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USS Bebas (DE-10)
Encyclopedia
USS Bebas (BDE-10/DE-10) was an Evarts-class
short-hull destroyer escort
in the service of the United States Navy
. She was named for Ensign Gus George Bebas
.
Originally allocated to the Royal Navy
under lend lease, BDE-10 was laid down on 27 November 1942 at the Boston Navy Yard
; launched on 9 January 1943; reallocated to the United States Navy on 25 January 1943; named Bebas (DE-10) on 19 February 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Angeline M. Bebas, Ens. Bebas's mother, in a special christening ceremony just before commissioning; and commissioned at Boston, Massachusetts on 15 May 1943, Lieutenant Commander George B. Gilbertson, USNR, in command.
After arriving off Bermuda
on 17 June for shakedown, the destroyer escort steamed back to the New York Navy Yard for repairs between 24 and 29 June. After returning to Bermudan waters to resume her interrupted shakedown training, Bebas completed that evolution during July and then spent the next few weeks in coastal escort and patrol operations out of Casco Bay
in Maine
, Boston, New York
, and Norfolk, Virginia
.
Upon departing Hampton Roads
on 24 August in company with three of her sister ships, Bebas sailed for the Pacific. After transiting the Panama Canal
on 1 September, she proceeded via the Galapagos and Society Islands
to Espiritu Santo
in the New Hebrides
. The warship operated out of that port during October and November, conducting patrol and escort missions to Noumea
, New Caledonia
, and to Guadalcanal
in the Solomons. Highlighting this service was her attempt to salvage the Liberty ship
John H. Couch that had been set ablaze by a Japan
ese aerial torpedo
during a raid on the night of 11 October.
Bebas, patrolling an antisubmarine sector off Lunga and Koli Points, Guadalcanal, went to general quarters at 0149 to investigate a "fire explosion at sea." The destroyer escort then determined the fire to be on board a beached ship, and reduced speed to draw closer. Going alongside at 0600, Bebas sent over her fire and rescue party to fight gasoline fires raging in John H. Couch's holds two and three, but the flames had gained the upper hand. After recovering her men, the warship backed away and shelled the merchahtman's number two hold, in an attempt to stop the fire or to sink the ship.
Bebas was subsequently assigned "killer operations and local escort" duty under the auspices of the Commanding General, Fiji Island garrison, and carried out those tasks through January 1944. She then resumed convoy escort and patrol work in the Solomons, New Hebrides
, and New Caledonia
areas. In April 1944, the destroyer escort returned to the United States for an overhaul at Hunters Point.
Clearing the west coast on 30 May, Bebas proceeded via Pearl Harbor
to the Marshall Islands
and reached Eniwetok on 27 June for convoy escort duty between Pearl Harbor and the Marshalls through the end of July. She then joined a "hunter-killer" task group formed around the escort carrier and provided support for the occupation of the Western Carolines and for the invasion of the Philippines
at Leyte.
Next, after performing screening and escort duties out of the Palau
s and Ulithi
late in October, Bebas underwent repairs at Espiritu Santo and then escorted shipping between the Palaus, Ulithi, and Eniwetok during the first three months of 1945.
On 2 February 1945, Bebas cleared Eniwetok in company with the tankers and SS Egg Harbor, bound for Ulithi. On the second night out, Bebas and her two charges identified another convoy as friendly and then picked up a surface radar contact which a quick exchange of information showed to be "definitely suspicious." Radar plot indicated that the contact was crossing the track of both convoys.
Bebas obtained permission from the convoy commodore to pursue the target and went to general quarters. The quarry soon disappeared, only to be picked up on sonar—a definite submarine. Reducing speed to carry out a deliberate attack, Bebas stalked the submarine. Soon after her first "hedgehog" attack failed, she followed up with a second and heard one sharp and two muffled detonations soon thereafter. A third "hedgehog" pattern yielded negative results.
An hour later, wood fragments, varying in length from two to ten feet, found on the water near the attack location prompted Bebas to carry out a box search through the night; and, the following morning, four other destroyer escorts and an Eniwetok-based PBM Martin Mariner
patrol bomber joined the search. Between 0800 and 1525, they searched over 600 square miles (1,554 km²) of ocean. Late in the search, the PBM sent them to a concentrated oil slick about four miles (6 km) from the site of the "hedgehog" attack on the previous night. Bebas took samples of the slick—heavy sludge or a mixture of lubricating oil and fuel oil—as well as a piece of wood. That afternoon, the four destroyer escorts parted company with Bebas, but joined her to continue the hunt. Further investigations yielded no additional evidence, and the search was terminated at noon on 6 February. Postwar accounting indicated no Japanese submarine losses that day, so the identity of Bebas target remains a mystery.
