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{{Other ships|USS Samuel B. Roberts}}
  
{{Other ships|USS Samuel B. Roberts}}
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|Ship image=[[File:US Navy 070409-N-5459S-109 Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG 58) navigates in the Caribbean Sea during an exercise.jpg|300px]]
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|Ship image=[[File:US Navy 070409-N-5459S-109 Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG 58) navigates in the Caribbean Sea during an exercise.jpg|300px|US Navy 070409-N-5459S-109 Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG 58) navigates in the Caribbean Sea during an exercise]]
 
|Ship caption=USS ''Samuel B. Roberts'' (FFG-58), navigates in the Caribbean Sea during an exercise, 9 April 2007.
  
|Ship caption=USS ''Samuel B. Roberts'' (FFG-58), navigates in the Caribbean Sea during an exercise, 9 April 2007.
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{{Infobox ship career
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|Ship country=United States
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|Ship namesake= [[Samuel B. Roberts]]
  
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|Ship builder=Bath Iron Works
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|Ship flag={{USN flag|2015}}
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|Ship name=''Samuel B. Roberts''
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|Ship namesake=[[Coxswain]] [[Samuel B. Roberts]]
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|Ship ordered=
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|Ship awarded=22 March 1982
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|Ship builder=[[Bath Iron Works]], [[Bath, Maine]]
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|Ship original cost=
 
|Ship laid down=21 May 1984
  
|Ship laid down=21 May 1984
 
|Ship launched=8 December 1984
  
|Ship launched=8 December 1984
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|Ship sponsor=Mrs. Jack Yusen
 
|Ship commissioned=12 April 1986
  
|Ship commissioned=12 April 1986
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|Ship recommissioned=
 
|Ship decommissioned=22 May 2015
  
|Ship decommissioned=22 May 2015
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|Ship struck=
 
|Ship homeport=[[Naval Station Mayport|Mayport, Florida]]
  
|Ship homeport=[[Naval Station Mayport|Mayport, Florida]]
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|Ship identification=*[[Hull classification symbol#Surface combatant type|Hull symbol]]: FFG-58
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|Ship motto=''No Higher Honor''
  
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*{{MMSI Number|338943000}}
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|Ship status=Scrapped
  
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*[[International Code of Signals|Code letters]]: NSBR
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*{{ICS|November}}{{ICS|Sierra}}{{ICS|Bravo}}{{ICS|Romeo}}
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|Ship motto="No Higher Honor"
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|Ship nickname="Sammy B"
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|Ship fate= Scrapped 2022
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|Ship notes=
 
|Ship badge=[[File:USS Samuel B. Roberts FFG-58 Crest.png|150px|USS ''Samuel B. Roberts'' coat of arms]]
  
|Ship badge=[[File:USS Samuel B. Roberts FFG-58 Crest.png|150px|USS ''Samuel B. Roberts'' coat of arms]]
 
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|Ship class={{Sclass|Oliver Hazard Perry|frigate}}
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|Ship complement=15 officers and 190 enlisted, plus [[SH-60 Seahawk|SH-60]] LAMPS detachment of roughly six officer pilots and 15 enlisted maintainers
  
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|Ship armament=*1 × [[OTO Melara 76 mm naval gun|OTO Melara Mk 75 76 mm/62 caliber naval gun]]
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|Ship armament=1×[[OTO Melara 76 mm naval gun|OTO Melara Mk&nbsp;75 76&nbsp;mm/62&nbsp;caliber naval gun]]<br>delivered with 1×Mk&nbsp;13 Mod&nbsp;4 single-arm launcher for [[Boeing Harpoon|Harpoon]] anti-ship missiles and [[RIM-66 Standard|SM-1MR&nbsp;Standard]] anti-ship/air missiles (40&nbsp;round magazine) currently removed<br>1×<br>2×Mk&nbsp;32 triple-tube (324&nbsp;mm) launchers for [[Mark 46 torpedo|Mark&nbsp;46 torpedo]]es<br>1×Vulcan [[Phalanx CIWS|Phalanx&nbsp;CIWS]]<br>4×.50-cal (12.7&nbsp;mm) machine&nbsp;guns.
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*1 x delivered with 1×Mk&nbsp;13 Mod&nbsp;4 single-arm launcher for [[Boeing Harpoon|Harpoon]] anti-ship missiles and [[RIM-66 Standard|SM-1MR&nbsp;Standard]] anti-ship/air missiles (40&nbsp;round magazine) currently removed
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*2 × [[Mark 32 Surface Vessel Torpedo Tubes|Mk 32]] triple-tube (324&nbsp;mm) launchers for [[Mark 46 torpedo|Mark&nbsp;46 torpedoes]]
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*4 × [[M2 Browning|.50 cal (12.7 mm)]] machine&nbsp;guns.
 
