Search the Site with
|
Search the Site with
|
General Characteristics Crew List Memorabilia Accidents aboard the Ship About the Ship's Name History Image Gallery to end of page |  |
USS LOCKWOOD was the 13th KNOX - class frigate and the first ship in the Navy named after Charles Andrews Lockwood. Decommissioned and stricken from the Navy list on September 27, 1993, the LOCKWOOD was later sold for scrapping. On August 4, 2000, scrapping was completed.
| General Characteristics: | Awarded: July 22, 1964 |
| Keel laid: November 3, 1967 | |
| Launched: September 5, 1968 | |
| Commissioned: December 5, 1970 | |
| Decommissioned: September 27, 1993 | |
| Builder: Todd Pacific Shipyards, Seattle, Wash. | |
| 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 LOCKWOOD. 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 pageAccidents aboard USS LOCKWOOD:
| Date | Where | Events |
|---|---|---|
| December 10, 1985 | off Yokosuka, Japan | USS LOCKWOOD collides with the freighter SANTO NINO at about 1930pm local time. The LOCKWOOD is hit on the forward starboard side by the bow of the other ship causing a 15 by 12 feet hole in the hull of the frigate. Four sailors aboard the warship are injured and are taken to Yokosuka's Naval Hospital. No injuries are reported aboard the freighter. |
| November 18, 1989 | South China Sea | A sailor is reported missing in the early morning hours. Believed to have possibly fallen overboard several hours before, a two-day search for him involving USS LOCKWOOD and USS LAKE CHAMPLAIN (CG 57) is started but fails to turn up anything. |
back to top go to the end of the pageAbout the Ship's Name:
Charles Andrews Lockwood was born in Midland, Va., 6 May 1890, and graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in the class of 1912. Following brief cruises in battleships MISSISSIPPI (BB 23) and ARKANSAS (BB 33), and a short tour as instructor in the Naval Training Station, Great Lakes, in September 1914, he reported to the tender MOHICAN (SP 117) for indoctrination in submarines. By 1 December of that year he had his first submarine command, A-2, followed by B-1. American entry into World War I found him in command of 1st Submarine Division, Asiatic Fleet. From that time, with the exception of a tour on the Asiatic station where he commanded gunboats QUIROS (PG 40) and ELCANO (PG 38) on the Yangtze Patrol and the destroyer SMITH THOMPSON (DD 212), practically all his sea service was in and connected with submarines. In addition to those listed above are added G-1, N-5, UC-97 (ex-German), R-25, S-14 and BONITA (SS 165).
In June 1939, he became Chief of Staff to Commander, Submarine Force, U.S. Fleet, in light cruiser RICHMOND (CL 9). This important service was interrupted in February 1941 when he was sent to London as naval attache and principal observer for submarines. Following promotion to rear admiral in March 1942, he proceeded to west Australia as Commander, Submarines, Southwest Pacific. In February 1943, he was transferred to Pearl Harbor to become Commander, Submarines, Pacific Fleet, in which capacity he served the rest of the war, being promoted to vice admiral in October 1943. Under his guidance and inspiration in these two commands, U.S. submarines overcame torpedo and other difficulties to destroy the Japanese Merchant Marine and cripple the Imperial Navy. His wartime awards were the Distinguished Service Medal and two gold stars in lieu of second and third awards, and the Legion of Merit. After the war, he served as Inspector General of the Navy until his retirement in June 1947.
In retirement at Los Gatos, Calif., he wrote and co-authored best selling books on naval history and submarine operations until his death 7 June 1967.
back to top go to the end of the pageUSS LOCKWOOD History:
The contract for the construction of USS LOCKWOOD was awarded to Todd Pacific Shipyards in Seattle, Washington, on July 22, 1964. Her keel was laid there on November 3, 1967, and she was launched on September 5, 1968. The launching ceremony was sponsored jointly by Mrs. Charles A. Lockwood, the admiral's widow, and Mrs. John Canty, his daughter. After fitting out and completing builder's and acceptance trials in Puget Sound, the ship was delivered to the Navy on December 1, 1970, and commissioned at Seattle on December 5, 1970, with Commander Robert C. Woods as her first commanding officer.
