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Navsource Online: Destroyer Escort Photo Archive



Ship's patches courtesy of Mike Smolinski

USS Whipple (DE 1062)



Flag Hoist/Radio Call Sign:
N - Y - N - D

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons




Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row: Combat Action Ribbon - Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation - Navy Battle E Ribbon (6)
Second Row: National Defense Service Medal w/ 1 star w/ star - Vietnam Service Medal w/ 2 stars - Southwest Asia Service Medal
Third Row: Humanitarian Service Medal - Navy Sea Service Deployment Ribbon - Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal


"Resources Beyond Calculation"
Specifications:
Class: Knox
Type: SCB No. 199C / 1964
Number in Class: 46
Displacement: 3020 tons (std), 4065 tons (full)
Length: 415' (wl), 438' (oa)
Beam: 46' 9" (extreme)
Draft: 24' 9" (draft limit)
Propulsion: 2 Combustion Engineering 1200psi boilers; 1 Westinghouse geared turbine; 35,000 shp; 1 shaft
Speed: 27 kts
Range: 4,500 nm @ 20 knots
Complement: 16 / 211
Missiles: 1 8-tube Mk25 Sea Sparrow BPDMS in DE 1052-1069, 1071-1083, 1 8-tube Mk29 NATO Sea Sparrow IPDMS in DE 1070, Harpoon missiles from modified ASROC launcher
Guns: 1 x 5"/54 cal. DP Mk 42 (600 rds)
ASW Weapons: 1 Mk16 ASROC launcher (16 missiles), 4-12.75" (324mm) Mk 32 (4x1 fixed) tubes / Mk 46 torpedos (6)
Radars: AN/SPS-10 (surface), AN/SPS-40 (air), AN/SPS-58 threat warning in some ships
Sonars: AN/SQS-26CX, AN/SQS-35 IVDS in FF-1052, 1056, 1063-1071, 1073-1076, 1078-1097
Fire Control Systems: Mk68 Mod. 11/13/14 Gun FCS, Mk114 Mod 14/16 ASW FCS
Helicopter: 1 - SH-2 LAMPS Helicopter
Whipple (DE 1062) Building and Operational Data:
  • 22 July 1964: Contract awarded to the Todd Shipyard Corp.
  • 24 April 1967: Keel laid by the Todd Shipyards Corp., Seattle, Wash.
  • 12 April 1968: Launched and christened, sponsored by Mrs. Kirkland B. Alexander
  • 22 August 1970: Commissioned (Special) at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Bremerton, Wash., Cmdr. J. Campbell in command, assigned to Destroyer Squadron 11 (DesDiv 111) at Pearl Harbor, Hi.
  • 01 April 1971: Assigned to the newly formed Destroyer Squadron 33 at Pearl Harbor
  • 30 June 1975: Reclassified Frigate (FF 1062)
  • 14 February 1992: Decommissioned at Pearl Harbor after 21 years and 6 months in service
  • 11 January 1995: Struck from the NVR
  • 10 April 2002: Sold to Mexico
  • 01 November 2002: Commissioned in the Mexican Navy, renamed ARM Almirante Francisco Javier Mina (F-214), still in service
    Click On Image
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    Size Image Description Contributed
    By And/Or Copyright
    Whipple
    0602106201
    26k Abraham Whipple was born on 26 September 1733 near Providence, R.I. and chose to be a seafarer early in his life. He embarked upon a career in the lucrative West Indies trade. In the French and Indian War period, he became a privateersman and commanded privateer Game Cock from 1759 to 1760. In one six-month cruise, he captured 23 French ships. As American colonists began to resist unfair oppression by the British crown, acts of defiance became more and more prevalent. One such occurrence happened on 18 June 1772, when Whipple led 50 Rhode Islanders in the capture and burning of British revenue cutter Gaspee, which had run aground off Pawtucket while chasing the packet Hannah.

