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USS Hazelwood (DD-531)
Encyclopedia
USS Hazelwood (DD-531) was a World War II
-era Fletcher-class
destroyer
in the service of the United States Navy
The ship was the second named for Commodore
John Hazelwood
; a naval leader in the American Continental Navy
.
; launched 20 November 1942; sponsored by Mrs. Harold J. Fosdick; and commissioned 18 June 1943, Commander
Hunter Wood, Jr., in command.
After shakedown, Hazelwood departed the West Coast 5 September. Reaching Pearl Harbor
9 September, she sailed 2 days later with a fast carrier strike force under Rear Admiral
C. A. Pownall in Lexington
to launch carrier-based air strikes against Tarawa
, Gilbert Islands
. Hazelwood next joined a second fast carrier force—6 carriers, 7 cruisers, and 24 destroyers under Rear Admiral A. E. Montgomery—for strikes against Wake Island
5 October and 6 October.
Returning to Pearl Harbor 11 October, the destroyer took part in intensive training to prepare for the giant amphibious drive to Japan
. She joined Task Force 53 under Vice Admiral
Raymond A. Spruance
at Havannah Harbor, New Hebrides
, 5 November. Departing 13 November, she took part in invasion of the Gilbert Islands 20 November. In one of the bitterest struggles during the fleet's push across the Pacific, she served on antisubmarine patrol and as standby fighter-director ship. Hazelwood returned to Pearl Harbor 7 December 1943 to prepare for the next operation.
As the war in the Pacific gained momentum, Hazelwood sortied from Pearl Harbor 22 January 1944 as part of Task Force 52 under Admiral Spruance for the invasion of Kwajalein
and Majuro
Atolls in the Marshall Islands
. After troops stormed ashore 31 January, she anchored in Kwajalein Harbor as primary fighter-director ship and also patrolled against enemy submarines. This objective secured, she departed Kwajalein 15 February for several months of patrol and escort duty through the Solomons
and Marshalls. She also bombarded Japanese shore positions at Ungalabu Harbor and a tank farm on New Ireland
.
Hazelwood next participated in the invasion of the Palaus. As the 1st Marine Division landed on Peleliu
, Palau Islands, 15 September, she pounded enemy shore positions with gunfire to lessen Japanese opposition. She remained off Peleliu on patrol until 3 October, when she sailed to Seeadler Harbor
, Manus Island
. There the never-resting veteran joined Vice Admiral Kinkaid
's naval forces for the invasion and liberation of the Philippines
. As troops landed under naval cover on Leyte 20 October, Hazelwood came under heavy Japanese air attacks.
The next week brought constant enemy air raids and a succession of far reaching fleet moves as the Imperial Navy made one final but futile effort to drive America out of the Philippines and regain some measure of control over the seas. In this struggle, known to history as the Battle of Leyte Gulf
, the Japanese Navy was all but annihilated. Three enemy battleships, four carriers, six heavy cruisers, four light cruisers, nine destroyers, and a host of planes were destroyed. Hazelwood herself accounted for at least two kamikaze
s destroyed.
Hazelwood engaged in patrols off Leyte Gulf
and gunnery and training exercises out of Ulithi
during December. She then joined Vice Admiral McCain
's fast carrier strike force and sailed 30 December. Carrying the war home to the enemy, the carriers launched heavy air raids against Japanese positions in the Ryukyu Islands
, Taiwan
, Okinawa, and along the China
coast 3–7 January 1945. These devastating strikes also diverted Japanese attention from the Philippines, where landings were made at Lingayen Gulf
9 January. After further strikes on Japanese positions in Indochina
, the hard-hitting force returned to Ulithi 26 January.
Joining another fast and mobile carrier task force, Hazelwood sortied 11 February to protect carriers as they launched heavy air strikes against the Japanese home islands 16 and 17 February. Swiftly shifting positions as only sea based power can, the fleet then sped south to provide support for the landings on Iwo Jima
, begun 19 February. Although under constant attack from kamikazes as well as fighters and dive-bombers, Hazelwood came through the invasion untouched and on the night of 25 February sank two small enemy freighters with her guns.
