|
History
|
United States
|
Name
| USS
Estocin
|
Namesake
| Michael John Estocin
(1931?1967)
|
Ordered
| 27 February 1976
|
Builder
| Bath Iron Works
,
Bath, Maine
|
Laid down
| 2 April 1979
|
Launched
| 3 November 1979
|
Sponsored by
| Mrs Quay Marie (Hampton) Estocin
|
Commissioned
| 10 January 1981
|
Decommissioned
| 3 April 2003
|
Stricken
| 3 April 2003
|
Homeport
| Norfolk
,
Virginia
(former)
|
Identification
| |
Motto
| "Courage, Honor, Tenacity"
|
Fate
| Disposed of through the
Security Assistance Program
(SAP)
|
Badge
| |
TCG
Goksu
(F 497) in April 2015.
|
Turkey
|
Name
| Goksu
|
Namesake
| The river
Goksu
|
Acquired
| 3 April 2003
|
Identification
| F 497
|
Status
| in active service
|
General characteristics
|
Class and type
| Oliver Hazard Perry
-class
frigate
|
Displacement
| 4,100 long tons (4,200 t), full load
|
Length
| 445 feet (136 m),
overall
|
Beam
| 45 feet (14 m)
|
Draught
| 22 feet (6.7 m)
|
Propulsion
| |
Speed
| over 29 knots (54 km/h)
|
Range
| 5,000 nautical miles at 18 knots (9,300 km at 33 km/h)
|
Complement
| 15 officers and 190 enlisted, plus
SH-60
LAMPS detachment of roughly six officer pilots and 15 enlisted maintainers
|
Sensors and
processing systems
| |
Electronic warfare
& decoys
| AN/SLQ-32
|
Armament
| *
list error: list item missing markup (
help
)
G-Class Frigate:
|
Aircraft carried
| 1 ×
SH-2F LAMPS I
|
USS
Estocin
(FFG-15)
, ninth ship of the
Oliver Hazard Perry
class
of guided-missile frigates, was named for Captain
Michael John Estocin
(1931?1967). Ordered from
Bath Iron Works
on 27 February 1976 as part of the FY76 program,
Estocin
was laid down on 2 April 1979, launched on 3 November 1979, and commissioned on 10 January 1981.
Estocin
(FFG-15) was the first ship of that name in the US Navy. The ship's motto, listed on her crest, was "Courage, Honor, Tenacity".
[3]
History
[
edit
]
Estocin
was sponsored by
Michael John Estocin
's widow, Mrs Quay Marie (Hampton) Estocin. Their three daughters served as maids of honor at the ceremonial launching and christening.
[4]
1980s
[
edit
]
After her commissioning,
Estocin
was assigned to Destroyer Squadron Eight, homeported in
Mayport, Florida
. While there, she made deployments to the Mediterranean, the Indian Ocean, and participated in Special Operations off the Central American coast.
[5]
Estocin
and her crew were awarded the
Navy Expeditionary Medal
for operations near Lebanon between 10 October and 10 November 1982.
[6]
See also
Multinational Force in Lebanon
.
15 October 1985
Estocin
ran aground near
Key West
, Florida.
[7]
Throughout 1986,
Estocin
served as the Navy's testbed for the Mk-92 Fire Control System improvement project (CORT). The Mk-92 "CORT" program was a CNO Priority-1 Project, one of the only four in the entire Navy at that time. These tests had
Estocin
tracking and engaging a variety of surface and air targets. Fifteen SM-1 medium range missiles and nearly 1000 rounds of 76mm ammunition were fired in the course of the test cycle. By the end of 1986,
Estocin
had logged nearly 15,000 underway miles in support of this project.
[5]
Estocin
and her crew were awarded a
Secretary of the Navy
Letter of Commendation for operations between January and November, 1986.
[6]
On 1 October 1986,
Estocin
officially became part of the Naval Reserve Force (NRF) reported to Naval Surface Warfare Group Four, homeported in Philadelphia, PA. Upon joining the NRF,
Estocin
operated primarily in the western Atlantic in support of Naval Reserve Training (NRT) and active fleet commitments. She logged frequent underway weekends devoted entirely to Selected Reserve crew training, as well as periodic underway periods of 2-week duration to enable reservists to complete their active duty training requirements. These operations took
Estocin
as far north as Nova Scotia and south to the Caribbean.
[5]
Estocin
and her crew were awarded a
United States Coast Guard
Special Operations Service Ribbon
for operations July to September, 1989.
[6]
1990s
[
edit
]
Estocin
was chosen to conduct a Great Lakes Cruise in 1991 in support of U.S. Navy recruiting efforts and to promote public awareness in America's heartland, through port calls to U.S. and Canadian cities on the Great Lakes. In the fall of 1991 and the spring of 1992,
Estocin
participated in Canadian Fleet Operations conducted with U.S. Navy and Canadian Maritime Command units in the area south of Nova Scotia.
[5]
Estocin
and her crew were awarded a
Battle Effectiveness Award
for operations in 1992.
[6]
On 17 August 1992,
Estocin
changed homeport to Newport, RI.
Estocin
completed Maritime Interdiction Operations in the Caribbean and in December 1993 operated off the coast of Haiti during Operation Support Democracy. In January 1994,
Estocin
again changed her homeport moving to Naval Base, Norfolk, VA.
