Destroyer Escort
USS Fessenden DE/DER-142


Photograph of the USS Fessenden

About the USS Fessenden

The USS FESSENDEN (DE-142) was launched 9 March 1943 by Consolidated Steel Corp., Orange, Tex.; sponsored by Mrs. R. K. Fessenden, daughter-in-law of Professor Fessenden; and commissioned 25 August 1943, Lieutenant Commander W. A. Dobbs, USNR, in command. She was reclassified DER-142 on 1 October 1951. The USS Fessenden DE-142 was an Edsall class Destroyer Escort that served during WWII. The ship received two battle stars for World War II service. For more information about the ship as a DE go to:  http://users.erols.com/plhuggins/142.html
The Destroyer Escorts were a class of small (by military standards), at US $5 million inexpensive (once again, by military standards), maneuverable lightly armed ships, intended primarily for convoy duty. Their forte was anti-submarine warfare (ASW) and to be part of a protective "screen" around the vulnerable, but crucial, often unarmored, supply ships. 

Edsall Class Destroyer Escort: 

• Displacement: 1490 tons
• Length: 306'
• Beam: 36'7" (width)
• Draft: 12'3" (from the waterline to the keel (bottom of the ship))
• Speed: 21.5 knots
• Armament: 3 3"/50, 3x3 21" torpedo tube, 1x2 40mm, 8 20mm (single) Oerlikons, 1 hedgehog, 2 depth charge racks, 8 "K" gun projectors
• Complement: 216
• Geared-diesel engines, Fairbanks Morse reverse gear drive; 6,000 h.p.

About the "Edsall Class" Destroyer Escorts

A total of 85 ships of the EDSALL class were built by two shipyards, Consolidated Steel Co., of Orange, Texas and Brown Shipbuilding of Houston, Texas. The lead ship, USS EDSALL (DE 129) commissioned on 10 April 1943 at Orange, Texas. They had 5" guns as the main armament and had torpedo launchers. The DE's were unlikely to have much opportunity to use their "main armament" except for anti-aircraft, and the most critical weapon, the depth charges, were superior to those used on the big destroyers. The DE's had eight K-projectors , while "full destroyers" had only six. The smaller ships also had the critical and very effective hedgehogs that projected 24 contact bombs in front of the ship, another advantage over the larger DD's. All of these weapons made for a much larger and more flexible field of fire to use against a hidden sub. The Destroyer Escorts in general were designed to be easily manufactured by a radical new methodology that used pre-fab components shipped from all over the US. They were half the cost of a full Destroyer, took less than a year to build, yet had superior effectiveness against subs. 563 DE's of all types were launched during WWII, more than any other type of warship. They sank 29 Japanese submarines, and 60 German U-Boats (35 of these by Royal Navy DE's). Recently people, especially DE veterans, have become peeved that the DE was sometimes referred to as "expendable." Expendable." CVE's and DE's were regular companions escorting the vulnerable cargo ships. If a ship has a protective screen of warships around it then it's much harder for a Japanese sub to make a successful attack on the "prize" in the middle. Of course that makes the screening ships something akin to a human shield. DE's are more useful, however, as a deterrent or distraction than as "linebackers". They had no armor, and a very shallow draught. Torpedoes would often be set to run deeper than the hull of a DE.  Torpedoes were known to pass through DE's and CVE's, not detonating due to the thinness of the hulls! So in that respect the DE's were not really "fodder" as much as "smokescreen" (that had the ability to counterattack viciously). The strategic decision that actually caused the highest loss of DE's during the war, was their use as a "radar picket" in 1944/45. In this capacity they could alert the fleet of incoming Kamikazes. Unfortunately the Kamikazes attacked the picket ships viciously, and DE's were not very good at defending themselves against aircraft. The USS Fessenden was converted to a DER and assigned the extremely perilous picket duty, with long periods at sea without liberty. The picket concept was so successful that for decades after WWII many DE's stayed out at sea, specifically to continue this role during the Cold War.

