USS JOHN WILLIS (DE-1027)

• Namesake Honor: USS John Willis (DE-1027) was named after Pharmacist’s Mate First Class John Harlan Willis, a WWII Medal of Honor recipient who heroically sacrificed himself tending wounded Marines during the Battle of Iwo Jima. • Class and Type: She was a Dealey-class destroyer escort (later reclassified as a “fast escort”), one of the first modern US Navy ships built specifically for anti-submarine warfare during the Cold War. • Commissioning Date: The ship was commissioned on 21 February 1957 at the Boston Naval Shipyard, with Lieutenant Commander R. H. Roper in command. • NATO Exercises: USS John Willis participated in several major NATO exercises, including “Strikeback” (1957), which was one of the largest peacetime naval exercises ever held at the time. • First to Test Variable Depth Sonar: In 1958, she became the first US Navy ship to test the revolutionary Variable Depth Sonar (VDS), a key advancement in anti-submarine warfare. • Cuban Missile Crisis: During the Cuban Missile Crisis in October 1962, John Willis played a role in the US naval quarantine of Cuba, helping to enforce the blockade. • Rescue Operations: The ship performed several rescue missions at sea, including saving the crew of a sinking fishing boat and assisting distressed merchant vessels in the Atlantic. • Goodwill Visits: John Willis made goodwill visits to multiple foreign ports, including in France, Spain, Portugal, and the Caribbean, strengthening diplomatic relations during the tense Cold War era. • Vietnam War Service: Though primarily an Atlantic Fleet ship, she deployed to the Mediterranean and the Middle East, and later participated in support operations during the Vietnam War era. • Decommissioning and Fate: After over 17 years of service, USS John Willis was decommissioned on 3 July 1973 and subsequently sold for scrap in 1974, closing the chapter on a distinguished Cold War naval career.