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Tin Can
Sailors Salutes the
USS CONNER (DD-582) and Her Crew
July 19, 1940 was the day the bill was signed authorizing
the building of CONNER. Her keel was laid April 16, 1942, launched Sept.
9, 1942 and commissioned June 8, 1943. The ship was sponsored by Miss
Tamsin Lee Conner, who, incidentally, was only three years old at the
time. Her first CO was Lt. Cdr. W. E. Kaitner.
CONNER was a Fletcher class DD built by the Boston
Navy Yard at a cost of $6,256,000. She was named for Commodore David
Conner who was born at Harrisburg, Pa. in 1792 and died at Philadelphia
in March 1856.
At the ships commissioning dinner, chief steward J. T.
Pickren served grilled T-bone steak as the main course. After shakedown
and much training, the CONNER arrived at Pearl Harbor on 24 September
1943. She had her first taste of war by participating in the Wake Island
attack. Next came the Gilberts where she assisted in shooting down one
plane. She joined the famous Task Force 58 in January 1944. The ship was
a part of the force that attacked Truk in mid February. On 30 March,
CONNER shot down one Jap plane. In April she participated in strikes
against Hollandia, Wakde and Sawar. Next came strikes against Guam, Rota,
Haha and Chichi Jima. She was a rescue ship for downed pilots during the
Battle of the Philippine Sea. September saw strikes against Palau and
Mindanao.
Friday, October 13, 1944 was CONNER’s worst day of
the war. During the day her group was attacked by 129 planes, at night a
torpedo bomber made a run on the cruiser CANBERRA. In the cruiser’s
desperate attempt to save herself, the CONNER was caught in the
anti-aircraft barrage. The ship sustained minor structural damage on the
port side, but in the performance of their duty 27 men were wounded. The
next day four of the seriously wounded were transferred to the USS WASP
for treatment.
CONNER next took part in the Battle of Surigao Strait
from 24 to 26 October 1944. In December she covered the invasion of
Mindoro and January found the CONNER at the landings at Lingayen Gulf
and at Subic Bay at the end of the month. In February 1945, she headed
for Puget Sound Navy Yard for overhaul, this after 16 months of
continuous war duty. Lt. Cdr. Sissons relieved Cdr. Kaitner on 18 Feb.
1945. April found her at Pearl again followed by landings at Brunie
Bluff and Victoria Town. CONNER was ordered to take the Jap hospital
ship Tachibana Maru as prize in July.
The ship was found to be carrying firearms and
ammunition in boxes marked with red crosses, also aboard were 1562
soldiers posing as patients. This was a blatant violation of
international laws. CONNER escorted her prize into Morotai Harbor on 6
August 1945.
Lt. Robert Austin took command of the ship on 30
August after Capt. Sissons fell and was injured. Austin was XO. Lt. Cdr.
A. Hooper took command on 17 September. CONNER remained in the China
Theater until year’s end. She returned to San Francisco on January 20,
1946 and decommissioned at Long Beach July 5, 1946.
CONNER earned 12 Battle Stars for WW II service. The
ship rested in reserve until October 1959 when she was transferred to
the Greek Navy taking the name ASPIS.
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