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USS McFaul

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USS McFaul (DDG-74) is an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer in the United States Navy. She is named for U.S. Navy SEAL Chief Petty Officer Donald L. McFaul. This ship is the 24th destroyer of her class. USS McFaul was the 11th ship of this class to be built at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi, and construction began on 26 January 1996. She was launched on 18 January 1997 and was christened on 12 April 1997. On 25 April 1998 she had her commissioning ceremony at the Garden City Terminal in Savannah, Georgia. As of July 2020 the ship is part of Destroyer Squadron 26 based out of Naval Station Norfolk.

USS McFaul (DDG-74), in the Atlantic Ocean on 5 November 2005
History
United States
NameMcFaul
NamesakeDonald L. McFaul
Ordered21 January 1993
BuilderIngalls Shipbuilding, Pascagoula, Mississippi
Laid down26 January 1996
Launched18 January 1997
Acquired23 February 1998
Commissioned25 April 1998
HomeportNorfolk
Identification
MottoCourage, Honor, Sacrifice
Honours and
awards		See Awards
Statusin active service
Badge
General characteristics
Class and typeArleigh Burke-class destroyer
Displacement8,637 long tons (8,776 t) (Full load)
Length505 ft (154 m)
Beam59 ft (18 m)
Draft31 ft (9.4 m)
Installed power
Propulsion2 × shafts
SpeedIn excess of 30 kn (56 km/h; 35 mph)
Range4,400 nmi (8,100 km; 5,100 mi) at 20 kn (37 km/h; 23 mph)
Complement
Sensors and
processing systems
Electronic warfare
& decoys
Armament
Aircraft carried1 × Sikorsky MH-60R

[4]

Service history

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On 22 August 2005, McFaul was involved in a minor collision with the destroyer USS Winston S. Churchill off the coast of Jacksonville, Florida. Both ships suffered minor damage, and no injuries were reported. Both ships returned to their homeport at Naval Station Norfolk under their own power.[5]

On 16 February 2007, McFaul was awarded the 2006 Battle "E" award.[6]

 
Humanitarian supplies being loaded on McFaul 20 August 2008, at Souda Bay, Crete for delivery to Georgia

On 24 August 2008, McFaul arrived in Batumi, Georgia, as part of Operation Assured Delivery to "deliver humanitarian relief supplies ... as part of the larger United States response to the government of Georgia request for humanitarian assistance" in the wake of the 2008 Russo-Georgian war.[7] McFaul offloaded nearly 155,000 pounds (70,000 kg) of supplies—including hygiene items, baby food and care supplies, bottled water, and milk—donated by the United States Agency for International Development.[7][8]

 
McFaul transiting New York Harbor in 2000

On 5 April 2010, McFaul responded to a distress call from the merchant vessel MV Rising Sun after she was attacked by pirates. McFaul was able to neutralize the threat, and captured ten suspected pirates and successfully rescued eight crewmembers from on board a dhow near Salalah, Oman. The pirates were then transferred to the destroyer USS Carney for a week before they were transferred back to McFaul where 30 days later they were turned over to the Somali Transitional Federal Government for subsequent prosecution.[9]

On 12 September 2012, McFaul was ordered to the coast of Libya in what the Pentagon called a "contingency" in case a strike was ordered. This was in response to the 2012 diplomatic missions attacks.[10]

On 5 July 2023, McFaul interrupted and prevented the attempted seizure of two commercial tankers in the Gulf of Oman.[11] In two incidents, three hours apart, Iranian naval vessels closed on the tankers — and, according to the U.S. Navy, in the second incident, fired upon the tanker. In both cases, the Iranian vessels departed the scene upon the arrival of McFaul. The Navy released aerial video of the incidents. Iran's government claimed that one of the targeted ships had been involved in a collision and that there was an Iranian court order to seize the ship. Chevron, the company managing the vessel, stated that the ship was not involved in a collision and that they had received no notice regarding any legal proceedings.[12]

Awards

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Source:[13]

Upgrade

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On 12 November 2009, the Missile Defense Agency announced that McFaul would be upgraded during fiscal 2013 to RIM-161 Standard Missile 3 (SM-3) capability in order to function as part of the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System.[14]

Coat of arms

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Shield

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The shield has background of dark blue with Neptune being pulled by seahorses in a chariot over sea waves.

