Taiwan decommissions WWII Navy tugboat after 76 years in service

 

11/02/2020 05:44 PM

Taipei, Nov. 2 (CNA) A Navy ocean tug named Da Han (大漢艦), which had been in service in the United States and Taiwan for a total of 76 years, was decommissioned Sunday at a naval base in Kaohsiung.

At the decommissioning ceremony, Naval Fleet Command Commander Vice Admiral Kao Chia-pin (高嘉濱) said the Da Han had been part of many search and rescue missions in Taiwan over the years, after accidents such as shipwrecks and plane crashes.

The tugboat also played a support role in Taiwan's military drills and marine security and served as a model for the ROC Navy, he said, according to a Military News Agency report.

The Abnaki-class fleet ocean tug, built in 1943 by California-based United Engineering Company, was commissioned in the U.S. in September 1944 and named the USS Tawakoni.

Its first mission was in the Pacific theater, joining the U.S. 5th fleet in the Battle of Iwo Jima in February 1945.

During the Battle of Okinawa on April 6 that year, the Tawakoni was strafed by Japanese kamikaze planes as it was providing assistance to the badly damaged USS Bush about 50 miles off the island.

The crew and gunnery officers aboard the Tawakoni managed to down five Japanese aircraft, while the vessel suffered only minor damage.

The tugboat also served during the Korean and the Vietnam wars and earned service medals for both conflicts, as well as for World War II, and also received a Combat Action Ribbon and a Navy Unit Commendation.

After 34 years in the American Navy, it was decommissioned by the U.S. and later sold to Taiwan under the Security Assistance Program.

Commissioned by the Taiwan Navy as Da Han (ATF-553) on Aug. 24, 1978, it was listed under the 192nd Fleet as part of its ocean tugboat fleet and served for another 42 years.

(By Matt Yu and Joseph Yeh)

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