USS Fessenden DE-142 1943-1946

On January 4, 1943, the keel was laid, and on March 9, 1943, barely three months later, the USS Fessenden (DE 142) was launched by Consolidated Steel Corporation, Orange, Texas; sponsored by Mrs. R.K. Fessenden, daughter-in-law of Professor Reginald A. Fessenden, and commissioned August 25,1943. LCDR William A. Dobbs, USNR of Ackerman, Mississippi, a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy in 1932, accepted command of the ship after a brief commissioning exercise. Another weapon in the U.S. Navy arsenal was about to take her place in history, and the battle to keep the sea lanes open.
 Down the Sabine River, through the Gulf of Mexico and into the Atlantic, she sailed, bound for Bermuda. At Bermuda the ship's officers and men went through the usual three weeks "Shakedown" period. Training was rugged, but the new. ship and inexperienced personnel were gradually molded into an efficient fighting team. At the end of this time Fessenden was ready for combat. After returning to the states, Fessenden received her first assignment. October 21, 1943 she got underway from New York, bound for Norfolk, Virginia with the New York section of a UGS convoy. While at Norfolk she acted as a training ship for crews of escorts soon to be commissioned. After a brief stay she set sail for Cristobal in the Canal Zone as an escort for three Navy ships. Arriving at Cristobal, she turned around and returned to Norfolk on November 5, 1943. November 16, 1943 she sailed to New York, escorting the USS Philadelphia, In New York she again started off with the New York section of another UGS convoy on December 2. This time at Norfolk, Fessenden continued on with the convoy to her first Atlantic crossing. The trip to Gibraltar was made without incident, and the convoy was turned over to British escorts on December 21, while the U.S. escorts proceeded to Casablanca in French Morocco. December 28, 1943 they rejoined the homeward bound convoy at Gibraltar and returned to New York on January 18, 1944. Necessary repairs were made at the New York Navy Yard, and Fessenden was ready to go again. Proceeding to Norfolk on January 29, 1944, she was assigned to escort another convoy to Gibraltar. She left February 2, and on February 18, broke off from the convoy to escort a tanker to Casablanca. Once more she turned around at Casablanca to escort the returning convoy. Again the round trip was made without contacting the enemy, and all ships arrived safely. The next trip will forever be remembered by all hands. The now familiar pattern continued as Fessenden left Norfolk on April 3, 1944 as an escort for a convoy bound for Bizerte, Tunisia. It was at dusk on April 20, as the convoy was proceeding about three miles off shore nearing Bone, French West Africa, when the attack began. An estimated 18 to 24 German bombers and torpedo planes came in and penetrated the Anti Aircraft barrage. The convoy was hard hit and although not credited with any planes shot down, it was believed that severe damage was inflicted on several before they were driven off. The Escort Commander later commended Fessenden for the intensity of her A.A. barrage. At a later date all hands were awarded a battle star for their European-African Middle Eastern Campaign Ribbon. May 1, 1944, the return voyage was started with another homeward bound convoy. On May 3, one of the escorts, USS Menges was torpedoed while investigating an underwater sound contact astern of the convoy in the early morning. Two hours later USS Fechteler, patrolling just off Fessenden's port beam, was hit. The remainder of the trip was uneventful and May 21 found Fessenden in the New York Navy Yard for repairs. After completing repairs at the Navy Yard and a week of training at Casco Bay, Maine Fessenden sailed for Norfolk. At Norfolk she was assigned to another UGS convoy, a an escort, leaving June 12, 1944. The crossing was without incident and at Gibraltar she left the convoy for a special assignment. The new duty was to escort two Italian submarines captured by the Allies, the Jalea and the Onice to Bermuda. July 2, 1944, just two