View source for USS Laffey (DD-459)

{{short description|Benson-class destroyer}}
{{other ships|USS Laffey}}
{{Use American English|date=October 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2024}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=USS Laffey (DD-459) underway in the South Pacific on 4 September 1942 (NH 97864).jpg
|Ship caption=USS ''Laffey'' alongside another U.S. Navy ship, while at sea in the South Pacific on 4 September 1942
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Ship country=United States
|Ship flag={{USN flag|1942}}
|Ship name=USS ''Laffey''
|Ship namesake=[[Bartlett Laffey]]
|Ship ordered=
|Ship awarded=
|Ship builder=[[Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation]], [[San Francisco]], [[California]]
|Ship original cost=
|Ship yard number=
|Ship laid down=13 January 1941
|Ship launched=30 October 1941
|Ship sponsor=
|Ship completed=
|Ship commissioned=31 March 1942
|Ship decommissioned=
|Ship struck=
|Ship honors=
|Ship identification= DD-459
|Ship fate=Sunk at the [[Naval Battle of Guadalcanal|Battle of Guadalcanal]],<ref>Brown p. 73</ref> 13 November 1942
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Ship class={{sclass|Benson|destroyer}}
|Ship displacement={{convert|1620|LT|t|lk=on|abbr=on}}
|Ship length={{convert|347|ft|10|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam={{convert|36|ft|1|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship draft={{convert|11|ft|10|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship propulsion=
|Ship speed={{convert|37.5|kn|lk=on|abbr=on}}
|Ship complement=208
|Ship sensors=
|Ship EW=
|Ship armament=*4 × [[5"/38 caliber gun|{{convert|5|in|mm|abbr=on|0}}]]/38 cal guns
*1 × [[1.1"/75 caliber gun|1.1"/75 caliber]] [[Anti-aircraft warfare|anti-aircraft]] [[Autocannon|cannon]]
*5 × [[Oerlikon 20&nbsp;mm cannon|20 mm]] [[Anti-aircraft warfare|anti-aircraft]] [[Autocannon|cannons]]
*5 × [[American 21 inch torpedo|21 inch (533 mm)]] [[torpedo tube]]s
*5 × [[depth charge]] projectors
*2 × depth charge tracks
|Ship armor=
|Ship notes=
}}
|}

'''USS ''Laffey'' (DD-459)''' was a {{sclass|Benson|destroyer}} of the [[United States Navy]] during [[World War II]]. She was the first destroyer named for [[Seaman (rank)|Seaman]] [[Bartlett Laffey]]. She was lost in action on 13 November 1942.

==Construction and commissioning==
''Laffey'' was [[Keel laying|laid down]] on 13 January 1941 by [[Bethlehem Shipbuilding Company]] at [[San Francisco]], [[California]]. She was [[Ceremonial ship launching|launched]] 30 October 1941, [[Ship sponsor|sponsored]] by Miss Eleanor G. Forgerty, granddaughter of Seaman Laffey; and [[Ship commissioning|commissioned]] on 31 March 1942, [[Lieutenant Commander (United States)|Lieutenant Commander]] [[William Hank|William E. Hank]] in command.<ref name=DANFS>{{cite DANFS |url= http://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/l/laffey-i.html |title= Laffey I (DD-459) }}</ref>

== Service history ==
After shakedown off the west coast, ''Laffey'' headed for the war zone via [[Pearl Harbor]], arriving at [[Efate]] on 28 August 1942. She steamed in the antisubmarine screen until she joined Task Force 18 on 6 September. When the [[flagship]]— the [[aircraft carrier]] {{USS|Wasp|CV-7|2}}—was sunk on 15 September, ''Laffey'' rescued survivors and returned them to [[Espiritu Santo]]. She sailed with Task Force 64 and touched at [[Noumea]], [[New Caledonia]], on 18 September.<ref name=DANFS />

