1946–1960 Following shakedown in
Cuban waters,
Robert L. Wilson sailed from
Norfolk, Virginia on 23 July 1946 for a six-month tour of duty with the
6th Fleet in the
Mediterranean. Returning to the United States in February 1947, she spent the next two years based at
Newport, Rhode Island, operating off the Atlantic Coast and in the
Caribbean. After overhaul at
Boston Navy Yard, she stood out of
Hampton Roads on a
midshipman cruise to
Plymouth,
England;
Cherbourg,
France; and
Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. On 4 March 1950
Robert L. Wilson was redesignated an
escort destroyer DDE-847. She finished out the year with a midshipman training cruise to
Northern Europe, duty in the
Mediterranean which included special
antisubmarine warfare (ASW) demonstrations, and hunter-killer (HUK) operations along the eastern seaboard from Norfolk. On 1 January 1951, as the result of a fleet reorganization,
Robert L. Wilson became a unit of Escort Squadron 4 (
CortRon 4), and hoisted the
pennant of Commander, Escort Division 42. By 30 June 1960, she had completed eight tours of service in the Mediterranean since commissioning, provided training for
cadets of the
United States Military Academy along the eastern seaboard; and conducted the annual summer midshipmen cruises for the
United States Naval Academy, stressing antisubmarine tactics. On 1 July 1956, she was assigned to the newly established Destroyer Squadron 36 (
DesRon 36), composed of destroyer escort types specially configured for anti-submarine missions and yet maintaining the capability to handle all destroyer missions. During the last week of November and the early part of December 1959,
Robert L. Wilson and two other escort destroyers participated in Operation "Monsoon," manning
sea-air rescue stations for the Presidential flight to Europe from the United States. She then operated in the western Atlantic and Caribbean until a
Norfolk Navy Yard overhaul in the summer of 1960.
1961–1974 Returning to Caribbean and Atlantic operations, in January 1961
Robert L. Wilson pursued the
Portuguese liner SS
Santa Maria which had been
seized by a group of revolutionaries. An eight-day chase took
Wilson and across the
equator to
Recife,
Brazil. Returning to Norfolk,
Robert L. Wilson underwent a month of preparation, then departed on 8 June for her ninth Mediterranean cruise. She spent the fall and winter of 1961 operating in the western Atlantic out of Norfolk. In January 1962,
Robert L. Wilson participated in recovery operations for a
Project Mercury manned space capsule.
Robert L. Wilson deployed with Task Group Bravo to Northern Europe in February, returning to Norfolk in mid-June 1962. On 1 August 1962 she was again classified
DD-847. In September 1962,
Wilson and the other ships of Destroyer Division 362 deployed to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba as a unit under the command of the Naval Base Commander for the purpose of base defense, and was at Guantanamo and in adjacent waters during the
Cuban Missile Crisis in October.
Robert L. Wilson returned to Norfolk in late November and operated locally until March 1963 when she entered the
Philadelphia Navy Yard for a
Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization (FRAM) I modernization. Emerging from her overhaul period in 1964, she continued to serve with the
Atlantic Fleet for the balance of that year and throughout 1965. After serving as gunfire support ship at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in late January and early February 1966,
Robert L. Wilson was assigned the abort station for the first unmanned
Apollo space shot. In April and June she was rescue destroyer for , prime recovery ship for the
Gemini 9 space mission. Following ASW exercises, she made her 12th deployment to the Mediterranean on 22 July 1966, returning to Norfolk 17 December. Following service as schoolship for the
Fleet Sonar School in January and February,
Wilson spent the rest of 1967 operating in the Atlantic and Caribbean.
Robert L. Wilson continued these operations until May 1968 when she joined the search for nuclear
submarine searching the continental shelf off the coast of Norfolk and then following the
Scorpions track back to her last reported position southwest of the
Azores without success. Returning to Norfolk on 13 June,
Wilson operated in the Atlantic until steaming on 6 September for a
western Pacific deployment. Touching at
San Diego,
Pearl Harbor,
Midway,
Guam, and
Subic Bay,
Robert L. Wilson took up a naval gunfire support mission 36 miles (67 km) south of
Huế, the ancient capital of
South Vietnam. She then undertook search and rescue duty in the
Gulf of Tonkin after 28 October, destroying two
sampans with .50 caliber
machine gun fire and
hand grenades. In early November
Robert L. Wilson was assigned as plane guard for on "
Yankee Station". She remained in the
Far East through the end of the year.
Robert L. Wilson returned to San Diego from the
Far East on 27 March 1969, and operated off the
west coast until transiting the
Panama Canal and arriving Norfolk on 21 June. She then operated in the western Atlantic and Caribbean participating in Operation SPRINGBOARD until deploying to the Mediterranean on 5 March 1970. During this Mediterranean cruise,
Wilson participated in two combined
NATO exercises, DAWN PATROL and MEDTACEX, and was, for a time, diverted to the
Levantine Basin due to another
Middle East crisis. She returned to Norfolk on 16 September for a leave, upkeep, and training cycle which continued to the end of the year. Upon completion of overhaul, refresher training, and other operations in the Atlantic,
Robert L. Wilson commenced another deployment to the
Sixth Fleet, departing from Norfolk on 17 September. After six months away from Norfolk, she returned on 17 March 1972 and completed the year operating out of that port.
Robert L. Wilson decommissioned at Norfolk on 30 September 1974 and transferred to the inactive fleet facility at Philadelphia. She was struck from the
Naval Vessel Register on 30 September 1974 and sunk as a target as part of the
Harpoon missile test program on 1 March 1980. == Awards ==