USS Ringgold (DD-500)

USS Ringgold (DD-500): A Fletcher-Class Destroyer from Tarawa to the Japanese Home Islands

USS Ringgold (DD-500) was a Fletcher-class destroyer whose World War II career carried her through some of the most important operations of the Pacific War. Commissioned in December 1942, she reached the Pacific in time to participate in the carrier raids and amphibious campaigns that marked the American advance across the central Pacific. Her wartime service included operations in the Gilbert Islands, the assault on Tarawa, the Marshall Islands, New Guinea, the Marianas, the Philippines, Iwo Jima, Okinawa, and finally direct strikes against the Japanese home islands. Along the way, Ringgold performed virtually every task expected of a frontline destroyer: screening carriers and battleships, providing naval gunfire, controlling landing craft, conducting anti-shipping sweeps, and supporting troops during amphibious assaults. She earned ten battle stars for her World War II service. Her career continued long after the war when she was transferred to West Germany in 1959 as Zerstörer 2, and later to Greece in 1981 as Kimon.

Construction and the Namesake of USS Ringgold

Cadwalader Ringgold and His Naval Career

USS Ringgold was named for Rear Admiral Cadwalader Ringgold, an American naval officer whose career spanned much of the nineteenth century. Born in Washington County, Maryland, on 20 August 1802, Ringgold entered the U.S. Navy in 1819 and subsequently served in a variety of demanding assignments. During the late 1820s he commanded the schooner Weazel in operations against pirates in the West Indies, later serving aboard ships in the Pacific and Mediterranean. His career also included participation in the United States Exploring Expedition of 1838–1842, during which he commanded the sloop-of-war Porpoise. During the American Civil War he returned to active service and commanded the frigate Sabine, where he was involved in rescues of Marines and sailors in difficult circumstances. Promoted to commodore in 1862, he was placed on the retired list as a rear admiral in 1866 and died in New York the following year. The Fletcher-class destroyer was the second U.S. Navy warship to bear his name.

The destroyer was laid down on 25 June 1942 by Federal Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Company at Kearny, New Jersey. She was launched on 11 November 1942 and sponsored by Mrs. Arunah Sheperdson Abell, a grandniece of Rear Admiral Ringgold. Ringgold was commissioned at the New York Navy Yard on 30 December 1942, with Commander Thomas F. Conley in command. Her construction was part of the enormous wartime expansion of the American destroyer force, and the Fletcher design was particularly well suited to the Pacific. The class combined high speed, substantial gunfire, torpedoes, anti-aircraft weapons, depth charges, and sufficient range for long operations far from established bases. These characteristics would allow Ringgold to move repeatedly between carrier operations, amphibious assaults, and independent bombardment missions.

Training and Arrival in the Pacific

Following commissioning, Ringgold conducted her shakedown cruise between the New York Navy Yard and Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, completing this phase in February 1943. Additional training kept her in the Caribbean and around Trinidad until the middle of July. On 21 July she departed New York for the Pacific, transited the Panama Canal six days later, and continued toward Hawaii. After reaching Pearl Harbor, she became part of Destroyer Division 50 and underwent further training before entering the rapidly expanding Pacific campaign.

Her first combat operations were closely connected with the fast carrier forces that were becoming one of the principal instruments of American offensive power. In September 1943, Ringgold joined a task force built around USS Yorktown, USS Essex, and the light carrier USS Independence. The force attacked Marcus Island on 1 September before moving toward the Gilbert Islands. On 18 and 19 September, carrier aircraft struck Tarawa and Makin, damaging Japanese aircraft and shipping. The raids also produced valuable photographic intelligence of the Tarawa lagoon and Betio, information that would later contribute to planning for the American assault.