Following commissioning, USS LOCKWOOD remained in the Pacific Northwest for trials, equipment checks, crew training, and correction of deficiencies identified during acceptance testing. On February 6, 1971, she visited Vancouver, British Columbia, where she moored at a city wharf. She subsequently proceeded to San Diego, California, which became her first operational home port. During the remainder of 1971, she conducted shakedown training, engineering drills, weapons exercises, sonar evaluations, and shiphandling work in Southern California operating areas. She also returned periodically to the Puget Sound region for additional work and was photographed in Elliott Bay near Seattle during the latter part of the year.
USS LOCKWOOD received an important defensive modification before beginning regular overseas deployments. Late in 1971, an eight-cell Basic Point Defense Missile System launcher for Sea Sparrow missiles was fitted on the after portion of the ship. The system provided a limited short-range defense against aircraft and anti-ship missiles, supplementing the ships's gun armament and electronic countermeasures. It was an interim installation that would eventually be replaced by a Phalanx close-in weapon system during the 1980s.
Early in 1972, USS LOCKWOOD began moving westward across the Pacific for her first western Pacific deployment. She was underway in the Pacific on February 29 and March 3 and was operating in Hawaiian waters by March 20. Her arrival in Southeast Asia coincided with a major escalation of the Vietnam War. On March 30, North Vietnamese forces began the Easter Offensive, a large conventional attack across the demilitarized zone and from areas bordering Laos and Cambodia. Heavy monsoon weather frequently restricted allied air operations, while South Vietnamese formations in the northern provinces came under increasing pressure from North Vietnamese infantry, armor, and artillery.
On April 6, 1972, USS LOCKWOOD joined USS WADDELL (DDG 24), USS LLOYD THOMAS (DD 764), and USS EVERETT F. LARSON (DD 830) in providing naval gunfire support south of the demilitarized zone. Operating offshore, the ships fired on assigned targets in support of South Vietnamese forces ashore. Naval gunfire was especially important during periods when bad weather restricted tactical aviation and when land-based artillery positions had been destroyed, abandoned, or isolated by the North Vietnamese advance. USS LOCKWOOD's 5-inch gun allowed her to respond to requests for fire while remaining mobile off the coast.
After operating off Vietnam, USS LOCKWOOD proceeded to Japan. By May 22, 1972, she was at Sasebo, where USS BADGER (DE 1071) moored alongside her at Pier I-7. Maintenance and repair assistance was available from the repair ship USS HECTOR (AR 7), which was supporting Seventh Fleet ships at Sasebo. The port period allowed USS LOCKWOOD to replenish supplies and conduct maintenance after her combat operations before resuming duties in the western Pacific. Commander Robert W. Kesteloot relieved Commander Woods as commanding officer on July 13, 1972. USS LOCKWOOD later returned to the United States and resumed operations from San Diego. Her Vietnam service qualified the ship and her crew for several decorations, including the Combat Action Ribbon, the Vietnam Service Medal with two campaign stars, the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation, and the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal.
During 1973, USS LOCKWOOD combined normal fleet training with work connected to the development of new weapons and anti-submarine tactics. Early in the year, she fired a Harpoon test missile during the developmental period of the new sea-skimming anti-ship weapon. Harpoon was intended to give American surface ships, submarines, and aircraft the ability to attack hostile warships at ranges well beyond conventional naval gunfire. The evaluation work reflected the Navy's effort to broaden the offensive surface-warfare capabilities of ships such as the KNOX-class, which had originally been designed primarily as anti-submarine escorts.
