| (1942-1969) was the lead ship of the most famous class of destroyers in the history of the United States Navy. Named after Medal of Honor winner Frank Friday Fletcher, the sleek hull of a Fletcher-class destroyer slicing through the sea with a bone in her teeth is one of the most recognizable images of the Pacific War. Baptized in the fires of the vicious night battles around Guadalcanal in November 1942, she earned her first nickname, Lucky 13. Fletcher served with honor for the remainder of the War making a name for herself independent of her status as First in Class. Whether it was the monotony of patrol duty, a flank speed night battle slugging it out with enemy destroyers, or a pitched battle with shore batteries, Fletcher took her licks and returned to the enemy more than she got. Even when death and destruction visited her on Valentine’s Day 1945 she remained on station for several weeks continuing to perform her duties until properly relieved thus earning her next nickname, The Fighting Fletcher. After World War Two Fletcher was retired to the inactive fleet. Recommissioned in October 1949 as DDE-445, Fletcher was one of the first American destroyers on the scene after hostilities broke out in Korea the following summer. Once again her familiar and comforting profile graced the war torn waters of the Western Pacific. Home-ported in Hawaii she remained a frequent visitor to the Orient and the South Pacific long after fighting ceased. The silent but very real Cold War next occupied much of Fletcher’s time as she continued to show the flag throughout the Pacific Ocean. Later redesignated as DD-445 she soon found herself fighting in Vietnam where again she served with distinction doing a myriad of tasks ranging from carrier escort duty to gunfire support for our troops ashore. Enduring typhoons, ice storms, atomic bomb tests, back to back deployments and even one of the Navy’s first crew swaps was normal routine for the officers and men who served aboard Fletcher, therefore it is no mystery to those of us who had that honor that we also fondly refer to her as Mother Fletcher. The Spruance class destroyer USS Fletcher DD-992 (1980-2004) continued the Fletcher tradition, carrying with her the first Fletcher ship’s bell throughout her stellar career. Although the two destroyers shared the same name, their namesakes were different. The DD-992’s Frank Jack Fletcher was the nephew of the first Fletcher’s Frank Friday Fletcher. This web site is dedicated to the first USS Fletcher however both destroyers share a strong bond and annual reunions where we’ve learned, once a Fletcher sailor, always a Fletcher sailor. The DD-992’s main web site is DD992.org and additional information is also available on a local DD-992 page. | 
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