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USCGC Dione

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USCGC Dione during World War II
History
United States
NameUSCGC Dione
NamesakeGreek Titaness Dione
BuilderManitowoc Shipbuilding Corporation
Cost$258,000 US
Laid down1933
LaunchedJune 30, 1934
CommissionedOctober 5, 1934
RecommissionedFebruary 4, 1951
Decommissioned
  • July 23, 1947
  • February 8, 1963
HomeportNorfolk, Virginia
IdentificationWPC-107
FateSold on February 24, 1964
General characteristics
Class and typeThetis-class patrol boat
Displacement
  • 337 tons (1933)
  • 350 tons (1945)
Length165 ft (50 m)
Beam25 ft 3 in (7.70 m)
Draft
  • 7 ft 8 in (2.34 m) (1933)
  • 10 ft (3.0 m) (1945)
Speed16 kn (30 km/h; 18 mph) (maximum)
Complement
  • 5 officers, 39 men (1933)
  • 7 officers, 68 men (1945)
Armament

USCGC Dione (WPC-107) was a United States Coast Guard Cutter and Thetis-class patrol boat that served off the East Coast of the United States from 1934 until 1963. She was most prominent for her role as an anti-submarine ship during World War II, operating in the region off the Outer Banks of North Carolina nicknamed "Torpedo Alley".

Purpose and construction

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Alongside her 17 sister ships, the Thetis class was designed to combat alcohol smuggling during Prohibtion. The vessels were intended to be large and fast enough to intercept large smuggler ships that loitered off the American coast. These so-called "mother ships" were an issue as they supplied alcohol to small boats that brought the drinks ashore.[1]: 108  These cutters formed the outer ring of a newly-built network of cutters intended to intercept smuggling: while the Thetis and Active classes patroled off the coast, a range of smaller cutters and boats patrolled closer to shore to create a continuous buffer of Prohibition enforcement from the open ocean to inner harbors.[1]: 89, 95, 99, 105 

Dione was built by the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Corporation in Manitowoc, Wisconsin between 1933 and late 1934. She was launched on June 30, 1934, and both delivered and commissioned on October 5.[2][3][4] She was named for Dione, a titaness and mother of the goddess Aphrodite in Greek mythology. She cost $258,000 US to construct.[5]

Specifications

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Dione was 165 feet (50 m) long, and had a beam of 25.25 feet (7.70 m). When she was constructed, the ship had a draft of 7.67 feet (2.34 m). She had two three-bladed propellers, powered by two 6-cylinder diesel engines, each capable of 1,340 indicated horsepower (1,000 kW). The cutter could achieve a maximum speed of 16 knots (30 km/h; 18 mph) with twin three-bladed propellers. Her displacement was 337 long tons (342 t) while fully loaded. She was fitted with a 3-inch/23-caliber anti-aircraft gun and a 1-pounder autocannon for defense.[3][5][6]

Service

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Pre-war

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Dione was constructed with the goal of enforcing Prohibition, though the Twenty-first Amendment repealed the ban on alcohol in 1933—a year before the cutter was completed.[7] She was stationed in Norfolk, Virginia.[3][5]

In November 1937, Dione joined in on the search for survivors of the sunken cargo ship SS Tzenny Chandris, which had sunk in a storm on the night of November 12–13. Multiple lifeboats were found empty, but 15 survivors were eventually found clinging to wreckage by the cutter Mendota and were subsequently taken to Norfolk.[8][9]

World War II

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Further information: Second Happy Time and Torpedo Alley

After the American entry into World War II, Dione was assigned to the Fifth Naval District of the Eastern Sea Frontier, the United States Navy (USN) command responsible for defending American coastal waters off southeastern Virginia and North Carolina.[5][7] She was assigned to anti-submarine duties, and was the only ship there to oppose German submarines, called U-boats.[10] While filling out this duty, the cutter continued to operate out of Naval Operating Base Norfolk.[5]

In December 1941, Dione's 1-pounder gun was removed. Installed in its place two racks to hold depth charges and a Y-gun depth charge launcher designed to throw depth charges over the sides of the ship.[11] The cutter mainly patrolled the waters between Norfolk and Morehead City, North Carolina to hunt down prowling U-boats; she also made mail runs to the lightships that operated off the Outer Banks.[10]

Second Happy Time

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Dione deploying depth charges, 1942

