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USS Halsey Powell (DD-686)
Encyclopedia
USS Halsey Powell (DD-686), a Fletcher-class
destroyer
, was a ship of the United States Navy
to be named for Captain
Halsey Powell
, (1883–1936), who served during World War I.
Halsey Powell was launched
by Bethlehem Steel
Co., Staten Island, N.Y., on 30 June 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Halsey Powell, widow of Captain Powell; and commissioned
on 25 October 1943, Commander
W. T. McGarry in command.
Halsey Powell conducted her shakedown training off the East Coast, and sailed on 20 January 1944 from Norfolk
to join the Pacific Fleet
. Arriving Pearl Harbor
on 12 February, the destroyer steamed to Majuro
to escort tanker
s back to Hawaii
, returning to the Marshall Islands
in March for escort and patrol duty. As the islands fell to American amphibious troops, Halsey Powell and other ships protected the task force from air and submarine attack. The destroyer carried out a series of effective attacks on on 23 March, and after running out of depth charges yielded to and to complete the kill.
Following the Marshalls operation, Halsey Powell departed Pearl Harbor on 30 May for rehearsals in connection with the upcoming Marianas invasions
. She sortied with the assault force from Eniwetok on 11 June, and as troops stormed ashore on Saipan
four days later she took up fire-support station off the beaches, and was an effective force in victory. In addition to screening, radar picket duties, and fire support for ground forces, Halsey Powell sank a net tender, a cargo ship and numerous small craft in the lagoon with her guns.
The operation a success, she entered Saipan
harbor on 21 June, after the carrier forces had decimated the Japanese in the Battle of the Philippine Sea
. She then steamed to Tinian
, bombarding shore positions, clearing the way for troops and screening through the invasion there on 24 July. Following this she spent two weeks on screening and radar picket duty off Guam
before returning to Eniwetok on 22 August to join the fast carrier task force.
Halsey Powell sortied with Vice Admiral
Marc Mitscher
's famous Fast Carrier Task Force
(then called TF 38), on 29 August. Operating for long periods at sea by underway refueling and replenishment, this powerful carrier
force represented the ultimate in mobile striking power afloat. During September the carriers, screened by Halsey Powell and other destroyers, struck the Palau
s and the Philippines
, returning to Ulithi
on 1 October.
Five days later, the ships sailed on one of the most important operations of the long Pacific war. After air strikes on Okinawa the great task force turned to its real objective, the airfields on Formosa
. The air battle raged from 12-15 October, with Halsey Powell assisting in the splashing of many Japanese aircraft. At a cost of three damaged ships, the task force had driven off nearly a thousand enemy aircraft, downing over 500.
As the invasion of Leyte
began, the desperate Japanese Navy
moved with its remaining units into the Philippines. This three-pronged attack, launched almost without air power, precipitated the epochal Battle for Leyte Gulf. Halsey Powell screened Admiral Gerald F. Bogan
's carriers during the strikes which made up one phase of the battle, the Battle of the Sibuyan Sea, on 24 October. Battleship
was sunk and Vice Admiral Takeo Kurita
's ships were delayed and confused. That night the bulk of TF 38 steamed north to meet another Japanese fleet, and in the Battle off Cape Engaño next day another major victory was won. Halsey Powell picked up downed pilots from 29-30 October and returned to Ulithi with the task force on 9 November 1944. During the remainder of 1944 TF 38 carried out heavy strikes against the Philippines and Formosa.
The fleet sailed into the South China Sea
on 9–15 January to support the Invasion of Lingayen Gulf
, and the supporting ships fought off air attacks the carriers struck bases in China and Indochina
. With damaged by a kamikaze
on 21 January, Halsey Powell was assigned to escort her to Ulithi, where they arrived on 24 January 1945.
The carrier task force departed again in February to attack Japan itself. Halsey Powell screened the carriers during this attack, in covering attacks for the Iwo Jima invasion
on 19 February, and later during more strikes on Japan. The destroyer shot down one attacking aircraft on 16 February and assisted with many others. The veteran carrier groups returned on 1 March to Ulithi, but were underway again on 14 March to soften up Okinawa for the coming assault, and to strike more blows at Japan. On 20 March, Halsey Powell was alongside when Japanese aircraft attacked. As the destroyer was getting clear, the aircraft overshot the carrier and crashed Halsey Powell. Her steering gear jammed, but alert action with the engines averted a collision. Fires were put out, and although 9 were killed and over 30 wounded in the attack the ship reached Ulithi on 25 March.