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'''USS ''Samuel B. Roberts'' (FFG-58)''' is one of the final ships in the [[United States Navy]]'s [[Oliver Hazard Perry class frigate|''Oliver Hazard Perry'' class]] of guided missile [[frigate]]s (FFG). The ship was severely damaged by an Iranian [[Naval mine|mine]] in 1988, leading U.S. forces to respond with [[Operation Praying Mantis]].
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'''USS ''Samuel B. Roberts'' (FFG-58)''' was one of the final ships in the [[United States Navy]]'s {{sclass|Oliver Hazard Perry|frigate|0}} of [[guided missile frigate]]s (FFG). Commissioned in 1986, the ship was severely damaged by an Iranian [[Naval mine|mine]] in 1988, leading U.S. forces to respond with [[Operation Praying Mantis]]. Repaired and returned to duty, the ship served until decommissioned in 2015.
   
 
==Commissioning and namesake==
  
==Commissioning and namesake==
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The frigate was named for [[Samuel B. Roberts]], a Navy [[coxswain]] who was killed while evacuating the [[U.S. Marines]] during the [[battle of Guadalcanal]] in 1942. Roberts was posthumously awarded the [[Navy Cross]].
   
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''Samuel B. Roberts'' was the third U.S. ship to bear the coxswain's name, after {{USS|Samuel B. Roberts|DE-413|3}}, a {{sclass|John C. Butler|destroyer escort}}, commissioned in 1944 and sunk in the [[Battle off Samar]] later that year; and {{USS|Samuel B. Roberts|DD-823|3}}, a {{sclass|Gearing|destroyer}}, commissioned in 1946 and struck in 1970.
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The frigate was named for [[Samuel B. Roberts]], a Navy [[coxswain]] who was killed while evacuating the U.S. [[United States Marine Corps|Marines]] during the [[battle of Guadalcanal]] in 1942. Roberts was posthumously awarded the [[Navy Cross]].
  
   
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FFG-58, the third U.S. ship to bear the [[USS Samuel B. Roberts|coxswain's name]], was launched in December 1984 by Bath Iron Works (BIW) and sponsored by the wife of Jack Yusen, a sailor who served in [[World War II]] and in the [[battle of Leyte Gulf]] on the former {{USS|Samuel B. Roberts|DE-413|6}}. Put in commission in April 1986 under the command of Commander [[Paul X. Rinn]], the ship garnered numerous awards and commendations even before its first deployment.
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''Samuel B. Roberts'' was [[Ship naming and launching|launched]] in December 1984 by [[Bath Iron Works]], Bath, Maine and sponsored by the wife of Jack Yusen, a member of DE-413's crew. The frigate was put in [[Ship commissioning|commission]] in April 1986 under the command of Commander [[Paul X. Rinn]].
   
