USS Thorn (DD-988), a Spruance-class destroyer, was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for Lieutenant Jonathan Thorn (1779–1811), who took part in Decatur's expedition to destroy the captured frigate Philadelphia in 1804.[1]

USS Thorn on 1 January 1984
History
United States
Name	Thorn
Namesake	Jonathan Thorn
Ordered	15 January 1975
Builder	Ingalls Shipbuilding
Laid down	29 August 1977
Launched	3 February 1979
Acquired	21 January 1980
Commissioned	16 February 1980
Decommissioned	25 August 2004
Stricken	25 August 2004
Identification	Callsign: NOPQ Hull number: DD-988
Motto	Sharply Perseverant
Fate	Sunk as target, 22 July 2006
Badge
General characteristics
Class and type	Spruance-class destroyer
Displacement	8,040 (long) tons full load
Length	529 ft (161 m) waterline; 563 ft (172 m) overall
Beam	55 ft (16.8 m)
Draft	29 ft (8.8 m)
Propulsion	4 × General Electric LM2500 gas turbines, 2 shafts, 80,000 shp (60 MW)
Speed	32.5 knots (60.2 km/h; 37.4 mph)
Range	6,000 nautical miles (11,000 km; 6,900 mi) at 20 knots (37 km/h; 23 mph) 3,300 nautical miles (6,100 km; 3,800 mi) at 30 knots (56 km/h; 35 mph)
Complement	19 officers, 315 enlisted
Sensors and processing systems	AN/SPS-40 air search radar AN/SPG-60 fire control radar AN/SPS-55 surface search radar AN/SPQ-9 gun fire control radar Mk 23 TAS automatic detection and tracking radar AN/SPS-65 Missile fire control radar AN/SQS-53 bow mounted Active sonar AN/SQR-19 TACTAS towed array Passive sonar Naval Tactical Data System
Electronic warfare & decoys	AN/SLQ-32 Electronic Warfare System AN/SLQ-25 Nixie Torpedo Countermeasures Mark 36 SRBOC Decoy Launching System AN/SLQ-49 Inflatable Decoys
Armament	2 x 5 in (127 mm) 54 calibre Mark 45 dual purpose guns 2 x 20 mm Phalanx CIWS Mark 15 guns 1 x 8 cell ASROC launcher (removed) 1 x 8 cell NATO Sea Sparrow Mark 29 missile launcher 2 x quadruple Harpoon missile canisters 2 x Mark 32 triple 12.75 in (324 mm) torpedo tubes (Mk 46 torpedoes) 1 x 61 cell Mk 41 VLS launcher for Tomahawk missiles 1 × 21 cell RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile
Aircraft carried	2 x Sikorsky SH-60 Seahawk LAMPS III helicopters.

Construction and career

Thorn was laid down on 29 August 1977 by Ingalls Shipbuilding, Pascagoula, Miss.; launched on 22 November 1978 (Thorn was christened on 3 February 1979 by Mrs. Patricia Ansley); and commissioned on 16 February 1980.[2]

Thorn was decommissioned and stricken from the Navy list on 25 August 2004.

Thorn was sunk as a test/target at 08:50 on 22 July 2006 off the US east coast. The Thorn currently rests at a depth of 12,792 feet (3,899 m) at 32°59′04″N 75°06′54″W.[3]

Gallery

• 
  USS Thorn in the 1980s
• 
  USS Thorn and USS William V. Pratt in the Atlantic Ocean in 1981
• 
  USS Thorn in the Atlantic Ocean on 5 September 2003
• 
  USS Thorn on 1 October 1984

See also

• List of United States Navy destroyers

References

External links

• Photo gallery of USS Thorn at NavSource Naval History
• "USS Thorn (DD 988)". navysite.de.

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