During the late summer of 1973, USS LOCKWOOD operated with USS BRONSTEIN (DE 1037). The two ships formed Task Element 37.5.2.2 for exercises off San Clemente Island before proceeding to Hawaii. They were at Pearl Harbor from September 4 through September 10. From September 11 through September 20, USS LOCKWOOD and USS BRONSTEIN participated in Rim of the Pacific 1973. The multinational exercise brought together naval forces from Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the United States for coordinated training in Hawaiian waters. The exercise included anti-submarine, anti-air, surface-warfare, communications, replenishment, and formation-maneuvering activity. USS LOCKWOOD returned to Pearl Harbor on September 21 before preparing for her next western Pacific deployment.
On November 23, 1973, USS LOCKWOOD departed the West Coast as part of Task Group 37.5. The group included the aircraft carrier USS KITTY HAWK (CVA 63), the nuclear-powered guided-missile frigate USS BAINBRIDGE (DLGN 25), USS SCHOFIELD (DEG 3), USS KIRK (DE 1087), and USS BRONSTEIN. The ships reached Pearl Harbor near the end of November. On December 4, USS LOCKWOOD continued westward with USS SCHOFIELD, USS KIRK, and USS BRONSTEIN as Task Unit 35.8.3. The four escorts refueled at Midway Island on December 8 and entered the Seventh Fleet operating area on December 11. On December 12, they received fuel from the replenishment oiler USS KANSAS CITY (AOR 3).
During January 1974, USS LOCKWOOD operated with USS KITTY HAWK and USS BRONSTEIN in anti-submarine exercises involving carrier- and land-based aircraft and the submarine USS BLUEBACK (SS 581). The exercises were intended to improve coordinated submarine detection, tracking, and attack procedures at a time when the Soviet Pacific Fleet was deploying increasingly capable nuclear-powered and diesel-electric submarines. USS LOCKWOOD contributed her sonar, combat information center, anti-submarine weapons, and aviation facilities to the combined search effort.
Commander Lawrence A. Penny relieved Commander Kesteloot on February 11, 1974. USS LOCKWOOD remained in the western Pacific through the spring. On May 4, she began the return voyage to the United States in company with USS BADGER and USS BRONSTEIN. The ships refueled at Apra Harbor, Guam, on May 9 and subsequently made logistics stops at Midway Island and Pearl Harbor. USS LOCKWOOD completed the deployment at San Diego on May 25. After post-deployment leave and maintenance, she resumed local operations. From December 2 through December 6, 1974, she trained in Southern California waters with USS KIRK and USS BRONSTEIN.
In May 1975, USS LOCKWOOD shifted her home port from San Diego to Yokosuka, Japan, as part of the forward deployment of Destroyer Squadron 15. The squadron supplied escorts for the Seventh Fleet's permanently forward-deployed carrier force centered on USS MIDWAY (CV 41). Forward basing in Japan allowed the ships to respond more rapidly to developments near Korea, the Soviet Far East, Southeast Asia, and the Indian Ocean than would have been possible from a home port on the American West Coast.
On June 30, 1975, a Navy-wide classification change redesignated USS LOCKWOOD from destroyer escort DE 1064 to frigate FF 1064.
The move to Yokosuka began a period of more than thirteen years in which USS LOCKWOOD operated as part of the permanently forward-deployed Seventh Fleet surface force. Her schedule was built around maintenance and upkeep at Yokosuka, local training in Japanese waters, exercises with American and allied naval forces, carrier escort operations, and deployments to the western Pacific and Indian Ocean. Commander Jerry G. Stevens relieved Commander Penny on July 30, 1976.