days out of Gibraltar one of the submarines, the Jalea developed engine trouble and was ordered to return. Proceeding with the Onice, Fessenden arrived at Bermuda on July 16. Alone she proceeded on to New York for the usual availability, arriving July 22. After repairs she went to New London, Connecticut to assist in submarine training, then on' to' Casco bay for intensive refresher training August 3, through September 2, 1944. September 5, 1944, Fessenden sailed for Norfolk, Virginia, arriving the next day. Here she joined the rest of Escort Division Nine and USS Mission Bay (CVE 59). Anti Submarine warfare had reached a new stage. Not content with merely driving the U-Boats off, Fessenden was part of the "Killer Groups" whose job it was to hunt the enemy and sink them. The submarine hunt started from Norfolk, September 8, 1944, as the group sailed south. On September 13, between Bermuda and the U.S. coast, Fessenden encountered a hurricane in which the DD USS Warrington, with her crew of 20 officers and 301 men capsized and sank. All but 5 officers and 68 men were lost. They continued across the Atlantic and arrived at Dakar, West Africa on September 20, 1944, for a day of refueling. No one was allowed to go ashore due to an outbreak of bubonic plague. Then the group began operations south of the Cape Verde Islands. A submarine was caught on the surface by airplanes a few days later, but before surface ships could get a chance at her, she shot two planes down and submerged. In the afternoon of September 30, 1944, USS Howard, USS Blakely and USS Fessenden gained contact. Fessenden being the closest of the DE's, under command of LCDR William Dobbs, assisted by Sound Officer, LT Sol Blatt Jr., made her first attack on the enemy at 1630, scoring four direct hits with ahead thrown charges from her Mark 10 projectors, and the German submarine, U-1062 was sunk at Latitude 11-36 N. and Longitude 34-44 W. However with Assistant Gunnery Officer, ENS Alvan Finn stationed on the Fantail with the depth charges, she dropped 17 depth charges as the 3 DE's in a line, laid down a slow barrage. Oil bubbled to the surface and continued for several days. No debris was recovered. as the Fessenden and Howard attempted to regain contact in the area of the ever increasing oil slick. October 6, the search was discontinued. Later wire recording indicated the submarine had broken up and sunk. The original Class "C" assessment was changed to Class "B" and all personnel aboard were awarded a baffle star. This was Fessenden's first "Kill". The group continued its anti-submarine patrols in the South Atlantic. After rejoining the task group, operations were continued. October 12, 1944 they entered the realm of Neptunus Rex. All hands were duly initiated with the traditional ceremony into the Order of the Deep. October 14, Fessenden and USS Howard put into Recife, Brazil for refueling and provisioning while the remainder of the group went to Bahia, Brazil for the same purpose. Rejoining the task group at Bahia, they proceeded With antisubmarine operations in the South Atlantic. No contacts were made and the group arrived at Capetown, South Africa for refueling. October 30, turning back to Racife, operations were continued but without success. From Recife the group continued on to New York arriving November 20, 1944. On this trip the ship traveled about 30,000 miles in less than three months and sunk her first submarine. (At the end of this history, see deck log and war diary of USS Mission Bay for September 30, 1944, Fessenden's baffle report, and related reports on the sinking of the German submarine) Necessary repairs were made and Fessenden proceeded in company with Escort Division Nine to rejoin USS Mission Bay in Norfolk on December 17, 1944. From Norfolk the task group went to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Here intensive training exercises were held until January 15, 1945. On January 19, Fessenden and USS Farquhar were detached to report to Naval Training Center, Miami, Florida for duty as training ship. Those duties were completed February 8, and the two ships rejoined