 
==1988 deployment and mine strike==
  
==1988 deployment and mine strike==
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The frigate deployed from its home port in Newport, Rhode Island in January 1988, heading for the Persian Gulf to participate in [[Operation Earnest Will]], the escort of reflagged Kuwaiti tankers during the [[Iran–Iraq War]]. The Roberts had arrived in the Persian Gulf and was heading for a refueling rendezvous on 14 April when the ship struck an [[M-08 naval mine|M-08]] [[naval mine]] in the central Persian Gulf, an area it had safely transited a few days previously. The mine blew a 15-foot (5 m) hole in the hull, flooded the engine room, and knocked the two gas turbines from their mounts. The blast also broke the keel of the ship; such structural damage is almost always fatal to most vessels. The crew fought fire and flooding for five hours and saved the ship. Among other steps, sailors cinched cables on the cracked superstructure in an effort to stabilize it.<ref name="NoHigherHonor" /> She used her auxiliary thrusters to get out of the mine field at 5kts. She never lost combat capability with her radars and Mk13 missile launcher. Ten sailors were [[medevac]]ed for injuries sustained in the blast, six returned to the ''Roberts'' in a day or so. Four burn victims were sent for treatment to a military hospital in Germany, and eventually to medical facilities in the United States.<ref>Liewer, Steve, "Teamwork Saved Stricken Warship", ''San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 April 2008.</ref>
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''Samuel B. Roberts'' deployed from her homeport in Newport, Rhode Island, in January 1988, heading for the [[Persian Gulf]] to participate in [[Operation Earnest Will]], the escort of reflagged Kuwaiti tankers during the [[Iran–Iraq War]]. ''Samuel B. Roberts'' had arrived in the Persian Gulf and was heading for a refueling rendezvous with [[USS San Jose (AFS-7)|USS ''San Jose'']] on 14 April when the ship struck an Iranian mine in the central Persian Gulf, an area she had safely transited a few days earlier. The mine blew a {{convert|15|ft|m|adj=on}} hole in the hull, flooded the engine room,<ref name="2021-09-21_Perez">[https://thewarhorse.org/gulf-war-iran-mine-struck-navy-ship-roberts-sailor-recalls/ “Hold on to something!” — A Moment that Shifted the Fate of the USS Samuel B. Roberts Crew], Master Chief Gas Turbine Specialist (E-9) Alex Perez, www.thewarhorse.org, 2021-09-21 accessed 2022-09-08</ref> and knocked the two [[gas turbine]]s from their mounts. The blast also broke the keel of the ship; such structural damage is almost always fatal to a vessel. The crew fought fire and flooding for five hours and saved the ship. Among other steps, sailors cinched cables on the cracked superstructure in an effort to stabilize it.<ref name="NoHigherHonor" /> She used her auxiliary thrusters to get out of the minefield at {{convert|5|kn|mph km/h|abbr=on}}. ''San Jose''<nowiki/>'s helicopters provided firefighting and engineering supplies to augment the crew's efforts. According to ''How We Fight'', by the US Naval War College, the ship never lost combat capability with her radars and [[Mark 13 missile launcher|Mark 13]] missile launcher.<ref>{{cite book |title=How We Fight: Handbook for the Naval Warfighter|date=15 October 2015|publisher=Government Printing Office|chapter=Chapter 2|isbn=978-1-935352-41-9|page=42 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kzjpsYI8UMIC&pg=PA42}}</ref> However, according to ''No Higher Honor'' by Bradley Peniston, the ship lost power for at least five minutes. After power was lost, the radars were disconnected to allow restoration of the power grid. The ship lost track of an Sa'am frigate and an Iranian P-3 that it had been monitoring.<ref>{{cite book|author=Peniston, Bradley|title=No Higher Honor: Saving the USS Samuel B. Roberts in the Persian Gulf |url=http://www.navybook.com/nohigherhonor| location=Annapolis | publisher=Naval Institute Press|year=2006 | isbn=1-59114-661-5 |page=132 |quote= "Rinn donned sound powered phones and called Palmer in CIC. "How are my combat systems? What have we got?" The answer came back: "We got nothing, really. No surface search radar, no radios." The captain told the combat systems officer to cut the radar out of the ship's power system so that it wouldn't drag on the grid as the engineers worked to bring it back up. ... Still, this turned the frigate from a sitting duck into a deaf and blind one.}}</ref> Ten sailors were [[medevac]]ed by [[Boeing Vertol CH-46 Sea Knight|HC-5 CH-46s]] embarked on ''San Jose'' for injuries sustained in the blast; six returned to ''Samuel B. Roberts'' in a day or so. Four burn victims were sent for treatment to a military hospital in Germany,<ref>Liewer, Steve, "Teamwork Saved Stricken Warship", ''[[San Diego Union-Tribune]]'', 19 April 2008.</ref><ref name="2021-09-21_Perez" /> partly through the assistance of the [[2d Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron|2nd Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron]], USAF. Eventually they were moved to medical facilities in the United States.
   
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When U.S. divers recovered several unexploded mines, they found that their serial numbers matched the sequence on mines seized the previous September aboard an Iranian mine-layer named ''[[Iran Ajr]]''. Four days later, U.S. forces retaliated against Iran in [[Operation Praying Mantis]], a one-day campaign that was the largest American surface engagement since [[World War II]].<ref>Love, Robert William. ''History of the U.S. Navy.'' Harrisburg: Stackpole Books, 1992. ISBN 0-8117-1863-8 p. 787</ref> U.S. ships, aircraft, and troops destroyed two Iranian oil platforms used to control Iranian naval forces in the Persian Gulf, sank one Iranian [[frigate]], damaged another, and sent at least three armed, high-speed boats to the bottom. The U.S. lost one Marine helicopter and its crew of two airmen in what appeared to be a night maneuver accident rather than a result of hostile operations.
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When U.S. divers recovered several unexploded mines, they found that their serial numbers fitted into the sequence on mines seized the previous September aboard an Iranian mine-layer named {{ship||Iran Ajr||2}}. Four days later, U.S. forces retaliated against Iran in [[Operation Praying Mantis]], a one-day campaign that was the largest American surface engagement since [[World War II]].<ref>Love, Robert William. ''History of the U.S. Navy.'' Harrisburg: Stackpole Books, 1992. {{ISBN|0-8117-1863-8}} p. 787</ref> U.S. ships, aircraft, and troops destroyed two Iranian oil platforms allegedly used to control [[Islamic Republic of Iran Navy|Iranian naval forces]] in the Persian Gulf, sank the Iranian frigate [[IRIS Sahand (1969)]], [[IRIS Sabalan (73)|damaged another]], and sank at least three armed high-speed boats. The U.S. lost one Marine helicopter and its crew of two airmen in what appeared to be a night maneuver accident rather than a result of hostile operations.
   
