View source for RPS Rajah Soliman

{{Short description|Philippine Naval destroyer}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2021}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=RPS Rajah Soliman D-66.jpg
|Ship caption=RPS ''Rajah Soliman'' (D-66)
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Ship country=United States
|Ship flag={{USN flag|1975}}
|Ship name=USS ''Bowers''
|Ship builder=Bethlehem Steel Shipyard Corp., San Francisco, California
|Ship laid down=14 January 1943
|Ship launched=31 October 1943
|Ship commissioned=27 January 1944
|Ship recommissioned=6 February 1951
|Ship decommissioned=18 December 1958
|Ship struck=1 May 1961
|Ship identification= DE-637
|Ship fate=Loaned to [[Philippine Navy]] 31 October 1960, renamed as RPS ''Rajah Soliman'' (D-66). Sold outright to the Philippine government on 21 April 1961.<ref name=navsourcebowersde>{{cite web|url=http://www.navsource.org/archives/06/637.htm |title=USS ''Bowers'' (DE 637 / APD 40) |publisher=Navsource Naval History |date=29 October 2010 |access-date=3 November 2011}}</ref><ref name=navsourcebowersapd>{{cite web |url=http://www.navsource.org/archives/10/old/10/04040.htm |title=DE-637 / APD-40 ''Bowers'' |publisher=Navsource Naval History |date=23 September 2005 |access-date=3 November 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130415121222/http://www.navsource.org/archives/10/old/10/04040.htm |archive-date=15 April 2013}}</ref>
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=title
|Ship country=Philippines
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|Philippines|naval}}
|Ship name=RPS ''Rajah Soliman'' 
|Ship operator=[[Philippine Navy]]
|Ship acquired=31 October 1960
|Ship commissioned=unconfirmed
|Ship decommissioned=December 1964
|Ship struck=December 1964
|Ship identification=D-66
|Ship fate=Sunk 29 June 1964, raised December 1964. Hulk sold to Mitsubishi International Corp., January 1966
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Ship class={{sclass|Buckley|destroyer escort}}/ ''Charles Lawrence''-class high speed transport
|Ship displacement=* 1,400 tons standard, 
* 1,740 tons full load
|Ship length={{convert|306|ft|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam={{convert|36.83|ft|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship draft={{convert|13.5|ft|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship power=  {{convert|12000|hp|abbr=on}}
|Ship propulsion=* 2 × GE "D" Express boilers turbines (Turbo Electric Drive)
*2 × shafts
|Ship speed=  {{convert|24|kn|km/h}} maximum
|Ship range=  {{convert|6000|nmi|km|abbr=on}} at {{convert|12|kn|km/h}}
|Ship complement=186
|Ship armament=* 1 × [[5-inch/38-caliber gun]] dual-purpose gun
* 3 × Mk.1 Mod.2 Twin L/60-caliber [[Bofors 40 mm Automatic Gun L/60|Bofors 40 mm gun]]
* 8 × Mk.10 70 caliber [[Oerlikon 20 mm cannon]]
* 2 × Mk.9 [[depth charge]] racks
}}
|}

'''RPS ''Rajah Soliman'' (D-66)''' was a [[destroyer escort]]/[[frigate]] that served with the [[Philippine Navy]] between 1960 and 1964. A {{sclass|Buckley|destroyer escort}}, it was originally named {{USS|Bowers|DE-637|6}} during its previous service with the [[United States Navy]]. It was the first destroyer escort to be operated by the Philippine Navy, and is the only member of its class ever operated by the service. ''Rajah Soliman''  was also the [[flagship]] of the Philippine Navy during its time in commission, which ended with the sinking of the vessel in 1964.<ref name=navytimesapril71965/>

==Acquisition and service==
The ex-{{USS|Bowers|DE-637|6}} was transferred to the Philippine Navy on 31 October 1960, as a loan under the terms of the [[Military Assistance Program]]; on 21 April 1961, the ship was sold outright to the Philippines. ''Rajah Soliman'' served as the Philippine Navy's [[flagship]] during her service life. In June 1964, the ship entered a refit period at the [[Bataan National Shipyard]], located in [[Mariveles, Bataan|Mariveles]], [[Bataan]], for repairs to her engine.<ref name=navytimesapril71965>{{cite web|url=http://www.navsource.org/archives/10/04/100404006.jpg |title=Old Parbuckle Method Revived to Raise Philippine Navy Ship |work=Navy Times|date=7 April 1965 |access-date=3 November 2011}}</ref>

==Sinking, raising, and disposal==
On 29 June 1964, [[Typhoon Winnie (1964)|Typhoon Winnie]], also known as Typhoon Dading, hit the [[Bataan Peninsula]]; the [[storm surge]] associated with the cyclone struck ''Rajah Soliman'', which was at the time docked at the shipyard's pier. The storm battered the ship's [[superstructure]] and [[starboard]] side against the pier, causing ''Rajah Soliman'' to capsize and sink at the dock. The effects of the storm also caused the wreck to fill with mud, sand and other debris.<ref name=navytimesapril71965/>

After the storm, an attempt to salvage the ship was made by the Philippine Navy; the attempt failed as a result of the necessary equipment not being available. The [[United States Navy]] agreed to salvage the ship as a training exercise, and between December 1964 and January 1965, two U.S. Navy salvage ships, {{USS|Grasp|ARS-24|6}} and {{USS|Bolster|ARS-38|6}}, used the [[parbuckle salvage]] technique to raise ''Rajah Soliman''{{'}}s wreck from the harbor floor.<ref name=navsourcebowersde/><ref name=navsourcebowersapd/><ref>{{cite web|title=NATIONAL REGISTER ELIGIBILITY ASSESSMENT VESSEL: USS Bolster (ARS-38) |work=Maritime Administration (MARAD) |url=http://www.marad.dot.gov/documents/Bolster_NHPA_History.pdf |access-date=3 November 2011}}</ref> After the vessel had been successfully raised, it was towed to the Ship Repair Facility at [[Subic Naval Base]], located nearby.<ref name=navytimesapril71965/>

A [[ship survey|survey]] of the raised ''Rajah Soliman'' found that the ship had been damaged beyond economical repair. Designated for disposal, the [[hulk (ship)|hulk]] was sold for scrapping on 31 January 1966 to [[Mitsubishi Heavy Industries|Mitsubishi International Corp.]]<ref name=navsourcebowersde/><ref name=navsourcebowersapd/><ref name=memoirsd66>{{cite web|title=RPS ''Rajah Soliman'' (D-66) – Conflicting Dates on Sinking |work=Memoirs of a Navy Brat |url=http://my-memoirs.yolasite.com/blog/rps-rajah-soliman-de-66-conflicting-dates-on-sinking |access-date=3 November 2011}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Buckley class destroyer escort}}
{{Charles Lawrence class transport}}
{{1964 shipwrecks}}

[[Category:Frigates of the Philippine Navy]]
[[Category:Ships transferred from the United States Navy to the Philippine Navy]]
[[Category:1943 ships]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1964]]