View source for USS Coronado (PF-38)

{{short description|Tacoma-class patrol frigate}}
{{other ships|USS Coronado}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin}}
{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image= USS Coronado PF38.jpg
|Ship caption= JDS ''Sugi'', ex-USS ''Coronado'' (PF-38), in [[Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force]] service, {{circa}} 1956.
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Ship country=United States
|Ship flag={{USN flag|1945}}
|Ship name= ''Coronado''
|Ship namesake= City of [[Coronado, California|Coronado]], California
|Ship reclassified=PF-38, 15 April 1943
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=yes
|Ship builder=[[Consolidated Steel Corporation]], [[Wilmington, Los Angeles|Wilmington]], [[California]]
|Ship laid down=6 May 1943
|Ship launched=17 June 1943
|Ship sponsor= Mrs. J. R. Crutchfield
|Ship commissioned=17 November 1943
|Ship decommissioned=12 July 1945
|Ship honors=4 [[battle star]]s, [[World War II]]
|Ship fate=Transferred to [[Soviet Navy]], 12 July 1945<ref name="transfer date">[http://www.navsource.net/archives/12/08038.htm NavSource Online: Frigate Photo Archive Coronado (PF 38) ex-PG-146] states that ''Coronado'' was transferred to the Soviet Navy on 13 July 1945, but the [https://web.archive.org/web/20040314081128/http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/c14/coronado.htm ''Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships'' ''Coronado''] article states that ''Coronado'' was transferred on 12 July 1945 and [http://www.hazegray.org/danfs/patrol/pf38.htm hazegray.org ''Corondao''] repeats this. Russell, Richard A., ''Project Hula: Secret Soviet-American Cooperation in the War Against Japan'', Washington, D.C.: [[Naval Historical Center]], 1997, {{ISBN|0-945274-35-1}}, p. 39, which includes access to Soviet-era records unavailable during the [[Cold War]], also reports that the transfer date was 12 July 1945. As sources, Russell cites Department of the Navy, ''Ships Data: U.S. Naval Vessels'' Volume II, 1 January 1949, (NAVSHIPS 250-012), Washington, DC: Bureau of Ships, 1949; and Berezhnoi, S. S., ''Flot SSSR: Korabli i suda lendliza: Spravochnik'' ("The Soviet Navy: Lend-Lease Ships and Vessels: A Reference"), St. Petersburg, Russia: Belen, 1994.</ref>
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=yes
|Ship acquired=Returned by Soviet Navy, 16 October 1949
|Ship struck=14 January 1953
|Ship fate=Transferred to [[Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force]], 14 January 1953
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=yes
|Ship acquired=Returned by Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, 9&nbsp;July&nbsp;1971
|Ship fate=Allocated to [[Japan]] for use as [[target ship]] 1971
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Ship country=Soviet Union
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|Soviet Union|naval-1935}}
|Ship name= ''EK-8''<ref name="Soviet name">[http://www.navsource.net/archives/12/080038.htm NavSource Online: Frigate Photo Archive Coronado (PF 38) ex-PG-146]{{Dead link|date=July 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} states that ''Coronado'' was named ''EK-6'' in Soviet service, but Russell, Richard A., ''Project Hula: Secret Soviet-American Cooperation in the War Against Japan'', Washington, D.C.: [[Naval Historical Center]], 1997, {{ISBN|0-945274-35-1}}, p. 39, which includes access to Soviet-era records unavailable during the [[Cold War]], reports that the ship's Soviet name was ''EK-8''. As sources, Russell cites Department of the Navy, ''Ships Data: U.S. Naval Vessels'' Volume II, 1 January 1949, (NAVSHIPS 250-012), Washington, DC: Bureau of Ships, 1949; and Berezhnoi, S. S., ''Flot SSSR: Korabli i suda lendliza: Spravochnik'' ("The Soviet Navy: Lend-Lease Ships and Vessels: A Reference"), St. Petersburg, Russia: Belen, 1994.</ref>
|Ship acquired=12 July 1945<ref name="transfer date"/>
|Ship commissioned=12 July 1945<ref name="Soviet commissioning date">According to Russell, Richard A., ''Project Hula: Secret Soviet-American Cooperation in the War Against Japan'', Washington, D.C.: [[Naval Historical Center]], 1997, {{ISBN|0-945274-35-1}}, p.27, states that ''Coronado'' was commissioned into the Soviet Navy on 12 July 1945 immediately after her U.S. Navy decommissioning and transfer to the Soviet Union that day. As sources, Russell cites Department of the Navy, ''Ships Data: U.S. Naval Vessels'' Volume II, 1 January 1949, (NAVSHIPS 250-012), Washington, DC: Bureau of Ships, 1949; and Berezhnoi, S. S., ''Flot SSSR: Korabli i suda lendliza: Spravochnik'' ("The Soviet Navy: Lend-Lease Ships and Vessels: A Reference"), St. Petersburg, Russia: Belen, 1994.</ref>
|Ship decommissioned=
|Ship struck=
|Ship renamed=
|Ship fate=Returned to United States, 16 October 1949
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Ship country=Japan
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|Japan|naval}}
|Ship name=JDS ''Sugi'' (PF-285)
|Ship acquired=14 January 1953
|Ship commissioned=1953
|Ship decommissioned=31 March 1969
|Ship struck=
|Ship fate=*Returned to United States, 9 July 1971
*Allocated to Japan for use as [[target ship]] 1971
*Sunk as target 10 August 1971
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
|Ship class= {{sclass|Tacoma|frigate|1}}
|Ship displacement=*{{convert|1430|LT|t|0|abbr=on}} light
*{{convert|2415|LT|t|0|abbr=on}} full
|Ship length= {{convert|303|ft|11|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam= {{convert|37|ft|6|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship draft= {{convert|13|ft|8|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship depth=
|Ship hold depth=
|Ship propulsion=*2 × {{convert|5500|shp|abbr=on}} turbines
*3 boilers
*2 shafts
|Ship speed= {{convert|20|kn|lk=in}}
|Ship range=
|Ship complement=190
|Ship armament=*3 × [[3"/50 caliber gun]]s (3×1)
*3 × [[3"/50 caliber gun|3"/50 dual purpose]] guns (3x1)
*4 x [[Bofors 40 mm Automatic Gun L/60|40&nbsp;mm gun]]s (2×2)
*9 × [[Oerlikon 20 mm cannon|20&nbsp;mm gun]]s (9×1)
*1 × [[Hedgehog (weapon)|Hedgehog]] [[anti-submarine mortar]]
*8 × [[Y-gun]] depth charge projectors
*2 × Depth charge tracks
|Ship armor=
|Ship notes=
}}
|}
'''USS ''Coronado'' (PG-146/PF-38)''', a {{sclass|Tacoma|frigate}}, was the first ship of the [[United States Navy]] named for [[Coronado, California]], a city adjacent to [[Naval Air Station North Island]] in San Diego. After [[World War II]] service in the U.S. Navy, she served in the [[Soviet Navy]] as '''''EK-8''''' and later in the [[Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force]] as '''''Sugi'' (PF-5)''' and '''''Sugi'' (PF-285)'''.