 
==Repairs==
  
==Repairs==
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On 27 June 1988, ''Roberts'' was loaded onto the ''[[Mighty Servant 2]]'', a [[semi-submersible]] [[heavy lift ship]] owned by Dutch shipping firm Wijsmuller Transport and carried back to Newport for $1.3&nbsp;million.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://navybook.com/nohigherhonor/timeline.shtml |title=NO HIGHER HONOR: Timeline |publisher=Navybook.com |accessdate=19 May 2011}}</ref> The frigate arrived at BIW's Portland, Maine, yard on 6 October 1988 for repairs. The repair job was unique: the entire engine room was cut out of the hull, and a 315-ton replacement module was jacked up and welded into place.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://navybook.com/nohigherhonor/pic-ffg58repair.shtml |title=NO HIGHER HONOR: Photos: FFG 58 under repair at Bath Iron Works |publisher=Navybook.com |accessdate=19 May 2011}}</ref> She undocked 1 April 1989 for sea trials.
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On 27 June 1988, ''Samuel B. Roberts'' was loaded onto {{ship||Mighty Servant 2||2}}, a semi-submersible heavy lift ship owned by [[Netherlands|Dutch]] shipping firm Wijsmuller Transport and carried back to Newport for $1.3&nbsp;million.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://navybook.com/nohigherhonor/timeline.shtml |title=NO HIGHER HONOR: Timeline |publisher=Navybook.com |access-date=19 May 2011}}</ref> The frigate arrived at BIW's Portland, Maine, yard on 6 October 1988 for repairs. The repair job was unique: the entire engine room was cut out of the hull, and a 315-ton replacement module was jacked up and welded into place.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://navybook.com/nohigherhonor/pic-ffg58repair.shtml |title=NO HIGHER HONOR: Photos: FFG 58 under repair at Bath Iron Works |publisher=Navybook.com |access-date=19 May 2011}}</ref> She undocked 1 April 1989 for sea trials.
   
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The repairs were completed three weeks ahead of schedule at a cost of $89.5&nbsp;million, $3.5&nbsp;million less than expected.<ref name=NoHigherHonor>{{cite book|author=Peniston, Bradley|title=No Higher Honor: Saving the USS Samuel B. Roberts in the Persian Gulf |url=http://www.navybook.com/nohigherhonor| location=Annapolis | publisher=Naval Institute Press|year=2006 | isbn=1-59114-661-5}}</ref> By comparison, {{USS|Princeton|CG-59|6}}, which was damaged by a moored mine during the 1991 [[Gulf War]], was repaired for $24&nbsp;million;<ref name="Annati">Annati</ref> however, the cruiser was not directly struck by the mine and its displacement is nearly twice that of ''Roberts''. The mine that nearly sank ''Roberts'' had an estimated cost of $1,500.<ref name="Annati"/>
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The repairs were completed three weeks ahead of schedule at a cost of $89.5&nbsp;million, $3.5&nbsp;million less than expected.<ref name=NoHigherHonor>{{cite book|author=Peniston, Bradley|title=No Higher Honor: Saving the USS Samuel B. Roberts in the Persian Gulf |url=http://www.navybook.com/nohigherhonor| location=Annapolis | publisher=Naval Institute Press|year=2006 | isbn=1-59114-661-5}}</ref> By comparison, {{USS|Princeton|CG-59|2}}, which was damaged by a moored mine during the 1991 [[Gulf War]], was repaired for $24&nbsp;million;<ref name="Annati">Annati</ref> however, the cruiser was not directly struck by the mine and her displacement is nearly twice that of ''Samuel B. Roberts''. The mine that nearly sank ''Samuel B. Roberts'' had an estimated cost of $1,500.<ref name="Annati"/>
   
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After 13 months of repairs, ''Roberts'' was returned to service in a 16 October 1989 ceremony.
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After 13 months of repairs, ''Samuel B. Roberts'' was returned to service in a 16 October 1989 ceremony.
   
 
==After repair==
  
==After repair==
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''Roberts'' made her second deployment in 1990 for [[Operation Desert Storm]] and [[Operation Desert Shield (Gulf War)|Operation Desert Shield]]. The frigate operated as part of the Red Sea Maritime Interception Force, an international force of ships that enforced U.N. sanctions against Iraq. The frigate's sailors boarded more than 100 merchant ships in efforts to prevent cargo shipments to or from Iraq.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.history.navy.mil/wars/dstorm/dsmar.htm |title=(Pd-Usn) |publisher=History.navy.mil |accessdate=19 May 2011}}</ref> On 28 March 1991, she returned to Newport.
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''Samuel B. Roberts'' made her second deployment in 1990 for [[Operation Desert Shield (Gulf War)|Operation Desert Shield]] and [[Operation Desert Storm]]. The frigate operated as part of the [[Red Sea]] Maritime Interception Force, an international force of ships that enforced U.N. sanctions against Iraq. The frigate's sailors boarded more than 100 merchant ships in efforts to prevent cargo shipments to or from Iraq.<ref>{{cite web|title=Samuel B. Roberts III (FFG-58), 1986–2015|url=https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/s/samuel-b--roberts--ffg-58--iii.html |first=Mark L.|last=Evans|date=4 April 2019|website=Naval History and Heritage Command}}</ref> On 28 March 1991, she returned to Newport.
   
