USS CHARLES BERRY DE-1035 Ship History
Wikipedia (as of 2024)
USS Charles Berry (DE-1035) was a Claud Jones-class destroyer escort named for Medal of Honor recipient Charles J. Berry. She was commissioned in 1959. The ship was sold to Indonesia in 1974 and renamed KRI Martadinata in honor of Vice Admiral Raden Eddy Martadinata, a former Indonesian naval commander.
The class was designed under project SCB 131 as a cost-effective version of an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) ship that could be built quickly in case of rapid mobilization.[2] The Claud Jones class had a standard displacement of 1,314 long tons (1,335 t) and were 1,916 long tons (1,947 t) at full load. The destroyer escorts were 301 feet 0 inches (91.7 m) long at the waterline and 312 feet 0 inches (95.1 m) overall with a beam of 38 feet 0 inches (11.6 m) and a draft of 12 feet 11 inches (3.9 m). The Claud Jones class had an aluminum superstructure, a tripod mast forward and a pole mast further back amidships, with two stacks.[a]
Following the guidelines given to them, the designers chose a two-shafted diesel-powered ship to maximize cost effectiveness. The Claud Jones class were given four Fairbanks Morse 38ND8 diesel engines rated at 9,200 brake horsepower (6,860 kW). The class had a range of 7,000 nautical miles (12,964 km; 8,055 mi) at 12 knots (22 km/h; 14 mph) and a maximum speed of 22 knots (41 km/h; 25 mph).[b]
The ships were initially armed with two 3-inch (76 mm)/50-caliber guns, one located forward with a closed shield and one located aft with an open shield.[c] For ASW, the destroyer escorts were equipped with two forward-firing hedgehog anti-submarine mortars, two fixed 12.75-inch (324 mm) torpedo tubes for Mk 32 torpedoes and one depth charge rack placed over the stern. The fixed torpedo tubes were later removed and replaced with two triple tube mounts. In 1961, Charles Berry received a Norwegian-designed Terne III depth charge system deployed via rockets. As KRI Martadinata, her aft 3-inch/50-caliber gun was replaced with Soviet-built anti-aircraft guns, consisted of one 37 mm V-11 twin-barrel gun and one 25 mm 2M-3 twin-barrel gun.
The Claud Jones class was initially equipped with variable depth sonar, AN/SPS-10 and AN/SPS-6 search radars and SQS-29/32 hull-mounted sonar. The variable depth sonar was later removed. The vessels had a ship’s company of 175 with 15 officers and 160 enlisted personnel.
USS Charles Berry (DE-1035) was laid down on 29 October 1958, launched on 17 March 1959 by Avondale Marine Ways, Inc., Avondale, Louisiana, under subcontract from American Shipbuilding Co., Lorain, Ohio. She was sponsored by Mrs. C. Berry, and commissioned on 25 November 1959.
Charles Berry arrived at San Diego, her home port, on 3 February 1960, and after shakedown training and overhaul, cleared on 14 June for a tour of duty in the Far East which took her to United Nations trust territories in the charge of the United States, as well as on a good will cruise to Philippines ports. She returned to the West Coast late in 1960.
In October to November 1962, she participated in the blockade of Cuba.[6]
In June 1964 her homeport assignment was changed to Pearl Harbor.[1] Charles Berry along with her sisters were assigned to Escort Division 11.[7] Operating from Pearl Harbor, the ship and her sisters patrolled the Pacific Ocean and the areas around Midway Atoll, Kwajalein Atoll, Johnston Atoll, and even as far as Adak Island.[7]
In August 1965, Charles Berry was deployed to Vietnam.[6] While in Vietnam, she provided naval gunfire support. On one of her tours at Vietnam, the ship experienced a boiler explosion under the radio room which killed one personnel and injured another one.[8]
On 20 September 1970, Charles Berry crossed the International Date Line seven times in 24 hours.[9]
Charles Berry was decommissioned and stricken on 31 January 1974, and in the same day she was transferred to Indonesian Navy.
