Khomeini Class Destroyers

By Douglas V. Gibbs

The United States built four naval destroyers for the Shah of Iran, laying the keels in 1978. The ships were built on the modified plans of the Spruance-class destroyers, and were equipped with state of the art equipment, including guided missile launchers. When the Islamic Revolution engulfed Iran the order was cancelled, and the U.S. Navy kept the four vessels.

The four destroyers were commissioned in 1982 as the USS Kidd, USS Callaghan, USS Scott, and the USS Chandler. The Kidd Class Guided Missile Destroyers were the most powerful multi-purpose destroyers in the fleet at the time. I served aboard the USS Chandler, DDG-996.

The Chandler was home ported at NAS North Island, across the bay from the rest of the fleet at Naval Station, San Diego. I worked in Damage Control Central during General Quarters, and served as a watch stander underway while also performing duties in the ship's office. It was on the Chandler that I first experienced the intensity of the Cold War when we encountered a brief run-in with a Soviet Ship. My tour aboard the Chandler was cut short when tragedy struck, and I found myself fighting against death in July of 1985.

I later served aboard the USS Peoria LST-1183, a gator-freighter, and the amphibious operations were challenging. But my heart, my first Battle E, and my earliest Navy memories will always reside on the decks of the USS Chandler.

Both vessels I served on have since been de-commissioned, and dismantled. The impact of the Khomeini Class (the Kidd Class Destroyers are also sometimes called the Ayatollah Class) remains with the Navy. Whenever I find myself in a discussion with a Navy vet, or active duty Navy servicemember, even those that began to serve after the Kidd Class was long gone, and I tell the person I served aboard a Khomeini Class ship, they always smile in recognition.

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