USS Badger (FF-1071) - 1990s

1990s

Late in March 1990, however, Badger undertook a new mission when she embarked a Coast Guard law enforcement detachment to carry out drug traffic interdiction operations. Her first taste of law enforcement duty lasted from 28 March to 12 April and then she resumed more familiar duty until mid-June. On 18 June, she embarked another Coast Guard detachment and set sail for the west coast to conduct another series of drug traffic interdiction missions in the eastern Pacific out of San Diego. That employment lasted until the beginning of September when she transferred her helicopter detachment to USS Ouellet (FF-1077) and disembarked the Coast Guardsmen at San Francisco. Badger arrived back at Oahu on 11 September and began a restricted availability on the 20th that immobilized her for most of the months remaining in 1990.

Badger took up active training again early in December 1990; but that lasted only about two weeks. The relative inactivity of holiday leave and upkeep commenced in mid-December and continued for about a month. In mid-January 1991, the warship resumed local training operations and pursued them until early June. During June and early July, Badger voyaged to the west coast one last time before being deactivated. She visited San Diego, California, Portland, Oregon, and Homer, Alaska before returning to Oahu on 16 July. Once back in Pearl, the frigate did not get underway again except to shift berths. Badger was decommissioned at Pearl Harbor on 20 December 1991, and her name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register in January 1995. The former warship performed her last service for the Navy on 22 July 1998 at which time she was sunk as a target during 3rd Fleet exercise RIMPAC 98 at 22'51.1"N, 160'33"W.

Badger earned one battle star during the Vietnam War..