Returning to Ulithi 1 March, the battle-tried destroyer sailed again for action 14 March with a fast carrier force to provide air cover and shore bombardment for the invasion of Okinawa, last step before invasion of the Japanese home islands. After the invasion 1 April, Hazelwood operated off Okinawa on radar picket and escort patrols through intense Japanese air attacks. On 29 April, the carrier group she was shepherding was attacked by kamikazes who dove out of low cloud cover.
Hazelwood, all guns blazing, maneuvered to avoid two of the Zeros. A third screamed out of the clouds from astern. Although hit by Hazelwood’s fire, the enemy plane careened past the superstructure. It hit #2 stack on the port side, smashed into the bridge, and exploded. Flaming gasoline spilled over the decks and bulkheads as the mast toppled and the forward guns were put out of action. Ten officers and 67 men were killed, including the Commanding Officer, Cmdr. V. P. Douw, and 36 were missing. Hazelwood’s engineering officer, Lt. (j.g.)
C. M. Locke, took command and directed her crew in fighting the damage and aiding wounded. Proceeding by tow and part way under her own power, the gallant ship reached Ulithi 5 May for temporary repairs, then sailed to Mare Island Naval Shipyard
via Pearl Harbor 14 June for permanent repairs. Hazelwood decommissioned 18 January 1946 and entered the Pacific Reserve Fleet at San Diego, California
.
aggression in Korea
and to bolster the free world's strength everywhere. After shakedown she departed San Diego 4 January 1952, and reached Newport, Rhode Island
, 21 January to join Destroyer Forces, Atlantic Fleet. Operations and exercises along the East Coast and in the Caribbean
, as well as hunter-killer training with carrier groups, occupied Hazelwood until she departed Newport for the Far East 7 December 1953.
She reached Tokyo
12 January 1954, via Pearl Harbor and spent the next few months operating with a fast carrier task force and patrolling along the Korean coast to enforce an uneasy armistice. The far-ranging destroyer returned to the States the long way, departing Hong Kong
28 May 1954 and sailing through the Suez Canal
to reach Newport 17 July.
During the next few years, Hazelwood maintained a pattern of training and readiness operations along the East Coast and in the Caribbean interspersed with deployments to the Mediterranean. During the Suez Crisis
in the fall of 1956 she served with the mighty 6th Fleet, patrolling the eastern Mediterranean and helping to stabilize a tense international situation.
In 1958, Hazelwood began extensive testing of helicopters for antisubmarine warfare both in Narragansett Bay
and out of the Naval Ordnance Laboratory in Maryland
. Assigned to the Destroyer Development Division, she participated in tests on equipment used with radar and electronic counter-measure systems. Her primary research and development work involved the testing of the Drone Anti-Submarine Helicopter (DASH), an example of the Navy's continuing effort to apply the technological advances of modern science for the security of our nation and the free world. Hazelwood provided on board testing facilities, and helped make possible the perfection of DASH, an advanced and vital ASW weapons system. In August 1963 alone, the drone helicopter made 1,000 landings on the versatile destroyer's flight deck.
In addition to experimental developments, Hazelwood continued to engage in the many duties assigned to a destroyer. As America confronted Russia
over the introduction of offensive missiles into Cuba
in October 1962, she steamed again to the troubled Caribbean for antisubmarine and surveillance patrols. Hazelwood arrived Guantanamo Naval Base
5 November, just after the quarantine of Cuba
had gone into effect and remained on guard during the crisis, serving as a Gun Fire Support Ship for Task Force 84. When the nuclear submarine Thresher
failed to surface 10 April 1963, Hazelwood immediately deployed to the scene of the tragedy with scientists from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
to begin a systematic search for the missing ship.
Hazelwood resumed testing of DASH during June and later in the year conducted on board trials of the Shipboard Landing Assist Device (SLAD). She continued both developmental and tactical operations along the East Coast during the next year. She decommissioned 19 March 1965, and entered the Atlantic Reserve Fleet. Hazelwood was struck from the Naval Vessel Register
1 December 1974 and sold 14 April 1976.
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
-era Fletcher-class
Fletcher class destroyer
The Fletcher class were a class of destroyers built by the United States during World War II. The class was designed in 1939 as a result of dissatisfaction with the earlier destroyer leader types...
destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
in the service of the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
The ship was the second named for Commodore
Commodore (rank)
Commodore is a military rank used in many navies that is superior to a navy captain, but below a rear admiral. Non-English-speaking nations often use the rank of flotilla admiral or counter admiral as an equivalent .It is often regarded as a one-star rank with a NATO code of OF-6, but is not always...
