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USS Luce (DDG-38)
Encyclopedia
The third USS Luce (DLG-7/DDG-38) was a Farragut class
Farragut class destroyer (1958)
The Farragut class was the second destroyer class of the United States Navy to be named for Admiral David Glasgow Farragut. The class is sometimes referred to as the Coontz class, since Coontz was first to be designed and built as a guided missile ship, whereas the previous three ships were...
guided missile destroyer
Guided missile destroyer
A guided missile destroyer is a destroyer designed to launch guided missiles. Many are also equipped to carry out anti-submarine, anti-air, and anti-surface operations. In the U.S...
in 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...
. It was named for Rear Admiral
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...
Stephen B. Luce (1827-1917).
History
Luce was laid down by the Bethlehem Steel Corporation at QuincyQuincy, Massachusetts
Quincy is a city in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Its nicknames are "City of Presidents", "City of Legends", and "Birthplace of the American Dream". As a major part of Metropolitan Boston, Quincy is a member of Boston's Inner Core Committee for the Metropolitan Area Planning Council...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
on 1 October 1957. The ship was launched on 11 December 1958 by Mrs. Felix Stump
Felix Stump
Felix Budwell Stump was an admiral in the United States Navy and Commander, United States Pacific Fleet from July 10, 1953 until July 31, 1958....
and commissioned on 20 May 1961 Commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
David H. Bagley in command. USS Luce was reclassified as a guided missile destroyer
Guided missile destroyer
A guided missile destroyer is a destroyer designed to launch guided missiles. Many are also equipped to carry out anti-submarine, anti-air, and anti-surface operations. In the U.S...
on 30 June 1975 and designated DDG-38.
Luce departed Mayport, Florida, on her shakedown cruise 14 February 1962. She spent the month of April with the U.S. 6th Fleet in her first task force operations, and returned home 11 May, where Capt. H. J. Ereckson, Commander Destroyer Division 84, made her his flagship. She departed 3 August to rejoin the 6th Fleet, en route participating in NATO exercises Riptide III with units of the British and French Navies. In the next 7 months she joined in three major NATO exercises before returning home 2 March 1963. During the spring and early summer, the guided missile destroyer conducted missile tests, trained midshipmen, and engaged in independent exercises along the Atlantic coast
On 20 August 1963 she steamed to the Caribbean for independent air, surface, and shore bombardment firings, and returned Mayport 4 September. She joined TF 23 for intensive antisubmarine warfare (ASW) and anti-aircraft (AA) exercises 28 October, and after a short operation with Enterprise (CVAN-65) was back in Mayport for tender availability.
On 8 February 1964 she again joined the 6th Fleet, and was called upon to stand guard for 3 weeks near the trouble‑ridden island of Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
to evacuate American citizens if necessary. She hosted the Secretary of the Navy and Commander 6th Fleet 24 April for a missile firing demonstration, and then escorted Shangri-La (CVA-38) on a high‑speed Atlantic crossing to Mayport, where she arrived 23 May.
In July the ship steamed to New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
to participate in operation “Sail” with a regatta of sailing craft from all over the world. She returned to Mayport after a 4‑month overhaul 28 January 1965. The frigate had won both the Engineering and Battle Efficiency “E”s during 1964.
Luce returned to the Caribbean for intensive refresher training in March 1965. On 29 April she embarked a company of marines at Guantanamo Bay
Guantanamo Bay Naval Base
Guantanamo Bay Naval Base is located on of land and water at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba which the United States leased for use as a coaling station following the Cuban-American Treaty of 1903. The base is located on the shore of Guantánamo Bay at the southeastern end of Cuba. It is the oldest overseas...
and proceeded to the troubled Dominican Republic
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
30 April. She patrolled the coast of the politically disturbed island until 8 May. She returned to the Mediterranean in June for 4 months of operations with units of the Spanish, French, Greek, and Italian Navies. In September she operated with Corry (DD-817)
USS Corry (DD-817)
USS Corry was a of the United States Navy, the third Navy ship named for Lieutenant Commander William M. Corry, Jr. , a naval aviator who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor....
in the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
, and she returned to the Mediterranean late in 1965. She arrived Mayport 6 November and embarked Commander Destroyer Squadron 8. In December she engaged in missile firing and after a brief time in port in 1966 continued testing and improving missile techniques and carrying out the fleet's widespread peacekeeping activities which guard the free world.
On January 19, 1966 an "actual nuclear incident" occurs when the nuclear warhead on a Terrier
RIM-2 Terrier
The Convair RIM-2 Terrier was a two-stage medium-range naval surface-to-air missile , and was among the earliest surface-to-air missiles to equip United States Navy ships. Originally, the Terrier had a launch thrust of 23 kN , and weight of 1392 kg...
anti-air missile separates from the missile and drops about eight feet on the Luce while the ship is docked at Mayport Naval Station. It is recorded that "there were no personnel casualties, and aside from the dent in the warhead, no equipment was damaged."
On 13 June 1966 Luce got underway for deployment with the 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean. After participating in various exercises with United States and other Allied ships, and representing the United States at two international trade fain, she returned to Mayport on 26 October. The first half of 1967 saw Luce operating again in the Atlantic and Caribbean, and participating in a midshipmen training cruise in June. On 7 August, Luce began a regular overhaul at the U.S. Naval Shipyard, Charleston, S.C. She continued in overhaul until early 1968, then operated locally and in the Caribbean until departing Mayport 14 September for the Persian Gulf
Persian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
, sailing via Recife, Brazil, and various ports along the west and east coasts of Africa. She arrived at Bahrain
Bahrain
' , officially the Kingdom of Bahrain , is a small island state near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. The population in 2010 stood at 1,214,705, including 235,108 non-nationals. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002.Bahrain is...
29 October and continued to stand watch over the troubled Middle East into 1969.