View source for USS Fairfax

{{Short description|Wickes-class destroyer}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2019}}
{{other ships|HMS Richmond}}
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{{Infobox ship image
|Ship image=[[File:USSFairfaxDD93.jpg|300px|USS Fairfax (DD-93)]]
|Ship caption=
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Ship country=United States
|Ship flag={{USN flag|1940}}
|Ship name=USS ''Fairfax''
|Ship namesake=[[Donald Fairfax]]
|Ship ordered=
|Ship builder=[[Mare Island Navy Yard]]
|Ship laid down=10 July 1917
|Ship launched=15 December 1917
|Ship acquired=
|Ship commissioned=6 April 1918
|Ship decommissioned=19 June 1922
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=yes
|Ship recommissioned=1 May 1930
|Ship decommissioned=21 November 1940
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship struck=8 January 1941
|Ship reinstated=
|Ship honours=
|Ship identification=
|Ship fate=Transferred to [[United Kingdom]], 26&nbsp;November&nbsp;1940
|Ship notes=
}}
{{Infobox ship career
|Hide header=title
|Ship country=United Kingdom
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|United Kingdom|naval}}
|Ship name=HMS ''Richmond''
|Ship namesake=[[Richmond, North Yorkshire]]
|Ship acquired=26 November 1940
|Ship commissioned=5 December 1940
|Ship decommissioned=
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship struck=
|Ship reinstated=
|Ship honours=
|Ship identification=[[Pennant number]]: G88
|Ship fate=Transferred to USSR, 16 July 1944
|Ship notes=
}}
{{Infobox ship career
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|Ship country=Soviet Union
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|Soviet Union|naval-1935}}
|Ship name=''Zhivuchy'' (Живучий / Tenacious)
|Ship namesake=
|Ship acquired=16 July 1944
|Ship commissioned=
|Ship decommissioned=
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship struck=
|Ship reinstated=
|Ship honours=
|Ship fate=Returned to UK for scrapping, 23 June 1949
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}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
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|Ship class={{sclass|Wickes|destroyer}}
|Ship displacement=1,090&nbsp;tons
|Ship length={{convert|314|ft|5|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship beam={{convert|31|ft|8|in|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship draft={{convert|9|ft|m|abbr=on}}
|Ship propulsion=
|Ship speed={{convert|35|kn|abbr=on}}
|Ship range=
|Ship complement=100 officers and enlisted
|Ship sensors=
|Ship EW=
|Ship armament=*4 × [[4"/50 caliber gun|{{convert|4|in|mm|abbr=on|0}}/50]] guns,
*2 × [[3"/23 caliber gun|{{convert|3|in|mm|abbr=on|0}}/23]] guns,
*12 × [[American 21 inch torpedo|21 inch (533 mm)]]  [[torpedo tube]]s
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'''USS ''Fairfax'' (DD-93)''' was a {{sclass|Wickes|destroyer}} in the [[United States Navy]] during [[World War I]], later transferred for [[World War II]] service first to the [[Royal Navy]] as '''HMS ''Richmond'' (G88)''', a {{sclass2|Town|destroyer|1}}, and then to the [[Soviet Navy]] as '''''Zhivuchy'''''.{{refn|group=note|Alternate spelling ''Zhivuchiy''}}

==Service history==
===USS ''Fairfax''===
Named in honor of Rear Admiral [[Donald Fairfax]], she was [[Ship naming and launching|launched]] 15 December 1917 by [[Mare Island Navy Yard]]; sponsored by Mrs. H. George; and [[Ship commissioning|commissioned]] 6 April 1918, Lieutenant Commander [[Stanford Caldwell Hooper]] in command.

