_underway_in_1977.jpeg) | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Builder | Martinolich Shipbuilding Co.,San Diego, California |
| Laid down | 12 July 1952 |
| Launched | 11 October 1952 |
| Commissioned | 16 April 1955 |
| Decommissioned | 31 December 1991 |
| Reclassified | MSO-437, 7 February 1955 |
| Stricken | 21 February 1992 |
| Homeport | Long Beach, California |
| Fate | Sold for scrapping, 6 March 2000 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement | 620 tons |
| Length | 172 ft (52 m) |
| Beam | 36 ft (11 m) |
| Draught | 10 ft (3.0 m) |
| Propulsion | FourPackard ID1700diesel engines, two shafts, two controllable pitchpropellers |
| Speed | 16 knots |
| Complement | 74 |
| Armament | one40 mm mount |
USSEnhance (AM-437/MSO-437) was anAggressive-classminesweeper acquired by theU.S. Navy for the task of removing mines that had been placed in the water to prevent the safe passage of ships.
Enhance was launched 11 October 1952 byMartinolich Shipbuilding Co.,San Diego, California; sponsored by Mrs. A. C. Martinolich; reclassifiedMSO-437, 7 February 1955; and commissioned 16 April 1955.[1]
From her home port,Long Beach, California,Enhance operated along theU.S. West Coast on training and exercises in mine warfare. She sailed from Long Beach 1 October 1956 for her first tour of duty with theU.S. 7th Fleet in theFar East. During that fall's crisis over theSuez Canal,Enhance patrolled in theSea of Japan, recording the movement of shipping, as part of the intensified alertness required of the Navy during periods of international tension anywhere in the world. She returned to Long Beach 12 April 1957 and resumed her west coast operations.[1]
During her second Far Eastern deployment, from 2 April 1959 to 16 October,Enhance joined in exercises with minecraft of the navies of theRepublic of China and theRepublic of Korea. Returning to west coast operations, on 8 January 1960 she rescued four men from an overturned sailboat off Long Beach. In June 1960 she visitedPortland, Oregon.Enhance spent the remainder of the year conducting type training and undergoing overhaul at San Diego.[1]
Left Long Beach, California in 1971 after an overhaul for operations in Vietnam in December 1972. Swept mine fields of Vietnam to clear Harbors.[citation needed]
On 17 March 1973, duringOperation End Sweep,Enhance had an engine room fire which seriously damaged the ship.Enhance was towed to Subic bay. Repair cost was $294,000.[2]Enhance was also disabled by an engine room fire on 5 January 1975 off San Diego.[3]
Enhance was decommissioned in 1991 and struck from theNavy list in 1992. She was sold for scrapping in 2000.[4]
This article incorporates text from thepublic domainDictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. The entry can be foundhere. This article incorporatespublic domain material fromEnhance (MSO-437) at theNaval Vessel Register.
