USS Boone

USS Boone (FFG-28) passing the Statue of Liberty, Fleet Week, New York 2002
History
United States
Name	Boone
Namesake	Vice Admiral Joel Thompson Boone, M.D.
Ordered	23 January 1978
Builder	Todd Pacific Shipyards, Seattle, Washington
Laid down	27 March 1979
Launched	16 January 1980
Sponsored by	Mrs. Milton F. Heller, Jr., daughter of the late Vice Admiral Boone
Commissioned	15 May 1982
Decommissioned	23 February 2012
Homeport	Mayport Naval Station
Identification	Hull symbol:FFG-28 Code letters:NBON Call sign:Comanche Trail
Motto	"Don't Tread on Me"
Honors and awards	2005 DESRON 14 Battle "E"
Fate	Sunk as target, 7 September 2022
Badge
General characteristics
Class and type	Oliver Hazard Perry-class guided missile frigate
Displacement	4,100 long tons (4,200 t), full load
Length	453 feet (138 m), overall
Beam	45 feet (14 m)
Draft	22 feet (6.7 m)
Propulsion	2 × General Electric LM2500-30 gas turbines generating 41,000 shp (31 MW) through a single shaft and variable pitch propeller 2 × Auxiliary Propulsion Units, 350 hp (260 kW) retractable electric azimuth thrusters for maneuvering and docking.
Speed	over 29 knots (54 km/h)
Range	5,000 nautical miles at 18 knots (9,300 km at 33 km/h)
Complement	15 officers and 190 enlisted, plus SH-60 LAMPS detachment of roughly six officer pilots and 15 enlisted maintainers
Sensors and processing systems	AN/SPS-49 air-search radar AN/SPS-55 surface-search radar CAS and STIR fire-control radar AN/SQS-56 sonar.
Electronic warfare & decoys	AN/SLQ-32
Armament	As built: 1 × OTO Melara Mk 75 76 mm/62 caliber naval gun 2 × Mk 32 triple-tube (324 mm) launchers for Mark 46 torpedoes 1 × Vulcan Phalanx CIWS 4 × .50-cal (12.7 mm) machine guns. 1 × Mk 13 Mod 4 single-arm launcher for Harpoon anti-ship missiles and SM-1MR Standard anti-ship/air missiles (40 round magazine) Note: As of 2004, Mk 13 systems removed from all active US vessels of this class.
Aircraft carried	2 × SH-60 LAMPS III helicopters
Aviation facilities	RAST

USS Boone (FFG-28) was the twentieth ship in the United States Navy's Oliver Hazard Perry-class of guided missile frigates.

The frigate was named for Vice Admiral Joel Thompson Boone, M.D. (1889–1974). FFG-28, the first U.S. ship to bear the admiral's name, was ordered 23 January 1978, launched 16 January 1980 by Todd Pacific Shipyards, and commissioned 15 May 1982. She has since earned numerous awards and commendations.^{[citation needed]}

History

On 30 November 2006, the rudder fell off Mayport-based frigate Boone while on deployment in the western Mediterranean. The mishap forced the ship to send out a call for help to which Canadian destroyer HMCS Iroquois responded, providing divers who inspected the ship's underside. Within 24 hours, Boone was being towed to Rota for repairs by the German Navy's replenishment oiler Spessart. The ship was not adrift or totally dead in the water because its two 350-horsepower auxiliary propulsion units provided a "limited amount of maneuverability." The lost rudder was replaced 27 December and, after a day of operational testing, Boone got underway again on 28 December.^[1]

Boone was assigned to Destroyer Squadron 14 and was the recipient of the 2005 DESRON 14 Battle "E". On 16 February 2007, she was awarded the 2006 Battle "E" award.^[2]

Boone was homeported in Mayport, Florida, and was a member of the Navy Reserve. In March 2010, she was assigned to the United States Fifth Fleet fighting Somali piracy.^{[citation needed]}

Boone was decommissioned on 23 February 2012.

Sinking

On 18 August 2022, Boone was towed to Campbeltown, Scotland to be sunk as part of a SINKEX involving Harpoon missiles fired by the Royal Navy Type 23 frigate HMS Westminster, to test a new US targeting satellite.^[3] The SINKEX took place on 7 September 2022 with the participation of both US and UK forces. From the sea, she was struck by two Harpoon anti-ship missiles fired by HMS Westminster and an SM-6 from USS Arleigh Burke. Meanwhile, from the air, she was struck by two Paveway IV laser-guided bombs from Royal Air Force Typhoon fighters, two JDAMs from US Air Force F-15 Eagles, a Martlet missile from Westminster's Wildcat helicopter and a Harpoon anti-ship missile from a US Navy P-8 Poseidon.^[4][5]

References

1. "30 November". Seawaves.com. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
2. "Surface Force Ships, Crews Earn Battle "E"". U.S. Navy. 19 February 2007. Archived from the original on 6 February 2012. Retrieved 28 May 2013.
3. Allison, George (18 August 2022). "Warship arrives in Scotland to be destroyed as target". Retrieved 18 August 2022.
4. "British and American forces obliterate former US warship during impressive test of firepower". Royal Navy. 23 September 2022. Retrieved 23 September 2022.
5. Allison, George (23 September 2022). "British frigate and aircraft 'obliterate' former US warship". Retrieved 23 September 2022.

 This article includes information collected from the Naval Vessel Register, which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain. The entry can be found here.

Further reading

• Milton F. Heller III (2000). The Presidents' Doctor : An Insider's View of Three First Families. Vantage Pr; 1st ed edition (August 2000). ISBN 0-533-13159-6.

External links

• USS Boone Official site