''Fairfax'' arrived at [[Hampton Roads]] 6 June 1918 for convoy escort duty out of [[Newport News, Virginia|Newport News]]. She guarded convoys of troop transports to midocean meeting points with escorts who had come out of [[United Kingdom|English]] and French ports to meet them. ''Fairfax'' also guarded convoys moving between coastal ports, and patrolled off the coast until 16 October, when she stood down Hampton Roads bound for [[Brest, France|Brest]], France, escorting a troop convoy. On 18 October, she left her convoy to rescue 86 survivors of [[torpedo]]ed {{USS|Lucia|ID-3090}}, a [[Naval Overseas Transport Service]] ship, and on 27 October, arrived at Brest for patrol and escort duty in European waters.

On 3 December 1918, ''Fairfax'' arrived in the [[Azores]] to meet and escort to Brest, the transport ''George Washington'' carrying [[President of the United States|President]] [[Woodrow Wilson]] to the [[Paris Peace Conference, 1919|Peace Conference]]. She sailed for home 21 December, reaching [[Norfolk, Virginia]] 8 January 1919. Her post war operations along the east coast and in the [[Caribbean]] were broken in May 1919, when she sailed to the Azores to take up station as an observer of the historic first aerial crossing of the Atlantic made by [[NC-4|Navy seaplanes]]. On 19 June 1922, she was [[Ship decommissioning|decommissioned]] at [[Philadelphia, Pennsylvania|Philadelphia]], and placed in reserve.

Recommissioned 1 May 1930, ''Fairfax'' operated primarily on training cruises for members of the Naval Reserve during the following 2 years, based at [[Newport, Rhode Island]], and [[Camden, New Jersey]]. On 12 March 1932 she sailed from Hampton Roads for [[San Diego, California]], arriving 26 March. On the west coast, too, her primary duty was training reservists, but she also took part in gunnery exercises and fleet problems off [[Mexico]], [[Central America]], and the [[Panama Canal Zone]].

''Fairfax'' took part in the [[Presidential Review]] taken by [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] in San Diego in March 1933, and then sailed for the East coast, where she continued her reserve training duty. She also patrolled in [[Cuba]]n waters, and in the summers of 1935, 1937, 1938, 1939, and 1940 sailed out of [[Annapolis, Maryland|Annapolis]] training [[midshipmen]] of the [[United States Naval Academy|Naval Academy]]. Between October 1935 and March 1937, she served with the [[Special Service Squadron]] out of [[Coco Solo]] and [[Balboa, Canal Zone]], operating primarily on the Atlantic side of the Canal Zone.

The destroyer joined in representing the United States Navy at the opening of the [[1939 New York World's Fair|New York City World's Fair]] in April 1939, and after [[World War II]] broke out in Europe that fall, operated on [[Neutrality Patrol|neutrality patrol]] along with her training duties. On 21 November 1940, she arrived at [[City of Halifax|Halifax]], [[Nova Scotia]], where she was decommissioned 26 November, and transferred to Great Britain under the [[Destroyers for Bases Agreement|destroyers for-land-bases exchange agreement]].

===HMS ''Richmond''===
The former ''Fairfax'' was commissioned in the [[Royal Navy]] as HMS ''Richmond'', with the [[pennant number]] G88, on 5 December 1940. She arrived at [[Plymouth]], England, on 1 February 1941, undergoing a refit to better suit her for escort work. This refit was completed in March, but ''Richmond'' ran aground at [[Holyhead]] on 23 March while on passage to [[Liverpool]], and was under repair at [[Southampton]] until June.<ref name="Hague p70">Hague 1988, p. 70.</ref><ref name="navhist">{{cite web|last1=Mason|first1=Geoffrey B.|title=HMS, later HMCS RICHMOND (G 88), also Russian ZHIVUCHI – ex-US Destroyer including Convoy Escort Movements|work=Service Histories of Royal Navy Warships in World War 2|year=2005|url=http://www.naval-history.net/xGM-Chrono-11US-HMS_Richmond.htm|publisher=naval-history.net|access-date=23 January 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Kindell|first=Don|title=Naval Events, March 1941 (Part 2 of 2): Saturday 15th – Monday 31st|work=British and Other Navies in World War 2 Day-by-Day|url=http://www.naval-history.net/xDKWW2-4103-30MAR02.htm|publisher=naval-history.net|access-date=23 January 2015}}</ref>