Halsey Powell arrived San Pedro for battle repairs on 8 May, but with the Pacific war reaching its climax sailed again for Pearl Harbor on 19 July 1945. She arrived Eniwetok on 17 August, two days after the surrender of Japan, and was present in Tokyo Bay
for the formal surrender ceremonies 2 September. The ship then supported the occupation forces until departing 31 October for Puget Sound
. Halsey Powell decommissioned on 10 December 1946 at San Diego and was placed in the Pacific Reserve Fleet.
, Halsey Powell recommissioned on 27 April 1951. After shakedown and training exercises the ship sailed for the familiar waters of the Far East 23 July from Long Beach
, arriving Japan 16 August. Joining Task Force 77, the destroyer acted as plane guard and screening ship while the carrier planes kept up constant pressure on the Communist lines and shore installations. Halsey Powell continued these operations off the eastern coast of Korea
until October, when she departed the nearly stabilized war zone for training off Okinawa. Late in the month she returned to take part in destructive bombardments of Suwon Dam, Wonsan
, Hungnam
, and other areas. Patrolling and screening duties continued until the ship sailed for the United States on 20 February 1952.
Halsey Powell got underway for her second tour in Korea on 4 October 1952, and in the next 7 months took part in shore bombardment and screening duties as United Nations Command
naval strength continued to seal off North Korea
from the sea. The destroyer returned to the United States 6 May 1953, and after training exercises out of San Diego sailed once more for Japan on 26 December 1953.
, and engaging in tactical exercises with other units of the Pacific Fleet. In September-October 1958 the ship aided Nationalist Chinese
operations in the Quemoy-Matsu crisis, convoying transports and standing by to deter attack by the Communist Chinese
. Seapower was a decisive force in checking the spread of communism.
Halsey Powells trim silhouette became familiar at many far eastern ports. She continued to alternate these important operations with the 7th Fleet
with training and readiness exercises off the west coast. In recent years this included practice cruises with NROTC midshipmen
. Hasley Powell continued to be an important contributor to peace in the Far East as well as America's readiness at sea. During May-July 1962, the destroyer took part in important nuclear tests in the Pacific, and returned in 1963-1964 to her regular pattern of deployments.
On 1 January 1965, Halsey Powell was assigned to Reserve Destroyer Squadron 27 with Long Beach as her home port
. She operated as a Naval Reserve training ship through 1967, cruising between Vancouver, Canada, and Mazatlán
, Mexico.
On 27 April 1968, Halsey Powell was transferred to South Korea
. She was striken from the Naval Vessel Register
on 2 June 1975.
27 April 1968, the ex-Halsey Powell was renamed ROKS Seoul, after the nation's capital
.
She was stricken and scrapped in 1982.
Fletcher class destroyer
The Fletcher class were a class of destroyers built by the United States during World War II. The class was designed in 1939 as a result of dissatisfaction with the earlier destroyer leader types...
destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
, was a 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 for Captain
Captain (naval)
Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The NATO rank code is OF-5, equivalent to an army full colonel....
Halsey Powell
Halsey Powell
Captain Halsey Powell, USN was a United States Navy officer of the first half of the 20th century, who received the Distinguished Service Medal for outstanding performance as a destroyer division commander on convoy duty during World War I.-Biography:Powell was born 3 August 1883 in McAfee,...
, (1883–1936), who served during World War I.
Halsey Powell was launched
Ship naming and launching
The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.-Methods of launch:There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely...
by Bethlehem Steel
Bethlehem Steel
The Bethlehem Steel Corporation , based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, was once the second-largest steel producer in the United States, after Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania-based U.S. Steel. After a decline in the U.S...
Co., Staten Island, N.Y., on 30 June 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Halsey Powell, widow of Captain Powell; and commissioned
Ship commissioning
Ship commissioning is the act or ceremony of placing a ship in active service, and may be regarded as a particular application of the general concepts and practices of project commissioning. The term is most commonly applied to the placing of a warship in active duty with its country's military...
on 25 October 1943, Commander
Commander (United States)
In the United States, commander is a military rank that is also sometimes used as a military title, depending on the branch of service. It is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the military, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Naval rank:In the United States...
