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USS Preston (DD-795) Off the San Francisco Bay Naval Shipyard, Hunters Point, California, 22 October 1966.
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| History | |
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| Namesake: | Samuel W. Preston |
| Builder: | Bethlehem Shipbuilding Corporation, San Pedro, California |
| Laid down: | 13 June 1943 |
| Launched: | 12 December 1943 |
| Commissioned: | 20 March 1944 |
| Decommissioned: | 15 November 1969 |
| Struck: | 15 November 1969 |
| Fate: |
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| Name: | İçel (D 344) |
| Acquired: | 15 November 1969 |
| Struck: | 1981 |
| Fate: | Broken up for scrap in 1981 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Fletcher class destroyer |
| Displacement: | 2,940 tons |
| Length: | 376.5 ft (114.8 m) |
| Beam: | 39.3 ft (12.0 m) |
| Draft: | 17.8 ft (5.4 m) |
| Propulsion: |
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| Speed: | 35 knots (65 km/h) |
| Range: |
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| Complement: | 320 |
| Armament: |
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USS Preston (DD-795), a Fletcher-class destroyer, was the sixth ship of the United States Navy to be named for Lieutenant Samuel W. Preston (1840–1865).
Preston was laid down by the Bethlehem Steel Co., Shipbuilding Division, San Pedro, California, 13 June 1943; launched 12 December 1943; sponsored by Mrs. R. F. Gross; and commissioned 20 March 1944, Commander G. S. Patrick in command.
Following shakedown off California and extended exercises in Hawaiian waters, Preston departed Pearl Harbor, for the Marianas combat zone, 1 July 1944. On the 17th, she arrived off Guam and until 8 August screened the transport areas off the assault beaches. Two days in Apra harbor followed, after which she got underway for Eniwetok. On 29 August, she joined Task Force 38 (TF 38) and sailed west. Between 6 and 8 September, she screened the aircraft carriers during strikes against the Palaus; then, continuing on, guarded them during sorties against Japanese positions in the south and central Philippines. On completing runs on the 14th, she returned with the force to the Palaus to cover the landings on Peleliu and Anguar, then sailed back to the Philippines before retiring to Ulithi.