USS Wallace L. Lind (DD-703) - Post Korea

Post Korea

Wallace L. Lind departed the Korean area on 9 May 1951 and arrived at Pearl Harbor 10 days later, having stopped at Yokosuka and Midway en route. She transited the Panama Canal and arrived at Norfolk on 9 June.

After a brief trip to New York, the destroyer departed Norfolk on 26 August 1952 for a Mediterranean deployment. She returned to Norfolk on 4 February 1953 and spent several months in her home port. On 19 November, the destroyer departed for refresher training at Guantanamo, returning on 14 December to spend the holiday season at Norfolk. On 4 January 1954, the ship returned to the Guantanamo area for the remainder of the month. On 31 January 1954, Wallace L. Lind returned to Norfolk where she remained through 10 May. Commencing 11 May, the destroyer operated off the Middle Atlantic coast and returned to her home port nine days later. On 1 June, she set course for Key West and operated in that area and the Gulf of Honduras until 25 June when she arrived back at Norfolk and remained there until 7 September. At that time, she again made a brief cruise off the Middle Atlantic coast before departing on a transatlantic voyage.

On 22 September, Wallace L. Lind arrived at Lisbon, Portugal. After a stay of five days, the destroyer departed for a brief stop at Bermuda before returning to Norfolk on 8 October. She took part in Operation "Lant-flex 1-55" which ran from 20 to 29 October. On 1 November, the ship returned to Norfolk and remained at her home port through 1 May 1955.

On 2 May 1955, Wallace L. Lind got underway for a cruise to several European countries including England, Scotland, France, Germany, and Portugal as well as Reykjavík, Iceland. While in Germany, the crew had the pleasure of sailing through the Kiel Canal to participate in the International Sailing Regatta. The destroyer returned to Norfolk on 19 August, and remained in port until 10 October when she set course for Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where she underwent an extensive overhaul which lasted through 12 February 1956.

The destroyer then returned to her home port and spent several weeks before departing for Guantanamo and various training exercises which lasted through 23 March 1956. On 27 March, the ship returned to Norfolk and conducted operations in the Virginia Capes area and as far north as New York. She arrived back at Norfolk on 21 June and stayed in port for approximately one month.

On 28 July 1956, Wallace L. Lind set course for the Middle East to screen the evacuation of American citizens during hostilities between Egypt and Israel, (see Suez Crisis). She arrived at Port Said and the Suez Canal on 13 August; and, for the next two months, she visited ports in Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Ethiopia, and Aden before departing the area on 14 September for Naples, Cannes, and Malta. The destroyer arrived at Phaleron Bay, Greece, on 15 October, and remained through 27 October when she departed for home. On 4 December, Lind returned to Norfolk where she remained until 2 February 1957.

Departing Norfolk, the ship arrived at the operations area outside of San Juan, Puerto Rico, on 5 February. She conducted exercises through 11 February when she headed for Kingston, Jamaica, and Guantanamo before arriving back at Norfolk on 7 March 1957. Wallace L. Lind then operated along the east coast before finally departing Norfolk on 25 June for a Middle East deployment. The ship arrived at Norfolk on 20 November and remained there until 4 January 1958.

On 6 January 1958, Lind set out for a month of exercises in the Caribbean. The ship returned to Norfolk on 7 February and, one week later, went into the Norfolk Naval Shipyard for three months of overhaul. On 27 May, the destroyer returned to the naval base, then set course for Guantanamo and underwent refresher training through 18 July.

Upon her return to Norfolk, Wallace L. Lind conducted local operations until 24 October 1958 when she was deployed to the Mediterranean with the 6th Fleet. On 5 November, she reached Barcelona, Spain, then headed for the Middle East, making stops in the areas of the Suez Canal, Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, and the Persian Gulf. On 14 January 1959, the destroyer arrived at Livorno, Italy, and spent the remainder of the cruise operating between Italy and Spain. She made a brief stop at Cannes, France, before starting the trip homeward. Lind arrived at Norfolk on 8 April 1959, and participated in services and type training until July when she entered the Norfolk Naval Shipyard for an interim refitting and docking period. For the remainder of the year, she operated from her home port, making trips to Mayport, Florida, and Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, acting under the control of COMASWFORLANT for duty with the anti-submarine warfare hunter/killer forces.