USS Wilkes (DD-441) was a commissioned in the United States Navy from 1941 to 1946. After spending several decades in the reserve fleet, the destroyer was scrapped in 1972.
History
Construction Wilkes was the third ship of the U.S. Navy to be named for Charles Wilkes, who was an American naval officer and explorer. She was laid down on 1 November 1939 by the Boston Navy Yard, launched on 31 May 1940; sponsored by Mrs. Bessie Wilkes Styer; and commissioned on 22 April 1941.
Initial operations
Wilkes was ready for sea on 1 June 1941 and then conducted shakedown training off the New England coast. The destroyer arrived in Bermuda on 24 August and helped to screen the battleships and on their shakedown cruises in the Caribbean. She departed Bermuda on 9 September and, two days later, arrived back in Boston for a brief availability, setting sail on 25 September for Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and four days of training. Wilkes left Cuban waters and, on 2 October, arrived at Hampton Roads, Virginia, three days later. During the remainder of October, Wilkes visited Gravesend Bay, New York, Casco Bay, Maine; and Provincetown, Massachusetts.
On 2 November, the destroyer arrived at NS Argentia, Newfoundland, briefly escorted , and made rendezvous with , which had just survived two torpedo hits, and escorted the damaged oiler to Cape Sable, Nova Scotia.
On 28 November, Wilkes departed Cape Sable escorting Convoy HX 162. During the destroyer's passage to Iceland, Japanese naval aircraft attacked the Pacific Fleet's base at Pearl Harbor, pushing the United States into full participation in World War II. The convoy reached its destination the next day, and Wilkes spent the rest of December escorting convoys from Argentia, Newfoundland, to Hvalfjörður and Reykjavík, Iceland. Wilkes returned to Boston where she refueled, took on provisions, and remained through the holiday season.
1942 On 1 January 1942, the destroyer got underway and the following day arrived at Casco Bay, Maine, where she conducted exercise runs. On 5 January, Wilkes departed Casco Bay in company with , , and , bound for Naval Station Argentia, Newfoundland. She arrived two days later and, on the 10th, made rendezvous with Convoy HX 169, accompanying it for the next eight days. On 18 January, she was relieved as escort, and she set course for Northern Ireland with Madison, Roper, and Sturtevant. Three days later, she moored at Derry. On 25 January, Wilkes got underway and soon made contact with Convoy ON 59, taking station and relieving the British escort vessels. She arrived at Boston on 8 February, requiring docking.
On 12 February 1942, Wilkes received orders to depart Boston on 15 February and to proceed to Casco Bay, Maine, on a routine "milk run" in company with and to join en route. Truxtun was delayed, so Wilkes went ahead and met Pollux according to schedule on 15 February; Truxtun joined up the following day.
While en route to Argentia, Newfoundland, at about 03:50 on 18 February 1942, Wilkes'''s commanding officer was awakened by the navigator and informed that the ship was believed to be northward of the plotted track. Visibility was poor, and weather conditions prevented obtaining radio direction finder bearings. Continuous depth soundings were taken, and all were in excess of except one sounding of which was obtained just prior to grounding. The signal, "Emergency stop", to warn the other vessels was immediately given by searchlight, and the message. "Wilkes aground do not know which side" was broadcast on the TBS. The words, "Wilkes aground", were also broadcast on the distress frequency. However, no message was received from Pollux or Truxtun until after these ships had also grounded. Wilkes found herself stranded to port of Pollux, Truxtun to starboard. About 07:00, Wilkes succeeded in backing clear of the beach. After seeing that Pollux had received help from , she left the scene. However, Pollux and Truxtun were totally lost, along with the 205 men who went down with them. The casualty list from the two lost ships was the Atlantic Fleet's largest list of the war up to that time.
No deaths occurred on Wilkes. She remained at Argentia for six days before beginning a voyage to Boston for repairs.Dead Reckoning: The Pollux-Truxton Disaster
On 1 April 1942, Wilkes was assigned to Task Force 21 (TF 21) at the Boston Navy Yard where she conducted post repair trials and underwent a three-day availability. On 6 April, Wilkes got underway for Casco Bay, Maine, escorting .
On 8 April, the destroyer sighted the British oil tanker SS Davila. One minute later, the two ships collided — Davilas bow struck Wilkes on the port side abreast of her number one fireroom. After the two ships separated, the destroyer returned to Boston where she entered the navy yard for restricted availability which continued until 3 June. The next day, she conducted post-repair trials.
Following gunnery and antiaircraft practice and antisubmarine exercises at Casco Bay, Wilkes made a short escort mission screening Convoy BX-26. Three days later, she got underway for New York in company with and arrived the following day, and anchored at the New York Navy Yard. On 1 July 1942, the destroyer sailed for Little Placentia Harbor, Newfoundland, where she performed escort and patrol duty before returning to New York where she remained until the 12th.
The next day, Wilkes got underway and joined Convoy AS-4, nine ships of American, British, Norwegian, and Dutch registry. On the 16th, the second ship of the first column of the convoy, SS Fairport was torpedoed forward and aft and sank. Survivors got clear in four boats and several rafts. made depth charge attacks and rescued the survivors while Wilkes continued a sound search and released nine depth charges with no visible results.
