Navy enters twilight era of its once famous frigates

The frigate McClusky at Naval Base San Diego. — Peggy Peattie

When it first took to the seas in the late 18th century, the U.S. Navy sailed frigates that became famous for their speed and maneuverability, and for the cunning of their commanders.

More than two centuries later, the commanders are just as cunning. But the modern Navy is steadily phasing out the last of its frigates to make room for littoral combat ships, a new type of vessel designed to be faster and more versatile than the ships it will replace.

It’s an historic change. Frigates have been used for everything from fighting the British during the War of 1812 to clearing mines in harbors during the Vietnam War to stalking Soviet submarines during the Cold War.

There are only 28 Perry-class frigates left in the fleet, including six in San Diego. The Navy decided not to modernize the ships, and even removed their missile launchers, a decision that helped make way for the LCS. There will be no frigates left in the Navy by 2017.

“They’re just getting rid of them,” said Eric Wertheim, author of the Naval Institute’s Guide to Combat Fleets of the World. “The ships were neutered when they took off the missiles. The Navy has simply moved on.”

Here are some remembrances from people who served on frigates.

“I am sad to see the frigates get decommissioned but am also proud of what that entire class of ships has accomplished during their service. Frigates could go many places that other ships just simply could not get to due to (the frigate’s) relatively shallow draft. They also ended up being great platforms for counter-narcotics and anti-piracy missions. Also, their capability for carrying two SH-60B helicopters gave them a tremendous surface search capability. Even after the removal of the SM-1 standard missile, they continued to play a vital role in America’s maritime strategy.

I would say that from a shiphandling perspective, the (Perry-class frigate) is absolutely the most enjoyable ship to drive. Although I have only driven frigates, it was quite noticeable seeing officers come from other platforms and have to learn driving the FFG for the first time. It took them a little while to learn all the nuances, but once they did, most enjoyed driving the FFG.

Cmdr. Ed Bray, currently deployed as an assistant reactor officer on the carrier Carl Vinson

Frigate life is like no other ship in the Navy. They are completely self-sufficient. My sailors were the cream of the crop when it came to troubleshooting/repairing all the equipment we were responsible for. My division maintained all of the communications equipment, navigation and air search radars, as well as interior communications equipment. The crew size is only about 200, so in the time you are there you end up knowing every sailor by name from the CO to the youngest seaman recruit. I really liked that aspect of frigate life. Crews are also, generally speaking, “First Tour” jobs for most of the sailors. CO’s, XO’s, CMC’s, most chiefs, and most of the division officers are doing their first leadership tour on this class of ship. It tends to lead to a more tight knit communal leadership core.

Frigates are also among the most maneuverable ships in the Navy. They are designed to be self-sufficient. The have two bow thrusters that can be extended below the waterline that assist moving the bow of the ship in any direction. This allows these ships the capability to pull in and out of port unassisted.

Lt. Greg Rodriguez, who is currently deployed aboard the dock landing ship Comstock. He served as a senior chief petty electronics technician on the frigate Rentz, and was the electronics readiness officer on the frigate Jarrett, which was recently decommissioned.

(Reporter's note: Lt. Rodriguez's name was misspelled in an earlier version of this story.)

The Knox-class frigate Barbey was 438 feet long. — US Navy

I was on the USS Barbey, and life was nothing to write home about. The ship was fairly small, rode rough, with crowed berthing spaces, and often lacked water for bathing. I worked in the Combat Information Center (CIC) which some called the brains of the ship. Not really sure about that but it often seemed like the center of chaos.

Barbey was a multi-warfare platform, but primarily designed for Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW) and Carrier escort/plane guard duty. Conducting ASW, we used sonar and passive plotting to locate and track subsurface contacts. It was a very manpower intensive activity. In addition to radar, we used Target Motion Analysis (TMA), also manpower intensive, to track surface contacts. I often thought of TMA as standing for “Too Many Assumptions.” Barbey also embarked a helo detachment which contributed to both combat areas.

Our class of frigates suffered from being a single-screw (propeller) vessel which, as you might imagine, didn’t provide for backup if something went wrong. And it did. At one point, an important component of the drive shaft burned up and the “snipes” (engineers) were forced to hand lubricate (oil squirt can) the shaft, and limited to about 5 knots in an 18-foot sea pretty much from the west coast of Australia to Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean.