the task group and returned to Guantanamo the 15th of February, the group left Guantanamo under sealed orders. After crossing the Atlantic, they turned around and started to provide air coverage for another group astern. Arriving at Bermuda on February 27, 1945, the mission being completed, it was learned that the other group was the President of the United States, and his party returning from Yalta. At Bermuda the ship had ten days of rest and recreation highlighted by a visit to the ship by Colonel and Mrs. R.K. Fessenden, USA (Retired), son of the man for whom the ship was named. March 6, 1945, the ship was detached and proceeded to New York with USS Howard and USS Blakely for another Navy Yard availability. The availability over, Fessenden rejoined the task group at Norfolk on March 24, 1945. This time the group proceeded to North Atlantic waters, putting into Argentia, Newfoundland for logistics. Then in conjunction with several other task groups, they set up a barrier patrol to head off all German submarines in these waters. April 24, 1045, one of the planes crashed attempting to land on USS Mission Bay while the group was at flight stations. Fessenden moved up to take the survivors aboard. One survivor was just about to go down as Robert E. Jewell, CMbMM, U.S.N., of Detroit, Michigan, leaped into the icy water and supported him until they were both brought aboard. For this, Jewell was later awarded the Navy and Marine Corps Medal. The next day the ship put into Argentia for fuel and provisions. A few days later the barrier patrol was resumed. With the cessation of hostilities in Europe, the task group proceeded to New York, with Fessenden tying up in the Navy Yard Annex in Bayonne, New Jersey. May 24, 1945, Fessenden left Bayonne and reported for duty at the submarine Base in New London, Connecticut to assist in submarine training. After a week of this duty, she joined the USS Mission Bay at Quonset Point, Rhode Island as an escort during carrier qualification operations. June 8, 1945 found the ship in the New York Navy Yard for repairs. June 20, 1945, LCDR Harold N. Poison, USNR, relieved LCDR William A. Dobbs, USNR as Commanding Officer. June 28,1945, upon completion of repairs, Fessenden, in company of USS H.C. Jones (DE 137) and USS Blakely (DE 140) left New York bound for Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. At Guantanamo Bay, Fessenden had a two week period of refresher training. July 16, 1945, in company with Escort Division 9, she proceeded on to the Pacific. Through the Panama Canal, north to San Diego, California, then across to Pearl Harbor, T.H., she sailed. At Pearl Harbor the ship had two weeks more of training exercises, leaving August 27, reroute Eniwetok in the Marshall Islands. September 14, 1945, Fessenden left Eniwetok and sailed to Majuro Atoll, also in the Marshalls where she was assigned to guard a Japanese garrison at Wotje, and on September 17, Fessenden Commanding Officer, LCDR Harold N. Poison, relieved the Commanding Officer of USS Baron as Atoll Commander, Majuro's representative for the Japanese Naval garrison at Wotie. Fessenden accepted the surrender of the Japanese on Wojtie, numbering about 2000 Japanese commanded by an Admiral, and an equal number of Korean (slaves for the Japanese). For two years the only contact these troops had with Japan had been by radio. The U.S. Flag was raised on the island and Fessenden continued to lay at Wotje to supervise it's demilitarization and the evacuation of the Japanese to return to Japan. Until it's duty was completed November 30, and once again Fessenden was badly in need of repairs. December 4, 1945, Fessenden left Wotje, calling at Majuro Atoll, Kwajalein Atoll, and Then finally arriving at Eniwetok where repairs could be made prior to next assignment January 4, 1946, Fessenden cleared Eniwetok, bound for San Diego, New York and Green Cove Springs, FloMarch 31, 1946, Lieutenant H.E. Garvey, USNR, assumed command from LCDR Poulson, USN. Then on June 24, 1946, USS Fessenden (DE 142) was decommissioned and assigned to the Atlantic Reserve Fleet at Green Cove Springs, Florida.