W. T. McGarry in command.
1944
Halsey Powell conducted her shakedown training off the East Coast, and sailed on 20 January 1944 from Norfolk
Naval Station Norfolk
Naval Station Norfolk, in Norfolk, Virginia, is a base of the United States Navy, supporting naval forces in the United States Fleet Forces Command, those operating in the Atlantic Ocean, Mediterranean Sea, and Indian Ocean...
to join the Pacific Fleet
United States Pacific Fleet
The United States Pacific Fleet is a Pacific Ocean theater-level component command of the United States Navy that provides naval resources under the operational control of the United States Pacific Command. Its home port is at Pearl Harbor Naval Base, Hawaii. It is commanded by Admiral Patrick M...
. Arriving 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...
on 12 February, the destroyer steamed to Majuro
Majuro
Majuro , is a large coral atoll of 64 islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district of the Ratak Chain of the Marshall Islands. The atoll itself has a land area of and encloses a lagoon of...
to escort tanker
Tanker (ship)
A tanker is a ship designed to transport liquids in bulk. Major types of tankship include the oil tanker, the chemical tanker, and the liquefied natural gas carrier.-Background:...
s back 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...
, returning 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...
in March for escort and patrol duty. As the islands fell to American amphibious troops, Halsey Powell and other ships protected the task force from air and submarine attack. The destroyer carried out a series of effective attacks on on 23 March, and after running out of depth charges yielded to and to complete the kill.
Following the Marshalls operation, Halsey Powell departed Pearl Harbor on 30 May for rehearsals in connection with the upcoming Marianas invasions
Mariana and Palau Islands campaign
The Mariana and Palau Islands campaign, also known as Operation Forager, was an offensive launched by United States forces against Imperial Japanese forces in the Mariana Islands and Palau in the Pacific Ocean between June and November, 1944 during the Pacific War...
. She sortied with the assault force from Eniwetok on 11 June, and as troops stormed ashore on Saipan
Battle of Saipan
The Battle of Saipan was a battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II, fought on the island of Saipan in the Mariana Islands from 15 June-9 July 1944. The Allied invasion fleet embarking the expeditionary forces left Pearl Harbor on 5 June 1944, the day before Operation Overlord in Europe was...
four days later she took up fire-support station off the beaches, and was an effective force in victory. In addition to screening, radar picket duties, and fire support for ground forces, Halsey Powell sank a net tender, a cargo ship and numerous small craft in the lagoon with her guns.
The operation a success, she entered Saipan
Saipan
Saipan is the largest island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of . The 2000 census population was 62,392...
harbor on 21 June, after the carrier forces had decimated the Japanese in the Battle of the Philippine Sea
Battle of the Philippine Sea
The Battle of the Philippine Sea was a decisive naval battle of World War II which effectively eliminated the Imperial Japanese Navy's ability to conduct large-scale carrier actions. It took place during the United States' amphibious invasion of the Mariana Islands during the Pacific War...
. She then steamed to Tinian
Tinian
Tinian is one of the three principal islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.-Geography:Tinian is about 5 miles southwest of its sister island, Saipan, from which it is separated by the Saipan Channel. It has a land area of 39 sq.mi....
, bombarding shore positions, clearing the way for troops and screening through the invasion there on 24 July. Following this she spent two weeks on screening and radar picket duty off 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...
before returning to Eniwetok on 22 August to join the fast carrier task force.
Halsey Powell sortied with Vice Admiral
Vice Admiral
Vice admiral is a senior naval rank of a three-star flag officer, which is equivalent to lieutenant general in the other uniformed services. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral...
Marc Mitscher
Marc Mitscher
Admiral Marc Andrew "Pete" Mitscher was an admiral in the United States Navy who served as commander of the Fast Carrier Task Force in the Pacific in the latter half of World War II.-Early life and career:...
's famous Fast Carrier Task Force
Fast Carrier Task Force
The Fast Carrier Task Force was the main striking force of the United States Navy in the Pacific Ocean theatre of World War II.The Fast Carrier Task Force was known under two designations. The Navy made use of two sets of upper command structures for planning the upcoming operations...
(then called TF 38), on 29 August. Operating for long periods at sea by underway refueling and replenishment, this powerful carrier
Aircraft carrier
An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
force represented the ultimate in mobile striking power afloat. During September the carriers, screened by Halsey Powell and other destroyers, struck 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 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...
, returning to 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...
on 1 October.
Five days later, the ships sailed on one of the most important operations of the long Pacific war. After air strikes on Okinawa the great task force turned to its real objective, the airfields on 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...
. The air battle raged from 12-15 October, with Halsey Powell assisting in the splashing of many Japanese aircraft. At a cost of three damaged ships, the task force had driven off nearly a thousand enemy aircraft, downing over 500.
