PCE-842-class patrol craft


The PCE-842-class patrol craft escort was a United States Navy ship class of submarine chasers designed during World War II. The PCE-842-class was the only class ever designated by the USN as the "patrol craft escort" type. The PCE design was derived from the to complement the s that were used for anti-submarine warfare in coastal areas. At 185 feet long and 640 tons, the PCE is more than twice the displacement of the PC but with a less powerful engine also much slower; however, because of its larger size, the PCE was able to undertake longer-range tasks over PC-461-class vessels. The USN envisaged the PCE as enabling PCs and smaller vessels to undertake coastal patrols without being called-upon as often to perform open ocean and convoy escort duties, while simultaneously freeing-up some larger vessels - such as destroyer escorts and destroyers - from convoy ASW duties. The PCE-482-class had a standard crew complement of 99 officers and men. The class would ultimately see 68 total vessels built, serving with multiple navies around the world.

Development and design

The Admirable class had been developed as a smaller minesweeper than the and s, which would be cheaper and easier to build, while still having good seakeeping capabilities in high seas. An escort derivative of the new design was proposed for supply under the Lend-Lease scheme to Britain's Royal Navy, and when the United States Navy realized that a shortage of engines might prevent it from receiving additional s beyond those already on order, it was decided to build the escort variant, designated as Patrol Craft Escort for both the US Navy and Royal Navy.
The ships were long overall and between perpendiculars, with a beam of and a draft of. Displacement was standard and full load. They were powered by two General Motors 12-278A diesel engines driving two shafts via single reduction gearing. This gave a speed of. The ships had a range of at.
The normal armament on completion consisted of a single [3"/50 caliber gun|] gun forward, two 40 mm anti-aircraft guns, backed up by 4 or 5 Oerlikon 20 mm cannon. A Hedgehog anti-submarine mortar was mounted between the 3 inch gun and the ship's bridge, while depth charge projectors and rails were mounted on the ships' fantail. Later ships were fitted with a third Bofors gun and additional Oerlikons, while ships were later modified to mount three twin Bofors mounts and four Oerlikons. Some ships were armed with two 3-inch guns and three Oerlikons.

Detection equipment

The class was fitted with radar, sonar and other detection equipment for ASW.

Conversions

Some PCEs were later converted to Rescue Escorts, PCE, and to Amphibious Control Vessels, PCE, which were used in many U.S. amphibious landing operations during World War II, especially Leyte Gulf and Normandy. Two such ships, which were converted to Rescue Escorts, were the USS Somersworth and USS Fairview, both of which were present at the surrender of Japan in Tokyo Bay on 2 September 1945.

Production

Sixty-eight Patrol Craft Escorts were built for the US Navy, and seventeen were delivered under the Lend-Lease Program to Allies during World War II. The PCEs proved to be an inexpensive substitute for larger and more valuable destroyers and destroyer escorts in convoy escort work.

Philippine Navy

, the Philippine Navy still operates the with six PCEs as gun corvettes, with all the ships' ASW equipment already removed. The PCE is the most numerous major ship class of the Philippine Navy that, at one time, numbered more than ten vessels.