Bebas then participated in the invasion of Okinawa, escorting transports and patrolling in the antisubmarine screen off the beachhead. While so engaged on 12 May, she rescued Lt. Robert R. Klingman, USMC, of VMF-312, after his F4U Corsair
had suffered hydraulic system failure. Later that same morning, while Bebas witnessed the kamikaze attack on , one of her 20-millimeter guns scored hits on the "Oscar" before it crashed into the nearby battleship. The destroyer escort then screened refueling groups supporting carrier strikes on the Japanese homeland in July before proceeding to Hawaii
for repairs and alterations.
She entered Pearl Harbor on 3 August and was still there on 15 August when Japan agreed to capitulate, ending the war. On 4 September, Bebas departed Oahu
for the west coast of the United States. Reaching San Francisco, California
on 9 September, Bebas shifted to San Pedro and was decommissioned there on 18 October 1945. Her name was struck from the Navy list
on 1 November 1945, and she was sold to the Pacific Bridge Co., San Francisco, in January 1947 for scrapping.
Bebas (DE-10) was awarded three battle stars for her World War II service.
Evarts class destroyer escort
The Evarts class destroyer escorts were destroyer escorts launched in the United States in 1942–1944. They served in World War II as convoy escorts and anti-submarine warfare ships. They were also known as the GMT or "short hull" DE class, with GMT standing for General Motors Tandem Diesel...
short-hull destroyer escort
Destroyer escort
A destroyer escort is the classification for a smaller, lightly armed warship designed to be used to escort convoys of merchant marine ships, primarily of the United States Merchant Marine in World War II. It is employed primarily for anti-submarine warfare, but also provides some protection...
in the service of the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
. She was named for Ensign Gus George Bebas
Gus George Bebas
Gus George Bebas, born on 24 February 1914 in Chicago, Illinois, received his commission as an ensign in the U.S. Naval Reserve on 26 May 1938.Bebas attended the Northwestern University School of Engineering, earning a B.S. degree in commerce in 1939...
.
Originally allocated to the Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
under lend lease, BDE-10 was laid down on 27 November 1942 at the Boston Navy Yard
Boston Navy Yard
The Boston Navy Yard, originally called the Charlestown Navy Yard and later Boston Naval Shipyard, was one of the oldest shipbuilding facilities in the United States Navy. Established in 1801, it was officially closed as an active naval installation on July 1, 1974, and the property was...
; launched on 9 January 1943; reallocated to the United States Navy on 25 January 1943; named Bebas (DE-10) on 19 February 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Angeline M. Bebas, Ens. Bebas's mother, in a special christening ceremony just before commissioning; and commissioned at Boston, Massachusetts on 15 May 1943, Lieutenant Commander George B. Gilbertson, USNR, in command.
After arriving off Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
on 17 June for shakedown, the destroyer escort steamed back to the New York Navy Yard for repairs between 24 and 29 June. After returning to Bermudan waters to resume her interrupted shakedown training, Bebas completed that evolution during July and then spent the next few weeks in coastal escort and patrol operations out of Casco Bay
Casco Bay
Casco Bay is an inlet of the Gulf of Maine on the southern coast of Maine, New England, United States. Its easternmost approach is Cape Small and its westernmost approach is Two Lights in Cape Elizabeth...
in Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
, Boston, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, and Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
.
Upon departing Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...
on 24 August in company with three of her sister ships, Bebas sailed for the Pacific. After transiting the Panama Canal
Panama Canal
The Panama Canal is a ship canal in Panama that joins the Atlantic Ocean and the Pacific Ocean and is a key conduit for international maritime trade. Built from 1904 to 1914, the canal has seen annual traffic rise from about 1,000 ships early on to 14,702 vessels measuring a total of 309.6...
on 1 September, she proceeded via the Galapagos and Society Islands
Society Islands
The Society Islands are a group of islands in the South Pacific Ocean. They are politically part of French Polynesia. The archipelago is generally believed to have been named by Captain James Cook in honor of the Royal Society, the sponsor of the first British scientific survey of the islands;...
to Espiritu Santo
Espiritu Santo
Espiritu Santo is the largest island in the nation of Vanuatu, with an area of . It belongs to the archipelago of the New Hebrides in the Pacific region of Melanesia. It is in the Sanma Province of Vanuatu....
in the New Hebrides
New Hebrides
New Hebrides was the colonial name for an island group in the South Pacific that now forms the nation of Vanuatu. The New Hebrides were colonized by both the British and French in the 18th century shortly after Captain James Cook visited the islands...