    Three years later, the Rhode Island Assembly appointed Whipple commodore of two ships fitted out for the defense of the colony's trade. On the day the sea captain received his commission, 15 June 1775, he led his men to capture the frigate HMS Rose. After cruising in the vicinity of Narragansett Bay, he headed south to Bermuda to procure gunpowder for use by the colony and, on the return voyage, transported naval recruits to Philadelphia. Upon her arrival there, his ship, Katy, was taken over by agents of the Continental Congress and was fitted out as sloop-of-war Providencce. Whipple was commissioned a captain in the Continental Navy on 22 December and was given command of 24-gun frigate Columbus. During the period from 17 February to 8 April 1776, he commanded that ship during the first American Navy-Marine Corps amphibious expedition to cruise to New Providence, in the Bahamas, to seize essential military supplies from the British garrison at Nassau. After returning north to New England, Whipple captured five British prizes before 27 March 1778, when his ship ran aground off Judith Point. After stripping the ship, the wily captain and his crew abandoned her and escaped capture ashore. Next assigned to command 28-gun frigate Providence, Whipple ran the British blockade on the night of 30 April 1778, damaging HMS Lark and outrunning another Britisher during the escape. Tacking for France, Whipple's Providence crossed the Atlantic unmolested, bearing important dispatches relating to agreements between France and the American colonies, and reached Paimboeuf. After acquiring needed guns and supplies for the Continental Army, Providence and Boston sailed home to the colonies, taking three prizes en route.

    Upon his return, Whipple received command of a small squadron; Providence, Ranger, and Queen of France. On one occasion in mid-July 1779, this group of ships encountered a large British convoy in dense fog off the Newfoundland Banks. Whipple cagily concealed his guns and ran up the British flag. Like a wolf among sheep, he cut 11 prizes out of the convoy, eight of which contained spoils of war valued together at over one million dollars, easily one of the richest captures of the entire war. Following this adventure, Whipple cruised off Bermuda before arriving at Charleston, S.C., on 23 December 1779. British forces threatened that key Continental port, causing the guns and crews from the Continental Navy ships in port to be moved on shore to reinforce the land batteries to repulse the expected British assault. However, after a rugged four-month siege, the overwhelming pressure of British arms forced the Continental forces to surrender on 12 May 1780. Whipple remained a prisoner of the British until he was paroled to Chester, Pa., and he took no further part in the war. Upon the conclusion of hostilities, Whipple took up farming near Cranston RI. For the remainder of his life, he remained a farmer, with the exception of two spells of seafaring as master of merchantmen, first of General Washington and then of St. Clair. With the formation of the Ohio Company in 1788 and the initial westward migration into that territory, Whipple and his family became pioneers on the American frontier and were among the founders of the town of Marietta, Ohio. Granted a pension by Congress in recognition of his distinguished service in helping to win American independence, Whipple died at Marietta on 27 May 1819.


    USS Whipple (DE 1062) was the third ship named in his honor, preceded by Destroyer #15 (1902-1919), and DD 217 (1920-1945).
    (Photo from the Whipple Family Web Site)
    Bill Gonyo
    Downey, Cal.

    Assoc. Researcher
    Navsource
    Whipple
    0602106227
    218k 02 October 1970: Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada - USS Whipple (DE 1062) underway off Vancouver.

    (Photograph by Walter E. Frost) (Photo #AM1506-S3-3-: CVA 447-8942 from the City of Vancouver Archives)
    Mike Green
    Port Angeles, Wash.
    Whipple
    0602106228
    357K 1972: Subic Bay, The Philippine Islands - USS Whipple (DE 1062) entering Subic Bay.

    (Photo by Dick Hanover, USS Coral Sea 1971-1972 WestPac Cruise)
    Dick Hanover
    USS Coral Sea (CVA-43)
    Whipple
    0602106202
    166K 01 October 1974: off Hawaii - USS Whipple underway.

