Destroyer Squadron Sixty

Destroyer Squadron Sixty (DESRON 60) is a Destroyer squadron of the United States Navy. Destroyer Squadron 60 is one of three U.S. Navy destroyer squadrons permanently based outside the continental United States.

History
During World War Two, Destroyer Squadron 60 consisted two destroyer divisions, the 119th and 120th, under the overall command of Captain William L. Freseman. Destroyer Squadron 60 was part of the naval force assigned to Omaha Beach during the Normandy invasion of June 1944. On 6 June 1944, the Meredith struck a mine, and after being towed to the Bay of the Seine, sank on 9 June 1944. DESRON 60 subsequently was part of Task Force 129 which carried out the shore bombardment of the French seaport Cherbourg.
 * Destroyer Squadron 60, World War Two

During the Pacific War, Destroyer Squadron 60 initially participated in the Philippines campaign. The squadron was part of the escort screen for Task Group 78.3, the amphibious assault force that invaded Leyte on October 1944. The squadron also participated in the ensuing Battle of Ormoc Bay. On 3 December 1944, during an attack on a Japanese convoy, the Cooper was torpedoed and sunk. Destroyer Squadron 60 subsequently operated as part of the destroyer screen for Task Group 77.2, the Bombardment and Fire Support Group for the January 1945 Invasion of Lingayen Gulf.

Destroyer Squadron 60 next operated with Task Force 38, the U.S. Third Fleet's Fast Carrier Task Force. On 16–17 February, TF-38 flew air strikes against the Japanese home islands, Bonin Islands, and Volcano Islands to prevent any reinforcements of the Japanese garrison on Iwo Jima. During this period, Barton and Ingraham collided, and Moale was detached to escort the two damaged destroyers back to Saipan for repairs.

Destroyer Squadron 60 then operated off Okinawa during Operation Iceberg, with Destroyer Division 120 serving as the escort screen for Task Group 52.1, the escort carrier group providing carrier-based close air support to the Allied invasion force. Three units of Destroyer Squadron 60 — USS Walke (DD-723), USS Barton (DD-722), and USS Allen M. Sumner (DD-692) — came under intense kamikaze attacks during the squadron's operations in the closing months of the Pacific War.

On 19 February 2003, Destroyer Squadron 60 was re-established as a permanently-assigned, forward-based destroyer squadron staff. It was homeported in Gaeta, Italy, the headquarters of the United States Sixth Fleet. At that time, the squadron's mission was described as to provide the Commander United States Sixth Fleet with a permanently-assigned, forward-based destroyer squadron staff for the operational control over destroyers and frigates deployed to the Mediterranean Sea.

On 29 October 2007, the first Africa Partnership Station (APS) began under the command of Captain John Nowell, who was serving as Commander Destroyer Squadron 60 at the time. Departing from Naples, Italy, the APS task group, CTF-365, visited Senegal, Liberia, Ghana, Cameroon, Gabon, Angola, and Sao Tome and Principe. Africa Partnership Station 2007 developed cooperative partnerships among the regional maritime services while improving safety and security for the host nations. APS 2007 also supported over 20 humanitarian assistance projects during this deployment.

Commander responsibilities
With the courtesy title of commodore, the commander of Destroyer Squadron 60 (COMDESRON 60) not only oversees U.S. 6th Fleet surface naval warfare operations in the Mediterranean Sea but also throughout Europe and Africa. The squadron commodore also additionally serves as the executive assistant to the commander of U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa as well as the NATO commander of Allied Joint Force Command Naples.

Commander Destroyer Squadron 60 conducts combat and/or non-combat operations as Commander Task Force 60 or as Sea Combat Commander, and when directed, as Maritime Interception Operations Commander. Depending on the missions to be undertaken, COMDESRON 60 employs surface warships, submarines, aircraft, SEAL teams, U.S. Marines, U.S. joint forces, and NATO forces assigned to the Sixth Fleet's area of operations to keep open the sea lines of communications throughout the U.S. European Command's area of responsibility.

The squadron saw two major changes in 2013. On 21 March 2013, the billet of Commander Destroyer Squadron 60 was renamed Commander Task Force 65, with Task Force 65 being the designation for the Sixth Fleet's surface combatant force. Subsequently, on 9 May 2013, Commander Destroyer Squadron 60 (COMDESRON 60) was formally re-established to provide type-command administrative oversight for those four BMD-capable destroyers assigned to the squadron. In the capacity, COMDESRON 60 supervises the training, readiness, maintenance, schedules, material, supply, discipline, and morale for those assigned BMD-capable destroyers. Commander Destroyer Squadron 60 continued to command Task Force 65 in a "dual-hatted" role, and both Destroyer Squadron Sixty and Task Force 65 are now based at Rota, Spain.

Africa Partnership Station
During her tour as Commander Destroyer Squadron 60, then-Captain Cynthia N. Thebaud commanded two multi-national African Partnership Station deployments that focused on maritime security capacity-building in West and Central Africa.

European Phased Adaptive Approach
On 5 October 2011, US Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta announced that the United States Navy will station four Aegis-equipped BMD warships at Naval Station Rota, Spain, to strengthen its presence in the Mediterranean Sea and bolster the ballistic missile defense (BMD) of NATO as part of the European Phased Adaptive Approach (EPAA) initiative. On 16 February 2012, it was reported that the s Donald Cook and Ross (pictured) will be relocated to Rota during Fiscal Year 2014, followed by Porter and Carney (pictured) in fiscal year 2015. On 9 May 2013, Commander Destroyer Squadron 60 was formally designated to perform type-command administrative oversight for the four BMD-capable destroyers based at Rota, Spain.

Syrian civil war
The U.S. Navy initially delayed the departure of the Aegis-equipped guided-missile destroyer USS Mahan (DDG-72) from the U.S. Sixth Fleet amid allegations that the regime of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad used chemical weapons during the ongoing Syrian civil war, including the gas attacks that occurred on 21 August 2013. Both the Mahan and its relief, the USS Ramage (DDG-61), remained in the Eastern Mediterranean with two other Aegis-equipped destroyers, the USS Barry (DDG-52) and USS Gravely (DDG-107). All four destroyers are capable of intercepting ballistic missiles as well as launching land-attack Tomahawk cruise missiles.

On 28 August 2013, the U.S. Navy announced that a fifth, the USS Stout (DDG-55), was en route to join the other four Burke-class destroyers in the Eastern Mediterrranean. On 4 September 2013, the US Navy announced that USS Mahan had departed for its home-port of Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia, leaving four Burke-class destroyers operating in the Eastern Mediterranean.

On 12 September 2013, the U.S. Department of Defense announced that the remaining four Burke-class destroyers will remain in the eastern Mediterranean as Russian and American diplomats negotiate the turn-over of Syria's stockpile of chemical weapons to the United Nations, with Pentagon spokesman George E. Little noting: "We have no plans at this time to change our military posture in the Mediterranean. We’re prepared for any potential military contingencies that might involve Syria."