USS Moinester

	USS Moinester (FF-1097)
History
United States
Name	Moinester
Namesake	LTJG Robert William Moinester
Ordered	25 August 1966
Builder	Avondale Shipyard, Westwego, Louisiana
Yard number	1165
Laid down	25 August 1972
Launched	12 May 1973
Sponsored by	Mrs. Gertrude Mahoney Moinester, mother of namesake
Acquired	17 October 1974
Commissioned	2 November 1974
Decommissioned	28 July 1994
Identification	FF-1097
Motto	Mare est vita Mea; The Sea is My Life;
Fate	Transferred to Egypt, 28 June 1994
Badge
Egypt
Name	Rasheed
Leased	28 June 1994
Purchased	25 March 1998
Identification	F966
Status	in active service, as of 2017
General characteristics
Class and type	Knox-class frigate
Displacement	3,011 tons (3,877 full load)
Length	438 ft (134 m)
Beam	46 ft 9 in (14.25 m)
Draft	24 ft 9 in (7.54 m)
Propulsion	2 × CE 1200psi boilers; 1 Westinghouse geared turbine; 1 shaft, 35,000 shp (26,000 kW);
Speed	over 27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph)
Complement	18 officers, 267 enlisted
Sensors and ; processing systems	AN/SPS-40 Air Search Radar; AN/SPS-67 Surface Search Radar; AN/SQS-26 Sonar; AN/SQR-18 Towed array sonar system; Mk68 Gun Fire Control System;
Electronic warfare ; & decoys	AN/SLQ-32 Electronics Warfare System
Armament	1 × Mk-16 8 cell missile launcher for RUR-5 ASROC and Harpoon missiles; 1 × Mk-42 5-inch/54 caliber gun; 4 × torpedo tubes for Mark 46 torpedoes;
Aircraft carried	one SH-2 Seasprite (LAMPS I) helicopter

USS Moinester (FF-1097) was a Knox-class frigate. The ship was named for LTJG Robert W. Moinester who was killed in action during the Battle of Huế on 31 January 1968 and was posthumously awarded the Silver Star.^[2] Moinester was christened by Mrs. Gertrude Mahoney Moinester, the mother of the ship's namesake and ship sponsor.^[3]

Design and description

USS Moinster (FF-1097) alongside USS Concord (AFS-5) in the Med 1983

The Knox-class design was derived from the Brooke-class frigate modified to extend range and without a long-range missile system. The ships had an overall length of 438 feet (133.5 m), a beam of 47 feet (14.3 m) and a draft of 25 feet (7.6 m). They displaced 4,066 long tons (4,131 t) at full load. Their crew consisted of 13 officers and 211 enlisted men.^[4]

The ships were equipped with one Westinghouse geared steam turbine that drove the single propeller shaft. The turbine was designed to produce 35,000 shaft horsepower (26,000 kW), using steam provided by 2 C-E boilers, to reach the designed speed of 27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph). The Knox class had a range of 4,500 nautical miles (8,300 km; 5,200 mi) at a speed of 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph).^[5]

The Knox-class ships were armed with a 5"/54 caliber Mark 42 gun forward and a single 3-inch/50-caliber gun aft. They mounted an eight-round RUR-5 ASROC launcher between the 5-inch (127 mm) gun and the bridge. Close-range anti-submarine defense was provided by two twin 12.75-inch (324 mm) Mk 32 torpedo tubes. The ships were equipped with a torpedo-carrying DASH drone helicopter; its telescoping hangar and landing pad were positioned amidships aft of the MACK. Beginning in the 1970s, the DASH was replaced by a SH-2 Seasprite LAMPS I helicopter and the hangar and landing deck were accordingly enlarged. Most ships also had the 3-inch (76 mm) gun replaced by an eight-cell BPDMS missile launcher in the early 1970s.^[6]

Construction and career

Moinester was decommissioned and sold to the Egyptian Navy and became the Egyptian frigate Rasheed (F966).

Awards, citations and campaign ribbons

	Joint Meritorious Unit Award
	Navy Unit Commendation
	Navy "E" Ribbon (4)
	National Defense Service Medal
	Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
	Humanitarian Service Ribbon
	Sea Service Deployment Ribbon
	Coast Guard Special Operations Service Ribbon

Notes

^ Wertheim, Eric, ed. (2017). "Egypt". The Naval Institute Guide to Combat Fleets of the World: Their Ships, Aircraft, and Systems (15th ed.). Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. p. 172. ISBN 978-1-59114-955-2. OCLC 140283156.
^ "Robert William Moinester". Militarytimes.com. Retrieved 13 June 2014.
^ "USS Moinester (DE 1097)". navsource.org. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
^ Friedman, pp. 357–60, 425
^ Gardiner, Chumley & Budzbon, p. 598
^ Friedman, pp. 360–61; Gardiner, Chumley & Budzbon, p. 598

References

Friedman, Norman (1982). U.S. Destroyers: An Illustrated Design History. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 0-87021-733-X.
Gardiner, Robert; Chumbley, Stephen & Budzbon, Przemysław (1995). Conway's All the World's Fighting Ships 1947-1995. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-132-7.
USS Moinester on NavSource.org

External links

USS Moinester (DE 1097)
Naval Vessel Registry - FF1097
Navsource images
A Sailor's Homepage: http://FF1097.dancom.com; alt: http://www.dancom.com/ff1097

[Wertheim-1] Wertheim, Eric, ed. (2017). "Egypt". The Naval Institute Guide to Combat Fleets of the World: Their Ships, Aircraft, and Systems (15th ed.). Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. p. 172. ISBN 978-1-59114-955-2. OCLC 140283156.

[2] "Robert William Moinester". Militarytimes.com. Retrieved 13 June 2014.

[3] "USS Moinester (DE 1097)". navsource.org. Retrieved 27 June 2024.

[4] Friedman, pp. 357–60, 425

[g8-5] Gardiner, Chumley & Budzbon, p. 598

[6] Friedman, pp. 360–61; Gardiner, Chumley & Budzbon, p. 598

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