Please report any broken links or trouble you might come across to the Webmaster. Please take a moment to let us know so that we can correct any problems and make your visit as enjoyable and as informative as possible.

NavSource Online: Service Ship Photo Archive
Contributed by Mike Smolinski

USS Sierra (AD-18)

International Radio Call Sign:
November - Alpha - Oscar - Delta
 NAOD
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons




Secretary of the Navy Letter of Commendation
Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row - Navy "Battle E" Ribbon (3)
Second Row - Navy Expeditionary Medal (3-Cuba)- China Service Medal (extended) - American Campaign Medal
Third Row - Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal - World War II Victory Medal - Navy Occupation Service Medal (with Asia clasp)
Fourth Row - National Defense Service Medal (2) - Humanitarian Service Medal (1-Hurricane Frederick) - Philippine Liberation Medal
Dixie Class Destroyer Tender:
  • Laid down, 31 December 1941, at Tampa Shipbuilding Co., Tampa, FL.
  • Launched, 23 February 1943
  • Commissioned USS Sierra (AD-18), 20 March 1944, CAPT. Paul B. Koonce in command
  • Decommissioned, and struck from the Naval Register, 15 October 1993
  • Final Disposition, sold for scrapping, 25 August 1995, by the Defense Reutilization and Marketing Service (DRMS) to Simsmetal America, Richmond, VA.
    Specifications:
    Displacement 18,000 t. (lim)
    Length 530' 6"
    Beam 73' 4"
    Draft 24' 6"
    Speed 19.6 kts. (trial)
    Complement
    officer 63
    enlisted 987
    Armament
    four 5"/38 dual purpose gun mounts four twin 40mm AA gun mounts
    Largest boom capacity 20 t.
    Ship's Service Generators four 750Kw 450V A.C.
    Fuel Capacity
    NFSO 24,555 Bbls.
    Diesel 2,705 Bbls.
    Propulsion
    two Allis Chalmers steam turbines
    four Babcock & Wilcox "A" (three drum expansion type) boilers 403psi 720°.
    double Falk Main Reduction Gear
    two propellers, 11,000shp
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Contributed
    By
    Sierra 65k USS Sierra (AD-18) underway, date location unknown. Hyperwar US Navy in WWII
    Sierra 17k USS Sierra (AD-18) at Shanghai, China, 12 October 1945 Hyperwar US Navy in WWII
    Sierra 87k USS Sierra (AD-18) underway, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo from "All Hands" magazine, November 1961    		 Joe Radigan MACM USN Ret.
    Sierra 110k USS Sierra (AD-18) at San Juan, Puerto Rico, 26 February 1967 with six destroyers alongside;
    USS Basilone (DD-824),
    USS Fiske (DD-842),
    USS Davis (DD-937),
    USS Richard E Kraus (DD-849),
    USS Harwood (DD-861),
    USS Gyatt (DD-712)
         		© Richard Leonhardt
    Sierra 57k USS Sierra (AD-18) at San Diego, CA., date unknown. Gene Snyder
    Sierra 29k USS Sierra (AD-18) at Barcelona, Spain, 2 July 1977, thirty-two years later than the photo at Shanghai, above, and from a very similar angle, this view shows Sierra's profile had been very little altered (the white masts belong to a ship moored beyond Sierra). The most noticeable change is the absence of 5"/38 guns, the last of which was removed in the mid-70s. Photo by Fabio Peņa
    Sierra 92k A closer view of USS Sierra (AD-18) at Barcelona, Spain, 2 July 1977. Photo by Fabio Peņa
    Sierra 81k USS Sierra (AD-18) underway, date and location unknown. Richard Leonhardt
    Sierra 57k USS Sierra (AD-18) underway, date and location unknown.
    ©Marine Photos, San Diego, CA.    		 Mike Smolinski
    Sierra 162k USS Sierra (AD-18) underway, date and location unknown.
    US Navy photo from "All Hands" magazine, December 1979    		 Joe Radigan MACM USN Ret.

    For more photos and information about USS Sierra, see:
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S. Navy Memorial Foundation - Navy Log
    Fleet Reserve Association
    Additional Resources and Web Sites of Interest
    No Information Available
    Back To The Navsource Photo Archives Main Page Back To The Service Ship Type Index Back To The Destroyer Tender (AD) Photo Index
    Comments, Suggestions, E-mail Webmaster.
    This page is created and maintained by Gary P. Priolo
    © 2005 Gary P. Priolo © 1996 - 2009 NavSource Naval History. All Rights Reserved.
    Last Updated 20 February 2009