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USS Paul (FF 1080)

USS PAUL was the 29^th KNOX-class frigate. Homeported in Mayport, Fla., PAUL was decommissioned on August 14, 1992 and subsequently leased to Turkey. Stricken from the Navy list on January 11, 1995, PAUL was sold to Turkey on January 9, 2000.

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Crew List:

This section contains the names of sailors who served aboard USS PAUL. It is no official listing but contains the names of sailors who submitted their information.

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USS PAUL Cruise Books:

• Mediterranean Cruise Book 1990

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About the Ship's Name:

Lance Corporal Joe Calvin Paul was born in Williamsburg, Kentucky, on April 23, 1946. He was the son of Callie and Inez Paul and later lived in Dayton, Ohio. After completing grammar school, he attended high school for one year. Shortly after his seventeenth birthday, he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps at Dayton on April 26, 1963.

Paul completed recruit training at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego in August 1963. He was then transferred to Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California, where he underwent individual combat training with the 2nd Infantry Training Regiment. After completing that course in October 1963, he was assigned to Company H, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines, which was then part of the 1st Marine Brigade in Hawaii. He was promoted to private first class in December 1963 and to lance corporal in October 1964.

As the American military commitment in Southeast Asia expanded, Paul sailed with his unit for the western Pacific. Company H arrived at Chu Lai in the Republic of Vietnam on May 7, 1965. After its arrival, the battalion came under the 3rd Marine Division. Paul served as a fire team leader, a position that placed him in direct charge of several Marines within a rifle squad and required him to control their movement and fire during combat.

On August 18, 1965, Paul took part in Operation Starlite near Chu Lai. The operation was the first major offensive conducted primarily by United States forces against a large Viet Cong formation during the Vietnam War. Marines of the 3rd Marine Division moved against the 1st Viet Cong Regiment in the area around the Van Tuong village complex, employing infantry units supported by artillery, aircraft, helicopters, tanks, and naval forces. Paul was serving with Company H, 2nd Battalion, 4th Marines, during the fighting.

During the battle, Paul's platoon came under intense mortar, recoilless-rifle, automatic-weapons, and small-arms fire from entrenched Viet Cong positions. Five Marines were wounded and left exposed in front of the rest of the platoon. Because they were unable to withdraw, they remained vulnerable both to direct fire and to white-phosphorus rifle grenades falling around their positions.

Paul left the relative protection of his platoon and crossed an exposed rice paddy under fire. He positioned himself between the enemy and the wounded Marines and opened fire with his automatic weapon. His purpose was to draw and suppress the opposing fire long enough for the casualties to be reached and evacuated. By deliberately occupying an exposed position, he gave the other Marines time to remove their wounded comrades from the immediate battle area.

Paul was critically wounded while maintaining his position. Despite his injuries, he continued firing until he collapsed and was himself evacuated. He died from his wounds on August 19, 1965, one day after the action. He was nineteen years old. His actions were credited with saving the lives of several fellow Marines. For his conduct during Operation Starlite, Paul was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor, the highest United States military decoration. The award was presented to his parents on February 7, 1967. His other recorded decorations included the Purple Heart, National Defense Service Medal, Vietnam Service Medal with one bronze service star, and Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal.

Paul was buried at Memorial Park Cemetery in Dayton, Ohio. His name was later inscribed on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., on Panel 2E, Line 63.

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USS PAUL History:

USS PAUL was a KNOX-class destroyer escort, later redesignated as a frigate, built primarily for antisubmarine warfare and the protection of carrier groups, amphibious forces, replenishment formations, and other high-value shipping. The contract for the new destroyer escort was awarded on August 25, 1966. Her keel was laid at Avondale Shipyards in Westwego, Louisiana, on September 12, 1969. She was launched and christened on June 20, 1970, with Inez Paul, the mother of the ship's namesake, serving as sponsor. The Navy accepted the ship on July 23, 1971. USS PAUL was commissioned at the Boston Naval Shipyard in Charlestown, Massachusetts, on August 14, 1971, with Commander Donald T. Cannell as her first commanding officer. She was assigned to the Atlantic Fleet and initially homeported at Newport, Rhode Island.