The Road to Tarawa

Fast Carrier Raids and Wake Island

The pace of operations increased during October. Between 5 and 6 October 1943, Ringgold accompanied one of the largest fast carrier forces assembled by the United States up to that point during an attack on Wake Island. The force included Essex, Yorktown, Lexington, Cowpens, Independence, and Belleau Wood, supported by battleships, cruisers, and destroyers. The operation demonstrated how destroyers such as Ringgold were increasingly becoming integral components of carrier task forces. Their high speed enabled them to remain with the carriers while providing anti-aircraft protection, screening against surface threats, and the ability to respond rapidly to changing tactical conditions.

The next major objective was Tarawa, where American planners faced the formidable Japanese defenses of Betio. The coming assault would be one of the most demanding amphibious operations yet undertaken by the United States in the Pacific. The shallow lagoon, coral reefs, fortified beaches, and inaccurate charts created serious navigational problems, while Japanese defensive positions were heavily prepared. Destroyers were therefore expected to perform an unusually important role because larger ships could not initially enter the lagoon and provide close support to troops landing on the beaches.

Entering the Tarawa Lagoon

On 19 November, Ringgold moved ahead of the main body of the attack force to obtain a radar fix that would help establish the correct approach toward the lagoon. The available charts contained significant errors, including incorrect representations of Betio’s orientation. Fortunately, intelligence obtained from the submarine USS Nautilus had identified these problems, allowing a corrected approach chart to be improvised aboard the battleship USS Maryland. Radar fixes then helped the ships navigate toward the lagoon.

On the morning of 20 November, Ringgold and USS Dashiell entered the lagoon as part of the early naval forces supporting the assault. Their entry was made under Japanese fire, and Ringgold was hit twice. Both shells were duds, although one impact knocked out her port engine. Despite the damage, the destroyer continued her mission and provided close-range gunfire support to Marines fighting to secure Betio. The official Navy account records that the destroyers fired so heavily that additional ammunition had to be brought forward during the day. Their ability to remain close to the beaches was particularly important because the larger ships could not yet operate inside the lagoon.

The fighting at Tarawa was exceptionally intense. By the end of the first day, approximately 5,000 American troops had reached the island, but nearly 1,500 had been killed or wounded. Ringgold and Dashiell, later relieved by other destroyers, provided on-call naval gunfire against Japanese positions while carrier aircraft attacked from above. The operation demonstrated both the strengths and vulnerabilities of amphibious warfare: destroyers were small enough to maneuver close to fortified shores but exposed to artillery, machine-gun fire, and other hazards that larger ships could often avoid.

The Marshall Islands and New Guinea

Supporting the Central Pacific Advance

After Tarawa, Ringgold continued participating in the American advance across the Pacific. During the early months of 1944, she supported operations in the Marshall Islands, including the assaults on Kwajalein and Eniwetok Atolls. Her role again centered on close-in naval gunfire and support for landing forces. These operations formed part of a broader strategy in which American forces bypassed or isolated some Japanese strongholds while seizing strategically important islands and atolls from which aircraft, ships, and logistical facilities could support subsequent advances.

On 20 March 1944, Ringgold bombarded Japanese shore installations at Kavieng on New Ireland. The bombardment served as a diversionary operation supporting landings in the Northern Bismarck Archipelago. The mission illustrated the variety of assignments given to destroyers: a ship that might escort carriers one month could be firing directly against shore installations during a deception or supporting operation the next.

From 24 April through 1 May, Ringgold participated in the assault and capture of Hollandia in Dutch New Guinea. The operation was another step in the American effort to isolate major Japanese positions and move toward the Philippines. Destroyers were vital to such operations because they could provide gunfire close to shore, patrol the approaches, escort transports, and remain available to respond to enemy aircraft or surface forces.

The Marianas Campaign

Guam and Morotai

During June 1944, Ringgold moved into the Marianas campaign. When American forces invaded Guam, the destroyer performed two especially important functions: she served as a landing-craft control vessel and provided naval gunfire support. During the initial landing she directed 23 waves of landing craft toward the beaches. This was a specialized responsibility that required accurate coordination between ships and landing forces and demonstrated that destroyers were not simply weapons platforms but also important command and control elements during amphibious operations.

