Commissioning
The USS John R. Perry was the second of four Claud Jones-class destroyers that served in the United States Navy in the mid-20th Century. She was named in honor of Rear Admiral John R. Perry, who served as the Navy’s Director of Administration and Personnel in World War II.
The John R. Perry was constructed by Avondale Marine ways of Avondale, La. Her keel was laid down on Jan. 4, 1956; she was launched on July 29, 1958. She was commissioned on May 5, 1959, with Lt. Commander W.L. Atkinson on command.
Underway
The John R. Perry was assigned to the Atlantic Fleet and became a school ship for the Fleet Sonar School, based in Key West, Fla. She was one of the ships most able to quickly respond when President Kennedy authorized a blockade of Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis in October—November 1962. The John R. Perry joined a large number of U.S. Navy ships in enforcing the blockade and preventing any Soviet ships with offensive weapons or support equipment from reaching the island.
After the Soviets agreed to remove their missiles from Cuba, the John R. Perry returned to the Fleet Sonar School, where she served until 1965. In May 196, she was transferred to the Pacific Fleet and was based at Pearl Harbor. She would deploy several times to the Western Pacific, including two instances—in late June/early July 1968 and August 1971—where she entered the Gulf of Tonkin and the Vietnam War zone. The John R. Perry would receive one Meritorious Unit Commendation, in 1970, for special operations activities.
The John R. Perry, like the other members of the Claud Jones class, was somewhat experimental. A diesel version of the older Dealey class destroyers, there were designed with the intention of being a cheaper ship that could be rapidly produced in wartime. Their primary mission was anti-submarine warfare, one the Navy and Pentagon quickly decided it was ill-suited for. With both military and civilian leadership souring on the concept of the Claud Jones class, the four ships were rapidly phased out.
Decommissioning
The John R. Perry was decommissioned and struck from the Naval Vessel Register on Feb. 20, 1973. She was sold to Indonesia, where she was renamed the Samadikun and continued to serve through the end of the 20th Century.
Characteristics of the USS John R. Perry (Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
Class and type: Claud Jones
Displacement: 1750 tons
Length: 310 ft (94 m)
Beam: 37 ft (11 m)
Draft: 18 ft (5.5 m)
Complement: 167 officers and enlisted
Armament: 2 3″; 6 21″ tt.; 1 dct.
Career:
Namesake: John R. Perry
Laid down: 4 January 1956
Launched: 29 July 1958
Commissioned: 5 May 1959
Struck: 20 February 1973
Fate: transferred to Indonesia
Timeline:
January 1956: USS John R. Perry’s keel laid down
July 1958: USS John R. Perry launched
May 1959: USS John R. Perry commissioned
October—November 1962: USS John R. Perry takes part in blockade of Cuba during Cuban Missile Crisis
June 1966: USS John R. Perry transferred to Pacific Fleet
February 1973: USS John R. Perry decommissioned
Crewmembers of the USS John R. Perry:
An unofficial list of crew members that served on the USS John R. Perry 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/crewlist/commandlist.php?commandid=1999
William Powell (served December 1962—April 1966):”First ship of my 20 year career. She was a great ship and had a lot to do with my decision to make the Navy a career.”
William Robinson (served June 1962—May 1965): “I have pictures of JFK when he visited Key West also Polaris missile shoot in the Atlantic. Anybody remember the Tomato Patch in Key West?”
George Huntt (served 1963—October 1964): “A wild couple of years!!”
Links:
http://www.mesotheliomaweb.org/destroyerspostwwii.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_John_R._Perry_(DE-1034)