The final months of 1971 were devoted to fitting-out work, acceptance trials, engineering and combat-system training, inspections, and the correction of deficiencies identified after delivery. Operating from Newport, USS PAUL gradually progressed from basic individual-ship training toward full operational readiness. In February 1972, she participated in LantCortEx, an Atlantic escort exercise intended to test the ability of naval forces to protect convoys and other important shipping against submarine attack. The exercise reflected the continuing importance of antisubmarine warfare in North Atlantic Treaty Organization planning during the Cold War.

Following LantCortEx, USS PAUL entered the Boston Naval Shipyard for an extensive modification period. Her original configuration provided limited air defense and did not yet include the full aviation facilities required for regular operation of a shipboard helicopter. During the yard period, she received the Basic Point Defense Missile System, which used Sea Sparrow missiles to provide short-range protection against aircraft and incoming missiles. Her flight deck, hangar, and associated support equipment were also modified for the Light Airborne Multi-Purpose System. The resulting configuration allowed her to operate an SH-2 Seasprite helicopter, extending the ship's ability to search for, identify, and attack submarines beyond the range of her own sonar and torpedo tubes.

After completing the modifications and subsequent trials, USS PAUL departed the Atlantic for the western Pacific and the waters off South Vietnam. She arrived in the combat area on November 23, 1972 and was assigned to naval gunfire-support duties. Her arrival came during the final months of direct United States participation in the Vietnam War. North Vietnam's major offensive earlier in the year had increased the demand for American air and naval support, while negotiations intended to end direct United States involvement were continuing in Paris. USS PAUL used her 5-inch gun against assigned targets ashore and supported forces operating along the South Vietnamese coast. One of her early assignments took her to waters near Chu Lai, where Lance Corporal Joe Paul had been mortally wounded during Operation Starlite in 1965. Her service in the area continued during the period surrounding the Paris Peace Accords, signed on January 27, 1973. The agreement formally ended direct United States combat operations in Vietnam, although American naval forces remained active in the western Pacific to support regional commitments, monitor developments in Indochina, and maintain a contingency capability.

Following the completion of her western Pacific service, USS PAUL returned to the Atlantic Fleet during 1973. In August 1973, her home port was changed from Newport to Mayport, Florida. The transfer placed her among the Atlantic Fleet escorts concentrated at Mayport and gave her direct access to operating areas in the western Atlantic and Caribbean. The remainder of the year was occupied by post-deployment maintenance, local training, inspections, helicopter operations, and preparations for another extended assignment.

USS PAUL's next major deployment took her into the Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf region. On April 9, 1974, USS PAUL and USS MULLINNIX (DD 944) relieved USS KOELSCH (DE 1049) and USS BRUMBY (DE 1044) at Mombasa, Kenya, and assumed duties with the United States Middle East Force. The Middle East Force maintained a relatively small but continuous American naval presence in a strategically important region. Its responsibilities included surveillance, exercises, port visits, liaison with regional governments and navies, and readiness to respond to evacuations, humanitarian emergencies, or political crises.

The deployment followed the October 1973 Arab-Israeli War and the international oil crisis that accompanied it. At the same time, competition between the United States and the Soviet Union was increasing in the Indian Ocean, around the Horn of Africa, and along the approaches to the Persian Gulf. USS PAUL operated across a large geographical area in which American naval facilities and logistical support were more limited than in the Atlantic or Mediterranean. Her work with the Middle East Force included presence operations, training, surveillance, and the maintenance of readiness during long passages between widely separated operating areas and ports. After completing her assignment, she returned to Mayport later in 1974.

USS PAUL subsequently resumed Atlantic and Mediterranean operations. On June 30, 1975, a fleet-wide revision of United States Navy ship classifications changed her designation from DE 1080 to FF 1080. She was thereafter officially classified as a frigate.

