USS Pharris

USS Pharris (FF-1094)
History
United States
Namesake	Jackson C. Pharris
Ordered	25 August 1966
Builder	Avondale Shipyard, Westwego, Louisiana
Laid down	11 February 1972
Launched	16 December 1972
Acquired	14 December 1973
Commissioned	26 January 1974
Decommissioned	15 April 1992
Stricken	11 January 1995
Motto	Vigilance-Valor-Tenacity
Fate	Donated to Mexico
General characteristics
Class and type	Knox-class frigate
Displacement	3,201 tons (4,182 tons full load)
Length	438 ft (134 m)
Beam	46 ft 9 in (14.25 m)
Draught	24 ft 9 in (7.54 m)
Propulsion	2 × CE 1,200 psi (8,300 kPa) boilers 1 × Westinghouse geared turbine 1 shaft, 35,000 shp (26,000 kW)
Speed	>27 knots (50 km/h; 31 mph)
Complement	18 officers, 267 enlisted
Sensors and processing systems	AN/SPS-40 Air Search Radar AN/SPS-67 Surface Search Radar AN/SQS-26 Sonar AN/SQR-18 Towed array sonar system Mk68 Gun Fire Control System
Electronic warfare & decoys	AN/SLQ-32 Electronics Warfare System
Armament	1 × Mk-16 8 cell missile launcher for ASROC and Harpoon missiles 1 × Mk-42 5-inch/54 caliber gun Mark 46 torpedoes from four single tube launchers) 1 × 20mm Phalanx CIWS
Aircraft carried	1 × SH-2 Seasprite (LAMPS I) helicopter

USS Pharris (FF-1094) was a Knox-class frigate named after Medal of Honor recipient Lieutenant Commander Jackson C. Pharris. It was originally designated as destroyer escort DE-1094 and later reclassified as a frigate with the designation FF-1094 in the United States Navy. In 1992 the ship was decommissioned and transferred to the Mexican Navy. It was recommissioned as ARM Victoria, named after Mexico's first president, Guadalupe Victoria.

In 1986 the Pharris while assigned to the USS America (CV-66) battle group assisted in Operation El Dorado Canyon which commenced early on the afternoon of 14 April 1986. At the conclusion of this operation the Pharris was awarded the Navy Expeditionary Medal and the Navy Unit Commendation.

During the 1987–1988 Mediterranean cruise, Pharris escorted Mighty Servant 2 carrying USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58) from the entrance of the Persian Gulf to about halfway up the Red Sea. Pharris was awarded the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal for its part in Operation Earnest Will.

On 8 February 1991, during a port visit in the Madeira Islands, two Canadian divers from HMCS Margaree drowned when they were sucked into the cooling intake of Pharris while conducting a hull search.^[1]

In fiction

In Tom Clancy's 1986 novel, Red Storm Rising, Pharris suffers extreme damage following a torpedo attack by a Victor III submarine (the bow forward of the ASROC mounts was torn off), warranting an extensive repair. Her captain, Ed Morris, is subsequently transferred to the USS Reuben James (FFG-57).

References

• This article includes information collected from the Naval Vessel Register, which, as a U.S. government publication, is in the public domain. The entry can be found here.
• Photo gallery of USS Pharris at NavSource Naval History