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''"Sammy B"'', as the ship is sometimes called, was later homeported in [[Naval Station Mayport|Mayport, Florida]].
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On 30 August 1991, [[Joseph A. Sestak]] took command of ''Roberts'', which was named the [[U.S. Atlantic Fleet|Atlantic Fleet]]'s best [[surface combatant]] in the 1993 [[Battenberg Cup]] competition.
  
   
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On 30 August 1991, [[Joseph A. Sestak]] took command of ''Samuel B. Roberts'', which was named the [[U.S. Atlantic Fleet|Atlantic Fleet]]'s best [[surface combatant]] in the 1993 [[Battenberg Cup]] competition.
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''"Sammy B"'', as the ship is sometimes called, is homeported in [[Naval Station Mayport|Mayport, Florida]].
  
   
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''Samuel B. Roberts'' was decommissioned at Mayport on 22 May 2015,<ref name="decom">{{cite web|url=http://www.defenseone.com/management/2015/05/uss-samuel-b-roberts-frigate/113614/?oref=search_peniston%20roberts|title=The Once—and Future?—USS Samuel B. Roberts|publisher=Defense One|date=23 May 2015|access-date=30 May 2015|author=Peniston, Bradley}}</ref> then towed to the [[Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility]] in Philadelphia.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://seapowermagazine.org/stories/20140703-ship-retirements.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714183017/http://seapowermagazine.org/stories/20140703-ship-retirements.html|archive-date=14 July 2014|title=U.S. Navy To Retire 17 ships in 2015|first=RICHARD R.|last=BURGESS|magazine=SEAPOWER Online|date=3 July 2014}}</ref>
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In 2011, the ship won Destroyer Squadron 14's "Battle E" award.{{Citation needed|date=November 2014}}
  
   
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In late 2022, the ship was towed from Philadelphia to EMR International Shipbreaking Limited in Brownsville, Texas, for [[Ship breaking|scrapping]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Henry |first=Ryan |date=2022-11-29 |title=Decommissioned USS Yorktown arrives for recycling in Rio Grande Valley |url=https://www.conchovalleyhomepage.com/news/texas/decommissioned-uss-yorktown-arrives-for-recycling-in-rio-grande-valley/ |access-date=2023-01-02 |website=KLST-TV |language=en-US}}</ref>
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''Samuel B. Roberts'' was decommissioned at Mayport on 22 May 2015,<ref>http://www.defenseone.com/management/2015/05/uss-samuel-b-roberts-frigate/113614/?oref=search_peniston%20roberts</ref> then towed to the [[Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility]] in Philadelphia.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20140714183017/http://seapowermagazine.org/stories/20140703-ship-retirements.html</ref>
  
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In late 2022, the ship was towed from Philadelphia to EMR International Shipbreaking Limited in Brownsville, Texas, for scrapping.<ref>https://www.conchovalleyhomepage.com/news/texas/decommissioned-uss-yorktown-arrives-for-recycling-in-rio-grande-valley/</ref>
  
   
 
== Awards ==
  
== Awards ==
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==Gallery==
  
==Gallery==
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<gallery>
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<gallery mode="packed">
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File:MightyServantRoberts19882turned.jpg|MV ''[[Mighty Servant 2]]'' carrying mine-damaged ''Roberts'' on 31 July 1988
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File:MightyServantRoberts19882turned.jpg|MV ''[[Mighty Servant 2]]'' carrying the mine-damaged ''Samuel B. Roberts'' on 31 July 1988
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File:Ffg58minedamage2.jpg|''Roberts'' in a dry dock in Dubai, UAE for temporary repairs.
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File:Ffg58minedamage2.jpg|''Samuel B. Roberts'' in a dry dock in Dubai, UAE for temporary repairs.
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File:Ffg58minedamage.jpg|''Roberts''' damaged hull.
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File:Ffg58minedamage.jpg|''Samuel B. Roberts''{{'}}s damaged hull.
 
</gallery>
  
</gallery>
   
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==Notes==
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==References==
 
{{reflist}}
  
{{reflist}}
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Annati, Massimo ''Al diavolo le mine'' RID magazine, Coop. Riviera Ligure, Italy, n. 6/2005
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{{DANFS|http://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/s/samuel-b--roberts--ffg-58--iii.html}}
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==Sources==
  
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{{Naval Vessel Register|{{Naval Vessel Register URL|id=FFG58}}}}
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*Annati, Massimo ''Al diavolo le mine'' RID magazine, Coop. Riviera Ligure, Italy, n. 6/2005
  
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*{{NVR|http://www.nvr.navy.mil/nvrships/details/FFG58.htm}}
  
   
 
==Further reading==
  
==Further reading==
  ⚫
* {{cite book|author=Peniston, Bradley|url=http://www.navybook.com/nohigherhonor|title=No Higher Honor: Saving the USS Samuel B. Roberts in the Persian Gulf|location=Annapolis|publisher=Naval Institute Press|year=2006|isbn=1-59114-661-5}}
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*{{cite book|
  
