ex-USS David R. Ray after being shot by Harpoon missile

[dingodawg1968]

To those that said this ship was a DDG,your wrong. This ship was a DD & powered by 4 LM2500 Gas Turbine Eng. & her Ele.Sys. Was also powered by T-56 Gas turbine Eng. She was the most advanced ship of her time . I had good & Bad memories but was proud to have served on her 1980 to 1981 Post scrip the only steam used on her was for cooking & hot water. GSM Ret.

[sowhatyoucant2]

should have been smelted,and put in new ship w/her name

[jakem1tanker]

@MurphysLegal the goast was mad it was sinking

[okiebills74741]

I would rather have my ship sent to a watery grave , than turned into razor blades like my ship the USS Long Beach. Sad is seeing your old ship rusting at the scrap yard.

[CootCut]

The Spruance class was ridiculed when first deployed for lacking fire.fighting power. Such a waste of space and so much space devoted for crew comfort; in relation to earlier warships.

[TedinLasVegas]

@CootCut "so much space devoted for crew comfort"? Not like the other ships from the same time period, so much LESS. Besides, if you run your people down, it really doesn't matter how great your ship is because people are the greatest asset. This especially true since about half of the crew lived onboard even when in homeport.

[stonds]

This was my old ship too. I didn't realize he had been decommissioned until I saw this video. i was a yeoman onboard from 80' to '83. It is sad to see that the dusty David, the David R always underway, has been sunk. Where was she sunk? Stonds

[MASTERCHIEF1062]

So long old firend, you fought well.

[motorguzzi100]

modern day torpedoes would explode under ..keel ...and ..break any ship in half not on armoured belt on side but under 'neath total devastation of ship

[theflop]

I hope they set condition Zebra!

[theflop]

Um, I need some parts from the surface search radar before it sinks! All the maintenance and time working on the top of the mast!

[TedinLasVegas]

@MurphysLegal - all of the doors and hatches were left open to ensure it sunk "quickly".

[dcooke1989]

multiple 5" shells or one 16" shell? Bigger is always better!

[TedinLasVegas]

@dcooke1989 There's nothing out there that shoots 16" anymore.

[dcooke1989]

@TedinLasVegas Yes I know (which is too bad)...just saying bigger is better!

[alphatwinz]

why dont they sell it for scrap metal???

[digitalpanther]

Holy crap my ship! I was on the Ray in the mid '80s. I was very sad to hear that she was sunk as a target. I never expected to see footage of it. I am both thankful and sad to see this.

[theclash181]

@digitalpanther that must be sad to see such a ship end its career like that

[ericsantiago011]

waste.... why try to donate here in philippines...xD

[24950938]

@ericsantiago011

Too expensive to run; too manpower intensive; too complex a platform; too big for an archipelago like the PI...

I see you just took delivery of an ex-Hamilton USCG that would be of more use to you than a Cold War era ASW Destroyer like the former DD-971

[Fender869]

@ericsantiago011 There are cost involved in donating ships. Your country would not consider the acquisition of a 35+ year old ship so useful. it was destroyed because it was nearing the end of it's lifespan. Meaning to continue service it would've need a major refit overhaul . The cost to refit them wouldnt be worth the expense. Though the Spruance class DDG's are venerable fighting ships, they are out dated steam powered vessels. Nowadays, navies serve better with multirole frigates

[jsm666]

You might be interested in David K Brown's books "Warrior to Dreadnought" and "The Grand Fleet", in which he describes live-fire exercises on obsolete ships in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Much the same thing happened, although in those cases they prepped fire hoses and left them running on the deck etc., so they could gain insights into shell effectiveness and damage control/design adequacy.

[robinpollock]

just hope the t 45s im working on in Glasgow dont go the same way

[TheFatCat94]

@robinpollock By the specs on those ships they'd be fuckin hard to hit haha

[navymutt92]

My father OS1 Kirland, worked on this ship for many year back in San Diego. Interesting to see it in that condition now.

[Dardrum]

I worked on this shipin Everett close to the end, it was a great ship. I think it is stupid get ride of all the spruence class vessels. Ok use one as a target for testing and mothball the rest.

[Dardrum]

I worked on this ship, it was a great ship. I think it is stupid get ride of all the spruence class vessels. Ok use one as a target for testing and mothball the rest.

[ArtStone]

No Congressman needed a tourist attraction in his district?

