USS Gallant (MSO-489), an , was the second ship 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...

 to be named Gallant. The ship served in the US Navy from 1954 until 1994, when it was sold to Taiwan

Taiwan

Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...

 under the Security Assistance Program and renamed to Yung Ku (M 1308).

The second Gallant (AM-489) was laid down on 21 May 1953 by J. M. Martinac Shipbuilding Corp., Tacoma, Washington

Tacoma, Washington

Tacoma is a mid-sized urban port city and the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. The city is on Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Park. The population was 198,397, according to...

; launched on 4 June 1954; sponsored by Mrs. Walter Meserole; reclassified (MSO-489) on 7 February 1955; and commissioned as Gallant (MSO-489) at Tacoma on 14 September 1955, Lieutenant

Lieutenant

A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...

 Dixon Lademan in command.

1955–1960

After shakedown, Gallant based from Long Beach, California

Long Beach, California

Long Beach is a city situated in Los Angeles County in Southern California, on the Pacific coast of the United States. The city is the 36th-largest city in the nation and the seventh-largest in California. As of 2010, its population was 462,257...

, as a unit of Mine Division 96, Mine Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet. Her readiness exercises ranged as far south as Acapulco, Mexico. She rescued two crew members of a Navy plane downed off Santa Catalina Island

Santa Catalina Island, California

Santa Catalina Island, often called Catalina Island, or just Catalina, is a rocky island off the coast of the U.S. state of California. The island is long and across at its greatest width. The island is located about south-southwest of Los Angeles, California. The highest point on the island is...

 and joined Mine Division 73 in January 1957 for concentrated training preparatory to a six-month tour with the 7th Fleet

United States Seventh Fleet

The Seventh Fleet is the United States Navy's permanent forward projection force based in Yokosuka, Japan, with units positioned near Japan and South Korea. It is a component fleet force under the United States Pacific Fleet. At present, it is the largest of the forward-deployed U.S. fleets, with...

; (March-August 1957). This duty found her in Korean waters for combined operations with the Republic of Korea Navy

Republic of Korea Navy

The Republic of Korea Navy or the ROK Navy is the branch of the South Korean armed forces responsible for conducting naval operations and amphibious landing operations. The ROK Navy includes the Republic of Korea Marine Corps, which is a quasi-autonomous organization...

, followed by similar service off Formosa

Taiwan

Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...

 with units of the Chinese Nationalist Navy. Other training took her to ports of 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...

 and Hong Kong

Hong Kong

Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...

 before her return to Long Beach on 20 August 1957.

After a yard overhaul at San Diego, she took part in amphibious landing exercises along the California coast followed by combined mine sweeping operations; with Canadian Mine Squadron 2 off the coast of Vancouver, British Columbia, in October 1958. Another overhaul period was completed by April 1959 when she began refresher training and mine countermeasures exercises that won her the Battle Efficiency Competition Award "E" and the Minesweeping "M" as the outstanding minesweeper of the Pacific Mine Force during Fiscal 1959.

1960–1966

Gallant's second tour with the 7th Fleet (August 1959-March 1960) again included training with the Republic of Korea Navy. While operating out of the Philippines, she participated in joint readiness operations with the navies of SEATO nations. She returned to Long Beach in March 1960 and spent the next 12 months in a training schedule with the Mine force of the 1st Fleet that carried her as far north as Ketchikan, Alaska

Ketchikan, Alaska

Ketchikan is a city in Ketchikan Gateway Borough, Alaska, United States, the southeasternmost sizable city in that state. With an estimated population of 7,368 in 2010 within the city limits, it is the fifth most populous city in the state....

.

Service during her third deployment in the Far East (August 1961-April 1962) once again included fleet readiness defense exercises with the navies of Southeast Asia. In addition, she patrolled the coast of South Vietnam

South Vietnam

South Vietnam was a state which governed southern Vietnam until 1975. It received international recognition in 1950 as the "State of Vietnam" and later as the "Republic of Vietnam" . Its capital was Saigon...

 and provided valuable service during training operations of the South Vietnam Navy. Returning to the West Coast on 20 April 1962, she resumed duty out of Long Beach; and during the next 15 months participated in fleet maneuvers and mine squadron exercises off southern California.

Departing Long Beach on 12 August 1963, Gallant steamed on her fourth deployment to the troubled Far East, where she arrived Sasebo, Japan, on 23 September. There, she resumed peace-keeping operations with the 7th Fleet; and, during readiness patrols in Far Eastern waters, she cruised from the coast of South Korea through the East China and South China Seas to the coast of Southeast Asia. She departed WestPac in the spring of 1964, and after additional training in hunting mines, sailed for blockade

Blockade

A blockade is an effort to cut off food, supplies, war material or communications from a particular area by force, either in part or totally. A blockade should not be confused with an embargo or sanctions, which are legal barriers to trade, and is distinct from a siege in that a blockade is usually...

 and coastal patrol duty off Vietnam. Arriving off the southern coast of South Vietnam on 1 October 1965, she joined "Operation Market Time

Operation Market Time

Operation Market Time was the United States Navy’s effort to stop troops and supplies from flowing by sea from North Vietnam to South Vietnam during the Vietnam War...

", designed to control coastal infiltration of men and supplies by the Viet Cong. Throughout the remainder of the year, Gallant boarded and searched suspicious Vietnamese boats.

She supported "Market Time" operations until 9 March 1966 when she departed for the United States. Steaming via the Philippines, Guam

Guam

Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...

, and 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...

, she arrived Long Beach on 28 April. During the remainder of the year, she operated along the West Coast from Long Beach to Portland, Oregon

Portland, Oregon

Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...

, to maintain her fighting capabilities and operational readiness.

Decommissioning and sale

Decommissioned on 29 April 1994 Gallant was sold to Taiwan

Taiwan

Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...

on 8 September 1994, under the Security Assistance Program, and renamed Yung Ku (M 1308).

External links

• NVR - MSO-489