==Construction and commissioning==
Originally classified as a patrol [[gunboat]], '''PG-146''', ''Coronado'' was reclassified as a [[patrol frigate]] on 15 April 1943. She was [[Keel laying|laid down]] by the [[Consolidated Steel Corporation]] of [[Wilmington, Los Angeles|Wilmington, California]], under a [[Maritime Commission]] contract (MC Type T. S2-S2-AQ1) on 6 May 1943. She was [[ship naming and launching|launched]] on 17 June 1943, sponsored by Mrs. J. R. Crutchfield, and [[ship commissioning|commissioned]] on 17 November 1943.<ref>[http://www.navsource.net/archives/12/08038.htm NavSource Online: Frigate Photo Archive: Coronado (PF 38) ex-PG-146]</ref>

==Service history==

===U.S. Navy, World War II, 1944–1945===
''Coronado'' sailed from San Diego, California, on 8 February 1944, for [[convoy]] escort duty to [[Nouméa]], [[New Caledonia]], and [[Cairns]], [[Australia]], en route to [[New Guinea]], arriving there on 25 March.  After escorting troop and cargo transports to [[Manus Island|Manus]] to support the landings there, she returned to the New Guinea area for the operations in the western part of that island, taking part in the landings on [[Biak]] from 28 May to 17 June, at [[Cape Sansapor]] from 15 to 18 August, and on [[Morotai]] on 15 September.

