Search the Site with
|
Search the Site with
|
General Characteristics Crew List Memorabilia Cruise Books About the Ship's Name History Image Gallery to end of page |  |
USS LANG was the ninth KNOX - class frigate and the second ship named after John Lang who was a seaman on board the sloop-of-war WASP during her engagement with HMS FROLIC, 18 October 1812. He was the first man to board the British ship in the closing stage of the action, and his ardor and impetuosity carried the remainder of the boarding party with him.
Decommissioned on December 12, 1991, and stricken from the Navy list on January 11, 1995, the LANG transferred to the Maritime Administration on June 29, 1996, for disposal at the Suisun Bay, Calif., site. The frigate was later sold for scrapping. Scrapping was completed on December 15, 2001.
| General Characteristics: | Awarded: July 22, 1964 |
| Keel laid: March 25, 1967 | |
| Launched: February 17, 1968 | |
| Commissioned: March 28, 1970 | |
| Decommissioned: December 12, 1991 | |
| Builder: Todd Pacific Shipyards, San Pedro, Calif. | |
| Propulsion system: 2 - 1200 psi boilers; 1 geared turbine, 1 shaft; 35,000 shaft horsepower | |
| Length: 438 feet (133.5 meters) | |
| Beam: 47 feet (14.4 meters) | |
| Draft: 25 feet (7.6 meters) | |
| Displacement: approx. 4,200 tons full load | |
| Speed: 27 knots | |
| Armament: one Mk-16 missile launcher for ASROC and | |
| Aircraft: one | |
| Crew: 18 officers, 267 enlisted |
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 LANG. 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 LANG Cruise Books:
back to top go to the end of the pageAbout the Ship's Name:
John Lang was born on June 17, 1794, on Curacao, then part of the Dutch West Indies. He later became a resident of New Brunswick, New Jersey, and entered the United States Navy as a seaman. Little reliable information has survived concerning his family, early life, entry into naval service, or activities after the War of 1812. Lang served aboard the sloop-of-war USS WASP, commanded by Master Commandant Jacob Jones. On October 18, 1812, while cruising in the Atlantic approximately 200 miles north of Bermuda, WASP encountered a British convoy escorted by the 22-gun brig-sloop HMS FROLIC. The British vessel had been damaged by severe weather while protecting six merchant ships, but nevertheless engaged the American sloop when WASP approached the convoy.
The two ships opened fire at close range at approximately 11:30 a.m. Both sustained extensive damage to their masts, sails, and rigging during a short but intense engagement. As the vessels came together, the bow of FROLIC became entangled with the rigging of WASP. Lang moved forward with his cutlass and became the first American sailor to board the British ship during the closing stage of the battle. His action was immediately followed by other members of the boarding party, including Lieutenant James Biddle.
The Americans found the upper deck of FROLIC covered with casualties and encountered little organized resistance. The surviving British officers surrendered, and Biddle hauled down the British ensign. WASP had captured FROLIC after approximately 43 minutes of fighting. Lang's initiative during the boarding became the principal event for which he was remembered in later American naval histories.
The victory was short-lived. Both ships had been badly damaged and were still undergoing emergency repairs when the British 74-gun ship of the line HMS POICTIERS arrived. WASP was unable either to escape or to resist such a considerably larger warship, and Jones surrendered. WASP and her captured prize were taken to Bermuda, while the American crew became prisoners of war. Jones and his men were subsequently released in a prisoner exchange.
No dependable record has been located establishing the date or circumstances of John Lang's death. His conduct aboard WASP nevertheless remained part of the United States Navy's historical record. Two American warships were subsequently named in his honor: the BENHAM-class destroyer USS LANG (DD 399), commissioned in 1939, and the KNOX-class destroyer escort USS LANG (DE/FF 1060).
back to top go to the end of the pageUSS LANG History:
The contract for USS LANG was awarded to Todd Shipyards Corporation on July 22, 1964. Her keel was laid at the company's San Pedro yard on March 25, 1967, and she was launched and christened on February 17, 1968. Her sponsor was Mrs. Ephraim P. Holmes, wife of Admiral Ephraim P. Holmes, who was then Commander in Chief of the United States Atlantic Fleet and Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic. Construction, installation of machinery and combat systems, fitting-out, and acceptance work continued for more than two years after launching. On February 18, 1970, the future LANG conducted sea trials in the Pacific Ocean off Catalina Island. She was photographed at the Todd-Pacific yard in San Pedro on March 19 and was delivered to the Navy on March 20. USS LANG was commissioned at Long Beach Naval Shipyard on March 28, 1970, with Commander Frederic H. M. Kinley in command. She was assigned to Destroyer Squadron 19 and initially based at Long Beach, California.