[carsmasher]

There will be a day come when the navy wished they would have saved these ships in mothballs. When they need them right now and don't have the time or money to build new ones.

[KNS1996DFS]

I'd say the missle worked.

[maxquad21]

In April, 1989, i was awaiting the arrival of my first ship the USS Crommelin

( FFG37). Till then , i was assigned to the mail office at ASU ( Alcohol Support

Unit)- Manama, Baharain.

The R. Ray was the first ship i go to see up close. My FFG looked like a row-boat compaired to this beast. RIP the DRR

[tenorismo]

She didn't deserve being a target.

[alderaforall]

wonder why they don't take all the steel from these ships and recycle it. Seems like a huge waste of raw material to let it just rot away on the sea floor.

[RetSquid]

@alderaforall

It cost WAY too much to recycle ships like this, it's cheaper to start from ore.

[aggie6266]

Yep, my old LST, the workhorse of the 'Nam war, was sunk by a torpedo off the coast of Greece, to be used as a fish-reef. l know how you feel buddy, lots of memories of the good and bad times. Keep on trucking.

[swingingcouple]

I have a USS David R.Ray navy cap. Found it in the bush in Austraila. Have had it since 99-00.

[swingingcouple]

I found a USS David R.Ray cap in the Australia. I have had it many since 2000. It was found out in the bush, it must have came into our port one year.Strange place to find it though.

[sbd45acp]

Sorry to see your Grand Old Lady in such sad shape. However, it should fill us all with a sense of pride that the AMERICAN quality, design and workmanship that went into building her, Along with the spirit of the US military men and women who had crewed her, allowed this US fighting ship to withstand an enormous amount of punishment and battle damage that surely would have sunk a lesser vessel. Thank GOD for your service and sacrifice, Thank GOD for every service man and woman.

[thetitanicisdead]

Im so sorry this must have hurt you so bad.

[papaburger]

was it an accident ? how did it happened ?

[hcgnkhu]

@papaburger This ship was sunk after being hit with a missile for testing.

[agt334]

Wow, i'm not a navy guy, but is it right, that a battleship can't take even one single hit ?

[TedinLasVegas]

@agt334 Umm, its not a "Battleship"; no one uses battleships anymore. Second, If it were going into battle, Condition Zebra would've been set, the damage would've been less, and the ship would've survived - not to mention the Damage Control teams would've ensured that the ship would've survived.

[agt334]

@TedinLasVegas interesting. Could you explain what "Condition Zebra" is ? And thanks for your cool answer :-)

[TedinLasVegas]

@agt334 Threre are 3 "material conditions" on a US warship: X-ray, Yankee, and Zebra. All doors and hatches have either an X, Y, or Z on it. If condition X-ray is set, only doors with X are secured shut; in condition Yankee, X and Y are secured shut; and in condition Zebra, all doors and hatches are secured shut. Condition Z helps limit the amount of damage done to a ship.

When the Ray was hit, all doors and hatches were locked up o ensure the ship sunk "easily".

[BloodofPatriots]

@TedinLasVegas Condition Zebra also means you're going to be sweating your ass off for at least an hour and won't be able to get to your gedunk stash.

[TedinLasVegas]

@BloodofPatriots Depends on you GQ station, sometime mine was right next to my gedunk stash and a severely air conditioned space.

[BloodofPatriots]

@TedinLasVegas Oh, you suck. For Condition Zebra I was stuck in Fly 2 of an LHA, just off the flight deck and next to Flight Deck Control. All hatches secured, we couldn't even get to our Flight Deck Lockers behind Flight Deck Control (where we stored our gedunk) -- too many khakis hanging out in there to give us hell for cutting through.

[Elthenar]

Not being combat ready might be why she stayed afloat for so long. No fuel, shells or missles to explode or burn and none of the other extra weight a ship carries to support it's crew.

[TedinLasVegas]

@Elthenar They also had all of the hatches open, including X-Ray hatches.  If it were going into battle, Condition Zebra would've been set, the damage would've been less, and the ship would've survived - not to mention the Damage Control teams would've ensured that the ship would've survived.

[Elthenar]

@TedinLasVegas I will defer to your first hand knowledge. I would have thought that they would have secured the ship to get a proper test of the weapons, unless all they really wanted to do was sink the ship. If they just wanted to sink the ship, They could have done it with under a thousand bucks worth of explosives rather than use a 700k dollar missile.

