The Pacific War Online Encyclopedia
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|  ONI 222 |
| Tonnage | 1265 tons standard displacement |
| Dimensions | 304' by 37'6" by 15' 92.66m by 11.43m by 4.57m |
| Maximum speed | 20.5 knots |
| Complement | 200 |
| Armament | 3 3"/50
AA guns 2x2 40mm Bofors AA guns 4 20mm Oerlikon AA guns 2 depth charge tracks 8 depth charge throwers Hedgehog |
| Machinery |
2-shaft triple expansion
reciprocating (5500 shp) Two small tube boilers |
| Range |
9500 miles (15,300 km) at 12 knots |
| Bunkerage |
760 tons |
| Sensors |
HFDF Sonar (likely QC) Radar (likely SA and SF) |
| Modifications |
Some units eventually received as many as 10 20mm guns. |
The Tacomas were
completed in 1943-44. They were an American
version of the British
“River” class, with stronger
bows, welded construction, and less reliable machinery. Built in Maritime Commission
shipyards under Navy contract (as
type S2-S2-AQ1), they had better
range but were less powerful than destroyer escorts.
Their twin screws and rudders gave them unusual maneuverability. Only
96 were built and half went for Lend-Lease (as the British "Colony" class),
indicating that the U.S. Navy was not terribly impressed with the
frigate
concept. The crews were usually Coast
Guardsmen.
Most of these ships were transferred to Russia as Lend-Lease or taken in hand for conversion to weather ships (by replacing one 3" mount with weather instruments) as the war was winding down. Only those transfers or conversions that took place before 15 August 1945 are listed below.
The ships cost about $2.3 million apiece. Many of the frigates were built by Great Lake shipyards, and they had to have their masts stepped down and to be equipped with pontoons for the trip down the Mississippi River.
| Coronado | Completed 1943-6-17 (Wilmington) | Transferred to Russia 1945-7-12 as Lend-Lease |
| Long Beach | Completed 1943-9-8 (Wilmington) | Transferred to Russia 1945-7-12 as Lend-Lease |
| Glendale | Completed 1943-10-1 (Wilmington) | Transferred to Russia 1945-7-12 as Lend-Lease |
| San Pedro | Completed 1943-10-23 (Wilmington)
|
Transferred to Russia 1945-7-12 as Lend-Lease |
| Tacoma | Completed 1943-11-6 (Richmond) | |
| Belfast | Completed 1943-11-24 (Wilmington) | Transferred to Russia 1945-7-12 as Lend-Lease |
| El Paso | Completed 1943-12-1 (Wilmington) | Converted to weather ship 1945-5 |
| Van Buren | Completed 1943-12-17 (Wilmington) | Converted to weather ship 1945-7-2 |
| Albuquerque | Completed 1943-12-20 (Richmond) | |
| Ogden | Completed 1943-12-20 (San Diego) | Transferred to Russia 1945-7-12 as Lend-Lease |
| Orange | Completed 1944-1-1 (Wilmington) | |
| Eugene | Completed 1944-1-15 (Wilmington) | Converted to weather ship 1945-5-25 |
| Corpus Christi | Completed 1944-1-19 (Wilmington) | |
| Everett | Completed 1944-1-22 (Richmond) | |
| Hutchinson | Completed 1944-2-3 (Wilmington) | |
| Pocatello | Completed 1944-2-18 (Richmond) | Converted to weather ship 1944-4-28 |
| Gallup | Completed 1944-2-29 (Wilmington) | |
| Sausalito | Completed 1944-3-4 (Richmond) | |
| Rockford | Completed 1944-3-5 (Wilmington) | |
| Muskogee | Completed 1944-3-16 (Wilmington) | |
| Grand Forks | Completed 1944-3-18 (Richmond) | |
| Carson City | Completed 1944-3-24 (Wilmington) | |
| Casper | Completed 1944-3-31 (Richmond) | Converted to weather ship 1944-9-30 |
| Burlington |
Completed 1944-4-3 (Wilmington) | |
| Pasco | Completed 1944-4-15 (Richmond) | |
| Brownsville | Completed 1944-5-6 (Tacoma) | Converted to weather ship 1945-5 |
| Hoquiam | Completed 1944-5-8 (Richmond) | |
| Grand Island | Completed 1944-5-27 (Richmond) | Converted to weather ship 1944-9-12 |
| Pueblo | Completed 1944-5-27 (Richmond) | Converted to weather ship 1944-10-26 |
| Charlottesville | Arrived 1944-8 | Transferred to Russia 1945-7-12 as Lend-Lease |
| Sandusky | Arrived 1944-8-23 | Transferred to Russia 1945-7-12 as Lend-Lease |
| Machias | Arrived 1944-8-24 |
Transferred to Russia 1945-7-12 as Lend-Lease |
| Allentown | Arrived 1944-9 |
Transferred to Russia 1945-7-12 as Lend-Lease |
| Bangor | Arrived 1945-6 |
References
GlobalSecurity.org (accessed 2009-12-9)
Naval Historical Society of Australia (accessed 2010-11-28)
The Pacific War Online Encyclopedia © 2007-2010, 2012, 2014 by Kent G. Budge. Index