After Guam, Ringgold participated in the invasion of Morotai in the Northern Moluccas. Once again she provided gunfire support to forces moving ashore. By this stage of the war, the destroyer had accumulated extensive experience in amphibious operations, making her particularly useful in the increasingly complex series of landings that characterized the American advance toward the Philippines.

Return to the Philippines

Panaon Island and a Major Overhaul

On 20 October 1944, American forces returned to the Philippines with the landings on Leyte. Ringgold furnished fire support for the assault on Panaon Island off southern Leyte, continuing the role she had performed at Tarawa, Guam, and other amphibious operations. The return to the Philippines was strategically important because the islands were a major objective in the campaign to cut Japanese communications and move American forces toward the Japanese home islands.

Two days after the Leyte landing, Ringgold received orders to proceed to Mare Island, California, for a major overhaul. This interruption in her frontline career reflected the wear imposed on destroyers by sustained combat operations. Months of high-speed steaming, gunfire, tropical conditions, and repeated exposure to enemy action placed enormous demands on machinery, weapons, hulls, and crews. The overhaul prepared Ringgold for the final campaigns of the war.

Striking the Japanese Home Islands

Task Force 58 and the Iwo Jima Operation

In early February 1945, Ringgold joined Vice Admiral Marc A. Mitscher’s famous Fast Carrier Task Force, Task Force 58. The force was preparing to support the invasion of Iwo Jima while also conducting the first major carrier strikes directly against the Japanese home islands. On 16 February, under cover of a weather front, the carriers launched their aircraft approximately 120 miles from Japan. Attacks continued into the following day, striking Japanese air power and installations. According to the Navy’s historical account, Japanese losses during the two-day operation included hundreds of aircraft destroyed both in the air and on the ground, as well as an escort carrier.

For Ringgold, participation in Task Force 58 represented a significant evolution from her early-war role at Tarawa. She was now operating as part of a sophisticated fast carrier formation capable of projecting air power directly against the Japanese homeland. Her principal responsibilities included screening and protecting the larger force while remaining ready to respond to surface and submarine threats. The destroyer’s speed and maneuverability were especially valuable in this environment because carrier task forces operated at high speeds and frequently changed course to complicate enemy attacks.

After further repairs at Ulithi and Pearl Harbor, Ringgold returned to the fast carrier force in support of the Okinawa operation, joining the formation on 4 June 1945. She remained with the force until it retired to San Pedro Bay in Leyte Gulf on 13 June.

Anti-Shipping Sweeps off Japan

On 1 July 1945, Ringgold went to sea again with Admiral William F. Halsey’s Third Fleet Fast Carrier Task Force for another series of strikes against Japan. During the night of 15–16 July, she operated with Destroyer Squadron 25 and Cruiser Division 17 in an anti-shipping sweep approximately six miles off the northern coast of Honshu. On 30 July she participated in another nighttime anti-shipping sweep in Suruga Wan and bombarded the town of Shimizu on Honshu.

These operations were among the most direct offensive missions of Ringgold‘s career. The destroyer that had entered the Tarawa lagoon under fire in 1943 was now operating almost within sight of the Japanese homeland. The progression was emblematic of the Pacific War itself: American forces had moved from difficult island footholds to a position where their naval forces could attack Japanese coastal shipping and installations directly.

Ringgold rejoined Task Force 38 on 31 July and continued coastal operations until the Japanese cease-fire. On 22 August she was ordered to escort USS Antietam to Apra Harbor, Guam. After repairs there, she sailed for Okinawa on 16 September, carrying 83 passengers to Pearl Harbor before continuing toward the United States.

Postwar Career and Service with Germany

Decommissioning and Transfer to the Bundesmarine

Ringgold was decommissioned on 23 March 1946 and placed in the Atlantic Reserve Fleet at Charleston, South Carolina. Her World War II career had lasted only a little over three years, but during that period she had accumulated ten battle stars and participated in operations stretching across a huge portion of the Pacific.