[TedinLasVegas]

@Elthenar The purpose was the live-fire training, not testing an obsolete hull. On the other hand, the ex-USS America (ex-CV66) was set at condition Zebra and was pounded on for several days with multiple missile hits, etc and still had to be scuttled (charges set) to sink her to test the hull. That was done last year, I think, off the coast of North Carolina. Good luck finding video of that.

[ACtheLegend]

I bet it must have been painful for you to see her go, like the death of an old friend. (Unless you hated being there in which case, it was probably more like the death of a dreaded mother-in-law)

[drunkteen]

Are you a NSSMS tech?

[TedinLasVegas]

@drunkteen I WAS a NSSMS tech.

[drunkteen]

@TedinLasVegas I was a NSSMS tech on the Obannon. She was suck also.

[wajudah]

Sorry to see all the Spruance class used as targets. Served on Comte De Grasse DD 974 from 79- 83. FTM2 Nato Seasparrow.

[denmalski]

Scotty !... How soon can we get under way.

[On2elko2]

Westpac 1991 I think. Sometime around then. JC Harvey was the CO and his dad was the embarked BG commodor. He would show up to briefings 30 minutes late and ask banal questions, and treated the enlisted like doo doo.

[TedinLasVegas]

@On2elko2 Funny, I don't recall any of that. I spent a lot of time in CiC in '91 where the embarked DESRON(s) was a lot of time and didn't see anything like that...

[TedinLasVegas]

@On2elko2 Which DESRON was that?

[RobRevolution321]

@TedinLasVegas DESRON23

[On2elko2]

This is my old ship too! Was there with JC as CO and his gay dad as commodor (walking around the ship in a freaking bathrobe and drinking bug juice from a wine glass). He sucked!! Glad the ship is on the bottom now!

[TedinLasVegas]

@On2elko2 Huh? Don't recall any such activities. Who are you refering to?

[dudeguy707]

I would have bought this boat for a dollar. You would've saved a lot of money on munitions :)

[stevet92]

havent spoke to you in awhile ted hope all is well i watch the old girl a lot wouldnt take a million for those days

[Daydreamer3211123]

She is not listing that I can see. Did she actually sink at this point? Beyond the Harpoon, what other ordnance was she subjected too? Even if not sunk, she certainly looks to be a mobility/mission kill.

[TedinLasVegas]

She did sink several hours later; keep in mind, she was also shot by 5" guns better than 80 times too.

[kennhi2008]

HHodges 710, I also served on the Dale. I was on there from 1978-1982. She was the finest ship in Mayport. I last saw her when I went to Philly to work on the Kennedy in 1994. She looked great tied up in the reserve basin. I was saddened when I heard they sunk her, But she went down like a warrior.

[HHodges710]

Its sad to see a ship go down that you had memories of. I was on the USS Dale CG-19 77-81 and she was sunk for training and is now a artificial reef off of North Carolina.

[bigbadredsox]

What happened to the Oliver Hazard Perry, FFG-7?

[levisnteeshirt]

i think its in Philly ,,, decom'd

[levisnteeshirt]

@bigbadredsox i think its in philly , it won't sail again ,, so sad ,, these ships had life left in them

[conor4011]

what was firing missles at the boat

[Pistons383]

The DRR was a great ship. It's only fitting that she didn't go down easily.

Brings tears to the eyes to see it. Her memory lives in us all. EW2 84-86

[Arca84]

Sad! I went aboard this ship when it was in Seattle with my dad back in the 80's But we have the money in the world to get new ones! This class was design to be upgraded and the navy didn't save one - not one.

[kroftkarl]

sad to see, i was TAD on the David R Ray in 87. My regular ship was the USS Merrill

[2000S80]

I was stationed on board from 2000-2002 when it was decom'd.

[MrFortunati]

Wow, that was my old ship and I'm just now finding out this happened. Kinda sad to see. 96-2000 OS3

[jwm05281971]

wasn't the David R. Ray based in long beach in the early 90s. was on Antietam 89-93 and I remember seeing it at Sea alot, but dont remember if she was outta L B or san dog.

[TedinLasVegas]

DRR was homeported in LB from at least 86 until 96 or so, then went to NAVSTA Everett.

[jwm05281971]

thats what i thought but wasnt 100%. thanks for the reply have a great day

[syntaxerror9]

Exocet rules!