USS Fessenden 1951- 1961 In 1951 Fessenden was sent to Boston Naval shipyard, Boston, Massachusetts for conversion to a DER. Conversion from World War 11 Destroyer Escort to Destroyer Escort Radar Picket Ship consisted of enlarging the ship's "Nerve Center" - Combat Information Center - to handle data fed by the new Air Search; Surface Search; and Height Finder radars. The center portion of the main deck had to be enclosed and superstructure added to provide living quarters for the 160 man crew. These modifications added more than 400 tons to the ship's displacement. She would now in addition to being small, be more top heavy, rougher riding, far from comfortable, and would be required to remain on station regardless of weather conditions. March 4,1952, USS Fessenden (DER 142) was recommissioned. First to command after conversion was LCDR Emery L. Burgess, USN. Present at the ceremonies were Rear Admiral J.L. McCrea, USK then COMONE and Captain P.D. Gold, Jr., USN, then COMNAVSHIPYDBSN. Following her reactivation Fessenden was sent to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba for "shakedown", and antisubmarine training out of Key West, Florida. Following this training Fessenden returned to her home port in Newport, Rhode Island to assume her duties patrolling the DEW (Distant Early Warning) Line in the North Atlantic. Upon return, Fessenden began operations under COMEASTSEAFRON in connection with CONAD, (Continental Air Defense). During the period July 1952 to December 1953 she participated in special exercises "Springboard" and "Red Light'. August 8, 1953, LCDR E. L. Burgess, USN, was relieved of command by LCDR Jewett A. Baldridge, USN. December 16, 1953, Fessenden entered Philadelphia Naval Shipyard, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for routine overhaul, followed by refresher training at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. June 7, 1954, having completed training, Fessenden returned from Guantanamo Bay to Newport, Rhode Island, and resumed her regular operating schedule. February 27, 1956, CDR J.A. Baldridge, USN, was relieved by LCDR Floyd D. Smith, USN who held command until November 26, 1956 when he was relieved by LCDR John W. Glover, USN. June 1956, Fessenden was in Chelsea Naval Shipyard, Boston, Massachusetts for repairs and maintenance, followed by "Shakedown" and Anti Submarine training at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. September 1956, Fessenden returned to Radar Picket duty in the North Atlantic. She returned from her sea patrols only for maintenance and refresher training, which included a trip to Hamilton, Bermuda. For the most part, picket duty was long, bore some, and both mentally and physically tiring. February 1957 was a "Picket to remember'. Battling hurricane force winds for five days in the North Atlantic, the engines failed several times, fuel contaminated the fresh water holding tanks, the heating systems broke down and food also spoiled. During this time "Green Water showed on the windshield of the Pilot House, a roll of 63 degrees was recorded, and a wave completely tore the port 20 MM gun tub apart and the gun was lost. May 1957, Fessenden was assigned to locate and escort the Mayflower 11 on her voyage to America. This proved to be no easy task, then when located, no mention was ever made regarding Fessenden's part in the search. July 15,1957, Fessenden, along with USS Strickland (DER 333), USS Joyce (DER 317), USS Harveson (DER 316) and USS Brister (DER 327) set sail from Newport, Rhode Island heading for their new home port, Pearl Harbor, T.H., stopping at Ciudad Trujillo, in the Dominican Republic, then through the Panama Canal to Balboa for a 4 day layover before continuing to San Diego, California. Following a two week stay in San Diego, she continued on, arriving at Pearl Harbor on August 18, 1957. These five DERs; plus two already in the Pacific, pioneered Escort Squadron 7, and CORTRON Seven was commissioned. Fessenden's job now would be to help close the 1500 mile window of attack on the west coast of the United States by patrolling the Pacific from Midway Island to Alaska, along with Radar Patrol Aircraft. Between August 1957 and July 1958 she made stops at Hilo, Hawaii, and Kodiak, Alaska. June 1958, Fessenden entered Pearl Harbor Naval Shipyard for extensive overhaul. During this period her Bridge was completely rebuilt and moved forward, and on July 12, 1958, CDR John W. Glover, USN, was relieved of command by LCDR Richard L. Ploss, USN. After completion and more training, Fessenden resumed her normal duties. October 26, 1959, LCDR Louis J. Collister, USN, Relieved LCDR R.L. Ploss, USN. as Commanding Officer. March 18, 1960, Fessenden left the Hawaiians for San Francisco, California, and on June 30, 1960 she was decommissioned and placed in reserve at Stockton, California. September 1, 1966, Fessenden was stricken from the rolls, and finally on December 20, 1967, USS Fessenden (DER 142) was expended as a target, being sent to her final resting place by a torpedo. USS Fessenden (DE 142) and USS Fessenden (DER 142) and the men who sailed her did the job that was asked of them, and did it well, and definitely earned their place in Naval History.

