Hosts: Bill & Ulla Melyan 2013 Reunion 2 Plan of Day 3 Fletcher Facts 4 Scuttlebutt 5 Secretary Notes 5 Hotel Info 5 New Member 6 Chaplain—Taps 6 2013 Registration 7 Ship’s Store 8 25th Reunion - Herndon, VA (Washington DC Area) September 4th– September-7th - 2013 Inside this issue: USS STODDARD DD566 WWII * Korea * Vietnam Website: www.ussstoddard.org Date: July 15, 2013 USS STODDARD ALUMNI NEWSLETTER The daily events are shown on the next pages with times shown on the Plan Of The Day on Page 3. Registration in Hospitality Room 1 PM Try and arrive early by 5:30 PM on Wednesday as the Crowne Plaza Ho- tel is giving us a Welcome Reception. Baltimore's Inner Harbor & Cruise Baltimore's Inner Harbor is one of the most photographed and visited areas of the city. It has been one of the major seaports in the United States since the 1700s and started blossoming into the cultural center of Balti- more in the 1970s. Distinct in function and form, locals and visitors alike enjoy Balti- more's Inner Harbor and the surrounding neighborhoods that offer a variety of fine dining, cultural experiences and exciting nightlife. Located in the heart of the Inner Harbor on Pratt Street, Harbor place and The Gallery offer unique shopping, di- verse dining and a variety of entertainment right on the picturesque waterfront. 2200 Centreville Road Herndon, VA 20170 1-703-471-6700 Ask for USS Stoddard Rate $104 per night + tax Honored three days Before/After reunion. Wednesday Thursday Registration Due August 1st
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USS STODDARD DD566 WWII * Korea * Vietnam - July 15, 2013...Destroyer Squadron 57 was the next-to-last squadron of 2,100-ton Fletcher-class destroyers formed. It was composed of nine
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Hosts:
Bill & Ulla
Melyan
2013 Reunion 2
Plan of Day 3
Fletcher Facts 4
Scuttlebutt 5
Secretary Notes 5
Hotel Info 5
New Member 6
Chaplain—Taps 6
2013 Registration 7
Ship’s Store 8
25th Reunion - Herndon, VA (Washington DC Area) September 4th– September-7th - 2013
Inside this issue:
USS STODDARD DD566
WWII * Korea * Vietnam
Website:
www.ussstoddard.org
Date:
July 15, 2013
USS STODDARD
ALUMNI NEWSLETTER
The daily events are shown on the next pages with times shown
on the Plan Of The Day on Page 3.
Registration in Hospitality Room 1 PM
Try and arrive early by 5:30 PM on Wednesday as the Crowne Plaza Ho-
tel is giving us a Welcome Reception.
Baltimore's Inner Harbor & Cruise Baltimore's Inner Harbor is one of the most
photographed and visited areas of the city. It has been one of the major seaports in the
United States since the 1700s and started
blossoming into the cultural center of Balti-
more in the 1970s. Distinct in function and
form, locals and visitors alike enjoy Balti-
more's Inner Harbor and
the surrounding neighborhoods that offer a
variety of fine dining, cultural experiences and
exciting nightlife. Located in the heart of the
Inner Harbor on Pratt Street, Harbor place and The Gallery offer unique shopping, di-
Sunday, 9/8 Farewell to All Until Next year in Branson, MO
Remember to bring your items for the raffle.
As in the past, please remember that many in our group will be flying to
Washington DC and will be limited to size of items they can take home.