[TedinLasVegas]

Two Exocets his the USS Stark (a FRIGATE) and failed to sink it, "only" killing 37 sailors.

This was one Harpoon that sunk a DESTROYER; an Exocet wouldn't have done much.

[Pistons383]

I lost a friend on the Stark. EW3 Joseph P. Watson.

[stevet92]

wish i had a dd in lake hartwell although not possibale but wouldnt that freack people out

[boludopata]

The Exocet is better than this missile.

[TedinLasVegas]

You're joking, right?

[Gunnerman65]

Really? As I recall, two of them could not sink a FFG! Must be a french fry guy;-)

[TedinLasVegas]

Old CO (1991-1993), J.C. Harvey, Jr., is now VADM and nominated for ADM (4-stars) and command of U.S. Fleet Forces (Atlantic Fleet).

[sportriderfz6]

I responded to the other video but this one seems to be the active.

whats up stingrays!!!

[stevet92]

thats ok ted i know that some things should remain un know to the public i have my thoughts i just hope she served you sailors well and they will aways be a legend in my book

[TedinLasVegas]

Oh yeah, she was a good ship. The days I lived, fought and served on her will always be remembered as some of the best days of my life.

[stevet92]

the days i helped pull all those heavy ask cables will never be forgotten either but the most amazeing thing is how she affected the peoples life that where aboard her on dry dock or at sea its like looseing an old freind thanks for the responce

[stevet92]

i am sorry guys if i am hung up on these ships seeing them go makes me feel old wait i am old wonder how the LHA are doing and i wonder if anybody found my hard hat in the pipe of the LHA2 i think it was an air pipe all i know it went down it before i could get it whoops

[stevet92]

sounds like their headed in the right direction as long ass they are better I am going to have to check out the burke class thanks for all the info

[TedinLasVegas]

Sorry, stevet92, I accidently removed your comment.

However, I don't feel comfortable going into further depth on the subject.

[stevet92]

thanks ted live and learn I guess I just hope they don't wait to long to replace them just wish could had road on one I don't miss pulling the cable on them they where heavy all except the sonar that was easy still prowd of them thow

[TedinLasVegas]

The Arleigh Burkes have replaced the Spru-cans and are far superior in those respects.

As much as I loved the Ray, if I had my choice today I'd pick a Burke-class. Far more seaworthy and a far better mix of weapon systems.

Its the nature of things; the Burkes are better than Spru-cans, which were better than Adams-class, which were better than the Forrest Shermans, which were better than Mitschers, which were better than Gearings, etc.

[stevet92]

what where her 2 major design flaws

[TedinLasVegas]

The "Steel hull/Aluminum superstructure" thing was a BAD idea.

Also, from what I understand, VLS is too heavy for the structure of the hull and was causing problems of sea-worthiness.

[apoure25]

thats a pretty survivable ship, the way some people talk they make it sound like all our thin-skin ships don't stand a chance in open warfare...

[stevet92]

with the cost being so high i think they should have upgraded them also the navy could only buy one room at a time this class was built to take a direct hit what was the fastest did you ever see it go i just wondered could they make it invisible because of the degaugeing cable that was on them

[TedinLasVegas]

The structural problems were so great that refurbishing and upgrading is not an option.

Real sad, a great design in most respects, with 2 fatal flaws.

[apoure25]

what were the two fatal flaws?

[stevet92]

i new they where only good for about 20 years but they where so awsome you would tought they would last forever those where the days

[ExSailorJoe]

they should have upgraded them... the spruances were decomed about 10 years ahead of schedule

[stevet92]

who sunk it

[TedinLasVegas]

It took a pounding from a couple of ships and a Harpoon from USS Lake Erie, so I'd give a majority of the credit to them.

[stevet92]

i worked on the dd ships in pascagula miss this tripped me out i knew one was sunk but didnt know which one would love more vedios of these ships

[TedinLasVegas]

Hate to break the news to you, but most - if not all - of the Spruance-class have been used for targets.

[Billy77571]

Wow, I knew she had been sunk but this is still painful to watch.. I served onboard from 91-93.. (RM3 Rios)

[TedinLasVegas]

Yeah, I remember you. FC2 Sell

[mikentrisha2001]

i think i remember you sell.....

[newenglander31]

What a waste, the Spruance class was retired way too early. They could have been in service up until 2019 with upgrades.

