The ''Cannon'' class was a

class Class or The Class may refer to: Common uses not otherwise categorized * Class (biology), a taxonomic rank * Class (knowledge representation), a collection of individuals or objects * Class (philosophy), an analytical concept used differently ...

destroyer escort Destroyer escort (DE) was the United States Navy mid-20th-century classification for a warship designed with the endurance necessary to escort mid-ocean convoys of merchant marine ships. Development of the destroyer escort was promoted by ...

s built by the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...

primarily for

antisubmarine warfare Anti-submarine warfare (ASW, or in older form A/S) is a branch of underwater warfare that uses surface warships, aircraft, submarines, or other platforms, to find, track, and deter, damage, or destroy enemy submarines. Such operations are typi ...

and convoy escort service during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. The lead ship, USS ''Cannon'', was commissioned on 26 September 1943 at

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington (Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christin ...

. Of the 116 ships ordered, 44 were cancelled and six were commissioned directly into the

Free French Forces __NOTOC__ The French Liberation Army (french: Armée française de la Libération or AFL) was the reunified French Army that arose from the merging of the Armée d'Afrique with the prior Free French Forces (french: Forces françaises libres, la ...

. Destroyer escorts were regular companions escorting vulnerable

cargo Cargo consists of bulk goods conveyed by water, air, or land. In economics, freight is cargo that is transported at a freight rate for commercial gain. ''Cargo'' was originally a shipload but now covers all types of freight, including tran ...

ships. With the decommissioning of the Philippine Navy's BRP ''Rajah Humabon'' (PS-11) in March 2018; HTMS ''Pin Klao'' (DE-413) of the

Royal Thai Navy The Royal Thai Navy ( Abrv: RTN, ทร.; th, กองทัพเรือไทย, ) is the naval warfare force of Thailand. Established in 1906, it was modernised by the Admiral Prince Abhakara Kiartiwongse (1880–1923) who is known as ...

is the only ship of the class in commission.

Propulsion

The class was also known as the DET type from their diesel electric tandem drives. The propulsion system of the (GMT = General Motors Tandem) was identical. The DET's substitution for a turboelectric propulsion plant was the primary difference with the predecessor ("TE") class. The DET was, in turn, replaced with a direct-drive diesel plant to yield the design of the successor ("FMR") class.

Hull numbers

A total of 72 ships of the ''Cannon'' class were built. * DE-99 through DE-113 (six are French) * DE-162 through DE-197 * DE-739 through DE-750 * DE-763 through DE-771

Wartime transfers

During World War II, six ships of the class were earmarked for the Free French Naval Forces and a further eight were transferred the

Brazilian Navy ) , colors= Blue and white , colors_label= Colors , march= " Cisne Branco" ( en, "White Swan") (same name as training ship '' Cisne Branco'' , mascot= , equipment= 1 multipurpose aircraft carrier7 submarines6 frigates2 corvettes4 amphibious ...

Free French ships

* as ''Sénégalais'' * as ''Algérien'' * as ''Tunisien'' * as ''Marocain'' * as ''Hova'' * as ''Somali''

Transferred to Brazil

* as ''Babitonga'' * as ''Baependi'' * as ''Benevente'' * as ''Beberibe'' * as ''Bocaina'' * as ''Bauru'' - now a museum ship in

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of the same name, Brazil's List of Brazilian states by population, third-most populous state, and the List of largest citi ...

* as ''Bertioga'' * as ''Bracui''

Postwar dispersal

After the end of World War II, the United States Navy transferred many ships of the ''Cannon'' class to other navies.

Transferred to France

* as ''Malgache'' (F724); served 1952-1969 * as ''Touareg'' (F721); served 1950-1960 * as ''Soudanais'' (F722); served 1950-1959 * as ''Berbère'' (F723); served 1952-1960 * as ''Kabyle'' (F718); served 1950-1959 * as ''Arabe'' (F717); served 1950-1968 * as ''Bambara'' (F719); served 1950-1959 * as ''Sakalave'' (F720); served 1950-1960

Transferred to Greece

* as ''Leon''; served 1951–1992 * as ''Aetos''; served 1951–1991; now a museum ship in Albany, New York, the only destroyer escort afloat in the United States * as ''Ierax ''; served 1951–1991 * as ''Panthir''; served 1951–1992

Transferred to Italy

* as ''Andromeda'' (F 592) 1951; scrapped in 1972 * as ''Aldebaran'' (F 590) 1951; scrapped in 1976 * as ''Altair'' (F 591) 1951; stricken and sunk as target in 1971

Transferred to Japan

* as ''Asahi'' (DE-262) 1955–75 (then to the Philippines) * as ''Hatsuhi'' (DE-263) 1955–75 (then to the Philippines)

Transferred to the Netherlands

* as ''Van Amstel'' (F806) 1950 * as ''Bitter'' (F807) 1950 * as ''Van Ewijck'' (F808) 1950 * as ''Dubois'' (F809) 1950 * as ''Zeeuw'' (F810) 1950 * as ''van Zijll'' (F811) 1950

Transferred to Peru

* as BAP ''Castilla''; served 1951–1979 * as BAP ''Aguirre''; served 1951–1974 * as BAP ''Rodríguez''; served 1951–1979

Transferred to the Philippines

* as BRP ''Datu Sikatuna'' (PF-5); scrapped in 1989 * as BRP ''Rajah Humabon'' (PF-11); retired in 2018 * as BRP ''Datu Kalantiaw'' (PS-76); sunk during a

typhoon A typhoon is a mature tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere. This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, and is the most active tropical cyclone basin on Earth, accounting for a ...

in 1981 * —cannibalized for parts * —cannibalized for parts

Transferred to South Korea

* as ROKN ''Kyong Ki'' (F-71); served 1956–1977 (then to the Philippines) * as ROKN ''Kang Won'' (F-72); served 1956–1977 (then to the Philippines)

Transferred to the Republic of China (Taiwan)

* as

ROCN The Republic of China Navy (ROCN; ), also called the ROC Navy and colloquially the Taiwan Navy, is the maritime branch of the Republic of China Armed Forces (ROCAF). The service was formerly commonly just called the Chinese Navy during World Wa ...

''Taihe'' (太和) * as ROCN ''Taicang'' (太倉) * as ROCN ''Taihu'' (太湖) * as ROCN ''Taizhao'' (太昭)

Transferred to Thailand

* as HTMS ''Pin Klao'' (413)

Transferred to Uruguay

* as ''Uruguay'' (DE-1); served 1952–1990 * as ''Artigas'' (DE-2); served 1952–1988

Ships in Class

References

External links

List of Cannon class Destroyer EscortsUSS Slater
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cannon Class Destroyer Escort Frigate classes Ship classes of the French Navy