USS PAUL was again operating in the Mediterranean during 1976. She arrived at Barcelona, Spain, on April 6, 1976. Mediterranean operations by Atlantic Fleet frigates normally combined antisubmarine training, surveillance, formation maneuvering, communications exercises, aviation operations, and support for carrier or amphibious groups. The Sixth Fleet also maintained the ability to respond to instability in southern Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East, while monitoring the substantial Soviet naval presence in the region.

During June 1976, USS PAUL visited Camden, New Jersey, and Beverly, Massachusetts, in connection with the United States Bicentennial. Operational Navy ships were sent to numerous American ports during the anniversary year to participate in ceremonies and allow members of the public to visit the ships. In January 1977, USS PAUL entered the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard for her first regular overhaul. The work continued until November. The overhaul was substantially more extensive than the shorter repair periods conducted between deployments. Her propulsion plant, auxiliary machinery, hull, electrical equipment, piping, weapons, sensors, communications systems, and habitability spaces were inspected and repaired as required. The yard period restored material condition after several years of operations that had included service in the western Pacific, the Indian Ocean, the Persian Gulf region, the Mediterranean, the Caribbean, and the western Atlantic.

After leaving the shipyard, USS PAUL underwent dock trials, sea trials, inspections, and a progressive return to operational readiness. The crew had to demonstrate safe operation of the engineering plant before rebuilding proficiency in navigation, damage control, gunnery, antisubmarine warfare, helicopter operations, and coordinated fleet exercises. These activities continued into 1978. During the summer of 1978, USS PAUL began a deployment of approximately three months to northern European waters. The deployment placed the frigate in one of the most important maritime regions of the Cold War. North Atlantic Treaty Organization planning depended on keeping the sea routes between North America and Europe open so that personnel, aircraft, equipment, and supplies could reach the European continent during a crisis. Frigates such as USS PAUL trained to detect and track submarines that might threaten reinforcement convoys, carriers, amphibious groups, or replenishment forces. Northern European operations also exposed the ship and her helicopter detachment to difficult weather, colder temperatures, and heavier seas than those normally encountered during Caribbean training.

USS PAUL returned to northern European and eastern Atlantic waters in 1979 as a United States contribution to Standing Naval Force Atlantic. This multinational squadron was maintained as a permanently available North Atlantic Treaty Organization force, with participating nations assigning ships for extended periods. The vessels trained together in communications, formation maneuvering, replenishment, air defense, surface warfare, and antisubmarine operations, allowing warships built to different national standards to function as a coordinated unit.

In February 1979, USS PAUL operated off Gibraltar with the Dutch frigate HNLMS EVERTSEN, the Canadian destroyer HMCS IROQUOIS, the British ships HMS SHEFFIELD and HMS ARIADNE, and the West German frigate FGS LÜBECK. The multinational formation illustrated the purpose of the standing force and the importance of Gibraltar as the entrance to the Mediterranean and a concentration point for allied naval movements between the Atlantic and Sixth Fleet operating areas.

During the latter part of 1979, USS PAUL's combat capabilities were expanded. She received the Tactical Towed Array Sonar System, which allowed a long passive sonar array to be streamed far behind the ship. By moving the sensors away from the noise generated by the hull and propulsion system, the array could improve long-range detection of submarines under suitable acoustic conditions. USS PAUL was also modified to employ the Harpoon antiship missile, giving her the ability to engage hostile surface ships at ranges well beyond those of her 5-inch gun.

USS PAUL also returned to the Mediterranean in late 1979. Between December 13 and December 22, she operated with forces centered on the aircraft carrier USS FORRESTAL (CV 59). The operations followed the turnover of arriving and departing Sixth Fleet units near Rota, Spain. USS PAUL's principal role was antisubmarine protection, but the exercises also included air defense, surface surveillance, communications, replenishment, and coordinated maneuvering. The deployment continued into 1980 before USS PAUL returned to Mayport. She then resumed the normal cycle of maintenance, inspections, local exercises, and preparation for later assignments. By this stage of her career, the combination of an embarked SH-2 Seasprite helicopter, a towed sonar array, Harpoon missiles, and improved communications equipment had made her considerably more capable than she had been at commissioning.

