View source for USS Weber

{{Short description|Buckley-class destroyer escort}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2021}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=  [[Image:USS Weber (DE-675) underway at sea in September 1943.jpg|300px|USS Weber, September 1943, before conversion to a high speed transport (APD-75).]]
|Ship caption=  
}}
{{Infobox ship career
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|Ship country= United States
|Ship flag=  {{USN flag|1947}}
|Ship name=  
|Ship namesake=  
|Ship ordered=  
|Ship builder=  
|Ship laid down=  22 February 1943
|Ship launched=  1 May 1943
|Ship commissioned=  30 June 1943
|Ship reclassified =  15 December 1944, to '''APD-75'''
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=  yes
|Ship decommissioned=  January 1947
|Ship struck=  1 June 1960
|Ship honours=  
|Ship fate=  Sunk as a target, 15 July 1962
|Ship notes=  
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Hide header=  
|Header caption=  
|Ship class=  
|Ship displacement=*1,740 [[long ton|tons]] [[full displacement|full]]
*1,400 tons, standard
|Ship length=      {{convert|306|ft|0|in|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam= &nbsp;  {{convert|36|ft|9|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship draft= &nbsp; {{convert|13|ft|6|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship propulsion=*GE turbo-electric drive,
*12,000&nbsp;[[shaft horsepower|shp]] (8.9 MW)
*two propellers
|Ship speed=  {{convert|24|kn|km/h|lk=in}}
|Ship range=  {{convert|4940|nmi|km}} at 12 knots (22 km/h)
|Ship complement=  15 officers, 198 men
|Ship sensors=  
|Ship EW=  
|Ship armament=*(as DE-675)
*3 × [[3"/50 caliber gun|3 in (76 mm)]] [[Dual purpose gun|DP]] guns,
*3 × [[Mark 15 torpedo|21 in (53 cm)]] [[torpedo tube]]s,
*1 × [[1.1 inch (28 mm)/75 gun|1.1 in (28 mm)]] quad [[anti-aircraft|AA]] gun,
*8 × [[Oerlikon 20 mm cannon|20 mm]] cannon,
*1 × [[hedgehog (weapon)|hedgehog]] projector,
*2 × depth charge tracks,
*8 × [[K-gun]] depth charge projectors 
|Ship notes=  
}}
|}

'''USS ''Weber'' (DE-675/APD-75)''' was a {{sclass|Buckley|destroyer escort}} of the [[United States Navy]], named in honor of [[Ensign (rank)|Ensign]] [[Frederick T. Weber]] (1916–1942), a [[naval aviator]] who was posthumously awarded the [[Navy Cross (United States)|Navy Cross]] for heroism during the [[Battle of Midway]].

''Weber'' was laid down on 22 February 1943 at [[Quincy, Massachusetts]], by the [[Bethlehem Shipbuilding Company]]'s [[Fore River Shipyard]]; [[ship naming and launching|launched]] on 1 May 1943; sponsored by Mrs. Matt A. Walsh; and [[ship commissioning|commissioned]] on 30 June 1943.

== World War II ==

The destroyer escort completed fitting out and then departed [[Provincetown, Massachusetts]], on 23 July for [[Bermuda]]. At the conclusion of [[sea trial|shakedown]] training in waters surrounding those islands, she returned north and arrived in [[Boston]], Massachusetts, on 21 August. Following post-shakedown availability, the new warship left Boston for several days of additional training—in [[antisubmarine warfare]] (ASW) tactics – out of [[Naval Submarine Base New London|New London, Connecticut]]. Upon completing that assignment, ''Weber'' entered [[New York Harbor]] to prepare for her first combat duty.

=== Atlantic service as DE-675 ===

On 5 September, the warship stood out of [[New York City|New York]] in the screen of a transatlantic [[convoy]]. Following a relatively uneventful voyage, she and her charges entered port at [[Derry]], [[Northern Ireland]], on the 16th. There, she remained until the 21st, when she headed back across the [[Atlantic]] with a return convoy. She ended that voyage at [[St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador]], on 1 October but, soon thereafter, moved to New York for a 10-day availability at the [[Brooklyn Navy Yard]].

In mid-October, ''Weber'' escorted a convoy from New York to the [[Netherlands|Dutch]] island of [[Curaçao]], off the coast of [[Venezuela]]. She arrived in [[Willemstad]] on 24 October and remained there five days awaiting the formation of a transatlantic convoy. This group of [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] ships departed Curaçao on 29 October and set a course for the [[British Isles]] and arrived in Derry on [[Armistice Day]] 1943.

