View source for USS Hall (DD-583)

{{Short description|Fletcher-class destroyer}}
{{Use American English|date=October 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2024}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=[[File:USS Hall (DD583) at anchor c1944.jpg|300px|USS Hall (DD-583) at anchor c1944]]
|Ship caption=
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Ship country=United States
|Ship flag={{USN flag|1946}}
|Ship name=USS ''Hall''
|Ship namesake=[[Elijah Hall (naval officer)|Elijah Hall]]
|Ship ordered=
|Ship builder=[[Boston Navy Yard]]
|Ship laid down=16 April 1942
|Ship launched=18 July 1942
|Ship sponsor=Mrs. Elizabeth Williams Greenleaf
|Ship commissioned=6 July 1943
|Ship decommissioned= 10 December 1946
|Ship struck=1 September 1975
|Ship honors=
|Ship identification=DD-583
|Ship fate= Transferred to [[Hellenic Navy]], 9 February 1960
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=title
|Ship country=Greece
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|Greece|naval}}
|Ship name=''Lonchi''
|Ship namesake=
|Ship acquired=9 February 1960
|Ship commissioned=
|Ship decommissioned=1 October 1990
|Ship identification=D56
|Ship struck= 10 October 1990
|Ship fate= Scrapped, 1997
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Ship class={{sclass|Fletcher|destroyer}}
|Ship displacement=2,050&nbsp;tons
|Ship length={{convert|376|ft|6|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam={{convert|39|ft|8|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship draught=
|Ship draft={{convert|17|ft|9|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship propulsion={{convert|60,000|shp|abbr=on}}; 2 propellers
|Ship speed={{convert|35|kn}}
|Ship range={{convert|6500|nmi|abbr=on}} at {{convert|15|kn|abbr=on}}
|Ship complement=329
|Ship sensors=
|Ship EW=
|Ship armament=*5 × [[5"/38 caliber gun|{{convert|5|in|mm|abbr=on}}]]/38 cal. guns
*4 × [[Bofors 40 mm Automatic Gun L/60|40 mm]] AA guns,
*4 × [[Oerlikon 20 mm cannon|20 mm]] AA guns,
*10 × [[American 21 inch torpedo|21 inch (533 mm)]] [[torpedo tube]]s,
*6 × [[depth charge]] projectors,
*2 × depth charge tracks
|Ship armour=
|Ship armor=
|Ship aircraft=
|Ship aircraft facilities=
|Ship notes=
}}
|}
'''USS ''Hall'' (DD-583)''' was a {{sclass|Fletcher|destroyer}} of the [[United States Navy]]. ''Hall'' entered service in 1943 and deployed to the Pacific theater. Following the war, the ship was placed in reserve until 1959, when she was sold to the [[Hellenic Navy]] and renamed '''''Lonchi'''''. The destroyer remained in service with the Hellenic Navy until 1990 and was [[Ship breaking|scrapped]] in 1997.
==Namesake==
Elijah Hall was born on 8 December 1742 in [[Raynham, Massachusetts]]. He was appointed [[Lieutenant]] in the [[Continental Navy]] on 14 June 1777, to serve on the [[frigate]] {{USS|Ranger|1777|6}} under [[John Paul Jones]]. ''Ranger'' sailed for [[France]] on 1 November 1777, taking two prizes en route, then put to sea from [[Brest, France]] on 10 April 1778, to cruise in the [[Irish Sea]]. Hall took part in the capture of several vessels, the landing at St. Mary's Isle on 23 April and the capture of {{HMS|Drake|1777|6}} the next day. Hall commanded the prize crew which took ''Drake'' into Brest. Hall continued to serve as Lieutenant of ''Ranger'' until he was captured at [[Charleston, South Carolina]] on 12 May 1780. Released after the end of the war, Hall settled in [[Portsmouth, New Hampshire]] in 1818 and held various community positions until his death there on 22 June 1830.
==Construction and career==
''Hall'' was [[Keel laying|laid down]] by the [[Boston Navy Yard]] on 16 April 1942 and was [[Ship naming and launching|launched]] on 18 July 1942, sponsored by Mrs. Elizabeth Williams Greenleaf, great-granddaughter of Lt. Hall. The ship was [[ship commissioning|commissioned]] on 6 July 1943.