On March 8, 1981, USS PAUL participated in the response to the loss of the Israeli merchant ship MEZADA southeast of Bermuda. The freighter sank during severe weather approximately 96 miles southeast of the island. A United States Navy P-3 maritime patrol aircraft and a United States Coast Guard HC-130 located survivors, while USS PAUL, USS FORRESTAL, USS EDSON (DD 946), and USS MILLER (FF 1091) were among the ships involved in the search-and-rescue effort. Eleven members of the 36-person crew were rescued.

The remainder of 1981 and much of 1982 were spent in maintenance, local and regional operations, inspections, aviation training, antisubmarine exercises, and preparation for future deployment. USS PAUL departed on her seventh major deployment in October 1983. The deployment lasted until May 1984 and included support for the Multinational Force in Lebanon. Lebanon had been divided by civil war since 1975, and the Israeli invasion of 1982 had further complicated a conflict involving Lebanese political and religious factions, Israel, Syria, Palestinian organizations, and foreign peacekeeping contingents. United States Marines were stationed near Beirut International Airport as part of the multinational presence.

USS PAUL deployed during the same month in which the United States Marine barracks in Beirut was destroyed by a truck bomb on October 23, 1983. The attack killed 241 American service members and sharply increased the risks faced by American forces ashore and by the naval force operating offshore. Sixth Fleet ships maintained surveillance, communications, air defense, command support, evacuation capability, and protection for American personnel in and around Beirut. Some American warships carried out naval gunfire missions against positions judged to threaten United States forces. USS PAUL's duties included supporting the continuing naval presence and contributing to the protection of American forces while remaining prepared for further deterioration ashore. The operating environment required close coordination among surface ships, aircraft, amphibious forces, and commanders in Lebanon. USS PAUL completed the deployment and returned to Mayport in May 1984 as the direct American ground role in Beirut was being reduced.

From September through November 1984, USS PAUL was again away from Mayport for approximately two months, carrying out assignments in the Caribbean and eastern Pacific. These operations occurred during a period of heightened American attention to political and military developments in Central America.

Early in 1985, USS PAUL became the first Mayport-based ship to pass the Navy's newly formatted Operational Propulsion Plant Examination. The inspection tested engineering knowledge, compliance with operating procedures, casualty response, maintenance standards, and the crew's ability to operate the steam plant safely under demanding conditions. Successful completion was particularly important aboard a single-shaft frigate whose ability to remain at sea depended on the reliability of its boilers, turbine, reduction gear, generators, and auxiliary machinery.

In June 1985, USS PAUL received the Phalanx close-in weapon system. The radar-controlled rapid-fire gun provided a final defensive layer against aircraft and antiship missiles that had penetrated the longer-range defenses of a task group. The installation reflected the increasing concern over low-flying, sea-skimming missiles and replaced the earlier point-defense arrangement.

During July 1985, USS PAUL completed preparations for overseas service and participated in Readiness Exercise 2-85. She departed Mayport on August 26, 1985 for an approximately eight-month deployment with forces associated with USS SARATOGA (CV 60). The deployment included Exercise Ocean Safari, a major North Atlantic Treaty Organization exercise conducted in the North Atlantic and Norwegian Sea. Ocean Safari tested the movement and protection of allied naval forces, the reinforcement of Europe, carrier operations, antisubmarine warfare, and defense against long-range aircraft and submarines.