At that point, ''Weber'' settled into a routine of escorting convoys between Derry and New York which lasted until August 1944. By that time, she had made six more round-trip voyages between those ports. On many occasions during the period, she and her consorts in the screen made [[sonar]] and [[radar]] contacts on unidentified ships. While on such occasions they frequently attacked the strangers with [[depth charge]]s, ''Weber'' and her sister escorts directed their greatest efforts to diverting their [[Troopship|transport]]s and [[cargo ship]]s from the paths of [[U-boat]]s. When doing so, they informed nearby [[Hunter-killer Group|hunter-killer]] groups of the location of the contacts and delegated to them primary responsibility for offensive antisubmarine warfare. As a result, confirmed U-boat kills eluded ''Weber''; but she and the other escorts in the screens accomplished their primary mission of shepherding the convoys safely across the ocean.

On 7 August, she departed Derry for the last time. Her convoy arrived safely in New York on the 20th and, after voyage repairs, the warship began preparations to embark upon a new but brief phase in her wartime career. After the Allied forces which invaded Europe in June established control over the coast of [[France]], convoys no longer needed to travel the long northern route around [[Ireland]] to avoid enemy aircraft and submarines based on that coast. Instead, they now could use the shorter and more economical route around the southern coast of [[England]] directly to the French channel ports, primary among which was [[Cherbourg]]. In September, ''Weber'' made one round-trip voyage to Cherbourg; then returned to the United States via that route and arrived back at New York near the end of the month.

After a 10-day availability and four days of exercises, the ship proceeded to [[Norfolk, Virginia]] to join a convoy bound for [[North Africa]] and the [[Mediterranean Sea]]. She departed Norfolk with the convoy on 21 October. En route to [[Gibraltar]], she rescued the crew of a [[Portugal|Portuguese]] fishing vessel damaged badly in a collision with ''Weber'' during an investigation of the then-unidentified vessel. Soon after the rescue, the Portuguese vessel sank. After landing the fishermen at Gibraltar, ''Weber'' continued on to [[Bizerte]], Tunisia, where she stopped on 12 November, and thence proceeded to [[Palermo]], [[Sicily]], for repairs to damage sustained in the collision with the Portuguese trawler. She rejoined her escort group at [[Oran]], [[Algeria]], and embarked upon the return voyage on 23 November. ''Weber'' escorted one section of the attached convoy into [[Philadelphia, Pennsylvania]] on 10 December.

=== Pacific service as APD-75 ===

Five days after her arrival in Philadelphia, ''Weber'' was redesignated a [[high-speed transport]] and received a new hull number, '''APD-75'''. Conversion work on her began immediately. During the following three months, she exchanged her [[3"/50 caliber gun|3-inch]] battery for a new [[5"/38 caliber gun|5-inch]], [[dual-purpose gun]] which had proven highly effective both for [[antiaircraft]] defense and for bombardment work. In addition, her relatively weak antiaircraft battery was beefed up substantially. Her spaces were modified to provide a place for [[underwater demolition team]]s (UDT) and their equipment. Her conversion indicated an impending reassignment to the [[Pacific Ocean theater of World War II|Pacific theater]] where the UDT men played an important role in the initial stages of [[amphibious operation]]s. She completed her conversion in mid-March 1945.

During the latter part of the month, she moved to Norfolk where she practiced shore bombardments and antiaircraft defense. On 14 April, she departed Norfolk. Arriving at [[Panama]] on the 19th, she transited the [[Panama Canal]] the following day and reported for duty with the [[U.S. Pacific Fleet|Pacific Fleet]]. Continuing her voyage, the warship stopped briefly at [[San Diego]], California and then headed for the [[Hawaiian Islands]]. She arrived in [[Pearl Harbor]] on 8 May and underwent a brief period of voyage repairs. During the middle part of May, she conducted reconnaissance and demolition exercises at [[Kahoolawe]], [[Maui]], with members of UDT&nbsp;23. After a short series of refresher training and antisubmarine warfare exercises, she departed [[Oahu]] on the 24th for the western Pacific. She entered the [[lagoon]] at [[Eniwetok]] on 1 June, remained for a day due to a fueling delay, and then continued on to [[Ulithi]] where she arrived on 6 June.

