1980s
In January 1980, Towers' ships' company received news that the ship's home port would change to Yokosuka, Japan, in October. The crew spent the next nine months preparing for the homeport change, which required passing a series of service inspections, repairing engineering casualties and preparing for overseas deployment. In July, Towers underwent a special availability at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, arriving on the 13th for repairs to her missile launcher system. The repairs only took two weeks since replacement parts were obtained from the decommissioned guided missile cruiser USS Chicago. Departing San Diego on 14 October, Towers sailed for Japan, arriving in Yokosuka via Pearl Harbor on 10 November. Following an upkeep period through 12 December, the warship conducted a short familiarization cruise in Japanese waters until the 19th whereupon she began a holiday leave and upkeep period.
After a series of local operations and exercises, including an ASW exercise with Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) warships, Towers sailed to the Middle East in mid-April to relieve guided missile cruiser USS Reeves as radar picket ship in the Persian Gulf. Concluding operations on 14 May, she slowly made her way home, visiting Thailand, Singapore, and Subic Bay, as well as rescuing 138 Vietnamese refugees from three small craft in the South China Sea before putting in to Yokosuka on 11 June. Less than a month later, Towers was on hand for another rescue on 4 July, this time picking up 26 survivors from a South Korean freighter that had gone down in bad weather 25 miles east of Hong Kong. A planned restricted availability at Yokosuka followed, during which the yard replaced both propellers as well as the sandblasted and repainted the hull. Maintenance problems hampered the warship over the next few months, but the guided missile destroyer managed to conduct multiple training evolutions with two aircraft carrier battle groups as they transited the area.
Towers resumed local operations in early February 1982 with an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) exercise off Sasebo with JMSDF ships Kurama and Sagami. During the exercise, the warship successfully fired practice torpedoes at submarine Blueback. After a cruise to Okinawa and Hong Kong later in the month, Towers joined carrier Midway and the rest of Battle Group Alpha for an operational "tune-up" prior to Exercise Team Spirit '82 in mid-March. Operations with the battle group continued off and on until 5 May, when the guided missile destroyer shifted to the carrier Ranger Battle Group. Over the next three days she conducted close-in AAW defense and plane guard duties for Ranger during "war-at-sea" exercises. In company with Reeves, Towers successfully fired two SM-1 missiles before steaming to Subic Bay on 22 May for a two-week upkeep period. Following Naval Gunfire Support (NGFS) qualifications, the guided missile destroyer returned to Yokosuka on 18 June.
Following a restricted availability through July 1982, Towers resumed the familiar pattern of operations out of Yokosuka. These included battle group training evolutions with Midway, ASW exercises with Japanese warships as well as investigating and shadowing Soviet warships in the northern Pacific, a regimen that lasted through September. On 12 October, she got underway with Battle Group Alpha for a voyage to the Indian Ocean, stopping at Subic Bay the next day and then sailing for Singapore. While en route, the warship rescued 65 Vietnamese refugees from a small craft in the South China Sea and transferred them to Midway for further processing. The warships then conducted exercises with Singapore naval and air units in late October, visited Pattaya beach, Thailand, in early November, and conducted battle group operations while en route to Japan, arriving at Yokosuka via Hong Kong on 10 December.
In mid-January 1983, Towers commenced Team Spirit '83, a joint exercise off South Korea, followed by the periodic Nuclear Weapons Certification inspection. After a short period at Yokosuka (10-27 February 1983), the warship conducted another set of battle group operations. Unfortunately, during the afternoon watch on 2 March, while en route to Chinhae, Korea, a ruptured steam line in number one fire room inflicted serious injuries on FNs Pino and Jones and BT2 Dyer; all were med-evaced by helicopter to Midway. FN Pino died from his injuries. Towers subsequently returned to Sasebo for repairs between 2-19 March. Following more battle group operations, the ship returned to Chinhae for a Nuclear Technical Proficiency Inspection (23-27 March), thereafter participating in FleetEx 83-1, a major northern Pacific exercise involving carriers Enterprise, Coral Sea and Midway. Gunnery exercises in April, a joint midshipmen cruise with the JMSDF out of Kure and Valiant Usher 83, a combined amphibious assault exercise off the coast of Korea, rounded out the summer. After a maintenance availability in Yokosuka (13-25 August), Towers sailed south with DesRon 15, bound for the Indian Ocean. During the transit, the guided missile destroyer helped track a Soviet Echo II guided missile submarine and her escorts through the Malacca Straits. On 20 September, she arrived at Diego Garcia to refuel, subsequently transiting to Phuket, Thailand, for a five-day visit. After a stop at Subic Bay on 11 October, the warship supported the final salvage stages of salvage work at the Korean Air Lines Flight 007 crash site (22 October–6 November) before reaching Yokosuka on 9 November.
Towers underwent a major overhaul at Yokosuka during most of 1984, receiving the Harpoon anti-ship missile system, improved electronics equipment and major work on boiler tubes and brickwork. Conducting her first sea trials after the overhaul (4-7 September), she departed Yokosuka ahead of schedule on 17 October for two months of combat systems certification in the Hawaiian operating areas.