    (U.S. Navy photo #KN-22730 by PH3 D. J. Tyree)
    Ed Zajkowski
    Narvon, Pa.
    Whipple
    0602106222
    100K December 1974: Hong Kong - Whipple tied up to a mooring buoy while on a port visit to the Crown colony. Bob Hurst
    Worksop, Nottinghamshire,
    England, United Kingdom
    Whipple
    0602106203
    87K circa 1977-1979: at Pearl Harbor - moored inboard of USS Badger (DE 1071). Dr. Kenneth Hartman
    Whipple
    0602106204
    73K
    Whipple
    0602106217
    149K date / location unknown Robert M. Cieri
    Whipple
    0602106205
    147k 26 May 1977: At sea - A sailor suffering from a collapsed lung is hoisted aboard an HH-53 Super Jolly helicopter from the helicopter pad of Whipple. The US Air Force helicopter will transport him to a medical facility on shore.

    (U.S. Navy photo DVID #DF-ST-86-11913 by Ssgt Martin Cavazos from the Defense Visual Information Center)
    Mike Smolinski
    Clifton, N.J.

    Navsource DE/FF/LCS
    Archive Manager
    Whipple
    0602106219
    99k circa 1978: At sea - USS Whipple (DE 1062) underway as a SH-3 Sea King ASW helicopter hovers over her flight deck, during fleet exercises, circa 1978. An SH-2D LAMPS (Light Airborne Multipurpose System) helicopter is spotted on Whipple's deck forward of her Sea Sparrow missile launcher.

    (U.S. Naval Historical Centre Photo #KN-26918, Photo and text from the Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships)
    Bob Hurst
    Worksop, Nottinghamshire,
    England, United Kingdom
    Whipple
    0602106220
    70k An undated postcard view of Whipple as an FF.     (Postcard #ICS-107337 © Marine Photos and Publishing Co., San Diego, Cal.; shown at 125% of original size)

    Caption reads: U.S.S. WHIPPLE (FF-1062) - Named for Commodore Abraham Whipple (1733-1819) of the Continental Navy and the third ship of the fleet to bear the name. She is the eleventh ship of the Knox Clas of destroyer escorts, specially designed for Anti-Submarine Warfare, but also capable of effective performance in patrol, Anti-Air Warfare, shore bombardment and command functions.
    Mike Smolinski
    Clifton, N.J.

    Navsource DE/FF/LCS
    Archive Manager
    Whipple
    0602106221
    63k An undated postcard view of Whipple as an FF.     (Postcard #P43257 © Marine Photos and Publishing Co., Spring Valley, Cal.; shown at 125% of original size)

    Caption reads: U.S.S. WHIPPLE (FF-1062), a Knox class frigate home ported in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, is the third ship of the fleet christened in honor of Revolutionary War hero Abraham Whipple. Primarily an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) platform, she also has effective anti-air (AAW) and anti-surface warfare (ASUW) capabilities.
    Whipple
    0602106206
    143k 22 May 1982: At sea - Crew members aboard Whipple stand at the ship's rail to render honors to the crew of the frigate USS Brewton (FF 1086) after the completion of a manila high-line transfer-at-sea.

    (U.S. Navy photo DVID #DN-SN-84-01401 by Don S. Montgomery from the DVIC)
    Whipple
    0602106212
    194k ***01 January 1993: Naval Station, Subic Bay P.I. - A view of the repair ship USS Ajax (AR 6) moored at the Boton pier. The three frigates nested with the Ajax are the USS Brewton (FF 1086), Whipple and USS Ouellet (FF 1077).

    (U.S. Navy photo DVID #DN-ST-93-01096 by Don S. Montgomery from the DVIC) (This, and the next photo are dated 01 January 1993. However, as pointed out by Carl Musselman, Ajax was decommissioned in 1986. In addition, Brewton hadn't received her hull upgrade in these shots. The date has to be incorrect, and the real date has to be prior to 1984.)
    Whipple
    0602106213
    228k ***01 January 1993: Naval Station, Subic Bay P.I. - A view of the repair ship Ajax moored at the Boton pier. The three frigates nested with the Ajax are the USS Brewton (FF 1086), Whipple and USS Ouellet (FF 1077).