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* {{cite book|author=Wise, Harold Lee|title=Inside the Danger Zone: The U.S. Military in the Persian Gulf 1987–88 |url=http://www.insidethedangerzone.com|location=Annapolis|publisher=Naval Institute Press|year=2007|isbn=978-1-59114-970-5}}
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author=Peniston, Bradley|
  
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url=http://www.navybook.com/nohigherhonor|
  
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title=No Higher Honor: Saving the USS Samuel B. Roberts in the Persian Gulf|location=Annapolis | publisher=Naval Institute Press|
  
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year=2006|
  
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isbn=1-59114-661-5}}
  
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*{{cite book|
  
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author=Wise, Harold Lee|
  
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title=Inside the Danger Zone: The U.S. Military in the Persian Gulf 1987–88 |
  
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url=http://www.insidethedangerzone.com|
  
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location=Annapolis | publisher=Naval Institute Press|
  
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year=2007|
  
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isbn=1-59114-970-3}}
  
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{{Attacks on US Navy Ships}}
  
   
 
==External links==
  
==External links==
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* [https://web.archive.org/web/20041014234029/http://www.roberts.navy.mil/ USS ''Samuel B. Roberts'' official site]
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{{Commons}}
  
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*[http://www.roberts.navy.mil/ USS ''Samuel B. Roberts'' official site]
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* {{navsource|07/0758|USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58)}}
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*[http://www.navsource.org/archives/07/0758.htm navsource.org: USS ''Samuel B. Roberts'']
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* [http://www.nohigherhonor.com ''Samuel B. Roberts'' narrative and timeline]
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*[http://www.navysite.de/ffg/FFG58.HTM navysite.de: USS ''Samuel B. Roberts'']
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* [http://www.navybook.com/nohigherhonor/pic-ffg58new.shtml Photos of ''Samuel B. Roberts'' during February 1986 sea trials]
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*[http://www.nohigherhonor.com ''Samuel B. Roberts'' narrative and timeline]
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* [http://www.navybook.com/nohigherhonor/pic-ffg58commissioning.shtml Photos of ''Samuel B. Roberts'' being commissioned in April 1986]
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*[http://www.navybook.com/nohigherhonor/pic-ffg58new.shtml Photos of ''Samuel B. Roberts'' during February 1986 sea trials]
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* [http://www.navybook.com/nohigherhonor/pic-servant.shtml Photos of ''Samuel B. Roberts'' being hauled from the Persian Gulf to Newport, R.I. aboard ''Mighty Servant 2'' in 1988]
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*[http://www.navybook.com/nohigherhonor/pic-ffg58commissioning.shtml Photos of ''Samuel B. Roberts'' being commissioned in April 1986]
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* [http://www.maritimequest.com/warship_directory/us_navy_pages/frigates/pages/samuel_b_roberts_ffg58_page_1.htm MaritimeQuest USS Samuel B. Roberts FFG-58 pages]
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*[http://www.navybook.com/nohigherhonor/pic-servant.shtml Photos of ''Samuel B. Roberts'' being hauled from the Persian Gulf to Newport, R.I. aboard ''Mighty Servant 2'' in 1988]
  
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*[http://www.maritimequest.com/warship_directory/us_navy_pages/frigates/pages/samuel_b_roberts_ffg58_page_1.htm MaritimeQuest USS Samuel B. Roberts FFG-58 pages]
  
   
 
{{Oliver Hazard Perry class frigate}}
  
{{Oliver Hazard Perry class frigate}}
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{{Attacks on US Navy ships}}
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{{1988 shipwrecks}}
   
 
{{Wikipedia|USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58)}}
  
{{Wikipedia|USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58)}}
   
 
{{DEFAULTSORT:Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58)}}
  
{{DEFAULTSORT:Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58)}}
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[[Category:1984 ships]]
 
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1988]]
  
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1988]]
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[[Category:20th-century military history of the United States]]
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[[Category:Gulf War ships of the United States]]
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[[Category:1984 ships]]
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[[Category:United States Navy in the 20th century]]
 
[[Category:Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigates of the United States Navy]]
  
[[Category:Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigates of the United States Navy]]
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[[Category:Active frigates of the United States]]
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[[Category:Ships built in Bath, Maine]]
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[[Category:Cold War frigates and destroyer escorts of the United States]]
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[[Category:Iran–United States relations]]
  

