Michael Volgraf

USS John Hancock (DD-981) was a Spruance-class destroyer commissioned into the United States Navy on March 10, 1979. Named after the prominent American patriot John Hancock, the ship served extensively during the Cold War, participating in numerous exercises and deployments in the Atlantic, Mediterranean, and Persian Gulf. Notably, USS John Hancock supported Operation Earnest Will, escorting reflagged Kuwaiti oil tankers during the Iran-Iraq War in the late 1980s. After nearly 22 years of service, the destroyer was decommissioned on September 16, 2000, and later sunk as a target during naval exercises in 2004.