John Hazelwood
John Hazelwood
John Hazelwood was an officer in the Continental Navy.Born in England, Hazelwood was appointed to superintend the building of fire rafts for the protection of Philadelphia against the British during the Revolutionary War....
; a naval leader in the American Continental Navy
Continental Navy
The Continental Navy was the navy of the United States during the American Revolutionary War, and was formed in 1775. Through the efforts of the Continental Navy's patron, John Adams and vigorous Congressional support in the face of stiff opposition, the fleet cumulatively became relatively...
.
World War II
Hazelwood was laid down 11 April 1942 by the Bethlehem Shipbuilding Co., San Francisco, CaliforniaSan Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
; launched 20 November 1942; sponsored by Mrs. Harold J. Fosdick; and commissioned 18 June 1943, Commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
Hunter Wood, Jr., in command.
After shakedown, Hazelwood departed the West Coast 5 September. Reaching Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor
Pearl Harbor, known to Hawaiians as Puuloa, is a lagoon harbor on the island of Oahu, Hawaii, west of Honolulu. Much of the harbor and surrounding lands is a United States Navy deep-water naval base. It is also the headquarters of the U.S. Pacific Fleet...
9 September, she sailed 2 days later with a fast carrier strike force under Rear Admiral
Rear Admiral
Rear admiral is a naval commissioned officer rank above that of a commodore and captain, and below that of a vice admiral. It is generally regarded as the lowest of the "admiral" ranks, which are also sometimes referred to as "flag officers" or "flag ranks"...
C. A. Pownall in Lexington
USS Lexington (CV-2)
USS Lexington , nicknamed the "Gray Lady" or "Lady Lex," was an early aircraft carrier of the United States Navy. She was the lead ship of the , though her sister ship was commissioned a month earlier...
to launch carrier-based air strikes against Tarawa
Tarawa Atoll
Tarawa is an atoll in the central Pacific Ocean, previously the capital of the former British colony of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands. It is the location of the capital of the Republic of Kiribati, South Tarawa...
, Gilbert Islands
Gilbert Islands
The Gilbert Islands are a chain of sixteen atolls and coral islands in the Pacific Ocean. They are the main part of Republic of Kiribati and include Tarawa, the site of the country's capital and residence of almost half of the population.-Geography:The atolls and islands of the Gilbert Islands...
. Hazelwood next joined a second fast carrier force—6 carriers, 7 cruisers, and 24 destroyers under Rear Admiral A. E. Montgomery—for strikes against Wake Island
Wake Island
Wake Island is a coral atoll having a coastline of in the North Pacific Ocean, located about two-thirds of the way from Honolulu west to Guam east. It is an unorganized, unincorporated territory of the United States, administered by the Office of Insular Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior...
5 October and 6 October.
Returning to Pearl Harbor 11 October, the destroyer took part in intensive training to prepare for the giant amphibious drive to Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. She joined Task Force 53 under Vice Admiral
Vice Admiral
Vice admiral is a senior naval rank of a three-star flag officer, which is equivalent to lieutenant general in the other uniformed services. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral...
Raymond A. Spruance
Raymond A. Spruance
Raymond Ames Spruance was a United States Navy admiral in World War II.Spruance commanded US naval forces during two of the most significant naval battles in the Pacific theater, the Battle of Midway and the Battle of the Philippine Sea...
at Havannah Harbor, New Hebrides
New Hebrides
New Hebrides was the colonial name for an island group in the South Pacific that now forms the nation of Vanuatu. The New Hebrides were colonized by both the British and French in the 18th century shortly after Captain James Cook visited the islands...
, 5 November. Departing 13 November, she took part in invasion of the Gilbert Islands 20 November. In one of the bitterest struggles during the fleet's push across the Pacific, she served on antisubmarine patrol and as standby fighter-director ship. Hazelwood returned to Pearl Harbor 7 December 1943 to prepare for the next operation.
