 USSTawakoni (ATF-114), date and location unknown. | |
| History | |
|---|---|
 United States | |
| Name | USSTawakoni |
| Builder | United Engineering Company, San Francisco, California |
| Launched | 23 October 1943 |
| Commissioned | 16 September 1944 |
| Stricken | 1 June 1978 |
| Motto | "Salvage, Towing, Diving" |
| Honors and awards | 2 battle stars (World War II); 3 battle stars (Korean War); 4 campaign stars (Vietnam War) |
| Fate | Sold to Republic of China, 1 June 1978 |
 Republic of China | |
| Name |
|
| Acquired | 1 June 1978 |
| Decommissioned | 1 November 2020 |
| Identification | ATF-553 |
| Fate | Sunk as atarget ship, 15 August 2023[1] |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type | Abnaki-classfleet ocean tug |
| Displacement | 1,330 long tons standard |
| Length | 205 ft (62 m) |
| Beam | 38.5 ft (11.7 m) |
| Draft | 17 ft (5.2 m) |
| Propulsion | Diesel-electric, single screw |
| Speed | 16.5 kn (19.0 mph; 30.6 km/h) |
| Complement | 8 officers, 68 enlisted |
| Armament |
|
USSTawakoni (ATF-114) was anAbnaki-classfleet ocean tug that served on active duty with theUnited States Navy from 1944 to 1978, seeing action inWorld War II, theKorean War and theVietnam War. After thirty-four years of service, she was sold to theRepublic of China Navy, where she served until November 2020.[2]
Tawakoni was named after aCaddoanIndian tribe of theWichita group that lived inTexas on the banks of the middleBrazos andTrinity Rivers during the 18th and 19th centuries. She began her naval career in thePacific theater, joining theU.S. 5th fleet just in time for theinvasion ofIwo Jima, which took place in February 1945. During this battleTawakoni assisted the destroyer minesweeperUSS Gamble, which had been hit by two 250-pound bombs on 18 February. She also assisted in retraction, towing and salvage operations off Iwo Jima until the latter part of March, when she returned toUlithi for repairs to minor damage suffered during the battle.
On 6 April 1945,Tawakoni was involved in theinvasion ofOkinawa when she was attacked by several Japanesekamikaze planes while assisting the badly damagedUSS Bush about fifty miles from the island. Through maneuvering and gunnery on the part of her crew, the ship managed to down five Japanese aircraft while suffering minimal damage herself. On 16 AprilTawakoni participated in the invasion ofIe Shima, where she towed the damagedUSS Laffey to safety while downing yet another kamikaze plane. On 1 July she made forLeyte in thePhilippines, which is whereV-J day found her.
Following the Second World WarTawakoni generally operated in the Pacific area, performing towing and other services and visiting ports from the United States to Asia. In November 1950, she joined Task Force 90, Amphibious Force, Far East, operating in support ofUnited Nations efforts inKorea. During theKorean War, she took part in three campaigns:Communist China Aggression (1950–51);First UN Counteroffensive (1951); and theCommunist China Spring Offensive (1951). She plantedbuoys in the channels atWonsan,Hungnam andInchon harbors, and provided towing services to ships of theUnited States 7th Fleet during her Korean service.
In March 1954,Tawakoni was one of the ships tasked to supportOperation Castle, a series of high-energy (high-yield)nuclear tests by Navy Joint Task Force SEVEN (JTF-7) atBikini Atoll. The highest level of contamination recorded aboard the ship during this operation was 0.2 mr/hr.
During the Vietnam War,Tawakoni would see service in three campaigns:Vietnam Counteroffensive Phase VI (1968–69),Tet 69 Counteroffensive (1969), andWinter-Spring 1970. DuringPhase VI, she participated in the surveillance ofSovietelectronic intelligencetrawlers monitoring U.S. operations in theGulf of Tonkin. She also assisted in towing, recovery and similar operations during her time in Vietnam. May 1967 she rescuedSS Minot Victory.
In June 1978,Tawakoni was decommissioned and sold toRepublic of China under the Security Assistance Program, where she was recommissioned in the ROC Navy asROCSDa Han (ATF-553). She served with this force until November 2020.[3]This ship was sunk as a target ship on 15 August 2023.
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Tawakoni was awarded the appropriateservice medals for World War II (including theAmerican Campaign Medal and theAsiatic–Pacific Campaign Medal),Korea andVietnam. She was also awarded twobattle stars for her World War II service, three for her Korean War service, and fourcampaign stars for her Vietnam War service, together with aCombat Action Ribbon and aNavy Unit Commendation. Her crew during these periods earned theNavy Occupation Service Medal, theArmed Forces Expeditionary Medal, and theRepublic of Korea War Service Medal, among other awards.
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