Latest revision as of 04:11, 9 May 2025

For other ships of the same name, see USS Samuel B. Roberts.
US Navy 070409-N-5459S-109 Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG 58) navigates in the Caribbean Sea during an exercise
USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58), navigates in the Caribbean Sea during an exercise, 9 April 2007.
Career (United States)
Name: Samuel B. Roberts
Namesake: Coxswain Samuel B. Roberts
Awarded: 22 March 1982
Builder: Bath Iron Works, Bath, Maine
Laid down: 21 May 1984
Launched: 8 December 1984
Sponsored by: Mrs. Jack Yusen
Commissioned: 12 April 1986
Decommissioned: 22 May 2015
Homeport: Mayport, Florida
Identification:
Motto: "No Higher Honor"
Nickname: "Sammy B"
Fate: Scrapped 2022
Badge: USS Samuel B. Roberts coat of arms
General characteristics
Class & type: Oliver Hazard Perry-class 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:
Electronic warfare
& decoys:		 AN/SLQ-32; Mark 36 SRBOC
Armament:
Aircraft carried: 2 × SH-60 helicopters as LAMPS III
Aviation facilities:
  • 2 × Hangars
  • RAST helicopter hauldown system

USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58) was one of the final ships in the United States Navy's Oliver Hazard Perry-class of guided missile frigates (FFG). Commissioned in 1986, the ship was severely damaged by an Iranian mine in 1988, leading U.S. forces to respond with Operation Praying Mantis. Repaired and returned to duty, the ship served until decommissioned in 2015.

Commissioning and namesake

The frigate was named for Samuel B. Roberts, a Navy coxswain who was killed while evacuating the U.S. Marines during the battle of Guadalcanal in 1942. Roberts was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross.

Samuel B. Roberts was the third U.S. ship to bear the coxswain's name, after Samuel B. Roberts (DE-413), a John C. Butler-class destroyer escort, commissioned in 1944 and sunk in the Battle off Samar later that year; and Samuel B. Roberts (DD-823), a Gearing-class destroyer, commissioned in 1946 and struck in 1970.

Samuel B. Roberts was launched in December 1984 by Bath Iron Works, Bath, Maine and sponsored by the wife of Jack Yusen, a member of DE-413's crew. The frigate was put in commission in April 1986 under the command of Commander Paul X. Rinn.

1988 deployment and mine strike

Samuel B. Roberts deployed from her homeport in Newport, Rhode Island, in January 1988, heading for the Persian Gulf to participate in Operation Earnest Will, the escort of reflagged Kuwaiti tankers during the Iran–Iraq War. Samuel B. Roberts had arrived in the Persian Gulf and was heading for a refueling rendezvous with USS San Jose on 14 April when the ship struck an Iranian mine in the central Persian Gulf, an area she had safely transited a few days earlier. The mine blew a 15-foot (4.6 m) hole in the hull, flooded the engine room,[1] and knocked the two gas turbines from their mounts. The blast also broke the keel of the ship; such structural damage is almost always fatal to a vessel. The crew fought fire and flooding for five hours and saved the ship. Among other steps, sailors cinched cables on the cracked superstructure in an effort to stabilize it.[2] She used her auxiliary thrusters to get out of the minefield at 5 kn (5.8 mph; 9.3 km/h). San Jose's helicopters provided firefighting and engineering supplies to augment the crew's efforts. According to How We Fight, by the US Naval War College, the ship never lost combat capability with her radars and Mark 13 missile launcher.[3] However, according to No Higher Honor by Bradley Peniston, the ship lost power for at least five minutes. After power was lost, the radars were disconnected to allow restoration of the power grid. The ship lost track of an Sa'am frigate and an Iranian P-3 that it had been monitoring.[4] Ten sailors were medevaced by HC-5 CH-46s embarked on San Jose for injuries sustained in the blast; six returned to Samuel B. Roberts in a day or so. Four burn victims were sent for treatment to a military hospital in Germany,[5][1] partly through the assistance of the 2nd Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron, USAF. Eventually they were moved to medical facilities in the United States.

When U.S. divers recovered several unexploded mines, they found that their serial numbers fitted into the sequence on mines seized the previous September aboard an Iranian mine-layer named Iran Ajr. Four days later, U.S. forces retaliated against Iran in Operation Praying Mantis, a one-day campaign that was the largest American surface engagement since World War II.[6] U.S. ships, aircraft, and troops destroyed two Iranian oil platforms allegedly used to control Iranian naval forces in the Persian Gulf, sank the Iranian frigate IRIS Sahand (1969), damaged another, and sank at least three armed high-speed boats. The U.S. lost one Marine helicopter and its crew of two airmen in what appeared to be a night maneuver accident rather than a result of hostile operations.

Repairs

On 27 June 1988, Samuel B. Roberts was loaded onto Mighty Servant 2, a semi-submersible heavy lift ship owned by Dutch shipping firm Wijsmuller Transport and carried back to Newport for $1.3 million.[7] The frigate arrived at BIW's Portland, Maine, yard on 6 October 1988 for repairs. The repair job was unique: the entire engine room was cut out of the hull, and a 315-ton replacement module was jacked up and welded into place.[8] She undocked 1 April 1989 for sea trials.

