USS Jack W. Wilke: Difference between revisions

History
United States
Laid down	18 October 1943
Launched	18 December 1943
Commissioned	7 March 1944
Decommissioned	24 May 1960
Stricken	1 August 1972
Fate	Sold for scrap, 4 March 1974
General characteristics
Displacement	1,740 tons full; 1,400 tons, standard;
Length	306 ft 0 in (93 m)
Beam	36 ft 9 in (11.20 m)
Draft	13 ft 6 in (4.11 m)
Propulsion	GE turbo-electric drive; 12,000 shp (8.9 MW); two propellers;
Speed	24 knots (44 km/h)
Range	4,940 nautical miles (9,150 km) at 12 knots (22 km/h)
Complement	15 officers, 198 men
Armament	3 × 3 in (76 mm) DP guns; 3 × 21 in (53 cm) torpedo tubes; 1 × 1.1 in (28 mm) quad AA gun; 8 × 20 mm cannon; 1 × hedgehog projector; 2 × depth charge tracks; 8 × K-gun depth charge projectors;

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Latest revision as of 21:34, 12 March 2023

USS Jack W. Wilke (DE-800) was a Buckley-class destroyer escort of the United States Navy.

Namesake

Jack Winton Wilke was born on 13 June 1919 in Covina, California. He enlisted in the United States Naval Reserve on 13 January 1941. After undergoing flight training, he was commissioned Ensign on 1 November 1941. Wilke was first assigned to a patrol squadron, but later reported to Torpedo Squadron 8 (VT-8) on board USS Hornet in the Pacific.

In the Battle of Midway, 4 and 5 June 1942, he joined his squadron in attacking the Imperial Japanese Navy invasion force without fighter cover. All the planes and all the flyers but one, Ens. George H. Gay, of the squadron were lost; but their attack had diverted Japanese fighters from dive bombing attacks which might otherwise have prevented the eventual U.S. Navy victory. He was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross.

Construction and commissioning

Jack W. Wilke was launched by Consolidated Steel Corp., Orange, Texas, 18 December 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Joe H. Wilke, mother of Ens. Wilke; and commissioned 7 March 1944.

After a shakedown to the West Indies and antisubmarine warfare (ASW) training at Bermuda, Jack W. Wilke spent six months on Atlantic convoy escort duty. The escort covered several convoys from American ports to the Mediterranean in the summer of 1944, making stops at Oran, Algeria; Bizerte, Tunis; Palermo, Sicily; and Naples, Italy. Later in the year, the warship escorted a convoy directly to Cherbourg, France. That last convoy escort mission was particularly nerve-racking owing to the late war German U-boat offensive in British waters. Following intelligence indications that next generation U-boats were planning to return to the western Atlantic, Wilke operated with a hunter-killer group in the Newfoundland–Nova Scotia area from December 1944 to May 1945. Upon the surrender of Germany, she moved to Norfolk to serve as a weather reporting and air-sea rescue vessel.

Jack W. Wilke sailed 4 June 1945 for Miami and operated as a sonar training ship there until 18 July. The warship then shifted to Philadelphia for an overhaul (and the installation of more anti-aircraft guns and improved sonar gear) in preparation for operations in the Pacific. With that mission cancelled by the end of the war in August 1945, the escort sailed to Port Everglades, Florida for three weeks of experimental ASW exercises. In September, she underwent a three-month overhaul at New York Navy Yard in preparation for her new role as an experimental antisubmarine ship. Jack W. Wilke sailed back to Florida on 7 January 1946 to commence operations out of Key West. During the years that followed, she carried out experiments in both tactics and sound equipment off Key West and during occasional cruises in the West Indies.

The ship's schedule of experimental operations was interrupted on New Year's Day 1959 by the triumph of Fidel Castro's forces in Cuba; and Jack W. Wilke steamed to Havana with other ships to help stabilize the situation and to protect American lives and property. During the remainder of the year, she operated off Key West and Norfolk on training operations, and took part in a special good-will cruise to Panama in October during a Caribbean training period.

Returning to Key West, the ship decommissioned 24 May 1960, and entered the Atlantic Reserve Fleet at Philadelphia. The old escort was struck from the Navy list on 1 August 1972 and later sold for scrap to Union Metals & Alloys Corp., New York, on 4 March 1974.

References

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.