''Laffey'' had her first fleet action in the [[Battle of Cape Esperance]] (also known as the Second Battle of Savo Island) on 11 and 12 October 1942. The destroyer operated with [[Admiral]] [[Norman Scott (admiral)|Norman Scott]]'s [[cruiser]] group, guarding against enemy attempts to reinforce [[Guadalcanal]]. On 11 October, when the group formed into single column, ''Laffey'' joined two other destroyers in the van. About an hour later, sailors ran to their battle stations, steel doors clanged shut, and all made ready for battle. When the engagement began, ''Laffey'' raked the cruiser {{Ship|Japanese cruiser|Aoba||2}} with three of her {{convert|5|in|mm|0|adj=on}} guns. The furious gunfire roared on through the night. At dawn, destroyer {{USS|Duncan|DD-485|2}} was sinking, {{USS|Farenholt|DD-491|2}} was badly damaged, and cruiser {{USS|Boise|CL-47|2}}, though hard hit, had weathered several powerful blows. However, the Japanese losses were even greater. {{Ship|Japanese cruiser|Furutaka||2}} was sinking, ''Aoba'' was badly damaged, and {{Ship|Japanese destroyer|Fubuki|1927|2}} had sunk.<ref name=DANFS />

After the battle, ''Laffey'' met with a group escorting transports from Nouméa on 11 November, and sailed to [[Lunga Point]], arriving the next day. The disembarking operations were interrupted by a heavy air attack. On 13 November, ''Laffey'' was placed in the van of a column of eight destroyers and five cruisers under Admiral [[Daniel J. Callaghan]]. Early in the midwatch, the radar operator reported contact with the enemy. It was a Japanese force of two [[battleship]]s, one light cruiser, and 14 destroyers, under [[Vice Admiral]] [[Hiroaki Abe]], and the [[Naval Battle of Guadalcanal|First Naval Battle of Guadalcanal]] began. ''Laffey'' lashed out at the enemy with gunfire and torpedoes. At the height of the violent battle, the battleship {{Ship|Japanese battleship|Hiei||2}} came through the darkness and both ships headed at full speed for the same spot.<ref name=DANFS /> They missed colliding by {{convert|20|ft|m|0}}.<ref name="Morison, p. 244">Morison, ''Struggle for Guadalcanal'', p.&nbsp;244</ref><ref>Hammel, ''Guadalcanal: Decision at Sea'', p.&nbsp;137–141</ref><ref>Jameson, ''The Battle of Guadalcanal'', p.&nbsp;22 says, "Only by speeding up did the Laffey manage to cross the enemy's bows with a few feet (metres) to spare."</ref> ''Laffey'' unleashed her torpedoes and, using all her firepower, raked the battleship's bridge,<ref name=DANFS /> wounding Admiral Abe, and killing his chief of staff.<ref name="Morison, p. 244"/><ref>Hara, ''Japanese Destroyer Captain'', p.&nbsp;146.</ref> Admiral Abe was thereafter limited in his ability to direct his ships for the rest of the battle.<ref>Hara, ''Japanese Destroyer Captain'', p.&nbsp;148.</ref> With a battleship on her stern, a second on her port beam, and the destroyers [[Japanese destroyer Yukikaze (1939)|Yukikaze]] and [[Japanese destroyer Teruzuki (1941)|Terizuki]] on her port bow, ''Laffey'' fought the Japanese ships with the three remaining main battery guns in a no-quarter duel at [[point-blank range]]. She was hit by a {{convert|14|in|mm|0|adj=on}} shell from ''Hiei''. Then, a torpedo fired from ''Yukikaze'' hit aft, blowing her [[Fantail (ship)|fantail]] clean off, which served as the final blow as ''Laffey'' was put out of action.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Long Lancers |url=http://www.combinedfleet.com/yukika_t.htm |access-date=2024-03-03 |website=www.combinedfleet.com}}</ref> As the order to abandon ship was passed, a violent explosion ripped the destroyer apart and she sank immediately with heavy loss of life.<ref name=DANFS /> This action earned her the [[Presidential Unit Citation (United States)|Presidential Unit Citation]].<ref name=DANFS />