Bob Berhalter, Santee, who served on the Barbey, a Knox-class frigate

The frigate Tisdale was built at Todd Shipyard in San Pedro. — US Navy

Haze Gray and Underway was the name of the game for the frigates. We would average at least 280 days a year at sea. We were always going somewhere. Leave San Diego on Monday and be in Hawaii on Thursday. The crew was small most of the time — less than 200. We were a training platform for young officers and sailors. As the Chief of R Division at one time, half of my division was under 20 years of age. I trained 3 DCA’s fresh out of school. One went on to a Command at Sea of his own. It was my last ship before I retired. The Tisdale was decommissioned and sold to the Turkish Navy in 1996. We worked hard, stood a lot of watches and trained. I have kept in contact with lot of the men I served with in the engineering department.

Mike Benbrook of El Cajon, who served on the frigates Hepburn and the Tisdale

I had the honor of serving on the USS Patrick Osborne Fordfrom 2001 to 2005. At one time the frigate was one of the most advanced warships in the world but during my time there it was aperiod of transition from guided missile frigate, tasked with hunting subs and being the spearhead of Carrier Strike Groups, to glorified Coast Guard Cutter, chasing drug boats in Latin America. The crew was the tightest team of sailors I have ever served with during my 15 years on active duty. The frigate was the last warship to be manned by all men, although we were one of the first frigates to introduce female officers, eventually I had a full chain of command consisting of female officers. During RIMPAC wargames in Hawaii we were often ridiculed for our single launch missile system, dubbed single arm bandit, because for every 5 missiles the other ships would launch we would get just one off. Our main gun was only 3” versus 5” of the rest.

These shortcomings instilled a ferocious tenacity in its crew in everything we did. Every limited assessment of our capabilities would be turned into a passing inspection in record time because we would attack every challenge like we had something to prove. When the twin towers were attacked on 9/11, we were the only armed warship in Washington State and immediately we were tasked with patrolling the waters of the Pugent Sound and guarding the skies, enforcing the no-fly zone across the Pacific Northwest. We were alone in dangerous times, but this is what we were used to being forced out of our role within the Strike Group by more advanced warships.

John Leiva of San Diego, who served on the Perry-class frigate Ford.

I made two WESTPAC cruises during the three years that England was my home. This was during the Vietnam War-era. We supported the war effort patrolling and carrying out our mission in the Gulf of Tonkin, off the coast of Vietnam. We would be “on station” in the Gulf for 30 to 45 days at a time. We would then get a week or so of R&R in the Philippines before returning to the Gulf. We would stand what is known as “port and starboard” watches while the ship was on station. We would stand watch for 12 hours, and then be off duty for 12 hours. The routine was fast paced, intense and stressful. Eat, sleep, clean, and stand watch. I would be so tired that days would go by without ever going outside. There would be times when I didn’t know what day it was, or if it was day or night outside. “Mail call” was one of the most cherished moments off all during those long periods at sea. It would take an average of three weeks to get a reply to a letter sent from the ship. Being newly married and in love, the three weeks seemed like eternity waiting for the next letter from my wife. I made many friends and have fond memories of that time. I am saddened to hear that the frigate era is coming to an end.

Michael K. Williams of Spring Valley, who served on the frigate England


This painting by Anton Otto Fischer depicts the USS Constitution, one of the U.S. Navy's six original ships. The frigate is on display in Boston Harbor. — US Naval Historical Center

Today’s frigates trace their origins to the late 15th century, when the Spanish started building fast, highly maneuverable warships to battle the Dutch. Speed and maneuverability became defining features, but the size, role and categorization of frigates has varied over time. The term frigate has usually been applied to lightly armed vessels. But some 17th and 18th century frigates were heavily armed, and they rivaled the most powerful ships of that period in size.

Frigates were key to the rise of Britain’s Royal Navy, which delivered devastating losses to the Continental Navy during the American Revolutionary War. But the situation began to change in 1794, with the founding of the U.S. Navy. Its first six ships were frigates, several of which became famous for their firepower.

For a time, the term frigate largely faded from the U.S. Navy with the rise of larger, more heavily armored warships. But the destroyer escorts that protected convoys and merchant ships in World War II were basically frigates. Such vessels were reclassified as frigates in 1975. The last of the vessels are Perry-class frigates, fast, slender ships that were largely designed for anti-submarine warfare and to protect amphibious vessels during the Cold War.

The frigates still in service are being phased out because more modern ships are taking their place, including the littoral combat ship, which is designed to perform a variety of missions at high rates of speed in shallow waters. There are six Perry-class frigates left in San Diego: McClusky, Curts, Vandegrift, Rentz, Thach and Gary.