As the war in the Pacific gained momentum, Hazelwood sortied from Pearl Harbor 22 January 1944 as part of Task Force 52 under Admiral Spruance for the invasion of Kwajalein
Kwajalein
Kwajalein Atoll , is part of the Republic of the Marshall Islands . The southernmost and largest island in the atoll is named Kwajalein Island. English-speaking residents of the U.S...
and Majuro
Majuro
Majuro , is a large coral atoll of 64 islands in the Pacific Ocean, and forms a legislative district of the Ratak Chain of the Marshall Islands. The atoll itself has a land area of and encloses a lagoon of...
Atolls in the Marshall Islands
Marshall Islands
The Republic of the Marshall Islands , , is a Micronesian nation of atolls and islands in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, just west of the International Date Line and just north of the Equator. As of July 2011 the population was 67,182...
. After troops stormed ashore 31 January, she anchored in Kwajalein Harbor as primary fighter-director ship and also patrolled against enemy submarines. This objective secured, she departed Kwajalein 15 February for several months of patrol and escort duty through the Solomons
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is a sovereign state in Oceania, east of Papua New Guinea, consisting of nearly one thousand islands. It covers a land mass of . The capital, Honiara, is located on the island of Guadalcanal...
and Marshalls. She also bombarded Japanese shore positions at Ungalabu Harbor and a tank farm on New Ireland
New Ireland (island)
New Ireland is a large island in Papua New Guinea, approximately 7,404 km² in area. It is the largest island of the New Ireland Province, lying northeast of the island of New Britain. Both islands are part of the Bismarck Archipelago, named after Otto von Bismarck, and they are separated by...
.
Hazelwood next participated in the invasion of the Palaus. As the 1st Marine Division landed on Peleliu
Peleliu
Peleliu is an island in the island nation of Palau. Peleliu forms, along with two small islands to its northeast, one of the sixteen states of Palau. It is located northeast of Angaur and southwest of Koror....
, Palau Islands, 15 September, she pounded enemy shore positions with gunfire to lessen Japanese opposition. She remained off Peleliu on patrol until 3 October, when she sailed to Seeadler Harbor
Seeadler Harbor
Seeadler Harbor, also known as Port Seeadler, is located on Manus Island, Admiralty Islands, Papua New Guinea and played an important role in World War II...
, Manus Island
Manus Island
Manus Island is part of Manus Province in northern Papua New Guinea and is the largest island of the Admiralty Islands. It is the fifth largest island in Papua New Guinea with an area of 2,100 km², measuring around 100 km × 30 km. According to the 2000 census, Manus Island had a...
. There the never-resting veteran joined Vice Admiral Kinkaid
Thomas C. Kinkaid
Thomas Cassin Kinkaid was an admiral in the United States Navy during World War II. He built a reputation as a "fighting admiral" in the aircraft carrier battles of 1942 and commanded the Allied forces in the Aleutian Islands Campaign...
's naval forces for the invasion and liberation of the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. As troops landed under naval cover on Leyte 20 October, Hazelwood came under heavy Japanese air attacks.
The next week brought constant enemy air raids and a succession of far reaching fleet moves as the Imperial Navy made one final but futile effort to drive America out of the Philippines and regain some measure of control over the seas. In this struggle, known to history as the Battle of Leyte Gulf
Battle of Leyte Gulf
The Battle of Leyte Gulf, also called the "Battles for Leyte Gulf", and formerly known as the "Second Battle of the Philippine Sea", is generally considered to be the largest naval battle of World War II and, by some criteria, possibly the largest naval battle in history.It was fought in waters...
, the Japanese Navy was all but annihilated. Three enemy battleships, four carriers, six heavy cruisers, four light cruisers, nine destroyers, and a host of planes were destroyed. Hazelwood herself accounted for at least two kamikaze
Kamikaze
The were suicide attacks by military aviators from the Empire of Japan against Allied naval vessels in the closing stages of the Pacific campaign of World War II, designed to destroy as many warships as possible....
s destroyed.
Hazelwood engaged in patrols off Leyte Gulf
Leyte Gulf
Leyte Gulf is a body of water immediately east of the island of Leyte in the Philippines, adjoining the Philippine Sea of the Pacific Ocean, at . The Gulf is bounded on the north by the island of Samar, which is separated from Leyte on the west by the narrow San Juanico Strait, and on the south by...
and gunnery and training exercises out of Ulithi
Ulithi
Ulithi is an atoll in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean, about 191 km east of Yap. It consists of 40 islets totalling , surrounding a lagoon about long and up to wide—at one of the largest in the world. It is administered by the state of Yap in the Federated States of...
during December. She then joined Vice Admiral McCain
John S. McCain, Sr.