USS Stoddard Alumni Newsletter—July 2013 Page 4
Story of the Fletcher-Class Destroyers (USS Stoddard DD-566 was one of the 175 Fletchers)
LCDR Fred Edwards: “I always felt it was the Fletcher class that won the war... they were the heart and soul of the small-ship Navy.” In 1941, the US Navy began building a fleet of large destroyers, its first design to rival the Japanese Fubuki-
class destroyers that had first entered service in the late 1920’s. These 175 flush-deck “2,100-tonners” became, the
most successful of all American destroyers: fast, roomy, capable of absorbing enormous punishment, and yet fighting on. The fourth of June 1942 was a significant day for the US Navy. In the mid-Pacific, its aircraft sank four of Japan’s six front-line aircraft carriers while turning back the invasion fleet at the Battle of Midway. The Fletcher design permit-ted significant increases over preceding classes in hull, armament, machinery, ammunition, stores and fuel bunkerage. Meanwhile, at nearly the same hour seven time zones to the east, the first of the 2,100-ton Fletcher-class destroyers was commissioned at the Boston Navy Yard. Their design was a fine achievement, balancing ruggedness and seaworthi-ness, armament, speed and protection on a classically-proportioned 376½-foot flush deck hull. Known at first as “US Destroyer No. 445” for the hull number of the lead ship, the design incorporated ten torpedo tubes in two quintuple centerline mounts plus five 5-inch/38 caliber dual purpose guns, anti-aircraft weapons and depth charges. At 2,050 tons standard displacement and approximately 2,900 tons fully loaded, the Fletchers were significantly larger than any preceding American destroyer classes. Authorized for fiscal year 1941, construction of the first ships was already under way when the United States entered the war. In an emergency program to expand capacity, some shipyards were up-graded and other new ones were brought on line. Eventually, eleven shipyards launched 175 ships over the next 32 months—the most numerous class of destroyer completed by any navy. They were also the first US destroyers fitted with radar as built. The first 25 ships were ordered 28 June and 1 July 1940 (the first day of the 1941 fiscal year), with DD 445 actually belonging to the 1 July group. Christened USS Fletcher, she carried over several design features from the earlier classes, such as a rounded pilot house. Later emphasis on anti-aircraft defense led to a redesigned or
“square” bridge for improved all-around sightlines, beginning with USS Brownson (DD 518). Facts on Fletchers:
175 -Largest Class of any Navy Ships 58 – Round or “High Bridge” 117- Square or “Low Bridge” (USS Stoddard DD-566 was one) USS Brownson DD-518 was first Square Bridge 19 – Lost in Service to Country 6 – Damaged and Not Repaired 150 –In Service WWII Fletcher-Class by Builder
31 - Bath Iron Works - Bath, Maine 29 - Federal Kearney - New Jersey 21- Seattle-Tacoma - Seattle, Washington (USS Stoddard built here) 18- Bethlehem - San Francisco, California 15- Bethlehem - Staten Island, New York 14- Boston Navy Yard - Boston, Massachusetts 12- Consolidated - Orange, Texas 10- Charleston Navy Yard - Charleston, South Carolina 10- Bethlehem - San Pedro 8- Puget Sound Navy Yd.` - Puget Sound, Washington 7- Gulf Shipbuilding - Chickasaw, Alabama
Laid down beginning on 1941, all 175 Fletchers were completed between June 1942 and February 1945. Launched
an average of 212 days after keel laying and commissioned after an average of 152 days more or 364 days total.
USS Stoddard WWII Squadron Information: Destroyer Squadron 57 was the next-to-last squadron of 2,100-ton Fletcher-class destroyers formed. It was composed of nine square-bridge ships as follows: Destroyer Division 113: Rowe (DD 564) Flagship, Smalley (DD 565), Stoddard (DD 566), Watts (DD 567) and Wren
(DD 568), all built at Seattle-Tacoma Shipbuilding and commissioned in March and April 1944. Destroyer Division 114: Bearss (DD 654) and John Hood (DD 655) from Gulf Shipbuilding and Jarvis (DD 799) and
Porter (DD 800) from “Sea-Tac,” all commissioned in June and July 1944.
"When you love someone, the best thing you can offer is
your presence. How can you love if you are not there?" "We
have to continue to learn. We have to be open. And we have to be ready to release our knowledge in order to come
to a higher understanding of reality."
Thoughts from Thich Nhat Hanh,
renown Vietnamese Monk
Blessings, Al Plapp
Bill, Leroy GM2 1944-1945
Boris, Carl MM2 1951-1954
Bowman, John MM3/HT1 1951-1954
Brant, Tommy YNSN 1960-1961
Buck, Frank SKC/SKCS 1958-1962
Cilladi, Silvio MOMM 1945-1945
Collins, Darrel SFP3 1960-1963
Demchak, Andrew Unknown Unknown
DeYoung, Ernest CSC 1943-1945
Fantauzzi, Rudy GM3 1951-1954
Knight, Harlin FP2 1953-1955
Moore, Ralph GMG3 1957-1961
Rasmussen, Eugene SK2 1944-1946
Terry, Ernest GM3 1946-1946
Townsend, James CS3 1956-1960
Weeks, William RD3 1958-1961
Wilde, William RM3/C 1944-1946
May They Rest In Peace
WELCOME ABOARD! NEW MEMBER
Edwards, Michael DK2 1968-1969
from email coordinator,
bob hoag…
There are at several shipmates who have changed their email address, and have not informed me of their new address. Please email your change of address so that you can receive information about our reunions & tours etc.
Bob
List of Stoddard Alumni Passing
Since Last Reunion
Picture from the
Vietnam Era
***********
Olongapo,
Philippines
USS Stoddard Alumni Newsletter—July 2013 Page 7
USS Stoddard 25th Alumni Reunion September 4 – 7, 2013
Crowne Plaza Hotel, 2200 Centreville Rd., Herndon, VA
Please register as early as possible so we can finalize all event numbers - Deadline – August 1, 2013
Make your hotel/lodging reservations directly with the host hotel (1-703-471-6700) ask for USS Stoddard Alumni Reunion
Room Rate of $104.00 per night (plus tax), single or double occupancy. This room rate will be honored 3 days before and 3 days
after the Reunion dates for anyone who would like to stay for an extended visit. Included daily is a full hot breakfast buffet.