From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Guided missile destroyer
USS
Charles J. French
(DDG-142)
is a planned
Arleigh Burke
-class
guided missile destroyer
of the
United States Navy
, the 92nd overall of the class, named for
Charles J. French
.
Naming
[
edit
]
She is named for Steward's Mate 1st Class
Charles J. French
, an African American
cook
serving in the US Navy during
WWII
was posthumously awarded the
Navy and Marine Corps Medal
for heroic actions not involving direct contact with an armed enemy. US Navy Secretary
Carlos Del Toro
announced the name on 10 January 2024 in honor of a sailor whose heroics has long been over-looked.
Historical background
[
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]
French was serving in the
Pacific
aboard the destroyer
USS
Gregory
when his ship was sunk at
Guadalcanal
on 4 September 1942. As the crew were abandoning ship, the
Japanese
began shelling helpess men in the water. French collected a group of wounded shipmates onto a makeshift raft which was attached to his waist with a rope. He then spent the next eight hours swimming through the shark-infested waters towing the raft carrying approximately fifteen shipmates to safety. Despite saving these lives, and the multiple recommendations to decorate French with a higher level medal or award for his valor, such as the
Navy Cross
, all were rejected by the military. Instead he only received a personal letter of commendation from Admiral
William Halsey
.
[3]
References
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Flight I ships
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Flight II ships
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Flight IIA ships
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variant
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5"/62 variant
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Flight III ships
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