External links

history.navy.mil: USS Jack W. Wilke(revised 3 November 2005) Archived 29 December 2007 at the Wayback Machine
navsource.org: USS Jack W. Wilke
hazegray.org: USS Jack W. Wilke

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+{{short description|Buckley-class destroyer escort of the United States Navy}}
-{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2012}}
-{{Refimprove|date=August 2009}}
+{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2021}}
+{{More citations needed|date=August 2009}}
-{|{{Infobox Ship Begin}}
+{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
-{{Infobox Ship Image
+{{Infobox ship image
-|Ship image=  [[Image:DE800 Jack W Wilke.jpg|300px]]
+|Ship image= USS Jack W. Wilke (DE-800) underway, circa in the early 1950s.jpg
 |Ship caption=
 }}
-{{Infobox Ship Career
+{{Infobox ship career
 |Hide header=
-|Ship country=
+|Ship country=United States
 |Ship flag=  {{USN flag|1960}}
 |Ship name=
@@ Line 24: / Line 24: @@
 |Ship notes=
 }}
 {{Buckley class DE ship characteristics}}
 |}
-'''USS ''Jack W. Wilke'' (DE-800)''' was a [[Buckley class destroyer escort|''Buckley''-class]] [[destroyer escort]] of the [[United States Navy]], named in honor of Ensign [[Jack W. Wilke]] (1919–42), a [[naval aviator]] in Torpedo Squadron 8 ([[VT-8]]) who was awarded the [[Navy Cross (United States)|Navy Cross]] posthumously for his heroism in the [[Battle of Midway]].
+'''USS ''Jack W. Wilke'' (DE-800)''' was a [[Buckley class destroyer escort|''Buckley''-class]] [[destroyer escort]] of the [[United States Navy]].
+==Namesake==
+Jack Winton Wilke was born on 13 June 1919 in [[Covina, California]]. He enlisted in the [[United States Naval Reserve]] on 13 January 1941. After undergoing flight training, he was commissioned [[Ensign (rank)|Ensign]] on 1 November 1941. Wilke was first assigned to a patrol squadron, but later reported to [[Torpedo Squadron 8]] (VT-8) on board {{USS|Hornet|CV-8|6}} in the Pacific.
+In the [[Battle of Midway]], 4 and 5 June 1942, he joined his squadron in attacking the [[Imperial Japanese Navy]] invasion force without fighter cover. All the planes and all the flyers but one, Ens. [[George H. Gay]], of the squadron were lost; but their attack had diverted Japanese fighters from dive bombing attacks which might otherwise have prevented the eventual U.S. Navy victory. He was posthumously awarded the [[Navy Cross]].
+==Construction and commissioning==
-''Jack W. Wilke'' was [[ship naming and launching|launched]] by [[Consolidated Steel Corp.]], [[Orange, Texas]], 18 December 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Joe H. Wilke, mother of Ens. Wilke; and [[ship commissioning|commissioned]] 7 March 1944, Lieutenant Commander Robert D. Lowther in command.
+''Jack W. Wilke'' was [[ship naming and launching|launched]] by [[Consolidated Steel Corp.]], [[Orange, Texas]], 18 December 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Joe H. Wilke, mother of Ens. Wilke; and [[ship commissioning|commissioned]] 7 March 1944.
-After a [[shakedown (testing)|shakedown]] to the [[West Indies]] and [[antisubmarine warfare]] (ASW) training at [[Bermuda]], ''Jack W. Wilke'' spent six months on [[Atlantic]] [[convoy]] escort duty. The escort covered several convoys from American ports to the [[Mediterranean]] in the summer of 1944, making stops at [[Oran]], [[Algeria]]; [[Bizerte]], [[Tunis]]; [[Palermo]], [[Sicily]]; and [[Naples]], [[Italy]]. Later in the year, the warship escorted a convoy directly to [[Cherbourg]], [[France]]. That last convoy escort mission was particularly nerve-racking owing to the late war [[Nazi Germany|German]] [[U-boat]] offensive in [[United Kingdom|British]] waters. Following intelligence indications that next generation U-boats were planning to return to the western Atlantic, ''Wilke'' operated with a [[Hunter-killer armored-vehicle team|hunter-killer]] group in the [[Newfoundland (island)|Newfoundland]]–[[Nova Scotia]] area from December 1944 to May 1945. Upon the [[surrender of Germany]], she moved to [[Norfolk, Virginia|Norfolk]] to serve as a weather reporting and air-sea rescue vessel.