''Coronado'' sailed from [[Yos Sudarso Bay|Humboldt Bay]] on 10 October 1944, to join in the [[Battle of Leyte|Leyte operation]], and served on escort and patrol duty between [[Leyte]] and New Guinea until 15 December 1944. She arrived at [[Boston]], [[Massachusetts]], on 24 January 1945 for an [[wikt:overhaul|overhaul]] of her main engines and boilers and various modifications, followed by refresher training in [[Casco Bay]], [[Maine]]. On 28 March 1945, Escort Division 25, consisting of ''Coronado'' and her [[sister ship]]s {{USS|Long Beach|PF-34}} (the [[flagship]]), {{USS|Belfast|PF-35}}, {{USS|Glendale|PF-36}}, {{USS|San Pedro|PF-37}}, and {{USS|Ogden|PF-39}}, departed Casco Bay bound for [[Seattle]], [[Washington (state)|Washington]], via the [[Panama Canal]], arriving at Seattle on 26 April 1945. She was moored at the [[Lake Union Lumber Company]] Pier there from 30 April to 16 May 1945, undergoing voyage repairs and further alterations by [[Pacific Electric]] contractors. In late May and early June 1945, she underwent tests and loaded ammunition.<ref>Russell, Richard A., ''Project Hula: Secret Soviet-American Cooperation in the War Against Japan'', Washington, D.C.: [[Naval Historical Center]], 1997, {{ISBN|0-945274-35-1}}, pp 24-25.</ref>

The six patrol frigates of Escort Division 25 got underway for [[Kodiak, Alaska|Kodiak]] in the [[Territory of Alaska]] on 7 June 1945. ''Ogden'' had to return to Seattle for repairs, but ''Coronado'' and the other four frigates arrived at [[Womens Bay, Alaska|Womens Bay]], Kodiak, on 11 June 1945. On 13 June 1945, 43 of her men transferred ashore for reassignment, and later that day ''Coronado'', ''Long Beach'', ''Belfast'', ''Glendale'', ''San Pedro'', and their sister ships {{USS|Charlottesville|PF-25}}, {{USS|Allentown|PF-52}}, {{USS|Machias|PF-53}}, and {{USS|Sandusky|PF-54}} got underway from Kodiak for [[Cold Bay, Alaska|Cold Bay]], Alaska, where they arrived on 14 June 1945 to participate in [[Project Hula]], a secret program for the transfer of U.S. Navy ships to the [[Soviet Navy]] in anticipation of the [[Soviet Union]] joining the war against Japan.<ref>Russell, Richard A., ''Project Hula: Secret Soviet-American Cooperation in the War Against Japan'', Washington, D.C.: [[Naval Historical Center]], 1997, {{ISBN|0-945274-35-1}}, p. 25.</ref>

On 16 June 1945, ''Coronado''{{'}}s ship{{'}}s doctor and two of her deck officers transferred ashore for reassignment and, after she passed a material inspection on 17 June, two Soviet Navy officers and 48 Soviet sailors reported aboard for training on 18 June 1945. On 25 June, she received four more Soviet officers &ndash; one of them designated to serve as her commanding officer after her transfer to the Soviet Navy &ndash; and 45 more Soviet sailors for training, and by 1 July 1945, her entire Soviet crew of 12 officers and 178 enlisted men was aboard. Most of her American crew transferred off the ship at the same time, leaving her with a nucleus American crew of four officers and 44 enlisted men to [[Ship decommissioning|decommission]] her.<ref name="Russell, Richard A. 1997, p. 26">Russell, Richard A., ''Project Hula: Secret Soviet-American Cooperation in the War Against Japan'', Washington, D.C.: [[Naval Historical Center]], 1997, {{ISBN|0-945274-35-1}}, p. 26.</ref>

Training of ''Coronado''{{'}}s new Soviet Navy crew began on 26 June 1945, and she put to sea with them aboard for the first time on 28 June. Soviet crewmen conducted gunnery practice that day, and the Americans aboard demonstrated fueling, towing at sea, and use of her [[sonar]] equipment on 29 June 1945. On 30 June, the Soviet crew took complete control of the operation of the ship. Long days of training continued every day until completed on 8 July 1945. Three days of fueling and provisioning ''Coronado'' followed in preparation for her formal transfer to the Soviet Navy.<ref name="Russell, Richard A. 1997, p. 26"/>

===Soviet Navy, 1945–1949===
''Coronado'' was decommissioned 12 July 1945, at Cold Bay,<ref name="transfer date"/> and transferred to the Soviet Union under [[Lend-Lease]] immediately<ref name="transfer date"/> along with nine of her sister ships, the first group of 10 patrol frigates transferred to the Soviet Navy. Commissioned into the Soviet Navy immediately,<ref name="Soviet commissioning date"/> she was designated as a ''storozhevoi korabl'' ("escort ship") and renamed '''''EK-8'''''<ref name="Soviet name"/> in Soviet service. On 15 July 1945, ''EK-8'' departed Cold Bay in company with her nine sister ships &ndash; ''EK-1'' (ex-''Charlottesville''), ''EK-2'' (ex-''Long Beach''), ''EK-3'' (ex-''Belfast''), ''EK-4'' (ex-''Machias''), ''EK-5'' (ex-''San Pedro''), ''EK-6'' (ex-''Glendale''), ''EK-7'' (ex-''Sandusky''), ''EK-9'' (ex-''Allentown''), and ''EK-10'' (ex-''Ogden'') &ndash; bound for [[Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky]] in the Soviet Union.<ref>Russell, Richard A., ''Project Hula: Secret Soviet-American Cooperation in the War Against Japan'', Washington, D.C.: [[Naval Historical Center]], 1997, {{ISBN|0-945274-35-1}}, pp. 27, 39.</ref> ''EK-8'' served as a [[patrol vessel]] in the [[Soviet Far East]].