Dione was placed under the command of Lieutenant Nelson McCormick in January 1942. Much to McCormick's anger, the cutter seemed to be too far away whenever she raced to respond to distress signals, so the lieutenant decided to take an offensive strategy to his patrols, using Dione as a killer rather than a rescuer. After deducing that U-boats generally attacked at night and "slept" during the day, McCormick decided to abandon his usual routine in favor of grid-searching the waters off the Outer Banks for U-boats. The cutter's daytime searches would often utilize sonar and other sound-detection gear.[10][12]

At the end of January, Dione dropped six depth charges after her sonar man reported an "underwater object" 20 miles off Oregon Inlet. Two airplanes soon arrived, making several runs on a rapidly spreading patch of oil. They reported to McCormick that they saw something long and narrow, raising the lieutenant's hopes of sinking a U-boat. An oar and a boat hook eventually surfaced, and when brought aboard were found to have been from the tanker Francis E. Powell, which had been sunk by U-130 on January 27.[10]

In early February, Dione was ordered to Little Creek Section Base to pick up a new master, Lieutenant James Alger. McCormick was kept aboard Dione as an executive officer, and to command the cutter when intricate maneuvers were required. On Alger's first day, Dione's sonar operator called out an echo. Nothing was initially found, but a second echo later in the afternoon caused the cutter's new master to order depth charges dropped. After a spew of oil came to the surface, two life rafts were dispatched to collect samples—much like McCormick, Alger had Dione drop depth charges on a sunken oil tanker.[10]

On February 12, the cutter's sonar operator reported a periscope off Dione's port beam. Alger ordered general quarters and had depth charges dropped from both the Y-gun and the rack, some going off at 100 feet (30 m) while others went off at 50 feet (15 m). Dione rapidly accelerated, her lights and equipment going dead as the cutter's propellers came free of the water. The cutter's engines were stopped and her electrical power was restored. No U-boat was spotted, if there even was one. Dione had been "blinded by her own depth charges."[10]

Later that same month, on February 19, the cutter towed the minesweeper USS Paramount to Morehead City after she had been grounded at the entrance to Ocracoke Inlet.[13] Dione set off for Cape Henry late at night on February 27 to assist the torpedoed freighter North Sea. She was found by Dione early the next morning, shell holes dotted across the freighter's hull. Apparently, a U-boat's attack on North Sea had been halted to due to a storm that had tossed the U-boat about and ruined its aim. Dione towed the damaged freighter, which had lost its steering capabilities in the attack, to Little Creek by the end of the day.[10]

Dione rescuing the crew of a torpedoed ship, 1942

On March 17, Dione rescued the crew of the damaged storage tanker SS Acme, which had been torpedoed by U-124 1 nautical mile (1.2 mi; 1.9 km) west of the Diamond Shoals Light Buoy.[14][15] On March 20, Dione made contact with a U-boat. A USCG airplane from the Elizabeth City Air Station dropped two depth charges with unknown results.[5] On March 23, she responded to the distress signals of the oil tanker Naeco, torpedoed by U-124. The cutter rescued at least ten survivors from a lifeboat and two more from the water, all of whom were taken to Norfolk.[10][14] Just three days later, on March 26, Dione spotted flames from the sinking oil tanker SS Dixie Arrow and headed to investigate. The tanker's survivors had already been rescued by the USN destroyer USS Tarbell, and Alger was furious after finding nothing but debris. The cutter then headed south to the waters off the village of Hatteras.[10] On April 5, Dione responded to the torpedoed oil tanker SS Bryon D. Benson, pulling one survivor from the water.[10][16]

Dione rendezvoused with USS Dickerson on April 14, near the Diamond Shoals Light Buoy. Lieutenant Dick Bacchus had taken over as the cutter's navigator and executive officer, though McCormick remained aboard. The two ships began convoy work, Dione struggling to keep up with the destroyer to the point where it appeared that Dione was "like a sheep dog barking at the heels of his flock."[10] The convoy was joined by another cutter, escorting two freighters north past North Carolina.[17] After Dickerson relieved both cutters of duty, Dione headed back south for a nightly patrol.[10]

The next morning, that of April 15, Dione met up with Dickerson once more to escort a convoy, this time consisting of two British trawlers, two American tankers, and an American freighter. The tankers were so fast that they vanished over the horizon and disappeared from the convoy's sight. Alger chose to be aggressive despite supposed to be close by the convoy, ranging out and dropping depth charges on any suspected echos to "keep the U-boat off balance."[10]

