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

AD-18 Sierra

Flag Hoist/International Radio Call Sign:
November - Alpha - Oscar - Delta
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. P. 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 14,037 t.(lt) 17,176 t.(fl)
    Length 530' 6"
    Beam 73' 4"
    Draft 25' 6"
    Speed 19.6 kts.
    Complement 1,050
    Armament
    four 5"/38 dual purpose gun mounts
    eight single 40mm AA gun mounts
    twenty-three 20mm AA gun mounts
    Propulsion geared turbine engines, twin screws, 11,300shp
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Contributed
    By
    Sierra 65k Sierra (AD-18) underway, date and place unknown. Hyperwar US Navy in WWII
    Sierra 17k Sierra (AD-18) at Shanghai, China, 12 October 1945 Hyperwar US Navy in WWII
    Sierra 87k Sierra (AD-18) underway, date and place unknown.
    US Navy photo from "All Hands" magazine, November 1961    		 Joe Radigan MACM USN Ret.
    Sierra 110k Sierra (AD-18) at San Juan, Puerto Rico, 26 February 1967 with six destroyers alongside;
    Basilone (DD-824),
    Fiske (DD-842),
    Davis (DD-937),
    Richard E Kraus (DD-849),
    Harwood (DD-861),
    Gyatt (DD-712)
         		© Richard Leonhardt
    Sierra 57k Sierra (AD-18) at San Diego, CA., date unknown. Gene Snyder
    Sierra 29k 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 Sierra (AD-18) at Barcelona, Spain, 2 July 1977. Photo by Fabio Peņa
    Sierra 81k Sierra (AD-18) underway, date and place unknown. Richard Leonhardt
    Sierra 57k Sierra (AD-18) underway, date and place unknown.
    ©Marine Photos, San Diego, CA.    		 Mike Smolinski
    Sierra 162k Sierra (AD-18) underway, date and place unknown.
    US Navy photo from "All Hands" magazine, December 1979    		 Joe Radigan MACM USN Ret.
    View Sierra (AD-18) Memorabilia
    View the Sierra (AD-18)
    DANFS history entry located at the US Naval Historical Center
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    U.S.Navy Memorial Foundation
    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 - 2008 NavSource Naval History. All Rights Reserved.
    Last Updated 15 December 2006