In February 1946, the United States began negotiations with the Soviet Union for the return of ships loaned to the Soviet Navy for use during World War II. On 8 May 1947, [[United States Secretary of the Navy]] [[James V. Forrestal]] informed the [[United States Department of State]] that the [[United States Department of the Navy]] wanted 480 of the 585 combatant ships it had transferred to the Soviet Union for World War II use returned, ''EK-8'' among them. Negotiations for the return of the ships was protracted,<ref>Russell, Richard A., ''Project Hula: Secret Soviet-American Cooperation in the War Against Japan'', Washington, D.C.: [[Naval Historical Center]], 1997, {{ISBN|0-945274-35-1}}, pp. 37–38.</ref> but the Soviet Union finally returned ''EK-8'' to the United States at [[United States Fleet Activities Yokosuka|Yokosuka]], Japan, on 16 October 1949.

===Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force, 1953–1971===

{{other ships|Japanese ship Sugi}}

Returning to her original name, ''Coronado'' was placed in reserve at Yokosuka until 14 January 1953, when she became one of the first ships the [[United States]] loaned to Japan under the [[Mutual Defense Assistance Program]] to serve in the Japanese [[Safety Security Force]]  as {{Nihongo|'''''Sugi'' (PF-5)'''|すぎ (PF-5)||"[[Cryptomeria|cedar]]"}}.{{Sfn|The Naval Database}} She simultaneously was assigned to the 2nd Fleet, which was created that day, along with her [[sister ship]] ''Matsu'' (ex-{{USS|Charlottesville|PF-25}}, similarly lent to Japan. ''Sugi'' and ''Matsu'' were assigned to the [[Yokosuka]] District Force. On 1 April 1953, the 2nd Fleet became part of the newly created 1st Fleet Group. The 2nd Fleet later was renamed the 2nd Escort Corps.

In 1954, the Safety Security Force became the [[Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force]] (JMSDF). On 10 May 1957, the 2nd Escort Corps was abolished and its ships became part of the new 1st Training Corps, under which ''Sugi'' participated in the 1st Training Corps's first two oceanic training voyages.''Sugi'' was redesignated '''PF-285''' on 1 September 1957{{Sfn|The Naval Database}} and was transferred to the [[Kure, Hiroshima|Kure]] District Force on 10 December 1964.

The JMSDF decommissioned ''Sugi'' on 31 March 1969 and returned her to U.S. custody on 9 July 1971. The United States subsequently allocated her to Japan for use as a [[target ship]], and a JMSDF escort ship sank her as a target in the Pacific Ocean south of [[Nojimazaki Lighthouse|Nojimazaki]] on 10 August 1971.

==Awards==
The U.S. Navy awarded ''Coronado'' four [[battle star]]s for her World War II service, for the [[Bismarck Archipelago Campaign|Bismarck Archipelago operation]], the [[Battle of Hollandia|Hollandia operation]], the [[Western New Guinea campaign|Western New Guinea operation]], and the [[Battle of Leyte|Leyte Gulf operation]].

==References==
*{{DANFS|http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/c14/coronado.htm}}
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.hazegray.org/danfs/patrol/pf38.htm hazegray.org: USS ''Coronado'' PF-38]
* {{cite web| title = The Naval Database: JMSDF Kusu class patrol frigate (PF285) Sugi | url = http://hush.gooside.com/name/s/Su/sugi.html#anchor197982 | language=ja | ref = {{SfnRef|The Naval Database}} | access-date = 2014-09-22 }}

{{Tacoma class patrol frigate|others}}
{{Project Hula ships}}
{{1971 shipwrecks}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coronado (Pf-38)}}
[[Category:Tacoma-class frigates]]
[[Category:Ships built in Los Angeles]]
[[Category:1943 ships]]
[[Category:World War II frigates and destroyer escorts of the United States]]
[[Category:Tacoma-class frigates of the Soviet Navy]]
[[Category:World War II frigates of the Soviet Union]]
[[Category:Tacoma-class frigates of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force]]
[[Category:Ships transferred under Project Hula]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in 1971]]
[[Category:Ships sunk as targets]]
[[Category:Shipwrecks in the Pacific Ocean]]