''Hall'' departed [[Boston, Massachusetts]] on 11 August 1943, for shakedown training off the East Coast, then reported for duty at [[Naval Station Norfolk|Norfolk, Virginia]] on 28 September. As an escort for [[France|French]] transport ''Richelieu'', she sailed for Boston on 2 October, returning three days later. She continued escort duties in the Norfolk and Boston areas until departing 5 November for special duty with the destroyers {{USS|Halligan|DD-584|2}} and {{USS|Macomb|DD-458|2}}. The three destroyers rendezvoused at sea with the [[battleship]] {{USS|Iowa|BB-61|2}}, carrying [[President of the United States|President]] [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] and other dignitaries to the [[Teheran Conference]]. After a safe crossing, the escorts were relieved of their duties near [[Gibraltar]] on 17 November. They performed escort and antisubmarine search duties off western [[Africa]] until 6 December, then rejoined ''Iowa'' for the return voyage of the President and his party.
=== 1944 ===
Ordered to the [[Pacific Ocean theater of World War II|Pacific]], ''Hall'' departed [[Naval Station Charleston|Charleston, South Carolina]] on 21 December and arrived at [[Pearl Harbor]] 11 January 1944. On 22 January, she cleared [[Hawaii]] with Rear Admiral [[Richmond K. Turner]]'s Expeditionary Force bound for the capture and occupation of the [[Marshall Islands]], a giant step across the [[Pacific]] toward [[Imperial Japan|Japan]]. Sent with three [[cruiser]]s and three other destroyers on a special mission to wreck the airfields on Tarao Island during the invasion, ''Hall'' joined in the devastating bombardment of that island 30 January. Her guns knocked out a gasoline dump with a tremendous explosion, hit several gun emplacements, and then screened the larger ships during the remainder of the firing. Tarao effectively neutralized, the ships then sailed for [[Kwajalein]] and the main assault.
''Hall'' carried out varied duties during the month-long [[Gilbert and Marshall Islands campaign|invasion of the Marshalls]]. On 4 February, she supported the landing of troops on Burnet Island in the [[Battle of Kwajalein]]. During the [[Battle of Eniwetok]] on 18 February, she covered the landings of [[Engebi Island]] and supplied gunfire support, and furnished [[star shell]] illumination for landings on 22 to 23 February on [[Parry Island (Pacific)|Parry Island]]. After an escort voyage with transports to Pearl Harbor and back between 29 February and 26 March, ''Hall'' was assigned patrol and lifeguard duties in the Kwajalein area. On 4 April, while searching for a downed [[United States Marine Corps|Marine]] flyer near [[Wotje]], she received two 6-inch shells close aboard from an enemy shore battery. Suffering one sailor killed, she returned the fire, continued her search, and finally rescued the airman. ''Hall'' continued her effective role in the overwhelming amphibious victory until departing [[Majuro]] atoll 12 May for Pearl Harbor, where she arrived 18 May.
''Hall'' next joined the escort for a group of 12 [[fleet oiler]]s whose job it was to supply vital fuel to units of the [[U.S. 5th Fleet|5th Fleet]] during the [[Mariana and Palau Islands campaign|Marianas operations]]. She made two fuelling voyages from Majuro to the [[Marianas]], then shifted her base to [[Seeadler Harbor]], [[Admiralty Islands]], on 26 August to screen refuelling and replacement units during the operations for the capture of the [[Caroline Islands|Carolines]]. ''Hall'' continued this duty until 24 November.
Getting underway from [[Manus Island]] on 29 November, ''Hall'' steamed to [[Teluk Yos Sudarso|Humboldt Bay]], [[New Guinea]], to join [[U.S. 7th Fleet|7th Fleet]] for the developing [[Philippines campaign, 1944-45|invasion of the Philippines]]. Convoying troop-laden amphibious ships, she arrived at [[Leyte Gulf]] on 7 December 1944, and 4 days later steamed out of [[San Pedro Bay (Philippines)|San Pedro Bay]] for [[Mindoro]] Island with the Mindoro Attack Group. As the ships passed through [[Surigao Strait]] and into the [[Sulu Sea]], they underwent frequent severe air attacks, but the escort ships succeeded in downing four aircraft by 13 December. On 15 December, ''Hall'' and the other escorts supported the landings at [[Mangarin Bay]] and, as Japanese planes bombed and strafed the first wave of assault troops, ''Hall'' patrolled and fired from her station to seaward of the [[landing craft]]. The gunfire and covering aircraft splashed 15 [[dive-bomber]]s during the initial landings.