On 13 June, ''Weber'' departed Ulithi to escort {{USS|California|BB-44|2}} to [[Okinawa Island|Okinawa]] where the [[battleship]] was needed to render gunfire support to American forces subduing the defenders on the southern portion of the island. The [[task unit]] arrived off the island four days later. Following a short time at [[Hagushi]] anchorage, ''Weber'' put into the roadstead at [[Kerama Retto]] for fuel. On 25 June, she was assigned to a surface force built around battleships ''California'' and {{USS|West Virginia|BB-48|2}}, and [[cruiser]]s {{USS|Wichita|CA-45|2}}, {{USS|Tuscaloosa|CA-37|2}}, {{USS|San Francisco|CA-38|2}}, {{USS|St. Louis|CL-49|2}}, and {{USS|Chester|CA-27|2}}. Serving as antisubmarine and [[naval mine|mine]] escort for that unit, she patrolled the waters around Okinawa until 1 July, protecting communications and supply lines. She returned to Hagushi for a week on 1 July and departed the [[Ryukyu Islands|Ryūkyūs]] on the 8th in the screen of a convoy bound for the [[Mariana Islands|Marianas]]. Delivering her charges safely at [[Saipan]] on 12 July, she continued her voyage the following day and arrived at [[San Pedro Bay (Philippines)|San Pedro Bay]], [[Leyte (island)|Leyte]], on the 17th. She spent the remaining weeks of [[World War II]] at Leyte engaged in training exercises in preparation for the [[Operation Downfall|expected invasion]] of the [[Japanese home islands]]. Fortunately, the [[Surrender of Japan|Japanese agreed to surrender terms]] on 15 August, making that operation unnecessary.

== Post-war service ==

Soon after the cessation of hostilities, ''Weber'' returned to Okinawa to prepare for the [[occupation of Japan|occupation of Japanese territory]]. She arrived back in the Ryukyus on 21 August and reported for duty with [[Task Force 95]] (TF&nbsp;95). She trained briefly with that task organization at Okinawa until 7 September when she reported for duty with TF&nbsp;55. On 10 September, she departed the Ryukyus with Task Unit 55.7.1 (TU&nbsp;55.7.1) bound for [[Japan]]. She and her colleagues arrived at [[Nagasaki, Nagasaki|Nagasaki]] the following day and began two weeks of service evacuating and caring for former Allied [[prisoners of war]] held in Japan. She completed that assignment on 23 September and returned to Okinawa on the 25th. On 7 October, the warship put to sea once more, this time bound for [[Qingdao]] and [[Taku Forts|Taku]] in northern [[China]] with a convoy carrying [[United States Marine Corps|marines]] for duty ashore there. [[Typhoon Louise (1945)|Typhoon Louise]] – a severe storm which devastated Allied forces at Okinawa – scattered the little flotilla and damaged some of the ships, forcing ''Weber'' to return to Okinawa as an escort for the more severely damaged ones. She rejoined the remainder of the convoy just before mid-month and escorted a portion of it into Taku on 16 October. The next day, she got underway for the [[Philippines]] with two American merchant ships which she saw safely to Okinawa before breaking off and continuing on to [[Luzon]]. The ship arrived in [[Manila]] on 23 October and, after discharging about 100&nbsp;passengers, headed back to China. During the month of November, she shuttled [[Nationalist Chinese]] troops from [[Hong Kong]] to strife-torn northern China.

She concluded that duty at Qingdao on 25 November and sailed for the East Coast of the United States that same day. Steaming via Okinawa, [[Guam]], and Eniwetok, she arrived in Pearl Harbor on 13 December. On the 16th, she resumed her voyage home and arrived in San Diego on the 22d. Following a week's layover, she left San Diego and set course for the Panama Canal. The warship transited the canal between 7 and 9 January 1946 and headed for New York on the latter date. She entered the [[New York Naval Shipyard]] on 15 January, discharged passengers, and began her preinactivation overhaul. On 18 February, she departed New York and, after a two-day stop at Norfolk, Virginia, arrived in [[Green Cove Springs, Florida]], on the 23d. There, she reported to the [[Atlantic Reserve Fleet]] for layup. Placed out of commission by directive in January 1947, ''Weber'' remained inactive for more than 15 years. Her name was struck from the [[Naval Vessel Register|Navy List]] on 1 June 1960; and, a little over two years later, she was sunk as a target on 15 July 1962, by [[AGM-12 Bullpup|AGM-12 "Bullpup"]] [[Air-to-surface missile|air-to-surface]] (ASM) [[missile]]s.<ref name=Barnette>{{cite book |author=Barnette, Michael C. |author-link=Michael C. Barnette |title=[[Florida's Shipwrecks]] |year=2008 |publisher=Arcadia Publishing |isbn=978-0-7385-5413-6}}</ref>

''Weber'' earned one [[battle star]] during World War II.

== References ==
{{DANFS|https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/w/weber.html}}
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
*[http://www.navsource.org/archives/06/675.htm     navsource.org: USS ''Weber'']
*[http://www.hazegray.org/danfs/escorts/de675.htm  hazegray.org: USS ''Weber'']

{{Buckley class destroyer escort}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weber (DE-675)}}
[[Category:Buckley-class destroyer escorts]]
[[Category:Charles Lawrence-class high speed transports]]
[[Category:Ships built in Quincy, Massachusetts]]
[[Category:1943 ships]]