As the invasion of Leyte
Battle of Leyte
The Battle of Leyte in the Pacific campaign of World War II was the invasion and conquest of the island of Leyte in the Philippines by American and Filipino guerrilla forces under the command of General Douglas MacArthur, who fought against the Imperial Japanese Army in the Philippines led by...
began, the desperate Japanese Navy
Imperial Japanese Navy
The Imperial Japanese Navy was the navy of the Empire of Japan from 1869 until 1947, when it was dissolved following Japan's constitutional renunciation of the use of force as a means of settling international disputes...
moved with its remaining units into the Philippines. This three-pronged attack, launched almost without air power, precipitated the epochal Battle for Leyte Gulf. Halsey Powell screened Admiral Gerald F. Bogan
Gerald F. Bogan
Gerald Francis Bogan was a United States Navy Admiral.Bogan authored a confidential memorandum that was leaked by Captain John G. Crommelin during the Revolt of the Admirals in September 1949. His memo described the situation in the Navy as follows, "The morale of the Navy is lower today than at...
's carriers during the strikes which made up one phase of the battle, the Battle of the Sibuyan Sea, on 24 October. Battleship
Battleship
A battleship is a large armored warship with a main battery consisting of heavy caliber guns. Battleships were larger, better armed and armored than cruisers and destroyers. As the largest armed ships in a fleet, battleships were used to attain command of the sea and represented the apex of a...
was sunk and Vice Admiral Takeo Kurita
Takeo Kurita
Vice Admiral was a vice-admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II.-Early life:Kurita was born in Mito city, Ibaraki Prefecture in 1889. He was sent off to Etajima in 1905 and graduated from the 38th class of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy in 1910, ranked 28th out of a class of...
's ships were delayed and confused. That night the bulk of TF 38 steamed north to meet another Japanese fleet, and in the Battle off Cape Engaño next day another major victory was won. Halsey Powell picked up downed pilots from 29-30 October and returned to Ulithi with the task force on 9 November 1944. During the remainder of 1944 TF 38 carried out heavy strikes against the Philippines and Formosa.
1945
The fleet sailed into the South China Sea
South China Sea
The South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around...
on 9–15 January to support the Invasion of Lingayen Gulf
Invasion of Lingayen Gulf
The Liberation of Lingayen Gulf was an Allied amphibious operation in the Philippines during World War II. In the early morning of 9 January 1945, an Allied force commanded by Admiral Jesse B. Oldendorf began approaching the shores of Lingayen. U.S...
, and the supporting ships fought off air attacks the carriers struck bases in China and Indochina
Indochina
The Indochinese peninsula, is a region in Southeast Asia. It lies roughly southwest of China, and east of India. The name has its origins in the French, Indochine, as a combination of the names of "China" and "India", and was adopted when French colonizers in Vietnam began expanding their territory...
. With damaged by a kamikaze
Kamikaze
The were suicide attacks by military aviators from the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, designed to destroy as many warships as possible....
on 21 January, Halsey Powell was assigned to escort her to Ulithi, where they arrived on 24 January 1945.
The carrier task force departed again in February to attack Japan itself. Halsey Powell screened the carriers during this attack, in covering attacks for the Iwo Jima invasion
Battle of Iwo Jima
The Battle of Iwo Jima , or Operation Detachment, was a major battle in which the United States fought for and captured the island of Iwo Jima from the Empire of Japan. The U.S...
on 19 February, and later during more strikes on Japan. The destroyer shot down one attacking aircraft on 16 February and assisted with many others. The veteran carrier groups returned on 1 March to Ulithi, but were underway again on 14 March to soften up Okinawa for the coming assault, and to strike more blows at Japan. On 20 March, Halsey Powell was alongside when Japanese aircraft attacked. As the destroyer was getting clear, the aircraft overshot the carrier and crashed Halsey Powell. Her steering gear jammed, but alert action with the engines averted a collision. Fires were put out, and although 9 were killed and over 30 wounded in the attack the ship reached Ulithi on 25 March.
Halsey Powell arrived San Pedro for battle repairs on 8 May, but with the Pacific war reaching its climax sailed again for Pearl Harbor on 19 July 1945. She arrived Eniwetok on 17 August, two days after the surrender of Japan, and was present in Tokyo Bay
Tokyo Bay
is a bay in the southern Kantō region of Japan. Its old name was .-Geography:Tokyo Bay is surrounded by the Bōsō Peninsula to the east and the Miura Peninsula to the west. In a narrow sense, Tokyo Bay is the area north of the straight line formed by the on the Miura Peninsula on one end and on...
for the formal surrender ceremonies 2 September. The ship then supported the occupation forces until departing 31 October for Puget Sound
Puget Sound
Puget Sound is a sound in the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and one minor connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Pacific Ocean — Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and...