Estocin
was again selected for a Great Lakes Cruise in the summer of 1994. Upon completion of this cruise, she underwent a four-month drydock period to inspect and overhaul numerous shipboard systems. After completion of this drydocking,
Estocin
was sent in the fall of 1995 to the Caribbean in support of Counter Drug Operations. During this cruise,
Estocin
transited the Panama Canal to conduct Counter Drug Operations in the eastern Pacific as well.
[5]
In 1996, after completing a work-up cycle, which included re-certification of her propulsion plant and cruise missile tactical qualification,
Estocin
deployed with Destroyer Squadron Eighteen in support of Operation Northern Light-Bright Horizon 96. During this fast-paced month and a half commitment,
Estocin
participated in a variety of maneuvering and training exercises with over 53 ships and submarines from 13 European nations. Upon her return to Norfolk,
Estocin
entered an availability period to prepare ship's systems for her next commitment, Joint Task Force Exercise 97-1 (JTFEX 97?1). During this exercise
Estocin
was the flagship for the Opposing Forces (OPFOR), whose mission was to train the deploying carrier battle group. Although composed of U.S. ships, the OPFOR simulated a variety of patrol boats found throughout the world. Successfully training the battle group,
Estocin
prepared for her next deployment.
[5]
Assigned to Cruiser Destroyer Group Eight,
Estocin
deployed for Baltic Operations 97 (BALTOPS 97) in May 1997. The deployment entailed at-sea operations with ships from NATO countries as well as non-NATO countries such as Russia, Poland and Lithuania. BALTOPS 97 also included goodwill visits to former Eastern-Bloc nations. During this deployment,
Estocin
had the unique opportunity to become the first U.S. warship to visit two Russian ports in the same deployment, with stops in Baltiysk and Severomorsk, Russia. In addition,
Estocin
had the distinct privilege of hosting the Admirals of the Russian Baltic and Northern Fleets during her port calls.
[5]
January 1999 found
Estocin
deploying for the Caribbean. Once again in support of Counter Drug Operations,
Estocin
set the standard in curbing the flow of drugs into the United States. After four and a half months in the Caribbean, including a cocaine seizure of over 400 kg (880 lb),
Estocin
returned home on 15 May.
[5]
Estocin
was underway once again at the end of June 1999 to participate in INDEX 99-2 with the
USS
John F. Kennedy
Battle Group. During this exercise,
Estocin
simulated Opposing Forces during
Harpoon
, Anti Air Warfare, and Anti Submarine Warfare exercises.
Estocin
proved her battle readiness in all areas as she conducted multiple PACFIRES with her 76mm gun, launched two Mk 46 Torpedoes and fired three successful SM-1 engagements. After achieving her best battle readiness condition in over four years,
Estocin
returned to Norfolk in July to conduct a nine-week Restricted Availability (RAV).
[5]
After this maintenance period and successful training cycle workups,
Estocin
sailed late November 1999 to support preparing the
USS
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Battle Group for deployment as an Opposition Force in JTFEX 00-1. She also participated in INDEX 99-3, which allowed training in all warfare areas for the crew. At the completion of the JTFEX,
Estocin
was chosen by Commander, Second Fleet to perform a bilateral exercise with two French Navy ships, the
French cruiser
Jeanne d'Arc
and frigate
Georges Leygues
. This exercise provided valuable training for the midshipmen embarked on
Jeanne d'Arc
and helped to further strengthen the strong Naval ties with this NATO ally.
[5]
2000s and decommissioning
[
edit
]
As of 2000,
Estocin
was in homeport, Norfolk, VA, preparing for upcoming exercises including: a group sail under the command of Commander, Destroyer Squadron Fourteen; a UNITAS exercise with ships from the Venezuelan, Colombian, and U.S. navies; and participation with Brazilian and other nation naval units in honor of the 500th anniversary of the founding of Brazil in April 2000.
[5]
Estocin
and her crew were awarded a
Battle Effectiveness Award
for operations in 2000.
[8]
On 14 May 2001,
Estocin
returned to homeport in Norfolk, Virginia after a five-month deployment to the Caribbean, including again Operation UNITAS.
[8]
Estocin
and
USS
Samuel Eliot Morison
swapped crews in late February 2002 (with one junior officer deemed crucial to Estocin's operation to transfer that remained with that Estocin through the crew swap). Both frigates were scheduled to decommission in 2002, but following 11 September 2001, Navy leadership decided it might be advantageous to retain one of the two short hulled frigates.
Estocin
had already reduced crew size nearly 40% preparing to decommission in support of a planned ship transfer to the Republic of Turkey that had been already approved by Congress. Yet, she was the more recently modernized of the two frigates which was why the Republic of Turkey was interested in that Foreign Military Sale (FMS). The U.S. changed the FMS offer to Turkey with the Former
Samuel Eliot Morison
at a reduced price to the original FMS offer of
Estocin
. Former
Samuel Eliot Morison
sailors were then transferred to serve on
Estocin
and their ship was decommissioned 11 April 2002 with the former
Estocin
skeleton crew.
[9]
Estocin
was decommissioned at Mayport and stricken a year later on 3 April 2003.
[10]
She was the last short-hulled FFG operational with the US Navy.
[11]
TCG
Goksu
(F 497)
[
edit
]
On 3 April 2003,
Estocin
was decommissioned, stricken from the Navy list and transferred to
Turkey
as that nation's TCG
Goksu
(F 497). As of 2022, she is still in active service.
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
This article includes information collected from the
Naval Vessel Register
, which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the
public domain
. The entry can be found
here
.
External links
[
edit
]