. The warship operated out of that port during October and November, conducting patrol and escort missions to Noumea
Nouméa
Nouméa is the capital city of the French territory of New Caledonia. It is situated on a peninsula in the south of New Caledonia's main island, Grande Terre, and is home to the majority of the island's European, Polynesian , Indonesian, and Vietnamese populations, as well as many Melanesians,...
, New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
, and to Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal
Guadalcanal is a tropical island in the South-Western Pacific. The largest island in the Solomons, it was discovered by the Spanish expedition of Alvaro de Mendaña in 1568...
in the Solomons. Highlighting this service was her attempt to salvage the Liberty ship
Liberty ship
Liberty ships were cargo ships built in the United States during World War II. Though British in conception, they were adapted by the U.S. as they were cheap and quick to build, and came to symbolize U.S. wartime industrial output. Based on vessels ordered by Britain to replace ships torpedoed by...
John H. Couch that had been set ablaze by a Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese aerial torpedo
Aerial torpedo
The aerial torpedo, airborne torpedo or air-dropped torpedo is a naval weapon, the torpedo, designed to be dropped into water from an aircraft after which it propels itself to the target. First used in World War I, air-dropped torpedoes were used extensively in World War II, and remain in limited...
during a raid on the night of 11 October.
Bebas, patrolling an antisubmarine sector off Lunga and Koli Points, Guadalcanal, went to general quarters at 0149 to investigate a "fire explosion at sea." The destroyer escort then determined the fire to be on board a beached ship, and reduced speed to draw closer. Going alongside at 0600, Bebas sent over her fire and rescue party to fight gasoline fires raging in John H. Couch's holds two and three, but the flames had gained the upper hand. After recovering her men, the warship backed away and shelled the merchahtman's number two hold, in an attempt to stop the fire or to sink the ship.
Bebas was subsequently assigned "killer operations and local escort" duty under the auspices of the Commanding General, Fiji Island garrison, and carried out those tasks through January 1944. She then resumed convoy escort and patrol work in the Solomons, New Hebrides
New Hebrides
New Hebrides was the colonial name for an island group in the South Pacific that now forms the nation of Vanuatu. The New Hebrides were colonized by both the British and French in the 18th century shortly after Captain James Cook visited the islands...
, and New Caledonia
New Caledonia
New Caledonia is a special collectivity of France located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, east of Australia and about from Metropolitan France. The archipelago, part of the Melanesia subregion, includes the main island of Grande Terre, the Loyalty Islands, the Belep archipelago, the Isle of...
areas. In April 1944, the destroyer escort returned to the United States for an overhaul at Hunters Point.
Clearing the west coast on 30 May, Bebas proceeded via Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
to the Marshall Islands
Marshall Islands
The Republic of the Marshall Islands , , is a Micronesian nation of atolls and islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, just west of the International Date Line and just north of the Equator. As of July 2011 the population was 67,182...
and reached Eniwetok on 27 June for convoy escort duty between Pearl Harbor and the Marshalls through the end of July. She then joined a "hunter-killer" task group formed around the escort carrier and provided support for the occupation of the Western Carolines and for the invasion of the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
at Leyte.
Next, after performing screening and escort duties out of the Palau
Palau
Palau , officially the Republic of Palau , is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Philippines and south of Tokyo. In 1978, after three decades as being part of the United Nations trusteeship, Palau chose independence instead of becoming part of the Federated States of Micronesia, a...
s and Ulithi
Ulithi
Ulithi is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about 191 km east of Yap. It consists of 40 islets totalling , surrounding a lagoon about long and up to wide—at one of the largest in the world. It is administered by the state of Yap in the Federated States of...
late in October, Bebas underwent repairs at Espiritu Santo and then escorted shipping between the Palaus, Ulithi, and Eniwetok during the first three months of 1945.
On 2 February 1945, Bebas cleared Eniwetok in company with the tankers and SS Egg Harbor, bound for Ulithi. On the second night out, Bebas and her two charges identified another convoy as friendly and then picked up a surface radar contact which a quick exchange of information showed to be "definitely suspicious." Radar plot indicated that the contact was crossing the track of both convoys.