    (U.S. Navy photo DVID #DN-ST-93-01095 by Don S. Montgomery from the DVIC)
    Whipple
    0602106229
    858k 01 October 1984: Pearl Harbor, Hi. - The U. S. Navy frigates USS Whipple (FF 1062) and USS Ouellet (FF 1077) docked at Bravo Piers, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

    (U.S. Navy photo #DN-ST-88-04250 from the U. S. Defense Imagery)
    Mike Smolinski
    Clifton, N.J.

    Navsource DE/FF/LCS
    Archive Manager
    Whipple
    0602106207
    90K July 1985: Off Oahu Hawaii

    (Photo © Richard Leonhardt)
    Richard Leonhardt
    Bethlehem, Pa.
    Whipple
    0602106208
    195k 06 January 1987: At sea - An elevated starboard view of Whipple underway.

    (U.S. Navy photo DVID #DN-SC-86-08674 by PH2 Powell from the DVIC)
    Mike Smolinski
    Clifton, N.J.

    Navsource DE/FF/LCS
    Archive Manager
    Whipple
    0602106218
    150K July 1987: Pearl Harbor - USS Badger (FF 1071) pierside with Whipple outboard of her. Robert M. Cieri
    Whipple
    0602106209
    132k 01 June 1989: Pearl Harbor, Hi. - A starboard quarter view of Whipple underway.

    (U.S. Navy photo DVID #DN-SC-92-06499 by OS2 John Bouvia from the DVIC)
    Mike Smolinski
    Clifton, N.J.

    Navsource DE/FF/LCS
    Archive Manager
    Whipple
    0602106210
    117k 18 September 1989: San Diego, Cal. - Whipple moves past the carrier piers at Naval Air Station, North Island, as it departs San Diego at the start of PACEX '89. Tied up in the background are the aircraft carriers USS Constellation (CV 64), left; USS Ranger (CV 61), center; and USS Independence (CV 62), right.

    (U.S. Navy photo DVID #DN-ST-90-09780 by PHAN Andrew Heuer from the DVIC)
    Whipple
    0602106211
    155k 18 September 1989: San Diego, Cal. - Whipple moves past the carrier piers at Naval Air Station, North Island, as it departs San Diego at the start of PACEX '89. Tied up in the background is the USS Independence (CV 62).

    (U.S. Navy photo DVID #DN-ST-90-09781 by PHAN Andrew Heuer from the DVIC)
    ***Duncan/Whipple***
    071017
    179k 31 May 1996: Pearl Harbor, Hi. - Port quarter view of the decommissioned guided missile frigate Duncan (FFG 10) moored with other reserve ships at the Ships Intermediate Maintenance Facility in the middle loch at Pearl Harbor. To the right are the Knox class frigates Harold E. Holt (FF 1074), Whipple (FF 1062) and one unidentified unit.

    (U.S. Navy photo DVID #DN-SC-97-01130 by Don S. Montgomery, USN (ret.), from the DVIC)
    Whipple
    0602106214
    165k 04 June 2000: Middle Loch, Pearl Harbor - Port quarter view of Whipple moored at the Naval Ships Intermediate Maintenance Facility. Whipple was the last remaining Knox class ship at this site.

    (U.S. Navy photo DVID #DN-SC-02-05644 by Don S. Montgomery from the DVIC)
    Whipple
    0602106215
    77K 01 August 2000: Moored at NISMF Pearl Harbor, Hi. © Jim Bedient
    Whipple
    0602106216
    63k
    Whipple
    0602106225
    62k undated: Pearl Harbor, Hi. - A screen capture from the movie "Pearl Harbor" shows Whipple and another unidentified Knox class frigate in the scene. William Erndt
    USS Whipple '73 - '76
    Whipple
    0602106223
    385k 23 April 2009: the Atlantic Ocean - The Mexican navy Knox-class frigate ARM ARM Almirante Francisco Javier Mina (F-214) sails in formation during the photo exercise of UNITAS Gold, the 50th iteration of the annual multinational maritime exercise. This is the first time Mexico has participated in the partnership building exercise.

