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USS Rentz (FFG 46)

- decommissioned -
- sunk as target -


USS RENTZ was the 40th OLIVER HAZARD PERRY - class guided missile frigate and the first ship in the Navy named after Commander George Snavely Rentz. After almost 30 years of service, the ship held a decommissioning ceremony on May 9, 2014, at San Diego, Calif., and was officially decommissioned and stricken from the Navy list on May 23, 2014. On September 13, 2016, RENTZ was sunk as a target 220 nautical miles northeast of Guam during Exercise Valiant Shield 2016.

General Characteristics:Keel Laid: September 18, 1982
Launched: July 16, 1983
Commissioned: June 30, 1984
Decommissioned: May 23, 2014
Builder: Todd Pacific Shipyards Co., Los Angeles Division, San Pedro, Ca.
Propulsion system: two General Electric LM 2500 gas turbines, two 350 Horsepower Electric Drive Auxiliary Propulsion Units
Propellers: one
Blades on each Propeller: five
Length: 453 feet (135.9 meters)
Beam: 45 feet (13.5 meters)
Draft: 24,6 feet (7.5 meters)
Displacement: 4,100 tons
Speed: 28+ knots
Aircraft: two SH-60 Sea Hawk (LAMPS 3)
Armament: one Mk 75 76mm/62 caliber rapid firing gun, MK 32 ASW torpedo tubes (two triple mounts), one Phalanx CIWS
Crew: 17 Officers and 198 Enlisted


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Crew List:

This section contains the names of sailors who served aboard USS RENTZ. It is no official listing but contains the names of sailors who submitted their information.


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USS RENTZ Cruise Books:


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USS RENTZ in the News:


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History of USS RENTZ:

USS RENTZ was the fortieth ship of the OLIVER HAZARD PERRY - class guided missile frigates. RENTZ was built by Todd Pacific Shipyards Corp. of San Pedro, CA. The keel was laid September 18, 1982, launched July 16, 1983 and was commissioned at Naval Station Long Beach June 30, 1984. In December, 1985 RENTZ shifted to it's homeport of Naval Station San Diego, Calif.

Following inital shakedown cruises and operations, the ship was assigned to the USS RANGER (CV 61) Battle Group.

In 1986, RENTZ was the first American warship to conduct an official port visit to the People's Republic of China since 1949. In July 1987, RENTZ deployed to the Arabian Gulf in support of Operation Earnest Will, and spent over three months escorting commercial tankers in the Gulf and through the Strait of Hormuz.

Since 1987, RENTZ has deployed to the Arabian Gulf several additional times. In 1995, RENTZ participated in the inaugural Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training cruise (CARAT).

RENTZ has operated throughout the Pacific and the Indian Oceans, and has conducted several major deployments to the Arabian Gulf. Its ports of call have included: Pearl Harbor, Guam, Hong Kong, Singapore, Thailand, Philippine Islands, Indonesia, Bali, Malaysia, Brunei, Sri Lanka, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Australia, Mexico, and Canada.


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Accidents aboard USS RENTZ:

DateWhereEvents
November 28, 2009Jebel Ali, U.A.E.ENFN David Mudge dies after being eletrocuted while working in auxiliary machinery space 2. At the time of the accident, the RENTZ was in port Jebel Ali, U.A.E., while deployed as part of the NIMITZ (CVN 68) Carrier Strike Group.


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About the Frigate’s Name, about Commander George Snavely Rentz:

Commander George Snavely Rentz was born on July 25, 1882 in Lebanon, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Princeton Theological Seminary, was ordained by Presbytery of Northumberland in 1909, and pastored churches in Pennsylvania and New Jersey for eight years.

