USS Aylwin DD-355

The Farragut-class destroyer was the first of six classes that were part of the U.S. Navy's modernization program in the years leading up to World War II. The USS Aylwin (DD-355) was last of eight ordered by the Navy. Her keel was laid down at the Philadelphia Navy Yard on 23 September 1933. She launched in July of 1934 and was commissioned in March of 1935 under the command of Commander Clarence Gulbransen.

Her initial shakedown cruise took her to several European ports during the late spring and summer of 1935, including the Kriegsmarine base in Bremen, Germany. After arriving back in the United States on 22 July, she reported back to the nest for repairs, followed by more trials that continued through September. On 1 October, she was ready for active duty with the Atlantic Fleet. After a stop in Guantanamo Bay to drop off freight on 5 October, she and her sister ship, the USS Hull, proceeded to San Diego where Aylwin began her peacetime duties, participating in battle exercises and training.

The Aylwin then went to Mare Island near San Francisco for repairs and refit on 10 February of 1936. The work took 52 days to complete. For the next two months, she participated in various battle exercises, followed by a two-week tour of the Pacific Northwest and Alaska. For the next few years, her routine included battle exercises and simulations (known as "Fleet Problems") interspersed with periods in port and routine patrols. In 1939, Aylwin was assigned to the Hawaiian Detachment, which ultimately led to the entire Pacific Fleet using Pearl Harbor as a base of operations.

Aylwin went into the Mare Island Navy Yard again on 14 July 1940 and repairs and upgrades continued until 22 September. She reported back to Pearl Harbor on 21 October.

During a battle exercise on the night of 17 March 1941, Aylwin collided with her sister ship, the USS Farragut, nearly taking off her bow and causing a fire. The damage required several weeks in dry-dock. By November, the destroyer was back in operation and continued operations around Oahu until mooring in 28 November, where she remained until 7 December.

World War II

The morning of the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941, Aylwin managed to escape into open waters. Amazingly, she suffered no more than a damaged propeller, which was repaired on December 11.

During the war, Aylwin served primarily as a screening vessel, sailing at the perimeter of a group in order to provide a defensive "screen" against incoming enemy craft. After five days of mechanical repairs at Mare Island between 5 and 10 January 1942, she steamed for the Pacific, providing cover to larger ships as the US Navy struggled against the Japanese. After the Battle of Midway, Aylwin returned to Pearl Harbor to undergo mechanical repairs and maintenance, which lasted from 17 to 31 July 1942. On 2 August, she returned to active duty in the South Pacific until she developed problems with her rudder mechanism in November. After temporary repairs were completed locally, she headed back to Mare Island via Pearl Harbor for permanent repairs that lasted from mid-December into January 1943.

Her next service stop came after a year of combat duty that took Aylwin from Alaska to New Guinea. She returned to San Francisco on 21 December 1943 and underwent another repair and maintenance session at the Alameda Yard, before sailing for the Pacific in early January 1944. Six months of hard duty followed. She went into the Puget Sound Navy Yard in Bremerton, Washington, on 17 August for a complete overhaul which lasted until October.

On 17 December, she was sailing with Task Force 38 in the Philippine Sea when a monumental typhoon struck. During the worst of the storm, she rolled 70 degrees to port and developed a leak in her engine room. She escaped the storm, but tragically lost a machinists mate and her chief engineer when the men were swept over the side. Storm damage repair began at the base on Ulithi Atoll on 28 December and continued into January 1945.

After serving out the war in various capacities and surviving relatively unscathed, the USS Aylwin sailed for home three days after the Japanese surrender. She arrived at the New York Navy Yard on 16 October. On 20 December, the Navy sold her to George N. Nutman Inc. of Brooklyn, and the Aylwin was turned into scrap iron within three years.

Asbestos Risks

The mineral asbestos was routinely installed for compartment insulation and was utilized for its fire-proofing capabilities aboard every American Navy destroyer of the World War II era. A ship's engines and engineering compartments were generally the areas where seamen or technicians were most likely to be exposed to asbestos particles, but essentially all areas of a ship such as the USS Aylwin posed a measurable level of asbestos. Exposure to the toxic mineral can result in the development of serious asbestos-related diseases such as mesothelioma. The risk of asbestos exposure increased if a vessel was damaged, in conflict or through daily operations, exposing asbestos-laden materials to the open air where those aboard could inhale or ingest asbestos fibers.

The highest level of hazard of harmful exposure results whenever asbestos fibers become damaged and easily broken (or "friable"). When tiny asbestos microfibers are released into the surrounding air, the material can be inhaled or ingested into the bodies of workers nearby. Asbestos exposure can cause serious illnesses such as mesothelioma, asbestosis and lung cancer to develop. Navy personnel who worked around asbestos or served aboard a vessel may wish to learn more about mesothelioma and treatment options. Please click here to receive a complimentary comprehensive packet.

Sources:

Destroyers Index