USS Slater (DE-766)

USS Slater (DE-766) is a Cannon-class destroyer escort that served in the United States Navy and later in the Hellenic (Greek) Navy. The ship was named for Frank O. Slater of Alabama, a sailor killed on the USS San Francisco (CA-38) during the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal. He was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross for gallantry in action. The USS Slater is now a museum ship on the Hudson River in Albany, New York, the only one of its kind afloat in the United States. (The USS Stewart (DE-238) is exhibited at Seawolf Park in Galveston, Texas, but located on dry land.) The Slater was designated a National Historic Landmark on 2 March 2012.

Construction
USS Slater was laid down on 9 March 1943; launched on 13 February 1944; and commissioned on 1 May 1944. She was built at the Tampa Shipbuilding Company in Tampa, Florida.

War record
After a shakedown cruise near Bermuda in June 1944, the Slater was sent to Key West where she served as a target ship and a sonar school ship. In the latter part of 1944, the Slater escorted two convoys to the United Kingdom. She continued serving in this capacity from January 1945 until May 1945.

When the war in Europe ended, the Slater headed to the Pacific, stopping at Guantanamo Bay and Panama. She went through the Panama Canal on 28 June 1945 and stopped at San Diego before sailing to Pearl Harbor. From there she joined Task Unit 33.2.4 at Manila in September and escorted it to Yokohama. The Slater engaged in support operations in the Pacific through the remainder of the year. She made another passage through the Canal on her way to Norfolk for deactivation. The Slater was placed in the reserve fleet at Green Cove Springs, Florida in 1947.

Later service
On 1 March 1951, the Slater was transferred to the Hellenic Navy under the Truman Doctrine, and renamed Aetos ("Eagle") (D-01). Along with three other Cannon-class ships, she made up what was known as the "Wild Beasts" Flotilla. The ship did patrol duty in the eastern Aegean and the Dodecanese and also served as a training vessel for naval cadets. The Aetos was decommissioned in 1991, and Greece donated the ship to the Destroyer Escort Sailors Association.

Destroyer escort sailors from around the nation donated more than a quarter of a million dollars to bring the Slater back to the United States as a museum ship. A Russian ocean-going tugboat towed the ship from Crete to New York City in 1993, where it was docked next to the USS Intrepid (CV-11). Volunteers began restoring the ship and seeking a permanent home for her; Albany, New York was decided upon. On Sunday, 26 October 1997, the Slater arrived at the Port of Albany. In January 2006, a welder accidentally started a fire aboard the Slater which caused some minor damage to the ship. Repairs were completed within a few months. Restoration of the ship remains an on-going project.

On 7 May 1998, the Slater was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The Slater was refitted several times during her long service with two navies. All of her torpedo tubes, one of her depth-charge racks, and four "K-gun" depth charge launchers have been removed. Two twin Bofors 40mm guns have been added, and the ten single 20mm guns have been replaced with nine twin mounts.

Appearances in film
The Slater has been featured in two motion pictures. The ship was seen in The Guns of Navarone (1961) and also in I Aliki sto Naftiko (Η Αλίκη στο Ναυτικό/Alice in the Navy, filmed in 1961) while in Greek service. In August 2008 part of the Japanese film Orion in Midsummer (scheduled for release in spring 2009) was filmed on board. History Channel documentaries have also featured the Slater.