John Sidney "Slew" McCain Sr. was a U.S. Navy admiral. He held several command assignments during the Pacific campaign of World War II....
's fast carrier strike force and sailed 30 December. Carrying the war home to the enemy, the carriers launched heavy air raids against Japanese positions in the Ryukyu Islands
Ryukyu Islands
The , also known as the , is a chain of islands in the western Pacific, on the eastern limit of the East China Sea and to the southwest of the island of Kyushu in Japan. From about 1829 until the mid 20th century, they were alternately called Luchu, Loochoo, or Lewchew, akin to the Mandarin...
, Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, Okinawa, and along the China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
coast 3–7 January 1945. These devastating strikes also diverted Japanese attention from the Philippines, where landings were made at Lingayen Gulf
Lingayen Gulf
The Lingayen Gulf is an extension of the South China Sea on Luzon in the Philippines stretching . It is framed by the provinces of Pangasinan and La Union and sits between the Zambales Mountains and the Cordillera Central...
9 January. After further strikes on Japanese positions in Indochina
Indochina
The Indochinese peninsula, is a region in Southeast Asia. It lies roughly southwest of China, and east of India. The name has its origins in the French, Indochine, as a combination of the names of "China" and "India", and was adopted when French colonizers in Vietnam began expanding their territory...
, the hard-hitting force returned to Ulithi 26 January.
Joining another fast and mobile carrier task force, Hazelwood sortied 11 February to protect carriers as they launched heavy air strikes against the Japanese home islands 16 and 17 February. Swiftly shifting positions as only sea based power can, the fleet then sped south to provide support for the landings on Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima
Iwo Jima, officially , is an island of the Japanese Volcano Islands chain, which lie south of the Ogasawara Islands and together with them form the Ogasawara Archipelago. The island is located south of mainland Tokyo and administered as part of Ogasawara, one of eight villages of Tokyo...
, begun 19 February. Although under constant attack from kamikazes as well as fighters and dive-bombers, Hazelwood came through the invasion untouched and on the night of 25 February sank two small enemy freighters with her guns.
Returning to Ulithi 1 March, the battle-tried destroyer sailed again for action 14 March with a fast carrier force to provide air cover and shore bombardment for the invasion of Okinawa, last step before invasion of the Japanese home islands. After the invasion 1 April, Hazelwood operated off Okinawa on radar picket and escort patrols through intense Japanese air attacks. On 29 April, the carrier group she was shepherding was attacked by kamikazes who dove out of low cloud cover.
Hazelwood, all guns blazing, maneuvered to avoid two of the Zeros. A third screamed out of the clouds from astern. Although hit by Hazelwood’s fire, the enemy plane careened past the superstructure. It hit #2 stack on the port side, smashed into the bridge, and exploded. Flaming gasoline spilled over the decks and bulkheads as the mast toppled and the forward guns were put out of action. Ten officers and 67 men were killed, including the Commanding Officer, Cmdr. V. P. Douw, and 36 were missing. Hazelwood’s engineering officer, Lt. (j.g.)
Lieutenant, Junior Grade
Lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer rank in the United States Navy, the United States Coast Guard, the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, United States Merchant Marine USMM, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Corps, with the pay grade...
C. M. Locke, took command and directed her crew in fighting the damage and aiding wounded. Proceeding by tow and part way under her own power, the gallant ship reached Ulithi 5 May for temporary repairs, then sailed to Mare Island Naval Shipyard
Mare Island Naval Shipyard
The Mare Island Naval Shipyard was the first United States Navy base established on the Pacific Ocean. It is located 25 miles northeast of San Francisco in Vallejo, California. The Napa River goes through the Mare Island Strait and separates the peninsula shipyard from the main portion of the...
via Pearl Harbor 14 June for permanent repairs. Hazelwood decommissioned 18 January 1946 and entered the Pacific Reserve Fleet at San Diego, California
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
.