Following commissioning, LANG spent the remainder of 1970 completing fitting-out, trials, inspections, weapons qualifications, engineering training, and shakedown operations. The ship and crew had to demonstrate proficiency in navigation, steaming, communications, damage control, gunnery, antisubmarine warfare, flight-deck operations, replenishment at sea, and the operation of newly installed machinery and electronics. Deficiencies identified during initial operations were corrected before the ship became available for regular Pacific Fleet employment.
During 1971, LANG completed her first western Pacific deployment. The cruise introduced the ship to the operating areas of the United States Seventh Fleet while the Vietnam War remained the principal American military commitment in Southeast Asia. Her work included fleet training, antisubmarine exercises, carrier-support duties, underway replenishments, and the extended periods of steaming required to maintain American naval forces in the western Pacific. After returning to the West Coast, LANG entered another period of maintenance, training, and preparation for overseas movement.
Commander Walter W. Salmon Jr. relieved Commander Kinley on January 7, 1972. During the following months, LANG prepared for another western Pacific deployment as the war in Vietnam intensified following North Vietnam's Easter Offensive. American naval operations included carrier air strikes, naval gunfire support, reconnaissance, search and rescue, logistics support, and the screening of major fleet units in the Gulf of Tonkin and South China Sea.
On July 25, 1972, LANG departed for the western Pacific in company with USS WILTSIE (DD 716) and USS MEYERKORD (DE 1058). The three ships crossed the Pacific by way of Pearl Harbor, Midway Island, and Guam and arrived at Subic Bay in the Philippines on August 16. Subic Bay was the principal American repair, logistics, ammunition, and staging base for Seventh Fleet surface ships operating near Vietnam. A propulsion casualty interrupted LANG's early operations during the deployment. On August 26, the salvage ship USS CONSERVER (ARS 39) departed Da Nang after being directed to assist LANG in the Gulf of Tonkin. When CONSERVER reached LANG that evening, she had restored sufficient propulsion to continue toward Subic Bay under her own power. CONSERVER followed her as a precaution, and the ships reached Subic Bay on August 29. LANG then underwent the repairs and checks required before returning to operational service.
During the remainder of 1972, LANG resumed duties with Seventh Fleet forces in the waters off Vietnam. Her primary responsibilities included antisubmarine screening, surface surveillance, communications support, plane-guard readiness, and the other escort functions required around aircraft carriers and supporting ships. These operations occurred during the final period of major American air attacks against North Vietnam, when carrier groups required continuous protection and rescue capability while conducting flight operations in the Gulf of Tonkin.
On January 4, 1973, USS WACCAMAW (AO-109) refueled LANG off the Vietnamese coast. The replenishment was WACCAMAW's 246th and final commitment associated with her service off Vietnam. LANG remained in the operational area while diplomatic negotiations approached the ceasefire that would end direct American combat operations against North Vietnam.
USS ENTERPRISE (CVAN 65) departed Subic Bay on January 23 and rendezvoused with LANG at Yankee Station on January 24. LANG served as the carrier's plane guard during the beginning of ENTERPRISE's fourth line period of the deployment. Plane-guard duty required the escort to maintain a position from which she could respond rapidly if an aircraft crashed, missed an approach, or its crew had to abandon the aircraft near the carrier. At the same time, LANG contributed sonar coverage, radar surveillance, communications, and an additional defensive platform to the formation. A Soviet intelligence-collection ship shadowed the American force, reflecting the continuing Cold War surveillance that accompanied United States naval operations in the western Pacific.
The Vietnam ceasefire took effect on January 27, 1973. ENTERPRISE, USS AMERICA (CVA 66), USS ORISKANY (CVA 34), and USS RANGER (CVA 61), then operating at Yankee Station, cancelled their combat sorties for the remainder of the day. LANG completed the final phase of her deployment during the transition from large-scale combat operations to post-ceasefire duties and subsequently returned to the West Coast.
