USS Moffett (DD-362)

USS Moffett (DD-362)
Ship name	USS Moffett
Ship class	Porter-class destroyer
Ship displacement	1,850 tons (standard)
Ship length	381 ft 9 in
Ship beam	36 ft 10 in
Ship draft	10 ft 8 in
Ship propulsion	60,000 shp; geared steam turbines; twin shafts
Ship speed	37 knots
Ship range	6,500 nmi at 12 kn
Ship complement	194 officers and enlisted
Ship armament	8 × 5 in (127 mm) guns; 8 × 0.5 in MGs; 2 × quadruple torpedo tubes
Ship built by	Norfolk Navy Yard
Ship laid down	24 October 1934
Ship launched	9 November 1935
Ship commissioned	27 June 1936
Ship decommissioned	14 November 1945
Ship out of service	1945
Ship fate	Sold for scrapping, 1947

USS Moffett (DD-362)

USS Moffett (DD-362) was a Porter-class destroyer of the United States Navy commissioned in 1936 that served in Atlantic and Pacific fleets before and during World War II. Named for an influential naval officer, the ship operated in neutrality patrols, convoy escort, and amphibious support roles, participating in major campaigns across the Mediterranean and Pacific theaters. Moffett earned multiple battle stars and was decommissioned shortly after the war.

Design and Construction

Porter-class destroyers were designed in the interwar period as flotilla leaders with greater displacement and armament than preceding classes, reflecting naval trends influenced by the Washington Naval Treaty and technological developments exemplified by Washington Naval Treaty signatories. Moffett was laid down at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, launched with sponsorship tied to the United States Navy community, and commissioned in 1936 amid naval rearmament prompted by events including the Second Italo-Ethiopian War and rising tensions involving Imperial Japan and Nazi Germany. Her engineering plant used high-pressure steam geared turbines similar to contemporaries built at Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation and New York Navy Yard facilities, yielding speeds approaching 37 knots and operational range suited for transoceanic deployments to the Atlantic Ocean and Pacific Ocean. Armament comprised eight 5-inch/38 caliber guns in twin mounts, torpedo tubes patterned after destroyer leaders of the Royal Navy and Imperial Japanese Navy, and light AA designed to counter threats typified by aircraft from Heinkel and Mitsubishi designs of the 1930s.

Namesake

Moffett was named in honor of Rear Admiral William A. Moffett, a pioneering figure in naval aviation and the first Chief of the United States Navy Bureau of Aeronautics, who influenced carrier development during the Interwar period. Admiral Moffett’s advocacy intersected with leaders such as William Halsey Jr., Chester W. Nimitz, and Frank Jack Fletcher in shaping carrier doctrine that later proved decisive at engagements like the Battle of Midway. His legacy connected to institutions including Naval Aviation Schools Command and the United States Naval Academy, and his death in the USS Akron (ZRS-4) airship accident underscored risks inherent in early naval aviation programs.

Pre-World War II Service

After commissioning, Moffett joined the United States Atlantic Fleet and participated in fleet problems and exercises reflecting evolving doctrines shared with Allied navies including the Royal Australian Navy and Royal Navy. Deployments included Caribbean cruises tied to Goodwill tours and diplomatic port visits to Brazil, Argentina, and Colombia that paralleled inter-American naval cooperation promoted at conferences like the Pan-American Conference. Moffett conducted training missions with carriers influenced by tactics developed after the Washington Naval Treaty era, and she took part in neutrality patrols and escort duties as European conflict escalated following the Invasion of Poland (1939) and the escalation of hostilities marked by the Battle of France and the Battle of the Atlantic.

World War II Operations

With America’s entry into World War II after the Attack on Pearl Harbor, Moffett shifted to convoy escort, antisubmarine warfare, and amphibious support across multiple theaters. She escorted convoys to North Africa during operations related to Operation Torch and supported Allied efforts during the Tunisian Campaign. Redeployed to the Mediterranean Sea and later the Pacific Theater, Moffett participated in escorting troop transports during invasions that tied into strategies used at Sicily (Operation Husky) and Salerno (Operation Avalanche), and she screened carriers conducting strikes reminiscent of tactics at the Gilbert and Marshall Islands campaign. While operating in contested waters, Moffett engaged in antisubmarine actions against U-boat threats during transatlantic convoys and defended task groups from air attack modeled on encounters with Luftwaffe and Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service aircraft. Her service reflected coordination with task forces led by admirals such as Ernest J. King and Raymond A. Spruance and integrated with Allied convoys managed through Convoy PQ-style routing and naval logistics overseen by the Shipping Control Committee structures.

Postwar Fate

Following the surrender of Japan and the end of hostilities in 1945, Moffett returned to the United States to undergo decommissioning as the Navy demobilized under programs influenced by the National Security Act of 1947 reorganization. She was decommissioned on 14 November 1945, struck from the Naval Vessel Register, and sold for scrap in 1947, a fate shared by many wartime-built and interwar-era vessels as the focus shifted to newer designs such as Gearing-class destroyers and Fletcher-class destroyer modernization programs.

Awards and Commemoration

During her service USS Moffett earned battle stars and campaign ribbons recognizing participation in major operations, shared in broader unit citations awarded to squadrons and task forces led by figures like H. Kent Hewitt and Andrew Cunningham. Commemoration of Moffett’s namesake persists through dedications at Naval Air Station Pensacola and historical references within Naval Aviation museums and archives associated with the Smithsonian Institution and the National Museum of the United States Navy. Memorials and veterans’ accounts archived by organizations such as the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the American Legion preserve the ship’s operational history and connection to the development of 20th-century naval strategy.

Category:Porter-class destroyers Category:Ships built in Portsmouth, Virginia Category:1935 ships Category:World War II destroyers of the United States