Allied Warships

USS Camp (DE 251)

Destroyer Escort of the Edsall class

NavyThe US Navy
TypeDestroyer Escort
ClassEdsall 
PennantDE 251 
Built byBrown Shipbuilding Co. (Houston, Texas, U.S.A.) 
Ordered18 Jan 1942 
Laid down27 Jan 1943 
Launched16 Apr 1943 
Commissioned16 Sep 1943 
End service 
History

Decommissioned 1 May 1946.
Reclassified as DER-251 on 21 October 1955.
Recommissioned 31 July 1956.
Decommissioned at an unknown date.
Stricken by the U.S.N. on 30 December 1975.
Transferred to South Vietnam 13 February 1971 being renamed Tran Hung Dao.
Tran Hung Dao escaped with South Vietnamese forces to the Philippines in 1975.
Transferred to the Philippines 5 April 1976 being renamed Rajah Lakandula.
Rajah Lakundula was stricken in 1988.

 

Commands listed for USS Camp (DE 251)

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and that we only list Commanding Officers for the duration of the Second World War.

CommanderFromTo
1Preston Baker Mavor, USCG16 Sep 194322 May 1944
2Lt.Cdr. Russell Randolph Waesche, Jr., USCG22 May 1944

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Notable events involving Camp include:


11 Aug 1944

Convoy TCU 35.

This convoy departed New York on 22 October 1944.

It was made up of the following (troop) transports / tankers; Alcoa Pointer (American, 6711 GRT, built 1943), Appomattox (American (tanker), 10195 GRT, built 1943), Athlone Castle (British, 25565 GRT, built 1936), Bantam (Dutch, 9312 GRT, built 1939), Bienville (American, 7626 GRT, built 1943), Black Warrior (American, 8271 GRT, built 1944), Brazil (American, 20614 GRT, built 1929), Brookfield (American, 10448 GRT, built 1943), Bunker Hill (American, 10410 GRT, built 1942), California Express (Norwegian, 3649 GRT, built 1934), China Mail (American, 8616 GRT, built 1942), Churubusco (American (tanker), 10195 GRT, built 1943), Colombie (French, 13391 GRT, built 1931), Cross Keys (American (tanker), 10195 GRT, built 1943), Edmund B. Alexander (American, 22225 GRT, built 1905), Elisabeth Bakke (Norwegian, 5450 GRT, built 1937), Eros (British, 5888 GRT, built 1936), Esso Scranton (American (tanker), 10297 GRT, built 1944), Excelsior (American, 6737 GRT, built 1943), Exchequer (American, 6683 GRT, built 1943), Four Lakes (American (tanker), 10172 GRT, built 1943), Glorieta (American (tanker), 10297 GRT, built 1944), Harpers Ferry (American (tanker), 10195 GRT, built 1943), Hermitage (American, 23254 GRT, built 1925), John Ericsson (American, 16552 GRT, built 1928), Kernstown (American (tanker), 10317 GRT, built 1944), Lake Erie (American (tanker), 10296 GRT, built 1944), Malvern Hill (American (tanker), 10296 GRT, built 1944), Marine Raven (American, 11757 GRT, built 1943), Monocacy (American (tanker), 10195 GRT, built 1944), Musgroves Mills (American (tanker), 10297 GRT, built 1944), Parima (British, 7543 GRT, built 1944), Petersburg (American (tanker), 10195 GRT, built 1943), Port Alma (British, 8400 GRT, built 1928), Rangitiki (British, 16698 GRT, built 1928), Ridgefield (American (tanker), 10297 GRT, built 1944), Rosebud (American (tanker), 10172 GRT, built 1943), Sachem (American (tanker), 9910 GRT, built 1943), San Juan Hill (American (tanker), 10172 GRT, built 1944), Santiago (American (tanker), 10318 GRT, built 1944), Sea Serpent (American, 8591 GRT, built 1942), South Mountain (American (tanker), 10296 GRT, built 1944), Talisman (American, 8258 GRT, built 1944), Uruguay (American, 20183 GRT, built 1928), Wagon Box (American (tanker), 10172 GRT, built 1943), White Bird Canyon (American (tanker), 10172 GRT, built 1944), White Squall (American, 8258 GRT, built 1943), Wilson's Creek (American (tanker), 10172 GRT, built 1944) and Winchester (American (tanker), 10198 GRT, built 1943).

The escort carrier HMS Trouncer (Capt. B.J. Fisher, DSO, RN) was also part of the convoy. She served in an aircraft ferry role.

The convoy was escorted by Task Group 21.9 which was made up of the destroyer USS Winslow (T/Cdr. W.T. Samuels, USN, with ComTaskGr 21.9, T/Capt. J.M.P. Wright, USN, on board) and the destroyer escorts USS Marchand (Cdr. G.I. Lynch, USCG, with ComCortDiv20, Cdr. P.B. Mavor, USCG, on board), USS Hurst (Cdr. B.H. Brallier, USCG), USS Camp (Lt.Cdr. R.R. Waesche, Jr., USCG), USS Howard D. Crow (Lt.Cdr. R.E. Bacchus, Jr., USCGR), USS Pettit (Lt.Cdr. W.B. Ellis, USCG), USS Ricketts (Lt. L.F. Sudnik, USCG), USS Rhodes (Cdr. E.A. Coffin, Jr., USCG), USS Richey (Cdr. John H. Forney, USCG) and USS Savage (Lt.Cdr. R. Ridgely, 3rd, USCG).

On 12 August 1944, the Boston section of the convoy departed that place to make rendezvous with and then join the convoy the following morning. This section was made up of the following ships; Explorer (American, 6736 GRT, built 1939), General George W. Goethals (American, 12093 GRT, built 1942) and Thomas H. Barry (American, 11250 GRT, built 1930). They were escorted by the destroyer escorts USS Sellstrom (Cdr. W.L. Maloney, USCG, with COMCORTDIV 23, Cdr. F.P. Vetterick, USNR, on board), USS Ramsden (Lt.Cdr. S.T. Baketel, USCGR) and USS Mills (Lt.Cdr. V. Pfeiffer, USCG).

Around 1200Z/20, Twenty-one of the ships of the convoy parted company to proceed via the west of Ireland to Loch Ewe and the Clyde. They were escorted by USS Sellstrom and USS Mills. At 1545Z/21, the Loch Ewe section broke off and then proceeded unescorted. Both sections arrived at their destinations on 22 August. The two destroyer escorts then proceeded to Lough Foyle.

Around 0645A/21, HMS Trouncer parted company with the Irish Sea section of the convoy to proceed to Liverpool ahead of the main convoy. USS Pettitt went with her as escort. The orders were however cancelled later and they rejoin the Irish Sea section of the convoy around 1100A/21.

Around 1900A/21, sixteen of the ships in the convoy parted company to proceed towards the Bristol Channel. They were escorted by USS Marchand and USS Ramsden. After having delivered these ships in the Bristol Channel the destroyer escorts proceeded to Lough Foyle.

The remainder of the convoy proceeded to Liverpool arriving on 22 August. All the remaining escorts subsequently proceeded to Lough Foyle.

Media links


Destroyers of World War Two

Whitley, M. J.


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