USS Skylark (ASR-20)
Encyclopedia
USS Skylark (ASR-20) was Penguin-class submarine rescue ship
Submarine rescue ship
A Submarine rescue ship serves as a surface support ship for submarine rescue and deep-sea salvage operations. Methods employed are the McCann Rescue Chamber, Deep Submergence Rescue Vehicles and deep sea diving operations....
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...
.
The ship was laid down in July 1945 as the Yustaga (ATF-165) by the Charleston Shipbuilding & Drydock Co. of Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
. While under construction Yustaga was redesignated a submarine rescue ship on 11 October 1945, assigned the hull designation ASR-20 on 13 November 1945, and renamed Skylark on 5 December 1945. She was launched on 19 March 1946, sponsored by Mrs. H. C. Weatherly, and was placed in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet, berthed first at Charleston and later at New London, Connecticut
New London, Connecticut
New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States.It is located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, southeastern Connecticut....
, until 1 March 1951, when she was finally commissioned, Lt. Comdr. Romolo Cousins in command.
1951–1962
Following restricted availability at the Portsmouth Navy Yard, Skylark conducted her shakedown cruiseShakedown cruise
Shakedown cruise is a nautical term in which the performance of a ship is tested. Shakedown cruises are also used to familiarize the ship's crew with operation of the craft....
and training out of 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....
, during July. The ship then returned to New London and operated out of that base, practicing submarine rescues and serving as a target recovery ship for submarines conducting torpedo-firing drills. In April 1952, the ship temporarily moved south to relieve as rescue vessel at Key West, Florida
Key West, Florida
Key West is a city in Monroe County, Florida, United States. The city encompasses the island of Key West, the part of Stock Island north of U.S. 1 , Sigsbee Park , Fleming Key , and Sunset Key...
, while the latter ship underwent an overhaul. In June, she returned north to New London to resume her former duties. During January and February 1953, Skylark was overhauled at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard
Philadelphia Naval Shipyard
The Philadelphia Naval Business Center, formerly known as the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard and Philadelphia Navy Yard, was the first naval shipyard of the United States. The U.S. Navy reduced its activities there in the 1990s, and ended most of them on September 30, 1995...
; and, after refresher training at Newport, Rhode Island
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...
, during March and April, she spent May at Norfolk filling in for while the latter ship went into the shipyard for overhaul. In June, she returned to New London and carried out her training schedule until October when she again headed back to Norfolk to substitute for Kittiwake, while the latter participated in "Operation Springboard." Upon the conclusion of that brief assignment, she resumed her New London-based routine. In February and March of 1954, Skylark engaged in her own share of "Operation Springboard" exercises, providing services to Atlantic Fleet submarines during the annual training evolution. She returned to New London late in March and resumed her usual duties. In September, the ship entered the Boston Naval Shipyard for a two-month overhaul.
Until the beginning of 1962, Skylark continued the pattern of duties described above. She operated out of New London the majority of the time but, periodically, did temporary duty elsewhere, notably at Norfolk and Key West, taking over briefly the duties of Kittiwake or Petrel when either ship was incapacitated due to repairs. She also operated regularly in the West Indies during the annual "Springboard" exercises. The one notable exception to that pattern occurred in January and February of 1955 when she assisted , the Navy's first nuclear-powered submarine, in completing her builders' trials.
1962–1973
At the beginning of 1962, the submarine rescue vessel began a new phase of her career when regular deployments to the 6th Fleet in the Mediterranean became a normal aspect of her activities and continued to be for the remainder of her naval service. She embarked upon the first such cruise on 8 January 1962. During that assignment, she served as flagship of Task Force (TF) 69 and participated in the search for an Air Force jet fighter which crashed at sea near Malaga, Spain. On 7 May 1962, she returned to New London and resumed her duties with the Atlantic Fleet. In April of 1963, she was one of the first ships to answer the distress call sent by before she sank during diving tests. Skylark also participated in the unsuccessful search for the submarine which was conducted for several days after the loss. In July 1963, she was deployed to the Mediterranean once more and again served as flagship of TF 69. That cruise lasted until late October, and Skylark reentered New London on 2 November. Nineteen months of duty put of her home port, along the Atlantic coast of the United States, followed her return home.On 7 July 1965, the submarine rescue vessel stood out of New London once more, bound for the Mediterranean and duty in support of 6th Fleet submarines. During the latter portion of that cruise, Skylark served for several weeks at the ballistic missile submarine base located in Holy Loch
Holy Loch
The Holy Loch is a sea loch in Argyll and Bute, Scotland.Robertson's Yard at Sandbank, a village on the loch, was a major wooden boat building company in the late 19th and early 20th centuries....
, Scotland, before returning home to New London on 29 October. During the remaining eight years of her Navy career, the ship alternated duty along the Atlantic coast of the United States with deployments to the Mediterranean and to the submarine base at Holy Loch. In the spring of 1968, she participated in the unsuccessful rescue attempt and search for , the second American nuclear-powered submarine to be lost at sea. Her only other major departure from her routine came in June of 1972 when she participated in NATO Exercise "Pink Lace" before beginning a scheduled deployment to Holy Loch and the Mediterranean in July. That deployment in the summer and fall of 1972 saw "Skaylerk" deploy with the Submarine Tender USS FULTON (AS-19), and virtually the entire Submarine Squadron 10 for which Fulton served as flagship. During the early part of the deployment, "Skylark" performed operational exercises with both U.S. and U.K boats out of Faslane, and researched alternate egress possibilities from Holy Loch into the North Sea. In the Mediterranean, she participated in the founding of the NATO naval base in La Madellena, where she, the Fulton and members of Submarine Squadron 10 created a permanent mid-Mediterranean base of operations. "Skylark" also performed joint submarine rescue practice four-point moor operations with an Italian Navy ASR out of Sicily. She returned to New London on 18 November 1972, completing the last deployment of her career.
Decommissioning and sale
On 30 June 1973, Skylark was decommissioned, and her name was struck from the Navy ListNaval 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 that same day, she was sold to Brazil through the Security Assistance Program (SAP).
In Brazilian service, 1973–1996
Skylark was commissioned into the Brazilian NavyBrazilian Navy
The Brazilian Navy is a branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces responsible for conducting naval operations. It is the largest navy in Latin America...
as Gastao Moutinho (K.10) in 1973.
In 1989, Gastão Moutinho was reclassified as an auxiliary ship
Auxiliary ship
An auxiliary ship is a naval ship which is designed to operate in any number of roles supporting combatant ships and other naval operations. Auxiliaries are not primary combatants, although they may have some limited combat capacity, usually of a self defensive nature.Auxiliaries are extremely...
, and redesignated U.20. Based at the naval base of Aratu, it was placed under the control of the Commandant of the 2nd Naval District, carrying out coastal patrols, supporting other ships, and restocking the radio beacon of Abrolhos
Abrolhos Marine National Park
The Abrolhos Marine National Park is a Marine Park located in the Abrolhos Archipelago since 1983.The Abrolhos are an archipelago of 5 islands with coral reefs off the southern coast of Bahia state in the northeast of Brazil, between 17º25’—18º09’ S and 38º33’—39º05’ W.-External links:***...
, amongst other missions. On 18 September 1996, Gastão Moutinho was deactivated, having sailed 175822 nautical miles (325,622.3 km) and spent 1,626 days at sea during her service in the Brazilian Navy.