Dione escorting a convoy, 1942; her Y-gun can be seen in the foreground

Dione continued escorting ships alongside Dickerson, falling into a familiar routine. The tanker would conduct escort duty during the day, and would patrol for U-boats during the night. These convoys were nicknamed "bucket brigades" after the old-fashioned method of transporting buckets during a fire. Since the convoys had begun, not a single ship had been lost to U-boats near Cape Hatteras or Cape Lookout.[10] On April 18, Dione was observed dropping depth charges on an unknown submarine, with no visible results.[5]

On April 19, Dione arrived to escort a convoy by herself. She initially met up with eight merchant ships of varying nationalities, but was eventually joined by a British trawler and an 88-foot cutter. Alger ordered his cutter to the front of the convoy, Dione's crew becoming concerned about the number of targets in the convoy, mainly big tankers. The convoy moved past Cape Hatteras without incident, and Alger was nearing the drop-off point by 1900 hours. He had used Dione as a destroyer, screening and picking up stragglers in an attempt to keep them up. Suddenly, a torpedo appeared in the water, racing towards the cutter. A USN airplane appeared and began diving towards the convoy, Alger giving the order to turn hard to starboard and move full ahead. The torpedo meant for Dione missed the cutter but instead struck the tanker Axtell J. Byles at 2000 hours, which sank some time thereafter. Something was struck by one of Dione's depth charges. Following this incident, it was decided that the convoys should run at night to reduce the risk of casualties.[10]

Dione began patrolling around the Wimble Shoals Buoy after her escort missions were finished, beginning demolition exercises on Axtell J. Byles' wreck on April 25. Her crew dropped depth charges on the wreck all day, hoping to discover what they had hit. On April 29, Dione was ordered back to Little Creek for repairs and rearmament.[10]

Esso Augusta under tow after being damaged by a mine, June 1942

Despite a handful of incidents, Dione's convoys handled themselves fairly well through May and early June. The ships were good at staying blacked out, and their masters did the best they could to keep up and not straggle. On June 15, a convoy Dione was escorting began maneuvering into a single-file line in preparation to enter the Chesapeake Bay. Suddenly, the fifth tanker in the line shook as water and smoke erupted from its side. The tanker, Robert C. Tuttle, had struck a mine began to sink as vacationers in Virginia Beach watched in horror.[10] Believing the tanker had been torpedoed, the tanker Esso Augusta attempted to flee, only to strike a mine herself. Dione dropped eight depth charges, and her ninth caused yet another explosion to occur. Eyewitnesses claimed to have seen a U-boat, naval officials concluded that the incident was caused by mines laid in the Thimble Shoal Channel, the waters between Virginia Beach and the eastern shore.[18][19]

On June 24, at 1900 hours, the cutter made an underwater contact while escorting a convoy. Five minutes later, she dropped one depth charge with no results. At 1910 hours, two other ships in the convoy, SS Nordland and SS Manuela, appeared to have been torpedoed. Dione made a sweep search for the submarine, which appeared to be on the convoy's starboard side. Nordland proceeded to catch fire and sink, and her survivors were rescued by SS Norwich City.[5]

Dione made another contact with a U-boat the next day, dropping five depth charges. As a result, large amounts of oil bubbled to the surface. A doubtful contact was made just two days later, on June 27, at 1054 hours. The cutter dropped four depth charges but yielded no results.[5]

Following the end of the Second Happy Time, the crew of Dione referred to the time period as the "Battle of Torpedo Junction."[10]

1945

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Dione (center) escorts U-1228 to Portsmouth, New Hampshire

In early 1945, Dione was rearmed with two 3-inch/50-caliber guns, two 20mm/80 cannons, two "Mousetrap" anti-submarine rocket launchers, and another Y-gun.[3][5][6] She was selected as one of six vessels to serve as the USN's "Surrender Group" for the First Naval District off New England, alongside her sisters Argo and Nemesis. The role of the Surrender Group was to help escort surrendered Axis vessels to American ports where they would be acquired by the government.[20][21]

On May 17, Dione met up with U-1228, a German submarine that had fled to Allied waters following the German instrument of surrender on May 8. The submarine surrendered itself to the Allies, and Dione was ordered to escort the German vessel to an American port. The cutter guided U-1228 to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and it was later taken to the Portsmouth Naval Yard.[22][23]