USS FESSENDEN DE/DER 142 REUNION 
September 22, 2002  -   September 22, 2002
 Best Western Mainstay Inn,
  151 Admiral Kalbfus Road, 
Newport, Rhode Island 21401
 Telephone: (401) 849-9889
 FAX: 410-263-0084

 Rates: $99.00 single and $99.00 double occupancy * additional charge for each additional adult in guest room. 
Guest room reservations must be made prior to 8/22/02 to ensure group's discounted rate. Reservations received after this date are subject to availability at prevailing rates.
 If you're planning to go, please make your reservations soon.  

USS Fessenden Association 2002 Officers:
President : Ronald Sprenkle
Vice President: John Aldrich;
Secretary: Mike Kirsch
Treasurer: Ken Fessenden
Reunion Treasurer :Nell Beckwith
ASSOCIATION DUES
Annual dues are $15.00        PURL dues are $75.00

USS Fessenden Association dues are the same for Regular Membership and Associate Membership. Annual dues are payable for the calendar year. Regular and Associate members also have the option to pay a one-time fee to be paid up for life (PUFL). As noted above, dues are needed to help cover the expenses of printing, postage and operating the Association.\par \par \par Some Association members have mistaken the $25 Reunion Registration Fee as Association Dues. This is not the case. Every reunion has had a registration fee which is used to defray reunion start-up expenses and unexpected expenses. It also helps to cover the cost of the free room that will be given away at the reunion. If you have registered to attend the reunion, but have not paid your Association dues, please take care of this. 
 Make your check payable to USS FESSENDEN
 ASSOCIATION and mail to:
Ken Fessenden
 3325 Dartmouth Drive
 Irving, TX 75062

USS Fessenden Former Commanding Officers
Commanding Officers

LCDR William A. Dobbs, USNR 25 August, 1943 - 20 June, 1945

LCDR Harold W. Poulson, USNR 20 June, 1945 - 31 March, 1946

LT H.E. Gavey, USNR 31 March, 1946 - 24 June, 1946

LCDR Henry L. Burgess, USN 4 March, 1952 - 8 August, 1953

LCDR Jewett A. Baldridge, USN 8 August, 1953 - 27 February, 1956

LCDR Floyd D. Smith, USN 27 February, 1956 - 28 November, 1956

LCDR John W. Glover, USN 28 November, 1956 - 12 July, 1958

LCDR Richard L. Ploss, USN 12 July, 1958 - 26 October, 1959

LCDR Louis J. Collister, USN 26 October, 1959 - 30 June, 1960

** Deceased

 Jewett A. Baldridge died January 10, 1989

John W. Glover died January 17, 1996

The USS Fessenden is a Lucky Ship

The USS Fessenden in action "From Dictionary US Fighting Ships" 
Page 14 DESA NEWS March - April 1998 USS FESSENDEN (DE 1"A Very Lucky Ship" 