At 16:00 on 17 July, the destroyer made an underwater sound contact. Three minutes later, she delivered a modified "intermediate depth charge attack." Large amounts of air were seen to emerge at the scene of the attack in the center of which appeared the bow of a submarine, which then rolled over and disappeared, apparently out of control. At 16:14, Wilkes delivered a deep attack, including three 600-pound charges at the scene of the air blows. More air broke the surface, and the whole area was covered with dark brown liquid and oil.
Three days later, Wilkes was detached from the formation and proceeded to Trinidad, where she refueled before sailing for the Virginia capes and arrived at Norfolk on 25 July. The destroyer then made two coastal runs to New York before getting underway from that port on 19 August and steaming for Halifax harbor, Nova Scotia, where she arrived on 21 August. She remained moored off Greenoch until 5 September. At that time, she proceeded to sea to escort USAT Siboney to New York. She then spent the remainder of September conducting various exercises in Casco Bay, Maine.Wilkes sailed for Virginia on 30 September 1942 and, two days later, arrived at Hampton Roads. For the greater part of October, the destroyer conducted various drills and maneuvers, including amphibious operations with TF 33. On 24 October, Wilkes got underway from Norfolk and took station in a convoy steaming for North Africa.
Convoys escorted ConvoyEscort GroupDatesNotesON 2928 Oct-11 Nov 1941from Iceland to Newfoundland prior to US declaration of warHX 16229 Nov-7 Dec 1941from Newfoundland to Iceland prior to US declaration of warHX 16910–18 Jan 1942from Newfoundland to IcelandON 5929 Jan-2 Feb 1942from Iceland to NewfoundlandAT 171–12 July 1942troopships from New York City to Firth of ClydeUGF 1Task Force 3424 Oct-8 Nov 1942from Chesapeake Bay to Morocco
Operation Torch On 8 November 1942, Wilkes participated in the assault on Fedhala, French Morocco, and the resulting Naval Battle of Casablanca. Operating with TF 34, she was assigned duty as a control vessel during the first phase and as a fire support vessel during the second. The ship made radar contact on the surface, and a short while later her fire control party reported a dark object in the water. Wilkes dropped a standard nine-charge pattern. Thereafter, sound conditions were unfavorable due to the depth charge turbulence which was extreme in the shallow water . After 16 minutes, the search was abandoned. No casualties or hits resulted from enemy action.
The next day, while steaming off Fedhala Point, Wilkes sighted a French destroyer emerging from Casablanca. She left her patrol station and proceeded toward the enemy ship. However, the shore battery on Pointe d'Oukach opened fire, and Wilkes was forced to discontinue her chase as the destroyer retreated back to Casablanca.
On 11 November, Wilkes received news that Casablanca had capitulated; and the destroyer then resumed patrolling the area around the convoy anchorage. At 19:58, a rocket burst near the convoy area; and, one minute later, reported being torpedoed. At 20:00, reported the same fate and sank in less than one hour. illuminated to open fire on a surfaced submarine and also made a depth charge attack with negative results.
The next day, Wilkes escorted Augusta into Casablanca. She then returned toward the patrol area and resumed patrolling her assigned station. Wilkes picked up a submarine contact at and made a shallow depth charge attack, expending four 300-pound and two 600-pound charges without success. Wilkes then abandoned her search and continued her patrol. Little more than an hour later, two ships in the convoy anchorage area were torpedoed. A U-boat hit a third ship after 26 more minutes had passed. The convoy was ordered to weigh anchor and proceed to sea. Wilkes got underway and took station in the convoy's antisubmarine screen off its starboard bow. The convoy changed base course 20 degrees every 15 minutes for almost two hours to avoid detection.
On 15 November 1942, , a cargo ship in another convoy, was torpedoed. Wilkes made a submarine contact at and made a depth charge attack with negative results. The destroyer then screened the damaged ship as she was being towed into Casablanca.
Two days later Wilkes rejoined the convoy as it steamed homeward and, on 30 November 1942, arrived at Norfolk. She spent the month of December conducting short escort and patrol missions in waters in New York and Casco Bay, Maine.
1943Wilkes began the new year 1943 with two voyages from New York to Casablanca and back, taking place between 14 January and 14 February and between 6 March and 5 April. The destroyer then made runs between New York and Norfolk through 14 May 1943.
The next day, she got underway escorting a convoy to the Panama Canal and arrived on 21 May at Cristóbal, Canal Zone. Four days later, Wilkes returned to Hampton Roads. From 29 May through 9 June, the destroyer visited ports along the northeast coast of the United States and then devoted the remainder of 1943 escorting convoys to North Africa, making three round trips from 10 June until Christmas Day when she returned to New York.
1944 On 7 January 1944, Wilkes got underway for the Canal Zone along with and transited the canal and arrived at Balboa on 12 January. A week later, Wilkes escorted troop-laden SS Mormacdove, via the Galápagos, Bora Bora, and Nouméa to Milne Bay, New Guinea, where they arrived on 20 February 1944. Five days later, the destroyer got underway for Cape Gloucester, New Britain, made rendezvous with an LST convoy en route, and escorted them to Borgen Bay, Cape Gloucester, Megin Island, Cape Cretin, and the Tami Islands.
On 1 March 1944, Wilkes was anchored in Oro Bay, Buna, New Guinea. Two days later, she embarked American Army troops, complete with equipment, and got underway with eight other destroyers and three high-speed transports and sailed for Los Negros Island of the Admiralty group in order to reinforce elements of the 1st Cavalry Division who were then holding the beachhead.