Rudderow class destroyer escort

The Rudderow class destroyer escorts were destroyer escorts launched in the United States in 1943 to 1945. Of this class, 22 were completed as destroyer escorts, many others were converted to Crosley class fast transports and were re-classified as APDs, and many of the class were cancelled near the end of the war. They served in World War II as Convoy escorts and anti-submarine warfare ships. The lead ship was USS Rudderow (DE-224) which was launched on 14 October 1943. The ships had General Electric steam turbo electric drive engines. The ships were built at various shipyards in the United States, including the Philadelphia Navy Yard and Defoe Shipbuilding Company. They were very similar to the Buckley class destroyer escort, having the same hull and machinery. The main differences were the Rudderows had two 5-inch guns and two twin-40mm mounts, instead of the 3-inch guns and one 40-mm or one 1.1-inch mount of the Buckleys.

After World War II, most of the surviving units of this class were transfered to Taiwan, South Korea, Chile, Mexico, and other countries. The rest were retained by the US Navy's Reserve fleet until they were decommisioned.

Characteristics of Rudderow Class Destroyer Escort

  • Length: 306 feet (overall)
  • Beam: 36.5 feet
  • Draught: 11 feet (fully loaded)
  • Displacement: 1,740 tons (fully loaded)
  • Propellers: Two 3-bladed propellers solid manganese-bronze, 8.5 feet diameter
  • Bunkers and Radius: 350 tons (oil fuel); 5,500 miles at 15 knots
  • Maximum Speed: 24 knots (most ships could attain 26/27 knots)
  • Main guns: 2 x 5 inch /38 dual purpose mount
  • Anti-aircraft guns: 4 x 40mm Bofors were fitted in the twin mounts in the 'B' and 'X' position. 10 x 20mm single mount Oerlikon cannon positioned four next to the bridge behind 'B' gun mount, two on each side of the ship in sponsons just abaft the funnel, and two on the fantail just forward of the depth charge racks.
  • Torpedo tubes: 3 21-inch torpedo tubes in a triple mount were mounted just aft of the stack.
  • Hedgehog: British-designed ahead-throwing anti-submarine mortar which fired 24 bombs ahead of the ship, this was situated on the main deck just aft of 'A' gun mount.
  • Depth charges: Approximately 200 were carried. Two sets of double rails each side of the ship at the stern, each set held 24 charges; eight K gun depth charge throwers each holding 5 charges, were situated each side of the ship just forward of the stern rails.
  • Radar: Type SL surface search fixed to mast above yard arm and type SA air search only fitted to certain ships.
  • Asdic (Sonar): Type 128D or Type 144 both in retractable dome.
  • Direction Finding: MF direction finding antenna fitted in front of the bridge and HF/DF Type FH 4 antenna fitted on top of mast.

See also

WHTC   Index

This page is based on the Wikipedia article ''Rudderow class destroyer escort''. It is licensed under the GNU free documentation license.

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