In June, Dione was sent back to the Fifth Naval District, where she was assigned to air and sea rescue duty.[5]

Post-war

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Between 1945 and 1947, Dione was used by the Coast Guard in both law enforcement and search and rescue. She spent multiple years in storage due to a lack of personnel,[5] and was recommissioned by the USCG on February 4, 1951 after a shakedown cruise in the Caribbean. The cutter was stationed in Freeport, Texas, starting in 1952.[24] Dione notably towed the damaged buoy tender Iris in January 1957, and remained in Freeport until the end of her service in 1963. The cutter was decommissioned on February 8.[2] She was sold as a supply ship on February 24, 1964, and was renamed Al Rashid by her new owners.[4][5]

References

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  1. ^ a b Canney, Donald L. (1995). U.S. Coast Guard and Revenue cutters, 1790-1935. Annapolis, Md: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-55750-101-1.
  2. ^ a b Helgason, Guðmundur. "USCGC Dione (WPC 107)". uboat.net. Retrieved April 20, 2025.
  3. ^ a b c d Ostrom, Thomas P. (August 11, 2009). The United States Coast Guard in World War II: A History of Domestic and Overseas Actions. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-5371-9.
  4. ^ a b "Manitowoc Shipbuilding, Manitowoc WI". Naval Marine Archive. April 8, 2023. Retrieved May 13, 2025.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Dione, 1934". United States Coast Guard. December 28, 2020. Archived from the original on March 10, 2025. Retrieved April 20, 2025.
  6. ^ a b Patrick, Clancey (November 20, 1999). "WPC-107 USS Dione". Ships of the U.S. Navy, 1940-1945. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
  7. ^ a b "Torpedo Junction (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved February 7, 2025.
  8. ^ "Ships sweep sea for missing 22". The Sunday Star. Washington, DC. 14 November 1937. p. 1. Retrieved 7 March 2024 – via Library of Congress.
  9. ^ "FREIGHTER LEAKY, SURVIVORS ASSERT; Seaman Says Crew Asked That Ship Be Turned Back Long Before She Sank". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved April 21, 2025.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Hickam, Homer H. (May 3, 1996). Torpedo Junction: U-Boat War Off America's East Coast, 1942. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-61251-578-6.
  11. ^ McKee, Fraser M. (January 1993), "An Explosive Story: The Rise and Fall of the Depth Charge", The Northern Mariner, III (1), Ottawa, Ontario, Canada: Canadian Nautical Research Society in association with the North American Society for Oceanic History: 45–58, doi:10.25071/2561-5467.767, ISSN 1183-112X, S2CID 159700228
  12. ^ Marx, Deborah (April 26, 2013). "National Register of Historic Places Multiple Property Documentation Form". National Park Service. Retrieved April 21, 2025 – via Kami.
  13. ^ "Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships". history.navy.mil. Retrieved April 21, 2025.
  14. ^ a b "20th Century". Deadliest American Disasters and Large-Loss-of-Life Events. Retrieved April 21, 2025.
  15. ^ "Auke Visser's MOBIL Tankers & Tugs Site". Auke Visser. Retrieved 4 October 2016.
  16. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Byron D. Benson". uboat.net. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
  17. ^ "Dickerson (Destroyer No. 157)". navy.history.mil. February 23, 2016. Retrieved April 22, 2025 – via American Dictionary of Naval Fighting Ships.
  18. ^ Offley, Ed (June 2022). "When War Erupted Off Virginia Beach". U.S. Naval Institute. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
  19. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Robert C. Tuttle". uboat.net. Retrieved May 12, 2025.
  20. ^ "Florida's ancient sub-buster". laststandonzombieisland. August 15, 2018. Retrieved April 23, 2025.
  21. ^ Theisen, William H. (Spring 2013). "Lieutenant Eliot Winslow, Kapitänleutnant Johann-Heinrich Fehler and the Surrender of the Nazis' Top-Secret Submarine, U-234". Sea History (142) – via Kami.
  22. ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "U-1228". uboat.net. Retrieved April 21, 2025.
  23. ^ "U1228 at Sea". National Archives Catalog. May 17, 1945. Retrieved April 21, 2025.
  24. ^ "Dione is Re-Comissioned". U.S. Coast Guard Bulletin. Vol. 7. Bureau of the Budget. August 1951. Retrieved April 21, 2025.
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