On September 27, 1977, USS LOCKWOOD departed Yokosuka with the USS MIDWAY battle group for a deployment extending from the western Pacific into the Indian Ocean. On October 12, a seven-ship Seventh Fleet force entered the Indian Ocean. The formation consisted of USS MIDWAY, USS WORDEN (CG 18), USS PARSONS (DDG 33), USS FRANCIS HAMMOND (FF 1067), USS LOCKWOOD, USNS PONCHATOULA (T-AO 148), and USNS NAVASOTA (T-AO 106). USS LOCKWOOD visited Bunbury, Western Australia, from October 17 through October 23, 1977. The visit provided fuel, supplies, maintenance opportunities, and liberty for the crew. A commemorative plaque was later placed in Bunbury's Anzac Park recording the ship's appreciation for the hospitality received during the port call. Other documented ports during the deployment included Karachi, Pakistan; Bandar Abbas, Iran; and Singapore.
In November 1977, USS LOCKWOOD participated in Midlink 1-77 near the approaches to the Strait of Hormuz. The principal at-sea phase took place from November 12 through November 18 and included anti-surface, anti-air, and anti-submarine warfare exercises. Iran, then governed by Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, hosted the exercise. Naval forces representing Iran, Pakistan, the United Kingdom, and the United States participated in activities associated with the Central Treaty Organization, although the United States was not a formal full member of that alliance. The exercise took place before the Iranian Revolution transformed relations between Iran and the United States and during a period when Washington regarded Iran as an important regional security partner. For USS LOCKWOOD, Midlink 1-77 combined her anti-submarine duties with broader escort and surface-warfare training near the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world's most strategically important maritime passages.
Following the exercise, the battle group proceeded eastward. USS LOCKWOOD visited Singapore in early December and then continued through Southeast Asian and Philippine waters. She returned to Yokosuka with the force on December 21, 1977. Commander James R. Fitzgerald relieved Commander Stevens on June 10, 1978. Later that year, USS LOCKWOOD again operated in the Indian Ocean region. On November 1, she arrived in the Perth and Fremantle area of Western Australia with USS KIRK and the fleet oiler USS ASHTABULA (AO 51). The three ships remained there until November 11. The port visit provided a break during extended operations and continued the regular naval contacts between the United States and Australia.
USS LOCKWOOD remained based at Yokosuka as part of Destroyer Squadron 15 during 1979 and 1980. These years coincided with major changes in the strategic situation surrounding the Indian Ocean, including the Iranian Revolution, the seizure of the United States embassy in Tehran in November 1979, and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in December 1979. These developments caused the United States to increase its general naval presence in and around the Arabian Sea. Commander Michael C. McKearn relieved Commander Fitzgerald on June 27, 1980.
On February 24, 1981, USS LOCKWOOD departed with the USS MIDWAY battle group for another western Pacific and Indian Ocean deployment. The deployment took place shortly after the conclusion of the American embassy hostage crisis in Iran and while Soviet forces remained in Afghanistan. American carrier groups maintained a continuing presence in the region to support freedom of navigation, reassure regional partners, and provide a capability to respond to further instability. USS LOCKWOOD visited Bunbury from May 6 through May 11, 1981, repeating the Western Australian port call she had made in 1977. She returned to Yokosuka on June 5. On July 7 and July 8, she conducted type training with USS FRANCIS HAMMOND during a group sail from Sasebo in preparation for MultiplEx 81-4. The training prepared the ships to operate as part of a coordinated formation and included shiphandling, communications, and warfare-system exercises.
By the early 1980s, USS LOCKWOOD was operating the SH-2F Seasprite helicopter. The aircraft could carry sonobuoys, magnetic-anomaly-detection equipment, radar, and lightweight anti-submarine torpedoes. It significantly expanded the frigate's ability to locate and track submarines beyond the range of her bow sonar and allowed her to investigate contacts at a distance from the ship.
On May 3, 1982, USS LOCKWOOD conducted a navigation operation in Peter the Great Bay near Vladivostok. The Soviet Union claimed the bay as internal waters by drawing a closing line across its entrance and describing it as a historic bay. The United States did not recognize that claim and regarded waters outside the normally accepted Soviet territorial limit as open to navigation. USS LOCKWOOD crossed the Soviet-claimed closing line as part of the United States Freedom of Navigation Program. Soviet naval and maritime-security units challenged the frigate and directed her to leave waters claimed by the Soviet Union. USS LOCKWOOD continued the operation before departing the disputed area. The Soviet government later issued a diplomatic protest, while the United States rejected the Soviet interpretation of the bay's legal status. The event occurred close to Vladivostok, the principal base of the Soviet Pacific Fleet, during a period of heightened Cold War tension.