Commander Richard L. Wyatt relieved Commander Salmon on September 14, 1973. During the remainder of 1973 and through 1974, LANG carried out maintenance, inspections, training, and readiness work in the eastern Pacific. These activities included engineering drills, weapons training, sonar operations, flight-deck qualifications, and the recurring material and operational examinations required before another overseas deployment.
LANG returned to the western Pacific in 1975. Her deployment occurred as the military situation in South Vietnam and Cambodia deteriorated rapidly and large American naval forces assembled in Southeast Asian waters. Although a specific direct role for LANG in the helicopter evacuation of Saigon is not established, the ship was operating within the wider Seventh Fleet area during the period in which the United States evacuated personnel and dealt with the subsequent movement of refugees through Guam and the Philippines. After June 20, 1975, LANG took part in local operations from Subic Bay as a member of Task Unit 75.4.1. The group included USS GRIDLEY (DLG 21), USS HORNE (DLG 30), USS BRONSTEIN (DE 1037), MEYERKORD, and the fleet oiler USS KAWISHIWI (AO 146). The ships conducted surface and antisubmarine training, communications exercises, tactical maneuvering, replenishment work, and other fleet-readiness evolutions in the waters near the Philippines. On July 14, LANG was underway in the South China Sea off Subic Bay.
On June 30, 1975, the Navy's general ship-classification changes redesignated LANG from destroyer escort DE 1060 to frigate FF 1060.
Commander Keith A. Stewart relieved Commander Wyatt on October 6, 1975. After completing her remaining overseas commitments, LANG returned to the United States and resumed the cycle of upkeep, inspections, local exercises, and preparations for future Pacific operations.
LANG made another western Pacific deployment in 1976. During November, she conducted an Encounter Exercise with USS BREWTON (FF 1086) while the two frigates were crossing the central Pacific. An encounter exercise allowed ships meeting at sea to practice identification, communications, tracking, tactical maneuvering, and simulated engagement procedures without requiring them to have operated together previously. LANG's remaining work during the cruise consisted of the training, surveillance, escort, and presence duties expected of a Seventh Fleet frigate during the continuing Cold War competition in the Pacific.
After returning from the 1976 deployment, LANG prepared for a major industrial availability. In 1977, she entered Northwest Marine Iron Works at Portland, Oregon, for a comprehensive overhaul under a contract valued at approximately 6.02 million dollars. The work was already underway by August 1977 and continued into May 1978. LANG spent approximately 40 days in dry dock while the yard carried out hull repairs and underwater maintenance. The Portland overhaul also included major improvements to communications equipment, radar, sonar equipment other than the sonar dome, weapons, and associated electronic systems. These installations were intended to improve the frigate's ability to detect and track submarines, exchange tactical information, and operate with more modern fleet formations. Commander Thomas G. Kelley relieved Commander Stewart on September 10, 1977, while the overhaul was in progress.
Following completion of the yard period in 1978, LANG underwent trials, inspections, and refresher training. Machinery and combat systems that had been opened, replaced, or modified during the overhaul had to be tested at the pier and at sea. The crew then rebuilt proficiency in engineering, navigation, gunnery, antisubmarine operations, helicopter support, communications, and damage control before the ship was again certified for deployment.
LANG deployed to the western Pacific in 1979. The cruise involved extended operations from Seventh Fleet facilities and included antisubmarine, surface-warfare, antiaircraft, gunnery, communications, replenishment, and damage-control training. The deployment took place during a period of renewed international tension marked by the Iranian Revolution, instability around the Persian Gulf, and continuing Soviet naval and air surveillance of American fleet movements. During this deployment, LANG became involved in the continuing refugee crisis created by the departure of large numbers of people from Vietnam in small and often unseaworthy boats. On October 3, 1979, the United States Department of Defense announced that LANG had rescued 26 Vietnamese refugees from a boat in the South China Sea. The frigate brought the refugees aboard and provided the immediate shelter and assistance available on the ship. The rescue formed part of the wider maritime response to the Vietnamese boat-people crisis, during which United States Navy and merchant vessels repeatedly encountered refugee craft throughout the South China Sea.
Commander Clyde J. Van Arsdall III relieved Commander Kelley on November 26, 1979, during a change-of-command ceremony at Subic Bay. LANG completed the remaining portion of the deployment under her new commanding officer and returned to the eastern Pacific. By July 1980, she was again operating in the San Diego area and was photographed underway in San Diego Bay.