Post War service
Hazelwood recommissioned at San Diego 12 September 1951, Cmdr. R. M. Niles in command, and joined the enlarged fleet necessary to fight CommunistCommunism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
aggression in Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
and to bolster the free world's strength everywhere. After shakedown she departed San Diego 4 January 1952, and reached Newport, Rhode Island
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...
, 21 January to join Destroyer Forces, Atlantic Fleet. Operations and exercises along the East Coast and in the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
, as well as hunter-killer training with carrier groups, occupied Hazelwood until she departed Newport for the Far East 7 December 1953.
She reached Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
12 January 1954, via Pearl Harbor and spent the next few months operating with a fast carrier task force and patrolling along the Korean coast to enforce an uneasy armistice. The far-ranging destroyer returned to the States the long way, departing Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
28 May 1954 and sailing through the Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
to reach Newport 17 July.
During the next few years, Hazelwood maintained a pattern of training and readiness operations along the East Coast and in the Caribbean interspersed with deployments to the Mediterranean. During the Suez Crisis
Suez Crisis
The Suez Crisis, also referred to as the Tripartite Aggression, Suez War was an offensive war fought by France, the United Kingdom, and Israel against Egypt beginning on 29 October 1956. Less than a day after Israel invaded Egypt, Britain and France issued a joint ultimatum to Egypt and Israel,...
in the fall of 1956 she served with the mighty 6th Fleet, patrolling the eastern Mediterranean and helping to stabilize a tense international situation.
Narragansett Bay
Narragansett Bay is a bay and estuary on the north side of Rhode Island Sound. Covering 147 mi2 , the Bay forms New England's largest estuary, which functions as an expansive natural harbor, and includes a small archipelago...
and out of the Naval Ordnance Laboratory in Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. Assigned to the Destroyer Development Division, she participated in tests on equipment used with radar and electronic counter-measure systems. Her primary research and development work involved the testing of the Drone Anti-Submarine Helicopter (DASH), an example of the Navy's continuing effort to apply the technological advances of modern science for the security of our nation and the free world. Hazelwood provided on board testing facilities, and helped make possible the perfection of DASH, an advanced and vital ASW weapons system. In August 1963 alone, the drone helicopter made 1,000 landings on the versatile destroyer's flight deck.
In addition to experimental developments, Hazelwood continued to engage in the many duties assigned to a destroyer. As America confronted Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
over the introduction of offensive missiles into Cuba
Cuban Missile Crisis
The Cuban Missile Crisis was a confrontation among the Soviet Union, Cuba and the United States in October 1962, during the Cold War...
in October 1962, she steamed again to the troubled Caribbean for antisubmarine and surveillance patrols. Hazelwood arrived Guantanamo Naval Base
Guantanamo Bay Naval Base
Guantanamo Bay Naval Base is located on of land and water at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba which the United States leased for use as a coaling station following the Cuban-American Treaty of 1903. The base is located on the shore of Guantánamo Bay at the southeastern end of Cuba. It is the oldest overseas...
5 November, just after the quarantine of Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
had gone into effect and remained on guard during the crisis, serving as a Gun Fire Support Ship for Task Force 84. When the nuclear submarine Thresher
USS Thresher (SSN-593)
The second USS Thresher was the lead ship of her class of nuclear-powered attack submarines in the United States Navy. Her loss at sea during deep-diving tests in 1963 is often considered a watershed event in the implementation of the rigorous submarine safety program SUBSAFE.The contract to build...
failed to surface 10 April 1963, Hazelwood immediately deployed to the scene of the tragedy with scientists from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution is a private, nonprofit research and higher education facility dedicated to the study of all aspects of marine science and engineering and to the education of marine researchers. Established in 1930, it is the largest independent oceanographic research...
to begin a systematic search for the missing ship.
Hazelwood resumed testing of DASH during June and later in the year conducted on board trials of the Shipboard Landing Assist Device (SLAD). She continued both developmental and tactical operations along the East Coast during the next year. She decommissioned 19 March 1965, and entered the Atlantic Reserve Fleet. Hazelwood was struck from the Naval Vessel Register
Naval Vessel Register
The Naval Vessel Register is the official inventory of ships and service craft in custody of or titled by the United States Navy. It contains information on ships and service craft that make up the official inventory of the Navy from the time a vessel is authorized through its life cycle and...
1 December 1974 and sold 14 April 1976.