. Halsey Powell decommissioned on 10 December 1946 at San Diego and was placed in the Pacific Reserve Fleet.
Korean War
With the increased demands on the Navy as a result of the Korean WarKorean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
, Halsey Powell recommissioned on 27 April 1951. After shakedown and training exercises the ship sailed for the familiar waters of the Far East 23 July from Long Beach
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...
, arriving Japan 16 August. Joining Task Force 77, the destroyer acted as plane guard and screening ship while the carrier planes kept up constant pressure on the Communist lines and shore installations. Halsey Powell continued these operations off the eastern coast of Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
until October, when she departed the nearly stabilized war zone for training off Okinawa. Late in the month she returned to take part in destructive bombardments of Suwon Dam, Wonsan
Wonsan
Wŏnsan is a port city and naval base in southeastern North Korea. It is the capital of Kangwŏn Province. The population of the city is estimated to have been 331,000 in 2000. Notable people from Wŏnsan include Kim Ki Nam, diplomat and Secretary of the Workers' Party.- History :The original name of...
, Hungnam
Hungnam
Hŭngnam was the third largest city in North Korea.It is a port city on the eastern coast, in South Hamgyong Province, on the Sea of Japan . The city covers an area of 250 square kilometers...
, and other areas. Patrolling and screening duties continued until the ship sailed for the United States on 20 February 1952.
Halsey Powell got underway for her second tour in Korea on 4 October 1952, and in the next 7 months took part in shore bombardment and screening duties as United Nations Command
United Nations Command (Korea)
The United Nations Command is the unified command structure for the multinational military forces supporting the Republic of Korea during and after the Korean War...
naval strength continued to seal off North Korea
North Korea
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
from the sea. The destroyer returned to the United States 6 May 1953, and after training exercises out of San Diego sailed once more for Japan on 26 December 1953.
1954-1968
During the next few years Halsey Powell made yearly cruises to the western Pacific, operating with Task Force 77 off Korea, patrolling the Formosa StraitTaiwan Strait
The Taiwan Strait or Formosa Strait, formerly known as the Black Ditch, is a 180-km-wide strait separating Mainland China and Taiwan. The strait is part of the South China Sea and connects to East China Sea to the northeast...
, and engaging in tactical exercises with other units of the Pacific Fleet. In September-October 1958 the ship aided Nationalist Chinese
Republic of China
The Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan , is a unitary sovereign state located in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China currently governs the island of Taiwan , which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other minor...
operations in the Quemoy-Matsu crisis, convoying transports and standing by to deter attack by the Communist Chinese
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
. Seapower was a decisive force in checking the spread of communism.
Halsey Powells trim silhouette became familiar at many far eastern ports. She continued to alternate these important operations 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...
with training and readiness exercises off the west coast. In recent years this included practice cruises with NROTC midshipmen
Midshipman
A midshipman is an officer cadet, or a commissioned officer of the lowest rank, in the Royal Navy, United States Navy, and many Commonwealth navies. Commonwealth countries which use the rank include Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Kenya...
. Hasley Powell continued to be an important contributor to peace in the Far East as well as America's readiness at sea. During May-July 1962, the destroyer took part in important nuclear tests in the Pacific, and returned in 1963-1964 to her regular pattern of deployments.
On 1 January 1965, Halsey Powell was assigned to Reserve Destroyer Squadron 27 with Long Beach as her home port
Home port
A vessel's home port is the port at which it is based, which may not be the same as its port of registry shown on its registration documents and lettered on the stern of the ship's hull...
. She operated as a Naval Reserve training ship through 1967, cruising between Vancouver, Canada, and Mazatlán
Mazatlán
Mazatlán is a city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa; the surrounding municipio for which the city serves as the municipal seat is Mazatlán Municipality. It is located at on the Pacific coast, across from the southernmost tip of the Baja California peninsula.Mazatlán is a Nahuatl word meaning...
, Mexico.
On 27 April 1968, Halsey Powell was transferred to South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
. She was striken from the Naval Vessel Register
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 2 June 1975.
South Korean Navy
Transferred to South KoreaSouth Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
27 April 1968, the ex-Halsey Powell was renamed ROKS Seoul, after the nation's capital
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
.
She was stricken and scrapped in 1982.