The following is the most complete history found so far, found on the website AllExperts. It is a compilation of information found on the original Reeves website, this website and further research by other webmasters. We appreciate "cut and paste." There are still gaps in the history, mainly from 1975 to 1985. As shipmates help to fill this in, the information will migrate thoughout the rest of the internet.
Namesake
The second USS Reeves,
named for Vice Adm. Joseph Mason "Bull" Reeves, was a Leahy-class
cruiser built by the the
Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, WA.
Reeves began her history as a Leahy-class
destroyer leader (DLG-24) when her keel was laid down on
1 July
1960. She was launched on
12 May
1962 and commissioned on
15 May
1964. Mrs. Joseph M. Reeves, Jr., daughter-in-law of Vice Adm.
Reeves, was the ship's sponsor.
Reeves was later reclassified as a guided missile cruiser (CG-24)
on
30 June
1975. On
12 November
1993, Reeves was decommissioned and stricken from the
Navy Register at Pearl Harbor Naval Base. Reeves remained in
mothballs until she was sunk as a target ship on
31 May
2001.
Reeves
Operational History
The 1960s
Following an extended trial and shakedown period, Reeves was
homeported at
Long Beach where she underwent availability and further
training. On
10 April
1965, she departed for her first tour with the
7th Fleet in the western Pacific (WESTPAC). Deployed for just
over six months, she operated primarily in support of
Allied operations off the coast of the
Republic of Vietnam, serving as an
anti-aircraft warfare (AAW) picket, first with TG 77.3 built
around aircraft carrier
USS Oriskany (CVA-34), then with TG 77.6 centered on
aircraft carrier
USS Midway (CVA-41). Returning to Long Beach on
3 November
1965, she conducted local operations for the remainder of the
year and into 1966. On
26 May
1966, she got underway for
Japan and a two-year nonrotated tour with the 7th Fleet.
Arriving at her new homeport of
Yokosuka on
16 June, she departed shortly thereafter and on
7 July and anchored at
Da Nang, R.V.N. to begin another tour off the embattled coast.
For the next two years, she regularly sailed south from Japan for
combat air-sea rescue (CSAR) tours off
Vietnam, compiling a total of 493 days underway, 312 of which
were spent in the
Gulf of Tonkin.
Reeves rotated back to the
United States in August 1968 and operated out of Long Beach for
the remainder of the year, participating in local operations, as well
testing and evaluating radar systems. In early 1969, Reeves was
ordered to
Maine for overhaul and modernization at
Bath Iron Works. Arriving on
31 March, she was placed out of commission (special) on
10 April and the extensive modification work began.
The 1970s
Reeves
was recommissioned
29 August
1970 at Bath. She spent the period from
10 Septemberâ€"19
November making the passage from Bath to her new home port at
Pearl Harbor. The uncommonly long duration of the passage was due to
frequent stops along the way at various ports for additional work to be
done and by a three-week refresher training (REFTRA) period in the
vicinity of
Guantanamo Bay,
Cuba. After arriving at Pearl Harbor, Reeves engaged in
numerous exercises and operations in the waters around
Hawaii.
June 1971 found Reeves steaming westward for another deployment in
the Gulf of Tonkin. Reeves returned to Pearl Harbor on
20 December
1971 and remained in the Hawaii and west coast areas until
September 1972 where she participated in various operations and exercises,
notably a
Midshipman cruise in July. She departed Hawaii on
18 September, headed for her second WESTPAC deployment since
recommissioning, arriving at
Subic Bay Naval Base,
Philippine Islands 14 days later. After six months in the
western Pacific, stationed off the coast of Vietnam, Reeves sailed
into port at Pearl Harbor on
17 March
1973. She remained in the Hawaiian Islands throughout the
1970's, deploying often to WESTPAC. She was reclassified a guided missile
cruiser (CG-24), on
30 June
1975.
REEVES earned three battle stars for Vietnam service.
The 1980s
During most of the 1980s, Reeves was forward deployed to the
WESTPAC and homeported in Yokosuka. During that time, she served as the
AAW picket for
Battle Group Alpha centered around Midway (CV-41).
On
5 November
1986, Reeves led the
USS Rentz (FFG-46) and
USS Olendorf (DD-972) into the harbor of
Qingdao (Tsing Tao), the
People's Republic of China (PRC) for a historic six-day port
visit. This would be the first time that
U.S. Navy vessels had moored in China since the repair ship
USS Dixie (AD-14) departed in 1949 in the face of the
communist advance which forced the evacuation of Americans from China. The
visit was hosted by soliders and sailors of the
Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN).
During the port call hundreds of Navy men took advantage of several tours,
arranged by their Chinese hosts, that included stops at Qingdao's carpet,
embroidery, jade and shell factories. Others made it a point to sample the
beer at the city's world-renowned Tsingtao brewery. A fortunate few were
able to leave the port city on tours to
Qufu, birthplace of
Confucius, the capital city of
Beijing, the
Forbidden City, and the
Great Wall of China.
The port visit was important because it provided visible evidence of
growing Sino-American cooperation. Adm. James Lyons, commander of the
United States Pacific Fleet, was embarked in Reeves
during the visit. Shortly after arriving in Qingdao, he said there are
"three pillars" in the US.-China military relationship-high level visits,
military exchanges and a limited amount of military technology
cooperation. "I see this port visit as strengthening all three pillars,"
he said.
Throughout their stay, the crews of the visiting ships held lectures and
discussion sessions on Navy shipboard organization, management, training,
propulsion, logistics and weapons systems for their Chinese hosts. At the
time such navy-to-navy orientations were conducted with many countries.
However, this was the Navy's first opportunity for such an exchange with
China.