Bebas obtained permission from the convoy commodore to pursue the target and went to general quarters. The quarry soon disappeared, only to be picked up on sonar—a definite submarine. Reducing speed to carry out a deliberate attack, Bebas stalked the submarine. Soon after her first "hedgehog" attack failed, she followed up with a second and heard one sharp and two muffled detonations soon thereafter. A third "hedgehog" pattern yielded negative results.
An hour later, wood fragments, varying in length from two to ten feet, found on the water near the attack location prompted Bebas to carry out a box search through the night; and, the following morning, four other destroyer escorts and an Eniwetok-based PBM Martin Mariner
PBM Mariner
The Martin PBM Mariner was a patrol bomber flying boat of World War II and the early Cold War period. It was designed to complement the PBY Catalina in service. A total of 1,366 were built, with the first example flying on 18 February 1939 and the type entering service in September 1940.-Design and...
patrol bomber joined the search. Between 0800 and 1525, they searched over 600 square miles (1,554 km²) of ocean. Late in the search, the PBM sent them to a concentrated oil slick about four miles (6 km) from the site of the "hedgehog" attack on the previous night. Bebas took samples of the slick—heavy sludge or a mixture of lubricating oil and fuel oil—as well as a piece of wood. That afternoon, the four destroyer escorts parted company with Bebas, but joined her to continue the hunt. Further investigations yielded no additional evidence, and the search was terminated at noon on 6 February. Postwar accounting indicated no Japanese submarine losses that day, so the identity of Bebas target remains a mystery.
Bebas then participated in the invasion of Okinawa, escorting transports and patrolling in the antisubmarine screen off the beachhead. While so engaged on 12 May, she rescued Lt. Robert R. Klingman, USMC, of VMF-312, after his F4U Corsair
F4U Corsair
The Vought F4U Corsair was a carrier-capable fighter aircraft that saw service primarily in World War II and the Korean War. Demand for the aircraft soon overwhelmed Vought's manufacturing capability, resulting in production by Goodyear and Brewster: Goodyear-built Corsairs were designated FG and...
had suffered hydraulic system failure. Later that same morning, while Bebas witnessed the kamikaze attack on , one of her 20-millimeter guns scored hits on the "Oscar" before it crashed into the nearby battleship. The destroyer escort then screened refueling groups supporting carrier strikes on the Japanese homeland in July before proceeding to Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii is the newest of the 50 U.S. states , and is the only U.S. state made up entirely of islands. It is the northernmost island group in Polynesia, occupying most of an archipelago in the central Pacific Ocean, southwest of the continental United States, southeast of Japan, and northeast of...
for repairs and alterations.
She entered Pearl Harbor on 3 August and was still there on 15 August when Japan agreed to capitulate, ending the war. On 4 September, Bebas departed Oahu
Oahu
Oahu or Oahu , known as "The Gathering Place", is the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands and most populous of the islands in the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital Honolulu is located on the southeast coast...
for the west coast of the United States. Reaching San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
on 9 September, Bebas shifted to San Pedro and was decommissioned there on 18 October 1945. Her name was struck from the Navy list
Naval Vessel Register
The Naval Vessel Register is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from the time a vessel is authorized through its life cycle and...
on 1 November 1945, and she was sold to the Pacific Bridge Co., San Francisco, in January 1947 for scrapping.
Bebas (DE-10) was awarded three battle stars for her World War II service.
Awards
 |
Combat Action Ribbon Combat Action Ribbon The Combat Action Ribbon is a personal military decoration of the United States Navy, United States Marine Corps, and United States Coast Guard which is awarded to those who, in any grade including and below that of a Captain in the Navy and Coast Guard , have actively participated in ground or... (retroactive) |
 |
American Campaign Medal American Campaign Medal The American Campaign Medal was a military decoration of the United States armed forces which was first created on November 6, 1942 by issued by President Franklin D. Roosevelt... |
| Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal The Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal is a service decoration of the Second World War which was awarded to any member of the United States military who served in the Pacific Theater from 1941 to 1945 and was created on November 6, 1942 by issued by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The medal was... (with three service star Service star A service star, also referred to as a battle star, campaign star, or engagement star, is an attachment to a United States military decoration which denotes participation in military campaigns or multiple bestowals of the same award. Service stars are typically issued for campaign medals, service... s) |
|
 |
World War II Victory Medal |