Following the entry of the United States in World War I, he was appointed acting chaplain with the rank of Lieutenant Junior Grade and was assigned to the 11th Regiment of Marines in France until 1919. He attained the rank of Commander in 1924. Among his sea duty assignments, he served in USS FLORIDA (BB 30); USS WRIGHT (AV 1); USS WEST VIRGINIA (BB 48); and USS AUGUSTA (CA 31). In 1940, when the USS HOUSTON relieved AUGUSTA as flagship of the Asiatic Fleet, Commander Rentz transferred to the new arrival. It was aboard this cruiser he served so devotedly and enthusiastically, providing the ship's crew and officers with great hope and promise.

During an Allied attack on February 4, 1942, HOUSTON was under severe air attack. Commander Rentz spurned cover and circulated among the crew of the anti-aircraft battery, encouraging them. It was noted by an officer that crew at the guns "... saw this man of God walking fearlessly among them, they no longer felt alone." In the Flores Sea, during this attack, HOUSTON took a direct hit that disabled turret III and killed 48 men.

Less than a month later HOUSTON was in the Battle of Java Sea with the Australian light cruiser HMAS PERTH. Both ships were outnumbered by a Japanese troop convoy but they persisted in an ensuing melee of fire, causing such confusion as to have a Japanese destroyer fire a spread of torpedoes that passed the allied cruisers and caused four Japanese troopships close inshore to sink. All in all, the involvement was no match for the wounded PERTH and HOUSTON; the Japanese attack on these two cruisers caused them to sink; but they went down fighting to the last second. It was during the abandonment of HOUSTON that Commander Rentz entered the water and attained partial safety along with other crew members on a spare main float of one of HOUSTON's lost planes. Aware of the extreme overcrowding and dangerous overloading, he attempted to relinquish his space and his life jacket to wounded survivors nearby, declaring "You men are young, I have lived the major part and I am willing to go." No one would oblige the generous, fearless chaplain. After several attempts of leaving and being brought back by his shipmates, he uplifted them with prayers and song until, ultimately, he succeeded in placing his lifejacket near a wounded sailor who did not have one, and Commander Rentz courageously slipped away into the sea on the morning of March 1, 1942.

For his selfless bravery following the loss of HOUSTON in Sunda Strait that night, he was awarded posthumously, the Navy Cross - the only Navy Chaplain to so honored during World War II.



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USS RENTZ SinkEx:

RENTZ was sunk as a target 220 nautical miles northeast of Guam during Exercise Valiant Shield 2016 on September 13, 2016. Ships participating in the sinking included the aircraft carrier RONALD REAGAN (CVN 76) and guided missile destroyers JOHN S. McCAIN (DDG 56) and BENFOLD (DDG 65). During the exercise, RENTZ was hit by at least 22 missiles. It took a total of five hours to sink the ship. According to footage released by the US Navy, RENTZ was hit by Harpoon missiles (at least two), Hellfire missiles, a JSOW C-1 (that's an over 1000 pound guided gliding bomb), and several AGM-65F Maverick air-to-surface missiles.

The video below shows some of the missile hits and the eventual sinking of the RENTZ. Video by Staff Sgt. Mariko Frazee




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The photo below was taken by William Chiu when USS RENTZ visited Hong Kong on August 4, 1991.



The photos below were taken by me and show the RENTZ at Naval Base San Diego, Calif, on March 10, 2008.



The photos below were taken by Shiu On Yee and show the RENTZ anchored in Hong Kong's Victoria Harbor. RENTZ and other units of the NIMITZ (CVN 68) Strike Group visited Hong Kong from February 17-20, 2010, during their WestPac Cruise.



The photos below were taken by me and show the RENTZ returning home to Naval Base San Diego, Calif, on March 26, 2010, after completing an extended 8-month deployment to the 5th and 7th Fleet areas of operation.



The photo below was taken by me and shows the RENTZ at Naval Base San Diego, Calif., on March 15, 2012.



The photos below were taken by me and show the RENTZ returning to Naval Base San Diego, Calif, on May 11, 2012, after local operations off the coast of southern California.



The photo below was taken by me and shows the RENTZ at Naval Base San Diego, Calif., on October 3, 2012.



The photos below were taken by me and show the RENTZ returning to Naval Base San Diego, Calif, on October 10, 2012.



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