ABOARD THE FRIGATE KAUFFMAN, NORFOLK, Va. — It was a fitting sendoff for Navy's last frigate as she left on her final deployment Friday.
Originally slated for a Jan. 7 departure for a six-month cruise to U.S. Southern Command, the frigate Kauffman was first delayed a day by wintry weather until the 8th by weather conditions — not uncommon in the Atlantic at this time of year.
But then it was delayed another day But then, she was delayed in a more fitting and frigate appropriate way — equipment failure.
So began the last cruise for the "Ghetto Navy," as many frigate sailors are fond of referring to the aging Oliver Hazard Perry-class, for decades a backbone of the fleet, which hunted Russian subs, escorted carriers and caught narcotraffickers narcotraffikers.
Kauffman, which is heading for counter-drug operations in the Caribbean, has been in the fleet for nearly 28 years and right now, the ship won't see a 29th year of service. When she returns this summer, she won't begin the cycle of maintenance and training again.Instead, her crew will begin the process of standing down the last Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate in the Navy.
It's been 38 years since the Perry joined the fleet in 1977 and when fiscal 2016 rolls around, there will be only one frigate left — and that one has been around for more than two centuries. since the Navy began.
Frigate sailors identify more with their class of ship than perhaps any other fleet sailors, a pride that comes with the lore, joys and hardships they face.
"We like to say were not the last frigate in the Navy — we're the second to last," said Cmdr. Michael Concannon, Kauffman's final commanding officer. "We're second to the Constitution and that's not only the longest standing frigate in the Navy, but the longest serving ship, period. It's quite an honor to be a part of that discussion."
Frigate sailors identify more with their class of ship than perhaps any other fleet sailors, a pride that comes with the lore and challenges of frigate service. More than any other class of ship in the Navy today -- frigate sailors identify with not only their particular ship, but also being a part of the lore of this class of ship -- with being a frigate sailor.
"Brand new destroyers are awesome vessels, with their capabilities and technology, clearly the state of the art for their mission sets in all they can do," said Concannon, who is on his second frigate tour, having previously served aboard the Reuben James based out of Hawaii.
Those who serve or have served on the Navy's frigates consider themselves a part of the lineage of the Navy's "Tin Can Sailors" in how they approach their jobs on a daily basis, Concannon said.
"I would equate their day-to-day philosophy to that of those Tin Can Sailors, the old, old destroyermen — that's how the sailors here see themselves," he said.
There's a piece of pride in being a frigate sailor -- to overcome the odds, the adversity, lack of maintenance dollars and repair parts — and they kind of like being the underdog."
It's that gritty pride of knowing that in spite of everything, they can get the job done, he said. regardless of what it takes, It's in their DNA to figure the problem out, get it fixed and get the ship on deployment — complete the mission — and back home again. To be sure, frigates also have their share of critics, including Navy leaders, who view them as worn out; in one such incident, the rudder slipped off the Boone on a 2006 Mediterranean deployment and the ship had to be towed into port.
That dynamic played out again on Jan. 8, the Kauffman's scheduled departure date, when a maintenance issue delayed it's getting underway for a day.
"Due to a mechanical issue with the anchor windlass, the Kaufmann was unable to depart today for their regularly scheduled deployment," Jim DeiAngio, spokesman for Naval Surface Force Atlantic, said Jan. 8. "Repairs are currently in progress and are expected to be complete by tomorrow. The intention is for the ship to depart once repairs are complete. The operational schedule of the ship is unaffected."
Some of the fleet's most storiedheroic ships of the latter 20th century came in this class. The Samuel B. Roberts, which struck a mine in the Persian Gulf in 1988, was saved by heroic actions taken by her crew. Similar actions happened aboard the frigate Stark in 1987 when 37 of her crew were killed after two Iraqi Exocet Missiles slammed into the ship.
And The U.S. Navy lineage of frigates goes back to 1963, through four previous classes of these ships, built with escort and anti-submarine warfare as their primary missions during the Cold War — where speed and maneuverability were foremost.
And it's not just the U.S. Navy which built 51 of these vessels over a 12-year period, which love frigates.
Former U.S. Navy Perry-class frigates are in service with world-wide in nine other navies worldwide. And, in fact, Three countries, Australia, Spain and Taiwan have all builtd their own class of frigates based on the Perry-class, most of which are also still in service.
Kauffman's crew has been itching for a deployment for a couple years now, as her her last scheduled deployment, which had been slated to begin in April 5, 2013, was cancelled last minute by in due to sequestration budget cuts.
"As a result, over 60 percent of our crew haven't deployed before," Concannon said. "This is their first opportunity to deploy and they're excited — excited to do the mission, excited to have an opportunity to do what they've been practicing to do for so long."
But she's not short of old frigate hands, either. Along with CO Conlcannon, there's a number of sailors with one or more frigate tours under their belts onboard as well.
"We just got a senior chief on board for whom this is his third frigate tour," Conlcannon said. "He has a lot of experience and we're also bringing along some sailors from the [frigate] Elrod," which returned from deployment last year.
These sailors, he said, came over because with the Elrod decommissioning this month they still had sea duty left to do and their valuable experience will add to the Kauffman's crew. experience base.
Though the crew is focused on the deployment, Concannon says he and his command leadership also realize that while chasing drug-smugglers in the Caribbean, they'll also be planning the last days of their ship — and ensuring his crew have the best follow-on assignments for their careers, too.
"The deployment is clearly the next step, but decommissioning is looming on the horizon, too," he said. "So we have our eye down the road and are working toward whatever's best for them, as well."
Kauffman's inactivation is set for Sept. 21.
Mark D. Faram is a former reporter for Navy Times. He was a senior writer covering personnel, cultural and historical issues. A nine-year active duty Navy veteran, Faram served from 1978 to 1987 as a Navy Diver and photographer.