Ships

68 boats listed: 827... 860, 867... 886, 891... 904
Ship nameHull numberBuilderOriginal navy of serviceStatus
KilberniePCE-827Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois16 July 1943June 1945Sold to a commercial interest, 1947; sold for scrap, August 1997
KilbridePCE-828Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois31 July 19431945Sold to a commercial interest, 1947; sold for scrap, 1988
KilchattenPCE-829Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois16 August 194312 July 1945Sold to a commercial interest, 1947; sold for scrap, 1983
KilchrenanPCE-830Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois31 August 19431945Sold to a commercial interest, 1947; currently in service as of 2019 as a ferry. After conversion to ferry and passenger boat she sailed under the name MS Sunnhordland, a name she still carries. The ship was fully restored in 2016 and is now operating as a historic ship at the west coast of Norway.
KildaryPCE-831Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois14 September 19431945Sold to a commercial interest, 1947; sold for scrap, 1980
KildwickPCE-832Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois27 September 19431945Sold to a commercial interest, 1947; sunk while under tow, October 1983
KilhamPCE-833Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois9 October 19431945Built in 1943 for the US Navy by the Pullman Car Company. Constructed of reinforced steel. Laid down 1943 February 26 as PCE-833 by the Pullman Standard Car Co., Chicago, IL. Launched 1943 August. Transferred 1943 October To Great Britain and commissioned HMS Kilham ; Reclassified BEC-7. Returned 1946 to U.S. custody in December; Struck from the Navy Register in 1947. Sold 1949 to S/A Investment of Bergen, Norway. Converted 1950 renamed M/S Sognefjord passenger ship. Sold 1958 to FylkesbataaneSogne og Fjordane of Bergen; Operated on the Norwegian west coast until 1982. Sold 1982 to Filmeffekt A/S of Oslo, Norway, and renamed Orion. Sold 1984 to K/S Orion Film A/S of Bergen and laid up. Sold 1987 to Matkat OY of Helsingfors, Finland. Sold 1991 to Orion Risteilyt O/Y of Hamina, Finland, and renamed Orion II. Sold 1996 to Jaako Mathias Eriksson of Honduras. Sold 1997 renamed ORIENT EXPLORER. Listed for sale in Sabah, Malaysia, 2019 for $129,000.
KilkenziePCE-834Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois20 October 1943July 1945Sold to a commercial interest, 1948; sold for scrap, 1978
KilkhamptonPCE-835Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois30 Oct 19431945Returned to the United States, December 1946; fate unknown
KilmacolmPCE-836Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois6 November 19431945Sold to a commercial interest, 1952; fate unknown
KilmarnockPCE-837Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois13 November 19431945Sold to a commercial interest, 1949; wrecked 5 January 1951
KilmartinPCE-838Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois11 December 19431945Sold to a commercial interest, 1947; sold for scrap, 12 June 1969
KilmelfordPCE-839Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois8 December 19431945Sold to a commercial interest, 1949; fate unknown
KilmingtonPCE-840Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois11 December 19431945Sold to a commercial interest, 1951; sold for scrap, 2007
KilmorePCE-841Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois24 December 19431945Sold to a commercial interest, 1947; fate unknown
MarfaPCE-842Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois29 January 194417 August 1955Transferred to South Korea, 18 December 1961; Sunk by North Korean shore battery fire, 19 January 1967
SkowheganPCE-843Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois30 January 1944March 1955Sold to a commercial interest, 1961; fate unknown
n/aPCE-844Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois18 February 1944November 1947sold to the Mexican Navy and named ARM Pedro Sainz De Barandas. Fate unknown.
WorlandPCE-845Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois1 March 194425 May 1964Transferred to United States Navy Reserve as Naval Reserve Training Ship for 9th Naval District on 11 December 1950 and served on the Great Lakes. Transferred to State of North Carolina, Cape Fear Technical Institute, Wilmington, NC, 6 August 1964 and renamed R/V Advance II. Sold in 1980 to the Standard Products Co., Inc. of Wilmington, North Carolina. Donated to the North Carolina Division of Marine Fisheries 15 October 1993. Sunk 21 June 1994 off Kitty Hawk as part of their artificial reef program.
EunicePCE 846Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois4 March 1944UnknownTransferred to Ecuador, 29 November 1960; fate unknown
n/aPCE-847Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois18 March 1944UnknownTransferred to Mexico, November 1947; fate unknown
