Thach Decommissioned; Final Deployment Was to Fight War on Drugs

The guided-missile frigate USS Thach was decommissioned in a ceremony Friday at Navy Base San Diego.

The Thach is the seventh frigate to be retired this year. The type of vessel is being replaced by the new littoral combat ships, which are designed for combat in coastal waters.

Cmdr. Hans Lynch, Thach's final commanding officer, called it a great ship that served the country well more about 30 years.

"She has gone on 16 deployments, she has fired over a million rounds of various types of ammunition, she has traveled over 600,000 miles," Lynch said at the ceremony. "Her galley has served nearly 6 million meals, and over 4,500 proud Americans have served aboard her."

Lynch said his tour as commanding officer was very rewarding, especially during the ship's final deployment conducting counter-narcotics operations in the U.S. 4th Fleet area of responsibility. The sailors seized 379 kilograms of cocaine and more than 1,100 pounds of marijuana, with an estimated street value of more than $10 million, according to the Navy.

Around 35 of the Thach's Oliver Hazard Perry class of frigates have already been decommissioned, according to the Navy.

The 453-foot-long Thach is named for the late Admiral John S. "Jimmy" Thach, a Navy aviator during World War II.

Thach was stationed in San Diego when he invented a dogfighting tactic known as the Thach Weave. The tactic, which involves two or more fighter pilots working together to cross paths two or more times in order to turn the tables on an enemy attack, allowed Navy pilots to overcome the maneuverability advantage of Japanese aircraft.

Members of Thach's family attended the ceremony. Navy officials said more would have come, but a family member was graduating from the Marine East Coast boot camp at Perris Island, N.C.

Several current and former crew members also were on hand, including those who served on the first crew -- who are called "plank owners."