Late in 1980, LANG began another western Pacific deployment. The cruise occurred while the United States was maintaining an expanded naval presence in the Pacific and Indian Ocean regions following the seizure of the American embassy in Tehran, the continued detention of the hostages, and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. LANG operated as part of the network of surface combatants, support ships, and rotational forces that allowed the Pacific Fleet to sustain an increased overseas presence. From January 19 through January 22, 1981, LANG participated in Antisubmarine Warfare Exercise 81-3U off the Philippines. The exercise emphasized antisubmarine operations in shallow water and the escort of a high-value ship through restricted straits. These conditions were particularly relevant in Southeast Asian waters, where narrow passages, coastal traffic, variable water temperatures, and limited maneuvering space complicated sonar operations. LANG and the other escorts had to coordinate sonar search areas, maneuvering, communications, helicopter operations, and the protection of NAVASOTA while the opposing submarines attempted to penetrate the screen.
After the exercise, LANG visited Pattaya Beach, Thailand, from February 3 through February 7. The port period provided an opportunity for replenishment and crew liberty and was also used for planning associated with the forthcoming Exercise Sea Siam 81-2 with the Royal Thai Navy. Following further upkeep and operations from Subic Bay, LANG participated in Antisurface Warfare Exercise 81-1 after February 24. The exercise was intended to develop passive detection and targeting procedures for Harpoon missile attacks. Passive tactics reduced the requirement for continuous radar transmissions and allowed ships to search for and classify potential surface targets while limiting the electronic emissions that could reveal their own positions. On May 4, 1981, LANG departed Subic Bay to begin the eastbound passage. LANG completed the homeward passage during May and returned to the United States.
Commander James A. Lee relieved Commander Van Arsdall on October 24, 1981. During the early 1980s, LANG was assigned to the Naval Reserve Force. She remained a commissioned warship but operated with a reduced active-duty nucleus supplemented by drilling reservists. The arrangement allowed the Navy to retain useful ships and provide realistic training to reserve personnel while reducing the number of active-duty sailors required for full-time operation. Reserve status did not mean that LANG remained inactive at the pier. She continued to steam for engineering training, weapons qualifications, inspections, sonar exercises, flight-deck operations, replenishment practice, and coordinated fleet training. The active-duty crew maintained the ship and trained reservists who came aboard for scheduled drills and periods of active duty. LANG was still required to meet operational, material, safety, and damage-control standards before participating in major exercises.
On February 8, 1983, LANG joined USS BADGER (FF 1071), USS COCHRANE (DDG 21), and GRAY for a six-week training cruise connected with operations between Hawaii and the West Coast. The ships completed a Composite Training Unit Exercise, a readiness exercise, and naval gunfire-support requalification before BADGER returned to Pearl Harbor on March 21. LANG's participation provided coordinated training in communications, maneuvering, antisubmarine warfare, surface operations, gunnery, and the integration of active and reserve fleet units.
Commander Robert A. Goff relieved Commander Lee on December 17, 1983. LANG continued Naval Reserve Force training during 1984 and 1985. Her schedule consisted mainly of shorter operating periods. The frigate nevertheless remained capable of sustained operations and was photographed underway at sea on October 1, 1985.
On February 10, 1986, LANG participated in a large antisubmarine exercise off the California coast. The formation included the Naval Reserve Force frigates USS WADSWORTH (FFG 9), USS DUNCAN (FFG 10), and GRAY; the tank landing ship USS RACINE (LST 1191); the fleet oiler USS CIMARRON (AO 177); the frigate USS STEIN (FF 1065); and the Royal Australian Navy destroyer HMAS HOBART (D 39). The exercise required ships of different types and capabilities to coordinate sonar searches, formation movements, communications, screening stations, and the protection of logistics and amphibious vessels against a simulated submarine threat.
Commander Robert T. Sollenberger relieved Commander Goff on May 10, 1986. From September 17 through September 25, LANG participated as an additional opposing or supporting unit during Composite Training Unit Exercise 86-5, which prepared the battle group centered on USS KITTY HAWK (CV-63) for deployment. The exercise included gunnery, aircraft operations, simulated casualties, plane-guard work, tracking, and responses to air, surface, and submarine threats. LANG's participation showed that reserve-force frigates continued to be used in complex fleet training and could provide additional antisubmarine, surveillance, and opposition-force capabilities during the preparation of active carrier groups.
