USS Aaron Ward (DD-483)

Please register or login

Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.

Benefits of registering include

  • Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
  • A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
  • You can make this box go away

Joining is quick and easy. Log in or Register now!

The Destroyer Escort wreck off Okinawa is not a DE at all but rather a Benson/Gleaves class Destroyer and was the same class of DD as the Aaron Ward (DD-483) which was commissioned about 2 weeks earlier.

Both the Benson and Gleaves class ships were essentially identical with the 71 Gleaves class ships having about 10 tons more displacement than the 30 Benson class ships. This combined class was the last of the pre-war destoyers. In fact the Emmons was commissioned on 5 Dec 1941 becomimng the last US Naval vessel commissed prior to US entry into WWII.

The Benson/Gleaves class ships were built in place of the Fletcher class DD's as the Navy recognized it could not wait for the Fletcher design to be completed and were instead improved Sims class DD's. The Benson/Gleaves class ships were not as large as the WWII Fletcher class DD's and could not carry quite as much AA armament due to stability concerns. The design was also not able to accomodate the three twin 5" mounts used on the later Sumner class DD's (a Fletcher class DD in terms of hull and machinery) and Gearing Class DD's (a Sumner class DD with a longer hull to accomodate more equipment) but were none the less very capable ships that served throughout WWII.

Twelve ships of this combined class of 101 were equipped with 3 moustraps each in 1943, a hedgehog like ASW device with forward firing rocket projectiles. Another group of ships from this class were converted to air defense ships with additional AA armament replacing their mid ship mounted torpedo tubes. Twelve more in the Atlantic fleet were converted to Destroyer Mine Sweepers (DMS) in 1944 for duty in the Pacific following the German surrender and another dozen were converted in 1945.

The Emmons was converted to a DMS in November and December of 1944 and became the DMS 27 on 22 Dec 1944. Someone confusing it as a DE is probably understandable due to the DMS conversion that occurred and the tendency for DD's to serve as DE's after the war.

A total of thirteen Benson/Gleaves class ships were sunk during the war including the Aaron Ward in April 1943 and the Emmons in April 1945. This compares to 17 of the 181 strong Fletcher class DD's that were sunk and reflects the longer exposure to combat of the Benson/Gleaves class DD's. All the remaining ships in the Benson/Gleaves class were placed in reserve after the war except for 12 of the Destroyer Mine Sweepers.

The 6 different classes of WWII era US Navy DE's tended to be substantially shorter at around 290-300 ft, had about half the displacement of the average DD, were not as heavily armed and had substantially less power (diesel electric rather than steam turbine powered in three fo the classes) with top speeds of only 16 to 20 kts.
 
DA Aquamaster,

You are correct about her being a DD vice a DE. Thanks for keeping me straight. I should have read the specs. The top speed of 37kts and 4, 5" guns should have been a dead give away.

Here are several additional links for any interested in the history of the USS Emmons. She has a pretty impressive history.

http://www.geocities.com/bristolclass/emmonshist.html

http://www.jwchandler.com/emmons.htm

http://japanupdate.com/previous/01/10/07/story16.shtml

http://japanupdate.com/previous/01/03/15/story13.shtml

http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/ships/dafs/DMS/dms22.html

http://www.navsource.org/archives/05/457.htm

http://www.toriitraining.com/uss_emmons.htm

According to various sources she is listed as a:

- Benson/Gleaves class destroyer
- Benson-Livermore classs destroyer
- CLASS - GLEAVES As Built (according to the U.S. Navy NavSource archives)

See looks like a wreck that I would like to dive some day if I ever happen to be on Okinawa when a boat trip is scheduled to visit her.

Rickg
 
Kapiti Diver:
I have a stack of photos that were captured off several well illuminated digital video shoots we did on the Aaron Ward last year. This year we didn't have access to any camera gear that would operate at that depth..I need some help from my daughter to get the shots from last year uploaded to a web site and I will do so and post the link.. I have some really great shots of the decks, armed torpedoes, the high speed props, 5" Guns, inside the bridge, 40mm bofors, Search Light etc etc... I had her post some of them on our (out of date) club website last year... have a look at these photos on the photos link at www.divekapiti.org.nz

If you go to the links page there are also some other related articles about this wreck.

Also I appreciate the debate on the wisdom of this dive on air.... as far as I can tell it has probably had over 250 divers perhaps 1000 dives in total on air so far... I am only aware of one incident that from what I can tell was attributable to a very dehydrated diver who went unconcious at the surface after (I recall) completing her deco obligatiions. I also believe she had a full recovery from the incident after being evacuated to a chamber.

Its also considered she may have had a shallow water blackout, not DCS.

Nice pics. Who is the guy with a single yellow tank on the right side of this pic? He's not at 200+ feet is he???

http://homepages.paradise.net.nz/~nitz/images/aw22.htm
 
Nice pics. Who is the guy with a single yellow tank on the right side of this pic? He's not at 200+ feet is he???

He's my Kiwi Buddy.... This shot looks like its us dropping down onto the Number 2 4 inch Gun, in front of and below the Bridge... Depth would be at least 55 Metres... We all either had twin tanks (that's me with the silver twins) or a single and a pony. My buddy has a 30 cu foot pony clipped to the front of his BCD... it's there, but obscured in the photo.
 
Its also considered she may have had a shallow water blackout, not DCS.

The diver in question did not have shallow water blackout. She suffered a spinal bend, recovering after multiple sessions in the chamber in Townsville. She did complete all deco obligations, using 40% nitrox on air times, deep stops and adding an extra 5 minutes after her computer cleared. She had had 1.5 days off prior to the diving on this day, and the bend occurred on the Kanahwa, with a 13 minute bottom time, 45 metre maximum depth, not on the Ward. She has been advised not to dive again (very difficult and disappointing for a 20+ year diver) as there is some question about prediposing factors.
 

Back
Top Bottom