The destroyer remained in reserve until the Cold War created a new opportunity for many experienced American warships. Ringgold was modernized and outfitted at Charleston Naval Shipyard before being formally transferred to the Federal Republic of Germany on 14 July 1959 under the military assistance program. She entered the German Navy as Zerstörer 2, with the designation D171. The transfer was part of the broader development of the West German Navy, which required capable ships for the maritime defense of Western Europe during the Cold War.

The former American destroyer remained in German service for more than two decades. Her transfer demonstrated the longevity of the Fletcher design: a ship conceived and built for the Pacific War could be modernized and adapted for the strategic requirements of a very different postwar environment.

Final Years as Greek Ship Kimon

From Germany to Greece

Ringgold was eventually transferred to the Hellenic Navy in September 1981, where she was renamed Kimon and given the identification D42. Her new career represented the final stage in a remarkable international history. Built in New Jersey during World War II, she had fought under the American flag across the Pacific, served in the West German Navy during the Cold War, and then joined the Greek fleet.

The former Ringgold was eventually placed in reserve by Greece and ultimately broken up for scrap in 1993. NavSource records her final disposal after a long postwar life that extended approximately half a century from her original commissioning. The ship therefore survived far beyond the war for which she had been designed, although her final decades were increasingly removed from the operational circumstances of her Pacific combat career.

The Legacy of USS Ringgold

USS Ringgold provides an unusually broad picture of what a Fletcher-class destroyer could accomplish during World War II. She was not confined to a single role or campaign. At Tarawa she entered a heavily defended lagoon and provided close-range gunfire when larger ships could not yet follow. At Guam she controlled landing craft as well as providing fire support. In the Philippines she again supported amphibious operations, while later in the war she screened the fast carriers striking Iwo Jima and the Japanese home islands. Her career demonstrates how destroyers became indispensable components of modern naval task forces, combining offensive weapons, defensive capabilities, communications, and maneuverability in a single relatively compact vessel.

The Tarawa operation stands out because it illustrates the destroyer’s ability to operate in exceptionally dangerous waters. Ringgold entered the lagoon under fire, suffered two hits, lost a port engine, and nevertheless continued providing fire support. The episode also highlights the importance of accurate navigation and reconnaissance in amphibious warfare. The corrected information supplied by USS Nautilus and the resulting radar fixes helped make it possible for the destroyers to reach the lagoon and deliver support where it was most urgently required.

Her later operations reveal another side of the same ship. By 1945, Ringgold was operating with some of the most powerful carrier forces ever assembled and participating in strikes against the Japanese homeland itself. Her career thus followed the geographic and technological expansion of the American Pacific offensive, from difficult island fighting to direct operations along Japan’s coastline.

Her ten battle stars summarize an extensive wartime record, but Ringgold‘s story did not end with World War II. Her transfer to West Germany and subsequent service as Zerstörer 2 gave her a second life in the Cold War, while her final career as Greek Kimon extended her history into the late twentieth century. The ship ultimately became an example of the remarkable longevity of Fletcher-class destroyers, many of which served several navies long after their American wartime careers had ended.

Technical Specifications of USS Ringgold (DD-500)

The figures below primarily follow the U.S. Navy’s Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Some secondary sources provide different measurements or later wartime armament configurations, so the table distinguishes the basic characteristics recorded by the Navy from details that could change during modernization.

USS Ringgold was ultimately much more than a single-purpose wartime destroyer. Her career encompassed carrier warfare, amphibious assault, naval gunfire, landing-craft control, anti-shipping operations, and direct strikes against Japan. From her hazardous entry into the Tarawa lagoon in November 1943 to her operations with the Fast Carrier Task Force against the Japanese home islands in 1945, she repeatedly adapted to changing operational requirements. After the war, her service with West Germany and Greece demonstrated how valuable the Fletcher-class design remained to allied navies. Launched in the desperate years of World War II and finally disappearing from naval service decades later, Ringgold stands as a particularly clear example of the range, endurance, and adaptability that made the Fletcher-class one of the defining destroyer designs of the twentieth century.