    (U.S. Navy photo by MC2 Alen Gragg from the United States Southern Command)
    Bob Hurst
    Worksop, Nottinghamshire,
    England, United Kingdom
    Whipple
    0602106224
    280k 04 May 2009: off Jacksonville, Fla. - The Mexican ship ARM Almirante Francisco Javier Mina (F-214), along with ships from other countries participating in Exercise Unitas Gold, takes part in a parade of ships just off the coast of Jacksonville. The Jacksonville area hosted maritime forces from Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Germany, Mexico, Peru, the United States and Uruguay for the 50th iteration of the annual multinational maritime exercise.

    (U.S. Navy photo #090504-N-1644C-380 by MCC Anthony Casullo from the Navy News Service)
    Whipple
    0602106226
    371k 09 July 2009: location unknown - The Mexican ship ARM Almirante Francisco Javier Mina (F-214) tied up pierside.
    (Photo by Hendric)

    Whipple Memorabilia
    Welcome Aboard
    Pamphlet, circa 1984
    Whipple
    Courtesy of
    Peter Clark
    Ship's
    Lighter
    Whipple
    Courtesy of
    Mike Smolinski

    Whipple History
    View the USS Whipple (DE 1062) DANFS history entry located on the Naval History and Heritage Command web site.

    Whipple's Commanding Officers
    Thanks to Wolfgang Hechler & Ron Reeves
    Dates of Command Commanding Officers
    1.)  22 Aug. 1970 - 14 Feb. 1972Cmdr. Jack Campbell (Butler, Pa.)
    2.)  14 Feb. 1972 - 10 Sep. 1973Cmdr. Walter Anthony Orsik (USNA '57) (Long Island, N.Y.)
    3.)  10 Sep. 1973 - 25 Jul. 1975Cmdr. Richard David Milligan (USNA '59) (Matawan, N.J.)
    4.)  25 Jul. 1975 - 07 Jul. 1977Cmdr. Thomas Dean Paulsen (USNA '60) (Watford City, N.D.)
    5.)  07 Jul. 1977 - 18 Aug. 1979Cmdr. William C. Francis (OCS '62) (Gainesville, Tex.) (ret. as Radm.)
    6.)  18 Aug. 1979 - 11 Aug. 1981Cmdr. Stephen K. Laabs (USNA '64) (Las Cruces, N.M.)
    7.)  11 Aug. 1981 - 26 Aug. 1983Cmdr. George Morey Miller III
    8.)  26 Aug. 1983 - 08 Nov. 1985Cmdr. Anderson Wade Wacaser III (OCS '66)
    9.)  08 Nov. 1985 - 28 May 1988Cmdr. James Douglas Brotherton
    10.) 28 May 1988 - 22 Jun. 1990Cmdr. Steven Garland Tinsley
    11.) 22 Jun. 1990 - 14 Feb. 1992Cmdr. Francis Joseph Klingseis (USNA '73) (Milford, Ia.)

    Crew Contact And Reunion Information

    Last Known Reunion
    2008 at San Diego, Cal.

    Contact Name: Daniel M. Garcia, STG2, Plankowner
    Address: 10040 Bilteer Court
    City/State: Santee CA 92071
    Phone: (619) 448-4380
    E-mail: Daniel Garcia
    Note About Contacts

    Contact information is compiled from various sources over a period of time and may, or may not, be correct. Every effort has been
    made to list the newest contact. However, our entry is only as good as the latest information that's been sent to us. We list only
    a contact for the ship if one has been sent to us. We do NOT have crew lists or rosters available. Please see the Frequently Asked
    Questions section on Navsource's Main Page for that information.


    Additional Resources

    USS Whipple Website
    USS Whipple 80-81 Cruise Book Site by Raymond Garvey
    Tin Can Sailors
    The U.S. Navy Memorial
    Destroyer Escort Sailors Association
    The Destroyer Escort Historical Museum
    The Destroyer History Foundation
    To The DE, FF, LCS Photo Index Page
    Back To The Main Photo Index

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    This Page Created And Maintained By Mike Smolinski
    All pages copyright Navsource Naval History
    by Paul R. Yarnall, All Rights Reserved.
    Page Last Updated: 03 July 2022