n/aPCE-848Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois30 March 1944March 1946Sold for scrap, January 1947
SomersworthPCE-849Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois11 April 1944September 1965Sold for scrap, 1972
FairviewPCE-850Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois17 April 19441 May 1968Sold to a commercial interest, 1969; fate unknown
RockvillePCE-851Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois15 May 194421 December 1968Transferred to Colombia, 1969 as ARC San Andres before being sent to the Colombian Coast Guard. Decommissioned in the late 1980s.
BrattleboroPCE-852Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois26 May 19441 November 1965Transferred to South Vietnam, 11 July 1966; later fled to the Philippines in 1975 after the fall of South Vietnam. Served in the Philippine Navy as BRP Miguel Malvar. Decommissioned 2021. Sunk 5/5/2025 while under tow, hours before she was to be expended as a live fire target.
AmherstPCE-853Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois15 June 19446 February 1970Transferred to South Vietnam, 3 June 1970; later fled to the Philippines in 1975 after the fall of South Vietnam; served in PhN as BRP Datu Marikudo, decommissioned 2010 Dec 9; equipment stripped for spares, hull sold for scrap
n/aPCE-854Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois4 January 19451945Sold to a commercial interest, 1945; fate unknown
RexburgPCE-855Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois1 November 19442 March 1970Sold to a commercial interest, 28 October 1970; last documented, 2009; fate unknown
WhitehallPCE-856Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois11 November 19441 July 1970Transferred to United States Navy Reserve as Naval Reserve Training Ship for 4th Naval District July 1946. Decommissioned 1 July 1970 and sold to Eastern Seaboard Pile-Driving of Montvale and renamed Donna Marie. Converted to a tug in 1974. Sold to Standard Products Co. Inc. of Reedsville, Virginia, and renamed Atlantic Surf in 1980. Sold to Omega Protein Inc. of Hammond, Louisiana, and renamed Atlantic Shore. Fate unknown.
MarysvillePCE-857Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois26 April 1945July 1970Sold to a commercial interest, 1975; last documented, 1995; fate unknown
JacksonPCE-858Pullman Company, Chicago, IllinoisUnited States Coast Guard16 May 194524 July 1947Transferred to United States Coast Guard to replace the sunken USCGC Jackson (WSC-142). Renamed USCGC Jackson, she was berthed at Curtis Bay, Maryland, until decommission due to lack of crew.
Sold to a commercial interest, 23 December 1947; fate unknown
n/aPCE-859Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois10 March 19451947Fate unknown
n/aPCE-860Pullman Company, Chicago, Illinois31 March 1945April 1946recommissioned as
n/aPCE-867Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon20 June 1943UnknownTransferred to the Republic of China, 7 February 1948; damaged in action with Communist Chinese forces 14 November 1965 and later scrapped
n/aPCE-868Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon31 August 194329 October 1947Transferred to Mexico, 8 November 1947; sold for scrap, 1995
n/aPCE-869Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon19 September 19431 July 1971Transferred to Republic of China, 28 August 1945; fate unknown
DaniaPCE-870Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon5 October 194318 October 1946Transferred to South Korea, 9 December 1961; fate unknown
n/aPCE-871Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon29 October 194324 November 1947Transferred to Mexico, 24 November 1947; sold for scrap, 1965
n/aPCE-872Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon29 November 1943UnknownTransferred to Cuba, 1 October 1947; fate unknown
n/aPCE-873Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon15 December 19431947Transferred to South Korea, 1 November 1974; fate unknown
PascagoulaPCE-874Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon31 December 19431 May 1959Transferred to Ecuador, 5 December 1960; fate unknown
n/aPCE-875Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon19 January 1944UnknownTransferred to Mexico, November 1947; fate unknown
LodestonePCE-876Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon10 June 194421 February 1975Sold for scrap, 1 May 1976
HavrePCE-877Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon14 February 19441 July 1970Transferred to United States Navy Reserve as Naval Reserve Training Ship for 9th Naval District in April 1954 and served on the Great Lakes until struck from Navy list 1 July 1970. Fate unknown.
ButtressPCE-878Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon13 March 194424 February 1947Sold to a commercial interest, 1952; sunk as a target, 1990s
MagnetPCE-879Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon10 July 19441975Sunk as a target 4 March 1976
