USS Surprise (PG-97)
_on_trials_1969.jpg)
USS Surprise (PG-97) on trials in 1969
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| History | |
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 United States
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| Name: | USS Surprise (PG-97) |
| Builder: | Peterson Builders Shipyard, Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin |
| Laid down: | 24 May 1968 |
| Launched: | 7 December 1968 |
| Commissioned: | 17 October 1969 |
| Decommissioned: | 28 February 1973 |
| Fate: |
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| Notes: | Served in Turkish Navy as TCG Bora (P339) 1973–2000 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type: | Patrol gunboat |
| Displacement: | 247 tons full |
| Length: | 165 ft 0 in (50.29 m) |
| Beam: | 24 ft 0 in (7.32 m) |
| Draft: | 5 ft 0 in (1.52 m) |
| Propulsion: | Geared Diesel engines for cruising; gas turbines for high speeds |
| Speed: | 37 knots (68.5 km/h) on trials |
| Complement: | 24 officers and enlisted men |
| Armament: |
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| Armor: | none |
The fourth USS Surprise and fifth American naval ship of the name was an Asheville class patrol gunboat that served in the United States Navy from 1969 to 1973.
Patrol gunboat USS Surprise (PG-97) was laid down at Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, on 24 May 1968 by the Peterson Builders Shipyard, launched on 7 December 1968 sponsored by Miss Marsha L. Peterson.
Surprise was a fast gunboat powered by geared Diesel engines for cruising, with a gas turbine which could be cut in for high speeds. She was armed with a director-controlled 3-inch (76.2-mm) 50-caliber automatic dual-purpose gun forward and a 40-millimeter Bofors gun aft. Pairs of .50-caliber (12.7-mm) machine guns were mounted on the upper deck amidships, one each to port and starboard.
After a pre-commissioning voyage through the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence Seaway, USS Surprise was commissioned at Boston Massachusetts, on 17 October 1969, Lieutenant William T. Shiffer, Jr., in command.
Surprise completed fitting out in Boston on 12 November 1969, when she got underway for Little Creek, Virginia. Along the way, she stopped at New York City, and loaded ammunition at Crane, New Jersey. She reached Little Creek Naval Amphibious Base on 18 November 1969 and, through the first week of 1970, she operated from that base, conducting training. During that period she also made a visit to Washington, D.C., where she demonstrated her capabilities to military and civilian officials.
On 12 January 1970, Surprise departed Little Creek for her new home port, San Diego, California. At Mayport, Florida, she and her traveling companion, patrol gunboat USS Beacon, were joined by a third patrol gunboat, USS Green Bay. The three ships made their way to Panama via Port Everglades, Florida, and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Surprise transited the Panama Canal on 22 January 1970 and, on 24 January 1970, continued her voyage. The formation was joined by amphibious transport dock USS Duluth on 28 January 1970 and steamed into San Diego on 7 February 1970.
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