The repairs were completed three weeks ahead of schedule at a cost of $89.5 million, $3.5 million less than expected.[2] By comparison, Princeton, which was damaged by a moored mine during the 1991 Gulf War, was repaired for $24 million;[9] however, the cruiser was not directly struck by the mine and her displacement is nearly twice that of Samuel B. Roberts. The mine that nearly sank Samuel B. Roberts had an estimated cost of $1,500.[9]

After 13 months of repairs, Samuel B. Roberts was returned to service in a 16 October 1989 ceremony.

After repair

Samuel B. Roberts made her second deployment in 1990 for Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm. The frigate operated as part of the Red Sea Maritime Interception Force, an international force of ships that enforced U.N. sanctions against Iraq. The frigate's sailors boarded more than 100 merchant ships in efforts to prevent cargo shipments to or from Iraq.[10] On 28 March 1991, she returned to Newport.

"Sammy B", as the ship is sometimes called, was later homeported in Mayport, Florida.

On 30 August 1991, Joseph A. Sestak took command of Samuel B. Roberts, which was named the Atlantic Fleet's best surface combatant in the 1993 Battenberg Cup competition.

Samuel B. Roberts was decommissioned at Mayport on 22 May 2015,[11] then towed to the Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility in Philadelphia.[12]

In late 2022, the ship was towed from Philadelphia to EMR International Shipbreaking Limited in Brownsville, Texas, for scrapping.[13]

Awards

Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons

Bronze star
Bronze star
Bronze star
Bronze star
Bronze star
Bronze star
Bronze star
Bronze star
Bronze star
Silver star
Bronze star
Bronze star

Gallery

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 “Hold on to something!” — A Moment that Shifted the Fate of the USS Samuel B. Roberts Crew, Master Chief Gas Turbine Specialist (E-9) Alex Perez, www.thewarhorse.org, 2021-09-21 accessed 2022-09-08
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Peniston, Bradley (2006). No Higher Honor: Saving the USS Samuel B. Roberts in the Persian Gulf. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-59114-661-5. http://www.navybook.com/nohigherhonor. 
  3. ↑ "Chapter 2". How We Fight: Handbook for the Naval Warfighter. Government Printing Office. 15 October 2015. p. 42. ISBN 978-1-935352-41-9. https://books.google.com/books?id=kzjpsYI8UMIC&pg=PA42. 
  4. ↑ Peniston, Bradley (2006). No Higher Honor: Saving the USS Samuel B. Roberts in the Persian Gulf. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. p. 132. ISBN 1-59114-661-5. http://www.navybook.com/nohigherhonor. ""Rinn donned sound powered phones and called Palmer in CIC. "How are my combat systems? What have we got?" The answer came back: "We got nothing, really. No surface search radar, no radios." The captain told the combat systems officer to cut the radar out of the ship's power system so that it wouldn't drag on the grid as the engineers worked to bring it back up. ... Still, this turned the frigate from a sitting duck into a deaf and blind one." 
  5. ↑ Liewer, Steve, "Teamwork Saved Stricken Warship", San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 April 2008.
  6. ↑ Love, Robert William. History of the U.S. Navy. Harrisburg: Stackpole Books, 1992. ISBN 0-8117-1863-8 p. 787
  7. ↑ "NO HIGHER HONOR: Timeline". Navybook.com. http://navybook.com/nohigherhonor/timeline.shtml. 
  8. ↑ "NO HIGHER HONOR: Photos: FFG 58 under repair at Bath Iron Works". Navybook.com. http://navybook.com/nohigherhonor/pic-ffg58repair.shtml. 
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 Annati
  10. ↑ Evans, Mark L. (4 April 2019). "Samuel B. Roberts III (FFG-58), 1986–2015". https://www.history.navy.mil/content/history/nhhc/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/s/samuel-b--roberts--ffg-58--iii.html. 
  11. ↑ Peniston, Bradley (23 May 2015). "The Once—and Future?—USS Samuel B. Roberts". Defense One. http://www.defenseone.com/management/2015/05/uss-samuel-b-roberts-frigate/113614/?oref=search_peniston%20roberts. 
  12. ↑ BURGESS, RICHARD R. (3 July 2014). "U.S. Navy To Retire 17 ships in 2015". http://seapowermagazine.org/stories/20140703-ship-retirements.html. 
  13. ↑ Henry, Ryan (2022-11-29). "Decommissioned USS Yorktown arrives for recycling in Rio Grande Valley" (in en-US). https://www.conchovalleyhomepage.com/news/texas/decommissioned-uss-yorktown-arrives-for-recycling-in-rio-grande-valley/. 

Annati, Massimo Al diavolo le mine RID magazine, Coop. Riviera Ligure, Italy, n. 6/2005 This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be found here. 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

External links

 United States Navy
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 Republic of China Navy
Cheng Kung class
 Spanish Navy
Santa María class
  • Preceded by: Knox class
  • Followed by: Constellation class


    • Attacks on United States Navy ships during peacetime
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  • USS Stark incident
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