This is a true account about one of the voyages Of the USS FESSENDEN (DE 142). Some of the following facts are not known to the ship's crew as of this date. On or about April 1, 1944, Convoy USG 38 left Norfolk, VA., it's destination, Bizerte, Tunisia in north Africa. The crossing of the Atlantic Ocean was made in good time, nothing more than a few submarine alerts no real contacts. The convoy entered the Mediterranean Sea about April, 17, 1944. 
From then on things started to change. 
On the night of April 19, a surface radar contact was made. Radar showed it to be ten miles in front of the convoy. The FESSENDEN'S position in the convoy was located on the left front comer. The Task Force Commander directed the FESSENDEN to leave the convoy and investigate the contact. As the FESSENDEN closed the distance to the target, it broke into two radar blips. Radar also indicated that they were going away at a high rate of speed and were probably German U-boats. 
The 142 was not fast enough to gain on them so turned 90 degrees and slowed down. . This brought all her main batteries to bear and she fired a star shell pattern to illuminate the targets. Nothing was seen so search lights were turned on but still nothing was seen. after a short search the ship returned to a different * position in the convoy. 
In 1967 my son turned 17 and we were fighting an undeclared war in Vietnam He enlisted in the U.S. Army much to my dislike. But the best part of it all was he was sent to Germany and not to Vietnam While on leave in Frankfort with some of his buddies, they visited a couple of beer halls. The beer hall was run by an ex-German Navy man. The hall catered to the military class of people from all of the services. While talking to some of the local people they met a man who said that he had been a U-Boat Captain in the German Navy in WWII. He also said that his submarine had been sunk in the Mediterranean in 1944, in the month of May. After a few drinks he said that he had sunk quite a few allW ships and that he had been taken prisoner of war after his U-Boat was sunk. His name was Mr. Finski. After a few more drinks he started telling sea stories. He was a good story teller and very interesting. My son became very interested because he knew that I had served in the Navy in the Mediterranean. 
NOW HERE IS WHERE IT BECOMES VERY INTERESTING!. On the night of April 19, 1944, Capt. Finski's U-Boat the U 371 rendezvoused with two motor torpedo boats. They met about 10 miles in front of the ship train which is what they called a convoy. Their intention was to hire one or two of the escort ships away from the convoy. Ibis would create a gap in the sonar screen through which a U-Boat might slip into the convoy. If he could make it past the screen he could have a field day. 
As the convoy closed the distance his radar showed that only one of the escorts had left the screen. Only one had taken the bait. Too bad --- but now Capt. Finski changed his plan. He would torpedo the Destroyer Escort. It was here that the torpedo boats dumped a sonar absorbing compound into the water around the submarine and Left at high speed. The trap was now set. If the submarine could sink or damage the DE, the convoy would probably change course and cause some confusion. There was a second U-Boat, the U 616, not very far away which could also do damage to the convoy. Captain Finski decided that he would use an acoustic torpedo as they seldom missed. The torpedo boats running at high speed could by turning left or right, lure the escort right into the U-boat trap. A Destroyer running at high speed trying to gain on a target it could not catch would lose effective help from sonar. On the other side of the picture, the acoustic torpedo worked better when the target went faster and left a bigger wake. When the DE came into Capt. Finski's view it was headed straight at him He would wait until the ship passed and would take a shot at the stern. It was an easy shot, but it was a little closer than he liked. The DE passed and the torpedo was launched. The DE turned and slowed down, which must have confused the tracking device in the torpedo. As the torpedo missed and the DE turned and slowed down, the U-Boat Capt. assumed he had been picked up by sonar. He dived deep expecting a depth charge attack, but none came and the DE went away. The German Captain related that he should have used either a standard or and electric torpedo which he was sure would have hit the target. 
The U 371 dove down deep and hid under a protective thermal layer until the convoy and her escorts had passed. He then surfaced and reported the convoys position and speed. This set the convoy up for an air attack the next evening on April 20, Adolph Hitler's Birthday. 
All of this information came to light in a beer hall in Frankfort, Germany in 1960. The rest of the story is documented in the DESA newspaper Jan./Feb. 1993 issue under unusual U-boat action in the Mediterranean. Captain Finski said that the missed target was an American Destroyer Escort. All indications are that it was the FESSENDEN.
CONSIDER THIS - WHAT IF: 
(1) The FESSENDEN had continued on for one more minute. 
(2) The ship bad not turned and slowed down. , 
(3) Capt. Finski had used a standard or electric torpedo. 
(4) The LANSDALE (DD 426 had not taken our position in the convoy that we had occupied fir many days. She was sunk only hours after taking our position This was not the last of Capt. Finski or the U 371. They went on to torpedo the USS MENGES (DD 320), the French DE Senegalese in May, before be was sunk. Also on the return trip the USS FECHTELER (DE 157) was sunk right ahead of the FESSENDEN. 
I thought I had to write about this just to let you know how close we came to not returning home. 
My daughter also served in Germany, but had no luck in finding Mr. Finski. Belvin M. Wells 451 Headquarters Road Erwinna, PA. 18920 (215) 847-2234 
Additional comments by Neil M. Beckwith. All of us on those ships will always remember Hitler's Birthday and remember Axis Sally commenting that the attack by Junker 88's was to celebrate his birthday. 
She also named all the ships that were sunk including the cargo munitions and troop ship, Hamilton., which disappeared with all hands in one vast explosion. A picture of the explosion was shown in one of the DESA newspapers. 
Another loss that saddened all of us was the sinking of our sister ship the USS FISKE (DE 143) in the North Atlantic after they left our division. 