During approximately 1987, LANG took part in a large parade formation with WADSWORTH, STEIN, DUNCAN, the fleet oiler USS WILLAMETTE (AO 180), GRAY, USS MacDONOUGH (DDG 39), RACINE, and USS PREBLE (DDG 46). Two SH-2F Seasprite helicopters flew above the formation. The event demonstrated the varied composition of the Pacific reserve surface force, which included older KNOX-class frigates, newer guided-missile frigates, destroyers, an oiler, and an amphibious ship.
LANG's later reserve service was associated with the San Francisco Bay Area, and by 1989 she was operating from Treasure Island. Before then, she underwent another major maintenance period. On May 2, 1988, Continental Maritime of San Francisco received a contract valued at approximately 3.2 million dollars for a Drydocking Phased Maintenance Availability for LANG. The work was scheduled for completion on October 19, 1988. The availability included drydocking and the maintenance, repair, inspection, and preservation required to keep the aging steam-powered frigate in operational condition.
Commander Ronald B. Moore relieved Commander Sollenberger on July 21, 1988, while the ship was passing through the maintenance and reactivation cycle. Completion of the yard period was followed by machinery testing, trials, training, inspections, and renewed qualification of the ship's active-duty and reserve personnel.
In 1989, LANG participated in Pacific Exercise 1989, generally known as Pacex '89. The exercise brought together a large number of United States and allied naval units and tested the Pacific Fleet's ability to assemble, move, supply, and operate major forces over long distances. It also demonstrated the intended wartime role of Naval Reserve Force ships as reinforcements for active fleet formations during a major contingency. On September 1, 1989, LANG conducted an underway replenishment with the amphibious assault ship USS PELELIU (LHA 5). Crew members rigged and tended the refueling connection while the two ships maintained a steady parallel course at sea. On September 18, LANG was underway during the exercise with SIDES (FFG 14) following in formation. On October 1, the two reserve-force frigates maneuvered together during Pacex '89.
Only a little more than two weeks later, LANG was assigned an emergency domestic-support mission. At 5:04 p.m. on October 17, 1989, the Loma Prieta earthquake struck the San Francisco Bay Area, causing widespread structural damage, fires, transportation disruption, utility failures, and loss of electrical power. Within hours of the earthquake, LANG left Treasure Island and proceeded to Hunters Point. At Hunters Point, LANG supplied wet steam to the Pacific Gas and Electric Company. The steam from the frigate's boilers assisted the company in restoring electrical service in San Francisco. Equipment normally used to generate propulsion power and provide shipboard services was thus connected to shore facilities during the emergency response. LANG was one of several naval and Military Sealift Command ships that provided power, steam, communications, accommodation, transportation, or other assistance in the affected area. LANG and her crew received the Humanitarian Service Medal for their work following the earthquake. Eligibility for the award was later expanded to include other military personnel who had participated in the response throughout the San Francisco Bay Area.
Commander Robert R. Martin relieved Commander Moore on September 21, 1990, becoming LANG's final commanding officer. The international and naval environment had changed substantially since the ship's commissioning. The Cold War was ending, the Soviet naval threat that had influenced the design of the KNOX-class was declining, and the Navy was reducing the number of older steam-powered surface combatants whose large crews and aging machinery required increasing maintenance. LANG nevertheless remained commissioned through 1991. During her final year, she continued reserve-force training, maintenance, inspections, and local operations while the Navy prepared to remove her from service. The decommissioning process required the removal or transfer of ammunition, classified equipment, spare parts, records, stores, and reusable systems. Machinery and compartments were preserved for inactive custody, and members of the crew were transferred to other commands or released from their assignments.
USS LANG was decommissioned on December 12, 1991, after 21 years and nearly nine months of commissioned service. After decommissioning, LANG remained in United States government custody. She was struck from the Naval Vessel Register on January 11, 1995. On June 29, 1996, she was transferred to the Maritime Administration for disposal and placed at the Suisun Bay reserve-fleet site in California. A dismantling contract was awarded in January 2001, and the former frigate was removed from Navy custody on January 31. She was subsequently dismantled, with her final disposition recorded as sale for scrapping on December 15, 2001.
back to top go to the end of the pageUSS LANG Image Gallery:
 |
back to top
Back to Frigates List. Back to Ships List. Back to selection page. Back to 1st page.