USS Cook (FF-1083)
History
United States
NameCook
NamesakeWilmer P. Cook
Ordered25 August 1966
BuilderAvondale Shipyard, Bridge City, Louisiana
Laid down20 March 1970
Launched23 January 1971
Acquired9 December 1971
Commissioned18 December 1971
Decommissioned30 April 1992
Stricken11 January 1995
HomeportSan Diego
Identification
MottoAbove All Duty
FateDisposed of through the Security Assistance Program (SAP), transferred to Taiwan, 29 September 1999, retired in 2015 and sunk as target in 2020.
General characteristics
Class and typeKnox-class frigate
Displacement3,201 tons (4,182 full load)
Length438 ft (134 m)
Beam46 ft 9 in (14.25 m)
Draft24 ft 9 in (7.54 m)
Propulsion
  • two CE 1,200 psi (8,300 kPa) boilers
  • one Westinghouse geared turbine
  • one shaft, 35,000 shp (26,000 kW)
Speedover 27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph)
Complement18 officers, 267 enlisted
Sensors and
processing systems
Electronic warfare
& decoys		AN/SLQ-32 Electronics Warfare System
Armament
Aircraft carriedone SH-2 Seasprite (LAMPS I) helicopter

USS Cook (FF-1083) was a Knox-class frigate built for the United States Navy by Avondale Shipyard, Bridge City, Louisiana.

The ship was named after Lieutenant Commander Wilmer P. Cook, USN, a Douglas A-4E Skyhawk aviator from Attack Squadron 155 aboard Coral Sea. On 22 December 1967, LCdr. Cook launched on a combat mission over North Vietnam. LCdr. Cook was killed when he ejected from his burning aircraft, a rescue helicopter was unable to recover his body when it came under heavy fire.[1]

Design and description

The Knox-class design was derived from the Brooke-class frigate modified to extend range and without a long-range missile system. The ships had an overall length of 438 feet (133.5 m), a beam of 47 feet (14.3 m) and a draft of 25 feet (7.6 m). They displaced 4,066 long tons (4,131 t) at full load. Their crew consisted of 13 officers and 211 enlisted men.[2]

The ships were equipped with one Westinghouse geared steam turbine that drove the single propeller shaft. The turbine was designed to produce 35,000 shaft horsepower (26,000 kW), using steam provided by 2 C-E boilers, to reach the designed speed of 27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph). The Knox class had a range of 4,500 nautical miles (8,300 km; 5,200 mi) at a speed of 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph).[3]

The Knox-class ships were armed with a 5"/54 caliber Mark 42 gun forward and a single 3-inch/50-caliber gun aft. They mounted an the 5-inch (127 mm) gun and the bridge. Close-range anti-submarine defense was provided by two twin 12.75-inch (324 mm) Mk 32 torpedo tubes. The ships were equipped with a torpedo-carrying DASH drone helicopter; its telescoping hangar and landing pad were positioned amidships aft of the mack. Beginning in the 1970s, the DASH was replaced by a SH-2 Seasprite LAMPS I helicopter and the hangar and landing deck were accordingly enlarged. Most ships also had the 3-inch (76 mm) gun replaced by an eight-cell BPDMS missile launcher in the early 1970s.[4]

Construction and career

Her keel was laid 20 March 1970, she was launched 23 January 1971 and delivered 9 December 1971. Cook was commissioned 18 December 1971 and decommissioned 30 April 1992. She was struck 11 January 1995 and disposed of through the Security Assistance Program (SAP), and transferred to Taiwan 29 September 1999. She served the Republic of China Navy (ROCN) as Hai-Yang (FFG-936) with additional re-modifications and retired May 2015 .Hai-Yang used as the target during the exercise in 2020. Sunk by F-16V as target 1 July 2020.

Notes

  1. ^ Waldman 2018.
  2. ^ Friedman, pp. 357–60, 425
  3. ^ Gardiner, Chumley & Budzbon, p. 598
  4. ^ Friedman, pp. 360–61; Gardiner, Chumley & Budzbon, p. 598

References

Further reading

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to USS Cook (FF-1083).
Knox-class frigates
Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in 2020
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