+After a [[shakedown cruise|shakedown]] to the [[West Indies]] and [[antisubmarine warfare]] (ASW) training at [[Bermuda]], ''Jack W. Wilke'' spent six months on [[Atlantic]] [[convoy]] escort duty. The escort covered several convoys from American ports to the [[Mediterranean]] in the summer of 1944, making stops at [[Oran]], [[Algeria]]; [[Bizerte]], [[Tunis]]; [[Palermo]], [[Sicily]]; and [[Naples]], [[Italy]]. Later in the year, the warship escorted a convoy directly to [[Cherbourg]], [[France]]. That last convoy escort mission was particularly nerve-racking owing to the late war [[Nazi Germany|German]] [[U-boat]] offensive in [[United Kingdom|British]] waters. Following intelligence indications that next generation U-boats were planning to return to the western Atlantic, ''Wilke'' operated with a [[Hunter-killer Group|hunter-killer]] group in the [[Newfoundland (island)|Newfoundland]]–[[Nova Scotia]] area from December 1944 to May 1945. Upon the [[surrender of Germany]], she moved to [[Norfolk, Virginia|Norfolk]] to serve as a weather reporting and air-sea rescue vessel.
-''Jack W. Wilke'' sailed 4 June 1945 for [[Miami, Florida|Miami]] and operated as a [[sonar]] training ship there until 18 July. The warship then shifted to [[Philadelphia Navy Yard|Philadelphia]] for an overhaul (and the installation of more anti-aircraft guns and improved sonar gear) in preparation for operations in the [[Pacific]]. With that mission cancelled by the end of the war in August 1945, the escort sailed to [[Port Everglades, Florida]] for three weeks of experimental ASW exercises.
+''Jack W. Wilke'' sailed 4 June 1945 for [[Miami]] and operated as a [[sonar]] training ship there until 18 July. The warship then shifted to [[Philadelphia Navy Yard|Philadelphia]] for an overhaul (and the installation of more anti-aircraft guns and improved sonar gear) in preparation for operations in the [[Pacific]]. With that mission cancelled by the end of the war in August 1945, the escort sailed to [[Port Everglades, Florida]] for three weeks of experimental ASW exercises.
 In September, she underwent a three-month overhaul at [[New York Navy Yard]] in preparation for her new role as an experimental antisubmarine ship.
 ''Jack W. Wilke'' sailed back to Florida on 7 January 1946 to commence operations out of [[Key West]]. During the years that followed, she carried out experiments in both tactics and sound equipment off Key West and during occasional cruises in the West Indies.
@@ Line 40: / Line 45: @@
 The ship's schedule of experimental operations was interrupted on New Year's Day 1959 by the triumph of [[Fidel Castro]]'s forces in [[Cuba]]; and ''Jack W. Wilke'' steamed to [[Havana]] with other ships to help stabilize the situation and to protect American lives and property. During the remainder of the year, she operated off Key West and Norfolk on training operations, and took part in a special good-will cruise to [[Panama]] in October during a Caribbean training period.
-Returning to Key West, the ship decommissioned 24 May 1960, and entered the [[Atlantic Reserve Fleet]] at Philadelphia. The old escort was struck from the [[Naval Vessel Register|Navy list]] on 1 August 1972 and later sold for scrap to Union Metals & Alloys Corp., [[New York]], on 4 March 1974.
+Returning to Key West, the ship decommissioned 24 May 1960, and entered the [[Atlantic Reserve Fleet]] at Philadelphia. The old escort was struck from the [[Naval Vessel Register|Navy list]] on 1 August 1972 and later sold for scrap to Union Metals & Alloys Corp., [[New York City|New York]], on 4 March 1974.
 == References ==
@@ Line 46: / Line 51: @@
 == External links ==
-*[http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/j1/jack_w_wilke.htm  history.navy.mil: USS ''Jack W. Wilke''] (revised 3 November 2005)
+*[http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/j1/jack_w_wilke.htm  history.navy.mil: USS ''Jack W. Wilke''](revised 3 November 2005) {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071229115538/http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/j1/jack_w_wilke.htm |date=29 December 2007 }}
 *[http://www.navsource.org/archives/06/800.htm      navsource.org: USS ''Jack W. Wilke'']
 *[http://www.hazegray.org/danfs/escorts/de800.htm   hazegray.org: USS ''Jack W. Wilke'']
@@ Line 54: / Line 59: @@
 {{DEFAULTSORT:Jack W. Wilke}}
 [[Category:Buckley-class destroyer escorts]]
-[[Category:Ships built in Texas]]
+[[Category:Ships built in Orange, Texas]]
 [[Category:1943 ships]]