Following a series of service inspections in January and February 1985, Towers conducted refresher training off South Korea and out of Subic Bay before sailing south for Cobra Gold '85, a joint training exercise with the Thai military held 7-16 July. During her transit south, Towers rescued another group of Vietnamese refugees, her fourth such humanitarian rescue in her career. Subsequent to Cobra Gold, the guided missile destroyer steamed to the North Arabian Sea via Singapore and Diego Garcia, arriving on station on 4 August. Battle group operations remained fairly quiet, with the warship tasked to track Soviet or Indian aircraft on a periodic basis. Tragedy struck on the night of 7 August, however, when Liberty 603, an E-2C from VAW-115, impacted the water off Midway's flight deck. The search and rescue effort, in which Towers participated, yielded three of the five crew members; Lt.(j.g.) Kevin R. Kuhnigk, USNR, and Ens. Christopher Mims, USNR, however, perished in the mishap. After a "war-at-sea" exercise in the Indian Ocean, Battle Group Alpha steamed southeast to western Australia, where Towers enjoyed five days of liberty in Geraldton, Australia (13-19 September). Thereafter, she participated in Valiant Usher '85, a joint exercise with Australian forces, and AnnualEx 85, a joint U.S.-Japanese operation, before reaching Yokosuka on 15 October.
After a series of local operations and individual ship exercises, Towers participated in Exercise Team Spirit 86 off Korea in late February and early March 1986. Upon her return home on 3 April 1986, the guided missile destroyer underwent and passed four major inspections; a command security inspection, (24 April) a combat systems readiness test (14-19 April), a Board of Inspection and Survey visit (5-9 May) and a boiler inspection (12 May). After celebrating her 25th anniversary on 29 May, Towers hosted a celebration in her home port for crew and their families, as well as local dignitaries. She then returned to certifications, service exams and inspections, tasks that kept the crew busy until mid-September when she sailed for Guam. After participation in multinational exercise CrowEater '86, the guided missile destroyer sailed south for a series of port visits in eastern Australia, stopping at Cairns, Sydney, Adelaide and Brisbane before returning home on 15 November via Cairns and Guam.
The new year got off to a good start with the crew receiving "outstanding" in all areas during the 5-8 January 1987 command inspection. Local operations followed, including training for the annual March-April Exercise Team Spirit '87. On 15-19 May Towers took part in the Shimoda Black Ship Festival, celebrating the visit of Commodore Matthew Calbraith Perry's squadron to Japan in July 1853. She spent the rest of the summer in preparation for another Indian Ocean deployment, upon which she embarked on 15 October. After a stop at Subic Bay in November, the warship sailed to the Persian Gulf, beginning the new year moored alongside the destroyer tender Cape Cod for availability at Masirah, Oman.
Upon completion, Towers, in company with frigate Francis Hammond, sailed to Karachi, Pakistan, for a five day port visit (14-18 January 1988) during which the commanding officer called upon the CNO of the Pakistan Navy. The guided missile destroyer subsequently made her way to the Republic of the Maldives for a four-day port visit and then to Diego Garcia for five days. After a stop at Pattaya Beach, Thailand, in mid-February, Towers accomplished her fifth rescue of Vietnamese refugees on 29 February, picking up 126 survivors of a "grossly overloaded" boat with a broken-down engine and no food or water. Continuing on home, the guided missile destroyer stopped at Subic Bay and Hong Kong before participating in the annual bilateral exercise Team Spirit 87 off South Korea (16 March-3 April). Following local exercises, Towers participated in a joint exercise with the Japanese in the Philippine Sea (13-19 May), an ASW exercise in the Sea of Japan (11-14 June), before putting to sea on the 23rd for Exercise Mekar 88 alongside ships of the Royal Malaysian Navy (7-13 July). She combined that operation with Exercise Cobra Gold 88 off Thailand (24 July-1 August), upon completion of which she returned to Yokosuka for a 90-day restricted availability.
Upon completion of repairs, which included replacing both 5-inch gun mounts, the warship conducted sea trials and gunnery drills starting on 9 November 1988. During those evolutions, however, some shells fell both within Japanese territorial waters and near a Japanese Maritime Safety Agency ship. The Japan government protested the incident and the Navy relieved Towers' commanding officer "for cause without relief." Despite the embarrassing incident, the warship resumed local operations soon after.
Departing Yokosuka on 6 January 1989, Towers sailed south for refresher training out of Subic Bay. Engineering trouble hampered these evolutions, however, and the guided missile destroyer put in to the Ship Repair Facility (SRF) there for repairs in late January. Detailed inspections quickly determined that the guided missile destroyer had suffered damage to turbine blades as well as both propellers. "It was amazing", one technician commented later, "that the whole turbine did not disintegrate." The guided missile destroyer finally put to sea for exercises with the Midway Battle Group in June. After a month-long stay at Yokosuka starting on 15 July, Towers sailed south for more exercises with the battle group. While in transit to Pattaya Beach in late August, however, the warship received the news that Lt. Col. William R. Higgins, USMC, kidnapped by Iranian-supported terrorists in Beirut, Lebanon, the previous February, had been murdered. Ordered to the Indian Ocean for contingency operations, as well as to oversee the end of tanker convoy operations in the Persian Gulf, Towers patrolled the those waters until early October. She then sailed south for a port visit to Mombasa, Kenya, 18-21 October, before arriving in Subic Bay on 27 November. Although Towers departed 1 December, an attempted coup d'état in the Philippines kept her there for a week of contingency operations before she arrived home on 11 December.
Although the guided missile destroyer continued intermittent local operations in early 1990, Towers received word of future decommissioning and began inactivation inspections in April. She got underway for the last time on 18 June, to serve as plane guard for Midway, and visited Pusan, South Korea, before returning to Yokosuka on the 30th. On 17 July the ship moved to drydock for inactivation procedures and she was decommissioned at Yokosuka on 1 October 1990. Later towed to the Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility at Pearl Harbor and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 26 May 1992, she was, ultimately, sunk by guided missile frigate Sides in a fleet training exercise (SinkEx) off the coast of California on 9 October 2002.
Read more about this topic: USS Towers (DDG-9)