Following repair, ''Richmond'' joined the [[Newfoundland Escort Force]], responsible for escorting transatlantic convoys between [[Newfoundland (island)|Newfoundland]] and mid-Atlantic, when British based ships took over the escort.<ref name="Hague p70"/><ref name="Hague p19">Hague 1988, p. 19.</ref> In October 1941, the ship returned across the Atlantic for refit at [[Cardiff]], this continuing until December that year. ''Richmond'' then joined the 27th Escort Group based at [[Greenock]] on the [[Firth of Clyde|Clyde]]. On 26 March ''Richmond'' formed part of the escort for the [[Arctic convoys of World War II|Arctic convoy]] [[Convoy PQ 14|PQ 14]] on the initial leg from Scotland to [[Iceland]], but was badly damaged in collision with the merchant ship ''Francis Scott Key'' and was under repair at Liverpool until July.<ref name="navhist"/><ref name="Hague p70-1">Hague 1988, pp. 70–71.</ref>  In September 1942, ''Richmond'' joined the [[Halifax, Nova Scotia]] based [[Western Local Escort Force]], escorting convoys from North American ports to off Newfoundland. In February 1943 ''Richmond'' was involved in another collision, this time with the merchant ship SS ''Reinholt'', being sent to Liverpool for repair. In June 1943, she returned to Halifax, and convoy operations along the Canadian coast, serving as part of the [[Royal Canadian Navy]] from June until December 1943, when to free her crew for more modern escorts, she returned to the United Kingdom and was laid up on the [[River Tyne|Tyne]]. On 16 July 1944 she was transferred to the [[Soviet Navy]].<ref name="navhist"/><ref name="Hague p71">Hague 1988, p. 71.</ref>

===''Zhivuchy''===

The former ''Richmond'' was commissioned in the Soviet Navy as ''Zhivuchy'' ([[Russian language|rus.]] Живучий, "Survivable"){{refn|group=note|Alternate spelling ''Zhivuchiy''}} on 24 August 1944. On 17 August 1944, ''Zhivuchy'', as a member of the Russian Transfer Force, sailed to meet convoy JW 59. The convoy was attacked by U-boats until the convoy reached the [[Soviet Union]] on 25 August.<ref>Rohwer, p. 350</ref> On 22–23 November ''Zhivuchy'' was a member of the escort of convoy BK 38 comprising six transports and three [[Tanker (ship)|tankers]] sailing from [[Archangel]] to [[Murmansk]].<ref>Rohwer, p. 374</ref> At the beginning of December 1944, ''Zhivuchy'' was targeted by {{GS|U-295||2}} using a T5 acoustic torpedo. The torpedo missed and in response, the submarine was hunted by ''Zhivuchy'' and [[USS Herndon (DD-198)#Deyatelny|''Deyatelny'']]. On 6 December, ''Zhivuchy'' was among the Soviet vessels sent to augment the escort of convoy JW 62. The convoy arrived in the Soviet Union on 7 December. Before the return convoy RA 62 could sail, the Soviet Navy sent out a destroyer force, of which ''Zhivichy'' was a part of, to attack U-boats lying in wait at the entrance to Kola Inlet. During the engagement, ''Zhivuchy'' was targeted by {{GS|U-997||2}} on 9 December, which missed. The sinking of {{GS|U-387||2}} is disputed, with Soviet sources claiming ''Zhivuchy'' rammed and sunk the submarine while Rohwer claims that {{HMS|Bamborough Castle||6}} sank the submarine using [[depth charge]]s.<ref>Rohwer, p. 375</ref>