The Fessenden Sinks a U-Boat (U 1062)

U  1062

Official Battle Report - "Made contact at 1000 yards. Range closed to 600 yards before contact classified as definitely submarine. Contact maintained and range opened to 1600 yards to make hedgehog attack. At 1200 yards, range rate 10-1 knots, no doppler traces indicated beam target, shag metallic echo. Range closed range rate decreased to 9, 8, 7 and finally 6 1/2 knots just before contact lost at 330 - 340 yards. Doppler went from no doppler to down doppler at the end of the run. Sound operator reported wake between ship and target at about 500 yards. Wake on left side of recorder trace bore this fact out. Traces on recorder indicated beam target at beginning of run and also showed change to quarter and stern target. Firing time Obtained from recorder. Four hedgehog detonations were heard 14 seconds after hedgehogs hit the water." 

"After the detonation, a large upheaval of meter was observed in the center of the hedgehog pattern. Since this seemed to be a stern chase a 13 charge magnetic pattern was set and rolled from the racks and projectors, four additional charges all set on magnetic were also rolled from the racks. Fire of depth charges began as ship passed over hedgehog explosion point. Engine speed had been increased to full. Two depth charges exploded prematurely, one at 200 feet, about 3 exploded at depths from 40P to 500 feet., the remainder very deep. After searching point of explosion., observant search was* begun. There was no immediate visible evidence of damage., nor was, contact regained. At. 1830 plane reported an oil slick near the point of attack. At large oil slick about 1000 yards wide and two miles long was observed in the immediate vicinity of the attack the next morning, The location of this slick never changed for the next six days. Numerous close inspections of the oil slick were made during the six days and the oil could be seen as it came to the surface in small globules spreading immediately to about 1" to 3 feet in diameter."

"Continued search by the ships and planes using sonobuoys, was carried out during the six days. Sound contact was never regained and the area was searched again and again during which time sound conditions ranged from good to excellent. About 250 depth charges were dropped on and about the oil slick during the six days with no Visible results. However the oil slick was always there in the same locality, always just as thick as the preceding day and always could be seen coming up in the eastern edge. Radar contact was never made after the attack. Various noises were heard on the sonobuoys which were not definitely identified. An accurate navigational fix placed the oil slick at 11 40 north 34 39 west."

- The German submarine U-1062 was sunk by the destroyer escort USS Fessenden (DE-142) in the mid-Atlantic on September 30 1944. The U-1062 was a "Milch Cow" bound from Penang, Malaya, with a cargo of valuable petroleum products for the German war effort. Ordered to fuel U-219, outwardbound for the Far East, U-1062 prepared to rendezvous with her smaller sister boat in the South Atlantic narrows--directly in the path of the TRIPOLI escort group. The U-1062 boat was intercepted in the central Atlantic. FESSENDEN homed in on sonobuoy indications on 30 September and killed the "Milch Cow" with a four-charge pattern. (55 dead- all hands lost). Commander Oblt. Karl Albrecht. Commissioned Jun 1943 

The Type VIIF boats, designed in 1941, were primarily built as torpedo transports. They were the largest and heaviest type VII boats built. They were armed identically with the other Type VIIs except that they could have up to 39 torpedoes onboard and had no deck guns. 
Only four Type VIIFs were built, not a combat vessel but a torpedo transport. Two of them, U-1062 and U-1059, were sent to support the [Monsun U-boats]? in the Far East; U-1060 and U-1061 remained in the Atlantic. 

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