The traditional Navy colors were chosen for the shield because dark blue and gold represents the sea and excellence respectively. Neptune, God of the Sea, symbolizes maritime prowess and swift mobilization. Waves represent the coastline and highlight Chief Petty Officer McFaul's enclosure from sea by rubber raiding craft to block General Noriega's escape from Panama.

Crest

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The crest consists of the shape of an array with a gold cross center. The array is split into quarters with palm leaves surrounding.

The crests AEGIS shape highlights the USS McFAUL's modern multi-mission warfare operations. The cross honors the Navy Cross awarded to Platoon Chief Petty Officer Donald L. McFaul for extraordinary heroism in action under fire and saving his teammate's life. The quarter colored crest are adapted from the Panamanian flag to represent operation "Just Cause" in the Republic of Panama. The quartered sections also honor McFaul's SEAL team, SEAL Team Four. The laurel symbolizes achievement and honor. The palm indicates to the location of Panama while symbolizing victory.

Motto

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The motto is written on a scroll of blue that has a gold reverse side.

The ships motto is "Courage Honor Sacrifice".

Seal

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The coat of arms in full color as in the blazon, upon a white background enclosed within a dark blue oval border edged on the outside with a gold rope and bearing the inscription "USS McFAUL" at the top and "DDG 74" in the base all gold.

References

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  1. ^ "Mk46 MOD 1 Optical Sight System". Kollmorgen. Archived from the original on 30 November 2022. Retrieved 26 January 2023.
  2. ^ Rockwell, David (12 July 2017). "The Kollmorgen/L-3 KEO Legacy". Teal Group. Archived from the original on 29 May 2023. Retrieved 29 May 2023.
  3. ^ Hart, Jackie (17 December 2023). "Decoy Launch System Installed Aboard USS Ramage". navy.mil. Archived from the original on 28 April 2016. Retrieved 26 January 2023.
  4. ^ "Our Ships". Destroyer Squadron 26. Archived from the original on 20 July 2020. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  5. ^ "USS MCFAUL (DDG 74) and USS WINSTON S. CHURCHILL (DDG 81) Collision". Damage Control Museum. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  6. ^ Ludwick, Paula M. (19 February 2007). "Surface Force Ships, Crews Earn Battle "E"" (Press release). United States Navy. Retrieved 9 October 2015.
  7. ^ a b "USS McFaul Brings Aid to Batumi, Georgia". U.S. Sixth Fleet (CNE-C6F) Public Affairs. 24 August 2008. Archived from the original on 27 August 2008. Retrieved 24 August 2008.
  8. ^ "US warship reaches Georgian port". BBC News. 24 August 2008. Retrieved 24 August 2008.
  9. ^ McMarr, Rachel (4 April 2010). "USS McFaul Captures Suspected Pirates, Rescues Crew" (Press release). United States Navy. Retrieved 20 September 2010.
  10. ^ Starr, Barbara (12 September 2012). "US moving Navy destroyers off coast of Libya". CNN. Archived from the original on 8 October 2022. Retrieved 12 September 2012.
  11. ^ Barrington, Lisa; Saul, Jonathan (5 July 2023). "US Navy says it stopped Iran seizing tankers in Gulf of Oman". Reuters. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  12. ^ "Iran accuses U.S. Navy of defending fuel smuggling in Gulf incident". Reuters. 10 July 2023. Retrieved 12 July 2023.
  13. ^ "Captain Edward F. Ney Memorial Awards Program". navy.mil. Retrieved 3 February 2024.
  14. ^ Ewing, Philip (12 November 2009). "MDA announces next 6 BMD ships". Navy Times. Retrieved 9 October 2015.
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