Commissioning
The USS Bradley was the second member of the Garcia class of destroyer escorts (and later, frigates). The Bradley was named in honor of Navy Capt. Willis W. Bradley, who was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for heroic actions during World War I.
The Bradley was ordered on June 22, 1961. Her keel was laid on Jan. 17, 1963; she was launched on March 26, 1964. She was commissioned on May 15, 1965 and joined the Pacific Fleet.
Underway
The Bradley spent much of her early career in the Western Pacific, supporting U.S. operations in Vietnam. Her first “WestPac” deployment lasted between July and December 1966, with the Bradley undertaking gunfire support and carrier escort missions.
In February 1967, the Bradley was the first destroyer to have the new Sea Sparrow anti-aircraft missile system installed. The system was a prototype and, after trials lasting from May to September, the system was removed for improvements.
The Bradley was deployed the Western Pacific again in late 1967, but left the Gulf of Tonkin after North Korea seized the USS Pueblo. By March 1968, the Bradley was back on station in the gulf, resuming gunfire support and carrier escort duties. During the tour, she would fire more than 3,200 rounds in a 10 day period.
The Bradley deployed to the coast of Vietnam again in January 1970, performing four months of gunfire support missions before monitoring a Soviet Navy exercise in April. The Bradley later returned to the Gulf of Tonkin, continuing gunfire support and carrier escort duties until June. The Bradley would deploy to the Western Pacific three more times by the end of 1972.
In June 1975, the Bradley began an overhaul that lasted more than a year. Among her major changes was the enlargement of her helicopter hangar.
Though the Bradley started her career as a destroyer escort, she would retire as a frigate. The Bradley, along with the rest of the Knox class, was re-classified as a frigate on June 30, 1975. She was re-designated as FF-1041.
Decommissioning
The Bradley was decommissioned on Sept. 30, 1988. A year later, the ship was commissioned in the Brazilian Navy as the Pernambuco. She was sold to Brazil in January 2001, where she served until March 2004.
Characteristics of the USS Bradley (Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
Class and type: Garcia class frigate (Formerly destroyer escort)
Displacement: 2,624 tons (light)
Length: 414 ft 6 in (126.3 m)
Beam: 44 ft 1 in (13.4 m)
Draught: 24 ft 6 in (7.5 m)
Propulsion: 2 Foster-Wheeler boilers, 1 Westinghouse turbine, 35,000 shp, single screw
Speed: 27 knots
Complement: 16 officers, 231 enlisted
Sensors and processing systems:
AN/SPS-40 air search radar
AN/SPS-10 surface search radar
AN/SQS-26 bow mounted sonar
Armament: 2 x 5″/38 Mk 30(2×1)
1 8-tube ASROC Mk16 launcher (16 missiles)
6 x 12.75 in (324mm) Mk 32 (2×3) torpedo tubes, Mk 46 torpedoes
2 x MK 37 torpedo tubes (fixed, stern) (removed later)
Aircraft carried: 1 x SH-2F Seasprite LAMPS I
Career:
Name: USS Bradley (FF-1041)
Awarded: June 22, 1961
Laid down: Jan. 17, 1963
Launched: March 26, 1964
Commissioned: May 15, 1965
Decommissioned: Sept. 30, 1988
Fate: Transferred to Brazil
Timeline:
June 1961: Order to build USS Bradley awarded
January 1963: Keel of USS Bradley laid
March 1964: USS Bradley launched
May 1965: USS Bradley commissioned
1966: USS Bradley makes first deployment to the Western Pacific
June 1975: USS Bradley re-designated as frigate FF-1041
September 1988: USS Bradley decommissioned
Crewmembers of the USS Bradley:
An unofficial list of crew members that served on the USS Bradley can be found on the unofficial navy website at: http://navysite.de. This list is compiled by former crewmembers that voluntarily register. Some quoted comments from former crewmembers are listed below; many more are available on the source website at the following Web address:
http://navysite.de/crew.php?action=ship&ship=ff_1041
Dennis Ahern (served May 1982—May 1986): “I retired in Dec.2001 I love the Bad-brad and all my shipmates that served with me, had a good time overseas, Subic Bay partying hope everyone’s doing ok.”
Rolf Marnich (served 1982—85): “My first ship and a fun trip.”
Charles Smith (served October 1983—June 1986): “Made a career out of it Retired as a ENC(SW) April 30 2003. Enjoyed it all. Loved the ‘Bad Brad’.”
Links:
http://www.mesotheliomaweb.org/mesothelioma/veterans/navy-destroyers-post-ww2/
http://navysite.de/ff/ff1041.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Bradley_(FF-1041)
http://navysite.de/crew.php?action=ship&ship=ff_1041