Commander William F. Ritzman relieved Commander McKearn on June 22, 1982. In October, USS LOCKWOOD and USS KNOX (FF 1052) participated in the tracking of a Soviet naval formation that included a CHARLIE I-class nuclear-powered cruise-missile submarine, a KRIVAK-class frigate, and a FOXTROT-class diesel-electric submarine. Royal Australian Air Force P-3 Orion maritime-patrol aircraft were also involved in maintaining contact with the Soviet group. During the operation, Soviet surface ships attempted to interfere with the airborne anti-submarine effort by retrieving or running down sonobuoys. Small-arms fire was directed at some of the buoys, and flares were fired in the vicinity of the aircraft. The Soviet submarine eventually submerged and conducted evasive maneuvers, while radar-reflector decoys were deployed near its diving position. The encounter illustrated the close and sometimes confrontational interaction between American, Australian, and Soviet anti-submarine forces during the later stages of the Cold War.
USS LOCKWOOD continued operating from Yokosuka during 1983. In 1984, she was photographed at anchor in Singapore and later operated with USS KIRK in the Sea of Japan. Operations in the Sea of Japan placed the ships close to the Korean Peninsula and the Soviet Far East, where surveillance and anti-submarine readiness remained important Seventh Fleet responsibilities. Commander Warren P. Hudson III relieved Commander Ritzman on August 6, 1984. During the first half of the 1980s, USS LOCKWOOD received modifications intended to keep the ship effective against changing air and missile threats. The after Sea Sparrow launcher was removed and replaced by a Mk 15 Phalanx close-in weapon system. Phalanx used radar-directed rapid-fire cannon to provide a final defensive layer against aircraft and incoming missiles. USS LOCKWOOD also received improvements to her electronic-warfare, communications, aviation, and sensor equipment, while retaining her original steam propulsion, 5-inch gun, bow sonar, and anti-submarine rocket launcher.
USS LOCKWOOD was involved in the most serious collision of her career on December 10, 1985. At approximately 7:26 p.m. local time, while approaching Yokosuka through the congested waters near the entrance to Tokyo Bay, she collided with the Philippine merchant ship SANTO NINO. The freighter's bow struck the frigate's forward starboard side near and below the bridge. The impact opened an indentation or hole approximately 15 feet wide and 12 feet deep and damaged a larger section of the surrounding hull and internal structure. Several USS LOCKWOOD sailors were injured and taken to the United States Naval Hospital at Yokosuka. Contemporary and later accounts differ on the precise number of injured personnel. USS LOCKWOOD's crew carried out immediate damage-control measures before the frigate entered Yokosuka for inspection, stabilization, and repair. The resulting shipyard work continued into 1986.
Commander Anderson W. Wacaser III relieved Commander Hudson on February 13, 1986. Commander George E. Bieda subsequently relieved Commander Wacaser on June 25. After the collision repairs, trials, and renewed training were completed, USS LOCKWOOD returned to operational service with the Seventh Fleet.
On October 1, 1987, USS LOCKWOOD was operating in the Indian Ocean in formation with USS KIRK, USS FRANCIS HAMMOND, USS KNOX, and USS TOWERS (DDG 9) as part of the USS MIDWAY battle group. The deployment occurred during the Tanker War phase of the Iran-Iraq War, when commercial shipping and oil-export facilities in and around the Persian Gulf were repeatedly attacked. American naval forces were protecting freedom of navigation, supporting the escort of reflagged Kuwaiti tankers, and maintaining carrier air power in the North Arabian Sea. USS LOCKWOOD's documented role was within the carrier force's escort and anti-submarine screen in the Indian Ocean.