[[File:Zhivuchiy1944-1949a.jpg|thumb|''Zhivuchy'' underway, towing a torpedo target]]
From 3–5 January 1945, the Soviet convoy BK 41 sailed from Archangel to Murmansk composed of 14 ships. ''Zhivuchy'' was part of the initial escort, however on 4 January the escort was strengthened. The convoy reached port safely.<ref>Rohwer, p. 384</ref> On 7 January, ''Zhivuchy'' sailed with convoy JW 63 as part of its escort. Eight merchant vessels were brought from Kola Inlet to [[Molotovsk]].<ref>Rohwer, p. 385</ref> On 16 January, ''Zhivuchy'' was part of the covering group for Soviet convoy KB 1 sailing from Kola Inlet to the White Sea. On 21 and 24 January ''Zhivuchy'' was among the destroyers sent to hunt U-boats between Jokanga and Kola.<ref>Rohwer, p. 387</ref> On 5 February ''Zhivuchy'' was among the escort for Soviet convoy BK 2 sailing from Archangel to Murmansk. On 11 February, the destroyer joined the escort of convoy JW 64 in order to escort 15 merchant vessels traveling to the White Sea.<ref>Rohwer, p. 392</ref> On 16 February, ''Zhivuchy'' was among the vessels sent to drive the gathered U-boats from the entrance to Kola Inlet.<ref>Rohwer, p. 393</ref> ''Zhivuchy'' was among the Soviet escorts for convoy RA 65 from Archangel to the Barents Sea from 21 to 25 March 1945.<ref>Rohwer, p. 399</ref> The Soviet Union returned the ship on 24 June 1949 to Britain, which sold her for scrap in July of that year.<ref name="Hague p71">Hague 1988, p. 71.</ref>

==References==

===Notes===
{{reflist|group=note}}

===Citations===
{{reflist|30em}}

===Sources===
* {{cite book|last=Hague|first=Arnold|title=The Towns: A History of the Fifty Destroyers Transferred from the United States to Great Britain in 1940|year=1988|publisher=World Ship Society|location=Kendal, UK|isbn=0-905617-48-7}}
* {{cite book |last=Rohwer |first=Jürgen |date=2005 |title=Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two |edition=Revised & Expanded |publisher=Naval Institute Press |location=Annapolis, Maryland |isbn=1-59114-119-2}}
* {{cite journal|last1=Wright |first1=Christopher C.|year=1986|title=The U.S. Fleet at the New York World's Fair, 1939: Some Photographs from the Collection of the Late William H. Davis|journal=Warship International|volume=XXIII|issue=3|pages=273–285|issn=0043-0374}}
* {{DANFS|http://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/f/fairfax.html}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|USS Fairfax (DD-93)}}
*[http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/f1/fairfax.htm  history.navy.mil: USS ''Fairfax''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131030222957/http://www.history.navy.mil/danfs/f1/fairfax.htm |date=30 October 2013 }}
*[http://www.navsource.org/archives/05/093.htm       navsource.org: USS ''Fairfax'']
*[http://www.hazegray.org/danfs/destroy/dd93txt.htm   hazegray.org: USS ''Fairfax'']
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20081210004122/http://sovnavy-ww2.by.ru/destroyers/typ_town.htm SovietNavy-WW2: Таун ("Town") class]
*[http://www.uboat.net/allies/warships/ship/5878.html U-boat.net: Zivuchij]

{{Wickes-class destroyer}}
{{Town class destroyers}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fairfax (DD-93)}}
[[Category:Wickes-class destroyers]]
[[Category:Ships built in Vallejo, California]]
[[Category:1917 ships]]
[[Category:World War I destroyers of the United States]]
[[Category:Town-class destroyers of the Royal Navy]]
[[Category:Town-class destroyers converted from Wickes-class destroyers]]
[[Category:World War II destroyers of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Town-class destroyers of the Soviet Navy]]
[[Category:World War II destroyers of the Soviet Union]]