Philippine Navy Decommissions Oldest World War II Warship
PS-11 Rajah Humabon, the oldest World War II-era destroyer,
has been decommissioned by the Philippines after four decades of service.
The Philippine Navy decommissioned the last of its World War II-era warships
and one of the oldest naval ships in the world still in service, PS-11 Rajah Humabon,
after four decades of service, according to a report by Philippines News Agency.
https://cdn5.img.sputniknews.com/images/106264/33/1062643376.jpg
A decommissioning ceremony took place Thursday at a naval base in Sangley Point,
Cavite province, attended by former commanding officers who had served aboard the ship.
The ship had been commissioned on August 29, 1943, as US Navy destroyer
escort USS Atherton, and had patrolled the Atlantic during the war.
In 1945, the US Navy decommissioned the ship and in 1955 transferred it
to the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force. The ship served in Japan for 20 years,
after which it was technically returned to US Navy in 1975 while physically
remaining in Japan. One year later, the ship was transferred to
the Phillipines Navy, after an extensive refit in South Korea.
Renamed PS-11 Rajah Humabon, the former USS Atherton became the Philippine
flagship until Del Pilar-class ships arrived from the US in 2011.
The Rajah Humabon then served as a ceremonial ship for welcoming
foreign visiting warships in Manila Bay, serving 38 years in the Philippine Navy.
https://sputniknews.com/asia/201803181062643461-philippine-navy-warship-decommission/