[ExSailorJoe]

I agree with you... there is still only 1 left on the west coast, being used as a test ship... an there are 2 or 3 of them still down in Philly shipyard just waiting for teir time as a target. My first ship (the Fletcher) was sank a few days after the Ray.

Sad to see them go. Ex-BM2

[newenglander31]

Were any leased or sold to foreign navies? It almost seems like someone did not like these ships, and wanted to dispose of them as quick as possible. Are any of the ships in Philly available for donation as a museum ship?

[RockinWoody1]

The Paul Foster is still afloat DD 964. Its used as a remote ship  I believe. It was last up near Point Magoo

[RockinWoody1]

The Spruance class ships were labor heavy. We had a crew of 350 during an 1986 westpac at the height of the cold war. The Arliegh Burkes run a crew of somewhere of 150ish. They take less man hours to operate and still have a good number of ships in the fleet. The Navy shrunk big time after the cold war and they weeded out alot of non performers in the early 90's. I think they should have kept like 20 -25 in Mothballs in case of emergency but we will see.

[newenglander31]

Oh, well that makes sense, it's all about money in the end isn't it?? I think your right however; it would have been a good idea to keep some just in case. Or at-least scrap them and make some money..

[RobRevolution321]

TMSN Griggs 1985-1988 sends much love to his shipmates.

[Dutchy1965]

Hi, I was in HMAS HOBART DDG39 during the SE Asia Deployment in 1986. We were part of the New Jersey BG.

[mikentrisha2001]

cool so i guess we were on the same westpac....you wouldnt know anybody that has an extra westpac book do ya?

[TedinLasVegas]

Can't say that I can, sorry.

[mikentrisha2001]

i was bmsn left before took test for bm3. what year were you on? i miss the david r ray...

[TedinLasVegas]

91-95, I was #4 longest on ship when I left.

[mikentrisha2001]

wow....i was on this ship from 91-93 bm didnt think i would ever miss the ship but the longer i have been out the more i have missed that ship and the memories

[TedinLasVegas]

What rate? What Work Center?

I was FC 2, CSM2 - NATO SeaSparrow.

[ecwpr]

that was sad for you? if I was you I would be like wow my old ship...=(

[SpudManFFXI]

Thanks for posting this video.

I'm pleased that she wasn't recycled. Yet I feel a bit melancholy watching this video. I was an E.T. there from '86 to '90.

Zume

[agking81]

Im also an ET, though not as much as experience as you have. But this is personal to me, because I'm from McMinnville, TN. the home of David R. "Bobby" Ray

[papaskot]

cool that the ship stands up to the attack, but doesnt say much for the harpoon missile system O_o

[TedinLasVegas]

Have you seen what Harpoons do to other navies' ships or our old ships?

[HMSAstute]

Well now a days one ship-to-ship missile of any kind probably won't sink anything Destroyer and above with one impact.

[scoogievstar]

it's a shame to see her go i spent the better part of 87-91 on her.i am just glad we werent in the engine room when she got wacked by that torpedo.

[OverlordShamala]

USS Fife took 2 torpedo hits for it lose it bow and one harpoon. Then they peppered it with navel gunfire before it finally sank. These ships are tougth!

[OverlordShamala]

Tough ship.

[dustystix76]

i remember walkin on board that ole gal after she was decomm'd in Everett WA, to pull DC equipment off of her

[grnsal]

David R. Ray Departing, so sad man! I lived and served on this ship for four years of my young life! It was an outstanding ship! This is like a burial at sea to me.

[Batavian187]

It's a proper burial for a fighting ship.

Better then being cut up and sold for scrap.

It also now has a second life as a artificial reef.

[gizzel345]

I know the feeling shipmate. I was on the 943. She was cut up for scrap. I feel old.

[JerBear01966]

A Shame... I was in the navy in the mid 80's - early 90's, and the Spruance's were literally the "PRIDE OF THE FLEET"... Now they're just cannon fodder...

[TedinLasVegas]

Yep, you're right. I was thinking of Radar 1/Repair 8...

When were you aboard?

[CanonMan1]

My office wasn't far from yours - mine was Radar 2, where the SPS-40 was. ::sniff::

[TedinLasVegas]

Wasn't Radar 2 was up the focsle, not aft by the Sparrow missile deck?

When were you there?

[CanonMan1]

Nope, forward of the helo hanger just below the aft mast.

[YamatoTitanic]

MAN!! They really smashed her up big time!