USS Hershel "Woody" Williams

USS Hershel "Woody" Williams
Then-USNS Hershel "Woody" Williams in September 2019
History
United States
NamesakeHershel W. Williams
BuilderGD/ NASSCO – San Diego, California
Laid down2 August 2016[1]
Launched19 August 2017[2]
Christened21 October 2017[3]
Acquired22 February 2018[4]
Commissioned7 March 2020[5]
Identification
MottoPeace We Seek, Peace We Keep
Statusin active service[6]
Badge
General characteristics
Class and typeExpeditionary Mobile Base
Length784 feet (239 m)[7]
Complement19 officers, 231 enlisted[8]
Sensors and
processing systems		SEA GIRAFFE AMB [9]
Aircraft carriedMH-53 and MH-60 helicopters[7]

USS Hershel "Woody" Williams (ESB-4) (formerly USNS Hershel "Woody" Williams (T-ESB-4)) is a Lewis B. Puller-class expeditionary mobile base (ESB), currently in service with the United States Navy. The ship is also a sub-variant of the Montford Point-class expeditionary transfer dock (ESD).[10] The ESDs are operated by the Navy's Military Sealift Command with predominantly civilian crews, while the ESBs, owing to the nature of their operations, have been commissioned and commanded directly by the U.S. Navy. The ship was named in honor of Hershel W. "Woody" Williams in an announcement by then-Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus, on 14 January 2016. Williams was a Marine who was awarded the Medal of Honor in the Battle of Iwo Jima, during World War II.[11]

The $498 million contract for the then-unnamed vessel was awarded to the National Steel and Shipbuilding Company (NASSCO), a division of General Dynamics, in December 2014.[12] Her keel was laid on 2 August 2016,[1][7] and she was scheduled to be completed in early 2018.[7] The vessel was christened on 21 October 2017, at NASSCO in San Diego.[3] The ship was delivered to Military Sealift Command on 22 February 2018,[4] and placed into service the same day.[6]

Hershel "Woody" Williams will be the first Navy ship other than the Littoral Combat Ship to deploy the Northrop Grumman MQ-8 Fire Scout rotary-wing UCAV.[13]

The ship was commissioned by the Navy in Norfolk, Virginia on 7 March 2020.[14][5] Williams was present for the ship commissioning ceremony.[15]

Since 2020 it is deployed to Souda Bay Naval Base in the Mediterranean Sea.[16][17]

Hershel “Woody” Williams, while with the U.S. Sixth Fleet, visited Cape Town, South Africa in February 2021,[18] and again in August 2022.[19]

On 28 February 2023, Hershel “Woody” Williams arrived in Mersin, Turkey to deliver relief supplies for those affected by the 2023 Turkey-Syria earthquake.[20]

On 10 May 2024, Hershel “Woody” Williams suffered a “soft” grounding after leaving port in Gabon, Africa.[21]

On 3 June 2024, Hershel "Woody" Williams made its first visit to the port of Malaga to complete a rest call.[22]

References

  1. ^ a b "General Dynamics NASSCO Hosts Keel Laying Ceremony for future USNS Hershel "Woody" Williams" (Press release). NASSCO. 3 August 2017. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
  2. ^ "A Successful Float-Out for USNS Hershel "Woody" Williams" (Press release). NASSCO. 21 August 2017. Retrieved 21 August 2017.
  3. ^ a b "General Dynamics NASSCO Christens USNS Hershel "Woody" Williams" (Press release). NASSCO. 21 October 2017. Retrieved 21 October 2017.
  4. ^ a b "Navy Accepts Delivery of USNS Hershel "Woody" Williams" (Press release). United States Navy. 23 February 2018. NNS180223-22. Retrieved 23 February 2018.
  5. ^ a b Corillo, Todd (7 March 2020). "USNS Hershel 'Woody' Williams became "USS" in Norfolk commissioning Saturday". CBS 3 WTRK. Scripps Media, Inc. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
  6. ^ a b "ESB-4". nvr.navy.mil. Retrieved 11 March 2018.
  7. ^ a b c d "Keel Laid for USNS Hershel 'Woody' Williams". Marine Link. 3 August 2016. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
  8. ^ Naval Vessel Register - USS Hershel "Woody" Williams (ESB-4)
  9. ^ "Saab sjöradar Sea Giraffe Multi Mode Radar vald till fem av US Navy's fartygsklasser (Swedish)". cision.com. 1 August 2018. Retrieved 7 August 2018.
  10. ^ "2nd Expeditionary Sea Base USNS Hershel "Woody" Williams Delivered to Navy". usni.org. 22 February 2018. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  11. ^ "Secretary of the Navy Names Expeditionary Sea Base Ship". US Navy. 14 January 2016. Archived from the original on 22 August 2017. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
  12. ^ "NASSCO Awarded $498 Million for Second Afloat Forward Staging Base". USNI News. 22 December 2014. Retrieved 28 January 2017.
  13. ^ Drew, James (24 January 2018). "U.S. Navy Fire Scout Fleet Needs More Ship Deployments". aviationweek.com. Penton. Retrieved 24 January 2018.
  14. ^ "Navy to Commission Expeditionary Sea Base USS Hershel "Woody" Williams". Defense.gov. U.S. Department of Defense. 6 March 2020. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  15. ^ "Iwo Jima hero, 96, sees US warship commissioned in his honor". Marine Corps Times. Associated Press. 9 March 2020. Retrieved 10 March 2020.
  16. ^ "US to move giant floating sea base to Greece sparking doubts over Turkish port". The National. 30 September 2020.
  17. ^ "USS Hershel 'Woody' Williams Shifts Homeport to Greece". Sea Power Magazine. 5 October 2020. Retrieved 2 January 2023.
  18. ^ "USS Hershel "Woody" Williams visits Cape Town to Strengthen Bilateral Ties". za.usembassy.gov.
  19. ^ "Amerikaanse oorlogskip besoek Kaapse hawe" [American Warship visits Cape Harbor] (in Afrikaans). 29 August 2022.
  20. ^ Blake, Connor (1 March 2023). "Hershel "Woody" Williams delivers supplies to Türkiye". US Navy Press Room. Retrieved 15 March 2023.
  21. ^ LaGrone, Sam (10 May 2024). "USS Hershel 'Woody' Williams Suffers Soft Grounding Off Gabon". USNI News. Retrieved 10 May 2024.
  22. ^ Cilveti, Juan Carlos (3 June 2024). "El buque militar norteamericano USS 'Hershel Woody Williams' visita el puerto de Málaga" [The USS 'Hershel Woody Williams' visits Malaga port]. Málaga Hoy (in Spanish). Retrieved 5 June 2024.
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Public Domain This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships.