The subjects of Franklin's superior monograph constituted the most numerous class of U.S. Navy destroyer escorts during World War II. More than 150 were built, and they served in several allies' navies (some 50 in the British) in both the Atlantic and the Pacific. They fought long and hard, taking and inflicting heavy casualties in antisubmarine warfare. Later they survived the kamikazes off Okinawa. Many, rearmed or converted into destroyer transports, were still serving in friendly Third World navies 30 years after their launching. Franklin has comprehensively researched the book, and the effort has elicited much new and useful information, such as the design compromises that shortages of materials and facilities forced on even the lavish U.S. wartime production machine. Graphic material includes comprehensive plans as well as illustrations of most ships of the class. Lovers of World War II ships will accord Franklin and the publisher a hearty "Well done."
Roland Green
Synopsis
Details the largest class of destroy escorts ever built, drawing on photographs, first-hand accounts, ship plans, and other sources. Explains how the US design was intended for the British but used by the US as well when it entered World War II, and how it became the dominant anti-submarine vessel in both the Atlantic and Pacific theaters. Annotati