ElyPCE-880Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon29 April 19441 July 1970Transferred to United States Navy Reserve as Naval Reserve Training Ship for 9th Naval District in August 1947 and served on the Great Lakes. Transferred 3 September 1970 to the State of Maine South Portland, ME and renamed R/V Aqualab II. Sold in 1972 to Kirks Marine Enterprise, Inc. of Dover, Delaware. Sold in 1975 to Norman Industries, Inc. of Lafayette, Louisiana. Acquired in 1978 by Standard Products Co., Inc. of Kilmarnock, Virginia, and renamed Atlantic Mist. Acquired in 1989 by Ampro Fisheries, Inc. of Burgess, Virginia. Acquired by Omega Protein, Inc. of Moss Point, Mississippi. Sunk 16 January 2010 as part of an artificial reef approximately 26 miles southeast of Indian River Inlet, Delaware.
n/aPCE-881Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon31 July 1944UnknownTransferred to the Philippines, July 1948; commissioned as BRP Cebu, decommissioned 1 Oct 2019
n/aPCE-882Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon23 February 1945UnknownTransferred to South Korea, 1 November 1974; fate unknown
DepermPCE-883Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon194521 February 1975Sunk as a target, 22 September 1982
n/aPCE-884Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon30 March 1945UnknownTransferred to the Philippines, in June 1948; commissioned as BRP Negros Occidental, decommissioned 2010 Dec 9, equipment stripped for spares, hull sold for scrap
n/aPCE-885Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon30 April 1945UnknownTransferred to the Philippines, 1 June 1948; commissioned as RPS Leyte, ran aground and sank, 1979
BanningPCE-886Albina Engine & Machine Works, Portland, Oregon31 May 19451 May 1961Became a museum ship, July 1961; sold to a commercial interest, 1972; sank, 1 October 1973
n/aPCE-891Willamette Iron and Steel Works, Portland, Oregon15 June 1944UnknownTransferred to the Philippines, 1 June 1948; commissioned as BRP Pangasinan, decommissioned 2021 Mar 1. Sunk as a target on 26 April 2023 as part of the Balikatan 2023 exercise.
SomersetPCE-892Willamette Iron and Steel Works, Portland, Oregon8 July 1944March 1955Transferred to South Korea, 13 December 1961; fate unknown
n/aPCE-893Willamette Iron and Steel Works, Portland, Oregon25 July 194420 November 1947Transferred to Cuba, 20 November 1947; fate unknown
FarmingtonPCE-894Willamette Iron and Steel Works, Portland, Oregon10 August 194419 December 1947Transferred to United States Navy Reserve as Naval Reserve Training Ship for 9th Naval District in 1948 and served on the Great Lakes. Removed from Navy List on 1 December 1964. Transferred to Burma, 31 May 1965; sold for scrap, 2000
CrestviewPCE-895Willamette Iron and Steel Works, Portland, Oregon30 October 1944UnknownTransferred to South Vietnam 29 November 1961; escaped to the Philippines, 1975; commissioned in PhN as BRP Sultan Kudarat, retired 2019 July 5
n/aPCE-896Willamette Iron and Steel Works, Portland, Oregon27 November 1944UnknownTransferred to South Korea, 1 November 1974; fate unknown
n/aPCE-897Willamette Iron and Steel Works, Portland, Oregon6 January 1945UnknownTransferred to the Philippines in April 1948; commissioned in PhN as BRP Iloilo, decommissioned 2016 Sep, equipment stripped for spares, hull awaiting disposal
n/aPCE-898Willamette Iron and Steel Works, Portland, Oregon24 January 1945UnknownTransferred to South Korea 1 November 1974; fate unknown
LamarPCE-899Willamette Iron and Steel Works, Portland, Oregon17 March 194530 September 1969Transferred to United States Navy Reserve as Naval Reserve Training Ship for 9th Naval District on 13 December 1950 and served on the Great Lakes. Transferred to U.S. Coast Guard 29 July 1964. Arrived Monterey, California 14 December 1965 as training vessel. Decommissioned 30 September 1969. Sold as scrap to Foison Industries Corporation in Taiwan 8 November 1971.
GrotonPCE-900Willamette Iron and Steel Works, Portland, Oregon12 April 194419 August 1955Sold to a commercial interest, 1975; abandoned near Reedville, Virginia
Parris IslandPCE-901Willamette Iron and Steel Works, Portland, Oregon30 October 194419 June 1947Sold to a commercial interest, 20 January 1948; sold for scrap, 1990
PortagePCE-902Willamette Iron and Steel Works, Portland, Oregon30 April 19451949Transferred to United States Navy Reserve as Naval Reserve Training Ship for 9th Naval District 7 May 1950 and served on the Great Lakes until struck from Navy list 1 July 1970. Sold to Standard Products Co., Inc. of Kilmarnock, Virginia, and renamed Atlantic Venture. Acquired in 1989 by Ampro Fisheries, Inc. of Burgess, Virginia. Fate unknown.
BatesburgPCE-903Willamette Iron and Steel Works, Portland, Oregon16 May 19456 September 1955Transferred to South Korea, 13 December 1961; fate unknown
Gettysburg''PCE-904Willamette Iron and Steel Works, Portland, Oregon31 May 19452 September 1955Sold for scrap 23 June 1960