USS PAUL also participated in Display Determination 85, another major alliance exercise intended to demonstrate the ability of North Atlantic Treaty Organization forces to move, coordinate, and sustain ships and aircraft across the Atlantic and in European waters. After the North Atlantic phase, USS PAUL continued into the Mediterranean, where she participated in Exercise Iles d'Or with allied naval and air forces. These operations tested the integration of carrier aircraft, surface escorts, submarines, maritime patrol aircraft, and land-based aviation in the confined waters of the Mediterranean. The most important operational phase of the deployment came during the first months of 1986, when USS PAUL participated in the three phases of Operation Attain Document. Libya, under Muammar Gaddafi, claimed much of the Gulf of Sidra as Libyan territorial water and declared a boundary across the Gulf that the United States did not recognize. The American position was that ships and aircraft were entitled to operate beyond the internationally recognized territorial limit.

During the first phases in January and February 1986, United States naval forces operated near and then south of the boundary claimed by Libya in order to assert freedom of navigation. The third phase in March involved a larger force that included the carrier groups centered on USS SARATOGA, USS AMERICA (CV 66), and USS CORAL SEA (CV 43). The wider naval force also included numerous cruisers, destroyers, and frigates. Libyan forces fired surface-to-air missiles at American aircraft and sent missile-armed patrol vessels toward the fleet. United States aircraft and surface ships subsequently attacked several Libyan vessels and military installations. USS PAUL contributed escort, surveillance, antisubmarine, and defensive support to the deployed force. For her service during the deployment, USS PAUL received the Navy Unit Commendation and Navy Expeditionary Medal.

USS PAUL returned to Mayport with the USS SARATOGA Battle Group on April 16, 1986, after nearly eight months away. The arrival occurred one day after American aircraft had conducted Operation El Dorado Canyon against targets in Libya.

Following post-deployment leave and upkeep, USS PAUL entered a drydocking selected restricted availability. The yard period allowed inspection and repair of the underwater hull, propeller, shaft, sea valves, and other equipment requiring dry-dock access. After leaving the yard, the frigate completed refresher training and returned to Atlantic Fleet operations. She also participated in a two-month Mediterranean deployment and law enforcement operations.

On September 17, 1987, USS PAUL operated in a formation centered on the battleship USS IOWA (BB 61). USS IOWA had been returned to service as part of the naval expansion of the 1980s. In late February 1988, USS PAUL departed for a six-month Mediterranean deployment with forces centered on USS DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER (CVN 69). The carrier's wider deployment group included cruisers, destroyers, and frigates assigned to provide air, surface, and antisubmarine protection. USS PAUL's principal contribution was antisubmarine warfare through the combined use of her hull-mounted sonar, towed array, embarked SH-2 Seasprite, and torpedoes. The deployment also involved surveillance, carrier flight operations, replenishment at sea, multinational exercises, and port visits.

On April 14, 1988, members of the crews of USS PAUL and USS CAPODANNO (FF 1093) were attending an event at a United Service Organizations club in Naples, Italy, when a car bomb exploded outside the building. Five people were killed, including four Italian civilians and United States Navy Petty Officer Third Class Angela Santos. Numerous other people were wounded, including American sailors. The bombing occurred on the second anniversary of the United States air strikes against Libya and was treated as a terrorist attack. It required an immediate response by American and Italian medical, security, and investigative authorities.

USS PAUL continued her assigned operations after the Naples bombing. During the deployment, she received the Sixth Fleet's Hook-Em Award for antisubmarine-warfare performance. The award reflected the results achieved by the ship's sonar personnel, combat-information teams, bridge watchstanders, and embarked helicopter detachment during tracking exercises and tactical evaluations. USS PAUL returned to Mayport in August 1988 and entered an intensive selected restricted availability.

The availability continued into January 1989. Following the completion of repairs and system work, USS PAUL passed a Light-Off Examination, demonstrating that her engineering plant could be returned to operation safely. She subsequently resumed Second Fleet operations, refresher training, inspections, helicopter exercises, and maritime law-enforcement assignments. These activities also prepared the frigate for what would become her final major overseas deployment.