=== 1945 ===
After two escort voyages to Leyte Gulf, ''Hall'' joined Admiral [[Jesse B. Oldendorf]]'s support force for the [[Battle of Luzon|landings at Lingayen Gulf]]. Sailing 30 December, she steamed via the Sulu Sea for [[Luzon]]. On 3 January 1945, the group encountered desperate, but determined, enemy air strikes, which were repelled by tight air cover and effective gunfire. The Japanese attacks intensified, however, and the ships remained at nearly continuous [[battle station]]s for more than 4 days. Brave men in these gallant ships inflicted heavy damage on the attackers. Japanese ''[[kamikaze]]''s, in turn, fatally hit the [[escort carrier]] {{USS|Ommaney Bay|CVE-79|2}} 4 January, and the burning, abandoned carrier was sunk by American [[torpedo]]es. The next two days brought even heavier Japanese attacks. Despite the withering curtain of fire laid down by ''Hall'' and other ships of the group, the suicide raiders crashed more than 16 ships, including the battleships {{USS|California|BB-44|2}} and {{USS|New Mexico|BB-40|2}}. Undaunted, the valiant ships bore the brunt of the ''kamikaze''s with resolute courage and determination. In doing so, they repelled the menace of the suicide planes and saved the transport and assault forces from certain destruction.
Following the successful amphibious assaults in [[Lingayen Gulf]] on 9 January, ''Hall'' continued to operate in the Gulf where she served as an escort and screen ship. Later in the month on 29 January, she returned to [[Leyte (island)|Leyte]] before departing for [[Ulithi]]. At Ulithi ''Hall'' joined in the preparations for the upcoming [[Battle of Iwo Jima|Iwo Jima operation]]. On 15 February she joined a fire support unit, which included [[flagship]] {{USS|Texas|BB-35|2}}, west of [[Saipan]] and set course for [[Iwo Jima]]. The force arrived off Iwo the next day; after joining in a heavy shore bombardment, ''Hall'' covered [[underwater demolition team]]s and furnished close fire support for [[minesweeper (ship)|minesweeper]]s until the troops stormed ashore 19 February. After performing additional patrol and close fire support missions during this fiercely fought and strategically important invasion, ''Hall'' returned to Ulithi on 12 March to prepare for the [[Battle of Okinawa|invasion of Okinawa]], the last step on the long, bloody road to the heart of the [[Japanese Empire]].
On 21 March, ''Hall'' departed for [[Okinawa Island|Okinawa]] with Task Force 54 (TF-54). She began patrolling off that fiercely contested island on 25 March. Her gunfire drove off two Japanese [[torpedo boat]]s on 30 March, and shot down two aircraft on 6 April. Continuing her operations, she covered minesweepers with gunfire, screened heavy units of the fleet, and provided close support gunfire until steaming to Leyte 28 May. She soon returned to the scene of the action, arriving back at Okinawa on 13 June. On 16 June, her lookouts observed the destroyer {{USS|Twiggs|DD-591|2}} strike a [[Naval mine|mine]] off the beach. ''Hall'' immediately came to the rescue, pulling 48 survivors from the water.
Detached from duty off Okinawa 23 June, ''Hall'' sailed for the United States. She was in overhaul status at [[San Pedro, California]], when news of the Japanese surrender came. She reported to San Diego for inactivation, was decommissioned 10 December 1946, and entered the [[Pacific Reserve Fleet]] at [[Long Beach Naval Shipyard|Long Beach]]. The destroyer was taken out of reserve on 2 December 1959 and, after a training period, was loaned to [[Greece]] under the Military Assistance Program on 9 February 1960.
=== Greek service ===
{{other ships|Greek ship Lonchi}}
The ship was accepted on 9 February 1960 by Cdr C. Moschos HN. She served in the [[Hellenic Navy]] as ''Lonchi'' (D56).
Decommissioned on 1 October 1990, ''Lonchi'' was stricken 10 October 1990. She was scrapped in 1997 at [[Aliağa]], [[Turkey]].
== Awards ==
''Hall'' received eight [[battle star]]s for [[World War II]] service.
== References ==
*{{cite journal |last1=Melman |first1=Stan |title=Question 25/93: USN/USCG Collisions with Merchant Vessels |journal=Warship International |date=1996 |volume=XXXIII |issue=3 |page=319 |issn=0043-0374}}
*{{DANFS|http://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/h/hall.html|http://www.hazegray.org/danfs/destroy/dd583txt.htm}}
==External links==
*[http://www.navsource.org/archives/05/583.htm        navsource.org: USS ''Hall'']
*[http://www.hellenicnavy.gr/logxi60_90_en.asp  hellenicnavy.gr: HNS ''Lonchi'']
{{Fletcher class destroyer|others}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hall (DD-583)}}
[[Category:Fletcher-class destroyers of the United States Navy]]
[[Category:Ships built in Boston]]
[[Category:1942 ships]]
[[Category:World War II destroyers of the United States]]
[[Category:Fletcher-class destroyers of the Hellenic Navy|Lonchi]]