During May 1987, Reeves found herself involved with yet another
Team Spirit exercise. Reeves was deployed to the
Persian Gulf from July to December 1987 where she participated
in the first of nine
Operation Earnest Will tanker reflagging operations beginning
on
23 July. Her primary duty was to escort commercial vessels
through the
Strait of Hormuz. In March 1988 she was involved again with the
Team Spirit exercises.
On
26 June
1989, Reeves and
USS Fife (DD-991) rescued 92 Vietmanese refugees in the
South China Sea, about 320 miles southwest of the Philippines.
The refugees were pulled from their sinking vessel and provided with
medical assistance and other care before being delivered to a
United Nations refugee organization in
Thailand a week later.
On
30 October
1989 an
F/A-18 Hornet aircraft from Midway mistakenly dropped a
500 pound
general-purpose bomb on the deck of Reeves during
training exercises in the
Indian Ocean, creating a five-foot hole in the bow, sparking
small fires, and injuring five sailors. Reeves was 32 miles south
of
Diego Garcia at the time of the incident.
Fate of Reeves
Reeves
was decommissioned on
12 November
1993, stored at the Naval
Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility (NISMF), Pearl Harbor. She
was ultimately used as a target ship on
31 May
2001 during a
sink exercise (SINKEX) off the coast of
Queensland,
Australia during a joint U.S and Australian naval exercise. Her
final resting place is where she lies at a depth of 2,541 fathoms.
Following are two press releases issued in conjunction with the sinking of
Reeves.
TANDEM THRUST 2001
PACC 162/01 Tuesday,
22 May
2001
"HULKEX" Element of Exercise
Rescheduled
ROCKHAMPTON. The HULKEX element of Tandem Thrust 2001 exercise originally
scheduled to take place
May 21 has been rescheduled for
May 31. HULKEX is the sinking of a decommissioned U.S. Navy
cruiser (the Former USS Reeves) as part of combined aerial and surface
bombardment training.
Bad weather and high seas delayed the safe and timely delivery of the
vessel to its pre-established and environmentally approved target location
175 miles off the coast of Australia.
"Since the safety of our personnel is our number one priority we decided
not to rush through this valuable training," said Vice Admiral James
Metzger, USN, Commander, U.S. Seventh Fleet and Commander, Combined Task
Force for Tandem Thrust 2001. "However, to ensure our training objectives
can be met, we have rescheduled the event."
Defence MEDIA RELEASE
31/05/2001 Departmental 176/01
JETS SEND SHIP TO WATERY GRAVE
A de-commissioned US Navy war ship was sent to its final resting place
today off the coast of Queensland through the precise strike capability of
the Royal Australian Air Force's F/A-18 Hornet fighter aircraft.
The ex-USS Reeves was sent to its watery grave approximately 170 nautical
miles east of Fraser Island in 12,000 ft of water. The sinking of the
Leahy Class guided missile cruiser was the final military activity in the
month-long, combined Australian and United States Exercise Tandem Thrust.
The Hulk Exercise (HULKEX) involved Australian and US air and naval units,
though the sinking was credited largely to the four RAAF jets.
"We achieved two direct hits with Mk-82 500lbs bombs, leaving a six foot
gaping hole in the starboard side of the hulk," said RAAF Flight
Lieutenant Jason Gamlin, who was the lead pilot on the mission.
Just 30 minutes later the 6000-tonne hulk sank below the surface at
approximately 12:30pm AEST. The HULKEX was a fitting finale to Exercise
Tandem Thrust 2001, providing significant military training value to
Australian and US naval and air forces.
The exercise involved aircraft from both the US and Australian Air Forces
and ships from the US Navy, firing a variety of guns, bombs and missiles
at the hulk in order to test their performance in a simulated battle
environment.
The sinking was the culmination of months of planning, including careful
environmental analysis through Australian and US environmental
certification procedures. The hulk spent several months berthed in
Newcastle, New South Wales, where it was stripped of all weapons and
cleaned of hazardous substances, then assessed by Environment Australia to
confirm suitability for disposal at sea.
The sunken hulk will become a new home for a variety of aquatic life.
Reclassification of Reeves from DLG to CG
In 1975, the "double-end" Leahy-class guided missile destroyer
leaders (DLG) were
reclassified as guide missile cruisers (CG), as were other
similar ships. The class was given an AAW upgrade during the late-1960's
and early 1970's, with Terrier launchers modified to fire Terrier or
Standard SM-1ER missiles. The 3"/50 guns were replaced by Harpoon missile
launcher, the Terrier launchers were upgraded to fire the Standard SM-2ER
missile, and 2 Phalanx CIWS were added. All were upgraded under the
late-1980's
New Threat Upgrade (NTU) program, which included combat system
capability improvements to the ship's Air Search Radars (SPS-48E and
SPS-49), Fire Control Radars (SPG-55B), and Combat Direction System (CDS).
These improvements provided an accurate means of coordinating the
engagement of multiple air targets with SM-2 Extended Range missiles.
During the NTU overhaul, all spaces were renovated, berthing and food
service areas were refurbished, and the engineering plant was fully
overhauled.
Role of Reeves
Modern guided missle cruisers, such as Reeves, performed primarily
in a Battle Force role. These ships were multi-mission (AAW - anti-air
warefare, ASW - anti-surface warefare, ASUW - anti-submarine warefare)
surface combatants capable of supporting carrier or battleship battle
groups, amphibious forces, or of operating independently and as flagships
of surface action groups. Due to their extensive combat capability, these
ships were designated as Battle Force Capable (BFC) units.
© 2010 USS Reeves Association. All rights reserved. Last update: 5/29/09