USS Joseph Hewes (FF-1078)

Constructed by Avondale Shipyard, Westwego, Louisiana and laid down 14 May 1969, launched 7 March 1970, and delivered 6 April 1971. She was commissioned 24 April 1971, christened by Mrs. Caroline Groves Gayler.

The Knox class design was derived from the {{sclass|Brooke|frigate}} modified to extend range and without a long-range missile system. The ships had an overall length of {{convert|438|ft|m|1}}, a beam of {{convert|47|ft|m|1}} and a draft of {{convert|25|ft|m|1}}. They displaced {{convert|4066|LT|t}} at full load. Their crew consisted of 13 officers and 211 enlisted men.Friedman, pp. 357–60, 425

The ships were equipped with one Westinghouse geared steam turbine that drove the single propeller shaft. The turbine was designed to produce {{convert|35000|shp|lk=in}}, using steam provided by 2 C-E boilers, to reach the designed speed of {{convert|27|kn|lk=in}}. The Knox class had a range of {{convert|4500|nmi|lk=in}} at a speed of {{convert|20|kn}}.Gardiner, Chumley & Budzbon, p. 598

The Knox-class ships were armed with a 5"/54 caliber Mark 42 gun forward and a single 3-inch/50-caliber gun aft. They mounted an eight-round ASROC launcher between the 5-inch (127 mm) gun and the bridge. Close-range anti-submarine defense was provided by two twin {{convert|12.75|in|adj=on}} Mk 32 torpedo tubes. The ships were equipped with a torpedo-carrying DASH drone helicopter; its telescoping hangar and landing pad were positioned amidships aft of the mack. Beginning in the 1970s, the DASH was replaced by a SH-2 Seasprite LAMPS I helicopter and the hangar and landing deck were accordingly enlarged. Joseph Hewes had the first deployed LAMPS helicopter in the history of the Navy. Aft of the flight deck was an eight-cell BPDMS missile launcher for Sea Sparrow missiles, later replaced by Phalanx CIWS.Friedman, pp. 360–61; Gardiner, Chumley & Budzbon, p. 598

The {{USS|Joseph Hewes|FF-1078}} and subsequent ships of the {{sclass|Knox|frigate}} class were modified to enable them to serve as flagships. The primary change was a slightly different arrangement of the "Officer's Country" staterooms with additional staterooms in a new 01 level structure which replaced the open deck between the boats. The stateroom on the port side under the bridge was designated as a "flag" stateroom, with additional staterooms for flag staff when serving as a flagship. These ships have been referred to as the Joseph Hewes-sub-class {{citation needed|date=September 2018}}.

On 15 February 1985, Joseph Hewes arrived to the scene where the M/V A. Regina, a passenger cargo ferry ran aground on a reef off Isla de Mona. Due to surf conditions, Joseph Hewes was unable to use its boats to transport the evacuees which had landed on the nearby island. Joseph Hewes remained on scene to assist and using its helicopter, delivered hot food, soft drinks, and water to the A. Regina evacuees on Mona Island.{{Cite web |title=Safety Recommendation |url=https://www.ntsb.gov/safety/safety-recs/recletters/M86_17.pdf |access-date=February 18, 2024 |website=www.ntsb.gov}}

File:ROCN Lan Yang (FFG-935) Leaving Keelung Harbour 20150316a.jpg Harbor]]

File:ROCN Hughes 500 6910 Carried on Lan Yang (FFG-935) Helicopter Deck Front Right View 20141123.jpg

The ship was decommissioned 30 June 1994 and struck 11 January 1995. She was disposed of through the Security Assistance Program (SAP), transferred, cash sale, ex-US fleet hull foreign military sale, transferred to as Republic of China as Lan Yang (FF-935). This ship was finally decommissioned on January 23, 2025.{{Cite web |title=[艦艇欣賞] FFG-935 濟陽級巡防艦 蘭陽軍艦 除役。|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSgeDNWMRyU |access-date=January 27, 2025 |website=www.youtube.com}}{{cite news |last=Liberty times |first= |date=January 23, 2025 |title=縱橫大洋55年、航行81萬餘公里 海軍蘭陽軍艦今低調除役 |url=https://def.ltn.com.tw/article/breakingnews/4932978 |trans-title=After 55 years of sailing across the ocean and sailing more than 810,000 kilometers, the navy's Lanyang warship was decommissioned in a low-key manner. |work= |language=Chinese |location= |publisher=The Liberty Times |access-date=28 January 2025}}

• Combat Action Ribbon
• Joint Meritorious Unit Award with oak leaf cluster
• Meritorious Unit Citation
• Navy E Ribbon (3 awards)
• Navy Expeditionary Medal
• National Defense Service Medal with bronze star
• Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal with two bronze stars
• Vietnam Service Medal with one campaign star
• Sea Service Deployment Ribbon
• Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal

• USS Trippe (FF-1075)
• USS Kirk
• USS Brewton

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite book|last=Friedman|first=Norman|title=U.S. Destroyers: An Illustrated Design History|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|year=1982|isbn=0-87021-733-X}}
• {{cite book|last1=Gardiner|first1=Robert|last2=Chumbley|first2=Stephen|last3=Budzbon |first3=Przemysław|title=Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1947-1995|year=1995|publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|isbn=1-55750-132-7|name-list-style=amp}}
• {{Naval Vessel Register|{{Naval Vessel Register URL|id=FFT1078}}}}

• http://ussjosephhewes.com/
• [http://www.navsource.org/archives/06/06021078.htm NavSource images]
• [http://www.navysite.de/ff/ff1078.htm Navysite.de]

{{Knox class frigate}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Joseph Hewes}}

Category:Ships built in Bridge City, Louisiana

Category:Knox-class frigates

Category:1970 ships

Category:Ships transferred from the United States Navy to the Republic of China Navy