pre-deployment exercises - an at-sea rhythm reflected in unit roll-ups from the period - and then by a Mediterranean deployment that began in late summer. According to the ship's deployment ledger, MOOSBRUGGER entered the Med in August 1986 and remained forward through the end of the year, integrating into Sixth Fleet sea-control and ASW tasking while the wider theater was still absorbing the repercussions of the U.S.-Libya confrontations that spring. In the autumn she executed sustained anti-submarine prosecution in the central Mediterranean within multinational formations, a performance recognized formally with a Meritorious Unit Commendation for the period September 13-December 1, 1986. That award captured the destroyer's contribution to the alliance's undersea surveillance and tracking effort against Soviet submarines transiting and operating in the basin during the deployment's peak.
In 1989, MOOSBRUGGER deployed as a primary ASW element of the THEODORE ROOSEVELT (CVN 71) battle group during the carrier's maiden Mediterranean cruise. Operating with Sixth Fleet formations, she sustained a high underway tempo focused on undersea warfare in support of carrier operations, a hallmark of late-Cold-War battle group employment. Her command history for that year highlights awards across warfare areas from the competitive cycle ending September 30, 1989, underscoring sustained readiness ahead of the new decade's crisis response missions.
Iraq's invasion of Kuwait on August 2, 1990, shifted MOOSBRUGGER to contingency operations. On six days' notice in August 1990, she deployed from Charleston with the JOHN F. KENNEDY (CV 67) battle group for Operation Desert Shield, transiting the Mediterranean and - after a brief period attached to NATO's Standing Naval Force Mediterranean - crossing the Suez in early September to the Red Sea. Stationed at the northern Red Sea entrance to the Gulf of Aqaba, she conducted visit, board, search and seizure (VBSS) operations to enforce United Nations sanctions, embarking U.S. Coast Guard personnel and Navy SEALs to augment boarding teams. She spent Christmas Day 1990 in Haifa, then returned to the Red Sea for continued maritime interdiction.
When the air campaign opened in January 1991 and Desert Shield became Desert Storm, MOOSBRUGGER remained on maritime interdiction patrols at the Gulf of Aqaba approaches. Her boarding tempo remained high. In March 1991, she was credited in the official chronology with diverting a freighter in the northern Red Sea. In April 1991, she completed her return to Naval Base Charleston after a seven-and-a-half-month deployment during which she conducted 67 boardings - representative of the coalition's sustained sanctions-enforcement effort by surface forces.
Post-war normalization in 1991-1992 saw MOOSBRUGGER in stateside training and short maintenance, then back into multinational operations. On March 2, 1993, a Navy photo documents the ship entering Port Everglades while serving with NATO's Standing Naval Force Atlantic (STANAVFORLANT), a multi-month rotation built around joint air defense, replenishment at sea, and ASW training with allied escorts in western Atlantic and North Atlantic operating areas. The Florida logistics call, alongside other Atlantic and Caribbean evolutions, framed the force's periodic port cycles between serials.
Through 1994, as sanctions-enforcement operations in the Red Sea and Persian Gulf continued across the coalition, Atlantic Fleet destroyers cycled between readiness training and targeted deployments or detachments. MOOSBRUGGER remained within that rhythm - workups on the East Coast ranges, short upkeep periods to preserve the class's aging machinery and combat systems, and intermittent participation in fleet exercises that reflected the post-Cold-War emphasis on maritime interdiction, coalition interoperability, and rapid reinforcement.
On March 11, 1995, MOOSBRUGGER shifted home port from Charleston to Mayport, Florida. The move, executed amid the 1993 Base Realignment and Closure decisions that closed Charleston Naval Station and Shipyard, repositioned the ship within Mayport's growing destroyer/frigate community supporting Western Atlantic, Caribbean, and Mediterranean commitments.
USS MOOSBRUGGER deployed in 1996 to take part in UNITAS 96, a series of combined tactical at-sea operations, amphibious operations and in-port exercises with participating South American naval forces. During that deployment, USS MOOSBRUGGER spent almost two weeks in Venezuelan waters conducting anti-submarine warfare, electronic warfare and anti-air gunnery exercises in the Caribbean. It then departed for Brazil for the next phase of UNITAS.
Three years before decommissioning, MOOSBRUGGER completed UNITAS 39-98 from July to November 1998, serving as Flagship for Commander Task Force 138.0 and operating with eight South American Navies. MOOSBRUGGER proudly displayed the CINCLANTFLT Golden Anchor Award for 1998, which recognized the ship's outstanding personnel programs.
While in Puerto Rico, on April 20, 1998, USS MOOSBRUGGER took part in Independent Deployer Exercise (INDEX) 98-2, off the coast of Puerto Rico. During the exercise, MOOSBRUGGER fired two Sea Sparrows from her deck at guided target drones launched from the Atlantic Fleet Weapons Training Facility at Naval Station Roosevelt Roads. The exercise also included target drones fired from A-4 aircraft. Following this, the task force then headed for Venezuela on July 18 as Venezuela, Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia each directed, in turn, their own phase of UNITAS. Overall, U.S. forces worked with host navies from Venezuela, Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay, Chile, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia. The specific exercises conducted in each phase are determined by the host navy, making each phase unique. Exercises included all areas of modern naval warfare including anti-air, amphibious, anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare.
USS MOOSBRUGGER's last tour of duty was a 6-month cruise with the NATO's STANAVFORLANT in summer 2000. MOOSBRUGGER served as flagship for COMSTANAVFORLANT until August 28, 2000, when she turned over flagship duties to USS THOMAS S. GATES (CG 51). During this cruise she visited several European ports including Portsmouth, England and Kiel in Germany where she participated in the Kiel Week celebrations.
Decommissioned on December 15, 2000, the ship spent the following years laid-up at the Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility (NISMF), Philadelphia, PA. In 2006, she was towed to Brownsville, TX., where she was scrapped.
A veteran of Operation "Urgent Fury" (Grenada), the Multi-National Peace Keeping force in Lebanon, Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, and counter-narcotics operations, MOOSBRUGGER has been awarded the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (with Bronze Service Star), the Navy Expeditionary Medal (with Bronze Service Star), the Navy Unit Commendation, The Southwest Asia Service Medal (with two Bronze Service Stars), the National Defense Service Medal, a Meritorious Unit Commendation, and the Liberation of Kuwait Medal.
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USS MOOSBRUGGER Image Gallery:
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The photo below was taken and contributed by Michael Martin. It shows the MOOSBRUGGER being scrapped at Brownsville, Tx., in 2006. The photo was taken in late August 2006.
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