Of the 247 crew members aboard, 59 were killed, including the commanding officer, William E. Hank. The wounded in the engagement numbered 116.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://destroyerhistory.org/benson-gleavesclass/usslaffey/ |title= USS ''Laffey'' website |website= Destroyer History Foundation |access-date= 10 October 2015 }}</ref>

== Awards ==
''Laffey'' was awarded the [[Presidential Unit Citation (United States)|Presidential Unit Citation]] for her performance in the South Pacific, and three [[battle star]]s for service in World War II.<ref name=DANFS />

== Service ribbons ==
{|
|-
|{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=United States Navy Presidential Unit Citation ribbon.svg|width=80}} Presidential Unit Citation
|-
|{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=service-star|ribbon=American Campaign Medal ribbon.svg|width=80}} [[American Campaign Medal]]
|-
|{{Ribbon devices|number=3|type=service-star|ribbon=Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal ribbon.svg|width=80}} [[Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal]] with three bronze [[service star]]s
|-
|{{Ribbon devices|number=0|type=award-star|ribbon=World War II Victory Medal ribbon.svg|width=80}} [[World War II Victory Medal]]
|}

== References ==
{{Reflist|30em}}
*{{cite book |last= Brown |first= David |title= Warship Losses of World War Two |publisher= Arms and Armour |location= London, Great Britain |year= 1990 |ISBN= 0-85368-802-8 }}
*{{cite book | last = Hammel | first = Eric | author-link = Eric M. Hammel | year = 1988 | title = Guadalcanal: Decision at Sea: The Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, November 13–15, 1942 | publisher = Pacifica Press | location = (CA) | isbn = 0-517-56952-3 | url-access = registration | url = https://archive.org/details/guadalcanaldecis00hamm }}
*{{cite book | last = Hara | first = Tameichi | author-link = Tameichi Hara | year = 1961 | chapter = Part Three, The "Tokyo Express" | title = Japanese Destroyer Captain | publisher = [[Ballantine Books]] | location = New York & Toronto | isbn = 0-345-27894-1 }}- Firsthand account of the first engagement of the battle by the captain of the Japanese destroyer {{Ship|Japanese destroyer|Amatsukaze|1939|2}}.
*{{cite web | last = Jameson | first = Colin G. | year = 1944 | url = http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/USN-CN-Guadalcanal/index.html | title = The Battle of Guadalcanal, 11–15 November 1942 | publisher = Publications Branch, Office of Naval Intelligence, United States Navy (Somewhat inaccurate on the details of actual damage done to and actions by Japanese ships) | access-date = 8 April 2006 }}
*{{cite book | last = Morison | first = Samuel Eliot | author-link = Samuel Eliot Morison | year = 1958 | chapter = The Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, 12–15 November 1942 | title = The Struggle for Guadalcanal, August 1942 – February 1943'', vol.&nbsp;5 of ''[[History of United States Naval Operations in World War II]] | publisher = [[Little, Brown and Company]] | location = Boston | isbn = 0-316-58305-7 }}
*{{DANFS|http://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/l/laffey-i.html}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category|USS Laffey (DD-459)}}
*[http://www.destroyerhistory.org/benson-gleavesclass/usslaffey/index.html USS ''Laffey'' website] at [http://www.destroyerhistory.org/index.html Destroyer History Foundation]
*[http://www.maritimequest.com/warship_directory/us_navy_pages/destroyers/pages/alpha_pages/l/laffey_dd459_roll_of_honor.htm Roll of Honor]

== Further reading ==
*{{cite book | last = Barham | first = Eugene Alexander | year = 1988 | title = The 228 days of the United States Destroyer Laffey, DD-459 | id = OCLC 17616581 }}

{{Benson class destroyer}}
{{November 1942 shipwrecks}}
{{coord missing|Pacific Ocean}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Laffey (DD-459)}}
[[Category:Benson-class destroyers]]
[[Category:Ships built in San Francisco]]
[[Category:1941 ships]]
[[Category:World War II destroyers of the United States]]
[[Category:Shipwrecks in Ironbottom Sound]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in November 1942]]
[[Category:1992 archaeological discoveries]]
[[Category:Naval magazine explosions]]