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USS Francis Hammond (DE-1067/FF-1067)

Please see below for item level images and donated collections containing photographs of USS Francis Hammond (DE-1067/FF-1067)

USS Francis Hammond (DE-1067) was laid down on 15 July 1967 at San Pedro, Calif., by Todd Shipyards, Los Angeles Division; launched on 11 May 1968; sponsored by Mrs. Phyllis Hammond Smith, widow of HM3 Francis C. Hammond; and commissioned on 25 July 1970, Cmdr. John E. Elmore in command.

The 16th of 46 Knox-class destroyer escorts, USS Francis Hammond (DE-1067) was designed for anti-submarine warfare (ASW).  Armed with ASROC and torpedoes, her primary mission would be to patrol the Pacific Ocean, locate and identify Soviet submarines, and, in the event of armed conflict, destroy them. It was not until 26 August that she got underway for her first engineering sea trials, with a second set soon to follow on 3 September. USS Francis Hammond (DE-1067) steamed northwards on 24 October 1970 to commence a series of port visits and trials at sea.  Her first destination was Treasure Island in San Francisco, Calif., to conduct firefighting and damage control training, as well as provide a few days liberty for her crew (25-30 October).

Getting underway on 3 July 1971, FUSS Francis Hammond (DE-1067) ’s shakedown training went relatively smoothly, though she was unable to complete her naval gunfire support (NGFS) qualifications owing to scheduling issues and a casualty to her gun mount.  USS Francis Hammond (DE-1067) left for her Western Pacific (WestPac) deployment on 7 January 1972 in company with other members of DesRon 9, USS John Paul Jones (DDG-32) and Higbee (DD-806). Following her arrival at Subic Bay, Republic of the Philippines (R.P.), on 2 February, USS Francis Hammond (DE-1067) conducted three days of independent steaming exercises (10-12 February) in local waters in order to prepare her crew for the rigors of the deployment ahead.

Following her escort duties, USS Francis Hammond (DE-1067) served on the gunline near the Cua Viet River.  Over the course of the next three weeks, she provided fire support for South Vietnam’s counter offensive against Quang Tri City, South Vietnam (Operation Lam Son 72), as well as at Point Allison (Quang Tri), Betsy (Hue), and Claudia (north of Da Nang). On 13 January 1976, USS Francis Hammond (DE-1067) departed Yokosuka to escort Midway while it conducted various exercises.  Once this was complete, she returned to Yokosuka for another period of tender availability with Jason (23 January-8 February) and then set a course for Chinhae, South Korea, again escorting Midway en route (9-12 February).

USS Francis Hammond (DE-1067) got underway one last time on 17 March 1992, making two brief visits to Treasure Island, San Francisco (19, 21-22 March), offloading her ammunition at Concord Naval Station (20 March), and conducting a final Tiger Cruise on her journey back to Long Beach (23-24 March).  Shortly after arriving back in her home port, she began her decommissioning availability (30 March). Decommissioned on 2 July 1992 USS Francis Hammond (DE-1067) was stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 1 January 1995. 

For a complete history of USS Francis Hammond (DE-1067) please see its DANFS page.