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USS Ready (PG-87)
Encyclopedia
The second USS Ready (PGM-87/PG-87) was a in the United States Navy
during the Vietnam War
.
Ready was laid down by the Tacoma Boatbuilding Company
, Tacoma, Washington
, 10 June 1965; reclassified PG-87 on 1 April 1967; launched 12 May 1967; sponsored by Mrs. William E. Ferrall; and commissioned 6 January 1968, Lt. Paul T. Souval in command.
Ready's speed, maneuverability, and shallow draft enable her to work close into shores in support of counterinsurgency, guerrilla, and conventional amphibious operations. After shakedown in Puget Sound
and nearby areas, she sailed 12 March for her homeport, San Diego. She operated out of San Diego until 10 June when she went into the Long Beach Naval Shipyard for availability. She returned to operations out of San Diego 20 November. During 1969 she continued to operate off the southern California coast until steaming for Apra, Guam, where she arrived in November.
She remained at Guam until 19 January 1970, when she embarked for Cam Ranh Bay
, Vietnam
. Ready was employed in riverine operations around Cam Ranh Bay and Danang until 26 July. At that time, she returned to Guam, via Hong Kong
, for extended availability at Apra, arriving 2 August. On 27 January 1971, she steamed into Subic Bay
, Philippine Islands, for a month of special operations. Ready returned to Cam Ranh Bay 21 March for a two-month stay, departing the area in May and arriving at Apra, Guam 17 May.
After a 12 day stopover at Apra, she weighed anchor for Pearl Harbor
and Long Beach
, entering the latter 20 June. Ready spent the next year in and around Long Beach, from whence she sailed 24 July 1972, bound ultimately for Little Creek, Virginia. She arrived at Little Creek in August, after stopping at Acapulco, Mexico, and transiting the Panama Canal
. In September 1972, she headed out of the Chesapeake Bay
for the Mediterranean Sea
.
She arrived in Naples, Italy in September 1972. Ready participated in 6th Fleet exercises as a member of the Orange Forces, simulating a Soviet
vessel. She was decommissioned in October 1977.
Ready earned 2 battle stars for Vietnam service.
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...
during the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
.
Ready was laid down by the Tacoma Boatbuilding Company
Tacoma Boatbuilding Company
Tacoma Boatbuilding Company was a corporation established in 1926, built many boats during World War II. Some of the boats constructed include: USCGC Harriet Lane, USNS Audacious, USNS Indomitable, USS Ready and others....
, 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...
, 10 June 1965; reclassified PG-87 on 1 April 1967; launched 12 May 1967; sponsored by Mrs. William E. Ferrall; and commissioned 6 January 1968, Lt. Paul T. Souval in command.
Ready's speed, maneuverability, and shallow draft enable her to work close into shores in support of counterinsurgency, guerrilla, and conventional amphibious operations. After shakedown in 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...
and nearby areas, she sailed 12 March for her homeport, San Diego. She operated out of San Diego until 10 June when she went into the Long Beach Naval Shipyard for availability. She returned to operations out of San Diego 20 November. During 1969 she continued to operate off the southern California coast until steaming for Apra, Guam, where she arrived in November.
She remained at Guam until 19 January 1970, when she embarked for Cam Ranh Bay
Cam Ranh Bay
Cam Ranh Bay is a deep-water bay in Vietnam in the province of Khánh Hòa. It is located at an inlet of the South China Sea situated on the southeastern coast of Vietnam, between Phan Rang and Nha Trang, approximately 290 kilometers / 180 miles northeast of Hồ Chí Minh City / Saigon.Cam Ranh is...
, Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
. Ready was employed in riverine operations around Cam Ranh Bay and Danang until 26 July. At that time, she returned to Guam, via 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...
, for extended availability at Apra, arriving 2 August. On 27 January 1971, she steamed into Subic Bay
Subic Bay
Subic Bay is a bay forming part of Luzon Sea on the west coast of the island of Luzon in Zambales, Philippines, about 100 kilometers northwest of Manila Bay. Its shores were formerly the site of a major United States Navy facility named U.S...
, Philippine Islands, for a month of special operations. Ready returned to Cam Ranh Bay 21 March for a two-month stay, departing the area in May and arriving at Apra, Guam 17 May.
After a 12 day stopover at Apra, she weighed anchor for 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...
and 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...
, entering the latter 20 June. Ready spent the next year in and around Long Beach, from whence she sailed 24 July 1972, bound ultimately for Little Creek, Virginia. She arrived at Little Creek in August, after stopping at Acapulco, Mexico, and 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...
. In September 1972, she headed out of the Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
for the Mediterranean Sea
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
.
She arrived in Naples, Italy in September 1972. Ready participated in 6th Fleet exercises as a member of the Orange Forces, simulating a Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
vessel. She was decommissioned in October 1977.
Ready earned 2 battle stars for Vietnam service.
External links
- Photo gallery at navsource.org