USS PAUL departed Mayport on March 8, 1990 with the deployment group centered on USS DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER. The cruise was originally planned as a routine Sixth Fleet deployment involving carrier flight operations, antisubmarine exercises, air-defense training, multinational maneuvers, surveillance, replenishment, and port visits. It later became part of the initial United States naval response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. The deployment included nine port visits. Documented destinations included Villefranche, France; Palma de Mallorca, Spain; Messina, Italy; Catania, Italy; Tunis, Tunisia; Naples, Italy; Cartagena, Spain; and Gibraltar. The port periods allowed maintenance, replenishment, official engagements, and crew rest between extended periods at sea.

At Villefranche, USS PAUL anchored off the French Riviera and used small boats to transfer personnel between ship and shore. Palma de Mallorca was a regular western Mediterranean logistics and liberty destination for Sixth Fleet ships. Messina and Catania supported operations around Sicily and the central Mediterranean, while Naples remained an important American naval command and support center in southern Europe. Tunis provided a North African port visit, and Cartagena gave the ship access to a major Spanish naval facility. Gibraltar marked the narrow entrance between the Mediterranean and Atlantic and was a frequent staging point for naval movements between the two regions.

During the first months of the deployment, USS PAUL conducted antisubmarine exercises and screening operations in support of the carrier force. Her embarked helicopter extended the area in which possible submarine contacts could be investigated, while the towed array provided a passive long-range detection capability. The frigate also practiced air defense, surface surveillance, communications, formation maneuvering, and replenishment at sea.

On August 2, 1990, Iraqi forces invaded Kuwait. The invasion transformed the strategic situation in the Middle East and led the United States to begin Operation Desert Shield. The immediate objectives were to deter an Iraqi advance into Saudi Arabia, protect regional allies, and move sufficient American and coalition forces into the area to prevent further aggression. The USS DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER battle group was ordered through the Suez Canal. It passed southward through the canal on August 8, 1990 and operated in the Red Sea region as part of the initial American naval response. USS PAUL remained associated with the carrier force during this phase from August 8 through August 22. The group returned northward through the Suez Canal on August 23.

USS PAUL's duties included screening the carrier, maintaining surface and air surveillance, monitoring shipping and other contacts, and remaining prepared to respond to submarine, surface, or air threats. Her rapid movement from the Mediterranean into the Red Sea provided an immediately available naval presence while additional American land- and sea-based forces were still moving toward the region. USS PAUL did not operate in the Persian Gulf itself during this phase and did not enter combat.

After leaving the Red Sea region, USS PAUL began the return passage to the United States. She arrived at Mayport on September 8, 1990, exactly six months after her departure. USS DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER returned to Norfolk several days later.

On September 24, 1990, a post-deployment awards ceremony was held aboard USS PAUL. More than forty individual decorations and awards were presented. The ceremony also recognized the ship's antisubmarine-warfare performance, engineering readiness, and the work completed during the deployment.

USS PAUL did not undertake another major overseas cruise. During 1991 and the first months of 1992, she remained with the Atlantic Fleet and completed maintenance, local operations, training, inspections, and preparations for retirement. These final years coincided with the end of the Cold War, the dissolution of the Soviet Union, and substantial reductions in the size of the United States Navy. Older steam-powered frigates required relatively large crews and increasingly expensive maintenance, while newer ships were assuming their remaining antisubmarine and escort duties.

USS PAUL was decommissioned at Mayport on August 14, 1992, exactly 21 years after her commissioning. After decommissioning, USS PAUL was retained in reserve while the Navy considered possible transfer or disposal. She was formally stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on January 11, 1995. Unlike several other KNOX-class frigates, she was not recommissioned as an operational warship by a foreign navy. On January 9, 2000, the former USS PAUL was transferred to Turkey under the Security Assistance Program for use as a source of spare parts. Machinery, fittings, and other components could be removed to support KNOX-class frigates already serving with the Turkish Navy. The former frigate remained non-operational and was eventually sold for dismantling. By August 28, 2002, she was at the shipbreaking facilities at Aliaga, Turkey, where dismantling was underway.

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