Commander Richard M. Smith relieved Commander Bieda on June 9, 1988. On July 17, USS LOCKWOOD departed Yokosuka, ending more than thirteen years as a permanently forward-deployed ship in Japan. Her home port was changed to Long Beach, California, during July, and she was reassigned to Destroyer Squadron 9. From Long Beach, USS LOCKWOOD became part of the Third Fleet force on the American West Coast, although she remained available for further western Pacific deployments.
USS LOCKWOOD returned to the western Pacific during 1989. On October 14, she participated in Fleet Exercise 89, a large combined exercise involving units of the United States Navy and the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force. During the exercise, USS LOCKWOOD operated near the battleship USS MISSOURI (BB 63), the Japanese destroyer JS AMAGIRI (DD 154), and USS BAGLEY (FF 1069). The exercise brought together major surface combatants and supporting aircraft for combined fleet training during the final years of the Cold War.
USS LOCKWOOD remained in the western Pacific into January 1990. On January 25, she participated in the response to the sinking of the Chinese merchant vessel HUAZHU approximately 40 miles north of Luzon in the Philippines. USS LOCKWOOD, USS LAKE CHAMPLAIN (CG 57), USS STEIN (FF 1065), and USNS NAVASOTA supported the search-and-rescue operation with embarked helicopters, including an SH-60B Seahawk and SH-2F Seasprites. The operation accounted for all 19 members of the merchant ship's crew, 14 of whom were rescued alive.
After returning to the United States, USS LOCKWOOD resumed operations from Long Beach. She was photographed underway in the Pacific on September 14, 1990. Commander Harry B. Elam relieved Commander Smith on September 22. By this time, the international and budgetary environment affecting the Navy was changing rapidly. The Warsaw Pact was disintegrating, the Soviet Union was approaching collapse, and the United States was beginning to reduce a surface fleet that had been built and maintained for sustained Cold War operations. USS LOCKWOOD nevertheless remained in commission during 1991 and 1992 and continued operating from Long Beach. Commander Charles G. Cooper III relieved Commander Elam on August 6, 1992. The retirement of other KNOX-class frigates during this period reflected the Navy's preference for newer gas-turbine-powered ships requiring smaller engineering establishments and offering more modern missile, sensor, and command systems.
USS LOCKWOOD remained operational into 1993 and was photographed underway in January. As her decommissioning approached, the crew prepared the ship for inactive status by completing final inspections, removing ammunition and controlled equipment, inventorying material, and preparing engineering and administrative records. Commander Joseph D. Harrington relieved Commander Cooper on July 9, 1993, becoming USS LOCKWOOD's final commanding officer.
USS LOCKWOOD was decommissioned at Naval Station Long Beach on September 30, 1993, after nearly 23 years of commissioned service. She was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on the same date. The awards recorded for USS LOCKWOOD include the Combat Action Ribbon, the Joint Meritorious Unit Award, the Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation with four additional awards, the Navy Battle Efficiency "E" Ribbon, the Navy Expeditionary Medal, the National Defense Service Medal with one service star, the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, the Vietnam Service Medal with two campaign stars, the Humanitarian Service Medal, the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross Unit Citation, and the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal.
Following decommissioning, the former USS LOCKWOOD remained in Navy custody while arrangements were made for disposal. On September 29, 1999, the Navy awarded a contract for her dismantling and recycling. She was transferred to the Ship Dismantling and Recycling Joint Venture at the former Hunters Point Naval Shipyard in San Francisco. The former frigate was photographed there while being dismantled on April 16, 2000. Navy disposal records identify August 4, 2000, as the date on which her disposal by recycling was completed.
back to top go to the end of the pageUSS LOCKWOOD Image Gallery:
 |  |  |  |
back to top
Back to Frigates List. Back to Ships List. Back to selection page. Back to 1st page.