Asheville - class gunboat The " Asheville " - class gunboats were a class of small military ships built for the United States Navy in response to the Cuban Missile Crisis . The class is named for a city in western North Carolina and the seat of Buncombe County . Most " Asheville " - class gunboat s have since been donated to museums , scheduled for scrapping , or transferred to the Greek , Turkish , Colombian and South Korean Navies . The exceptions are the and , which are operated by the Naval Surface Warfare Center . Origination . The " Asheville " - class gunboats were originally designated PGM motor gunboats , but were reclassified in 1967 as PG patrol combatant ships . " Asheville " class gunboats employed a Combined diesel or gas turbine ( CODOG ) propulsion system ; twin Cummins Diesels for endurance , and a GE LM1500 gas turbine for high - speed dash . Engine controls were operated by pneumatics . The controllable reversible pitch propeller allowed them to stop in less than two ship lengths from full speed . They were the first gas turbine ships in the US Navy , as well as the first with aluminum hulls and fiberglass superstructures . History . Originally designed for the Caribbean patrols , the " Asheville " class ships were deployed into Southeast Asia . There proved successful in coastal work , intercepting small boats attempting to transport arms along the Viet Nam coast . Attempts to use them on the inland rivers proved disastrous to the small lightly armored ships , the USS " Cannon " was severely damaged by over eight rocket strikes , resulting in half of the crew being wounded . The USS " Surprise " and the USS " Beacon " were deployed in the Mediterranean to counter the Soviet gunboats , their 3 " guns a solid deterrent to the small missile boats . Five of the gunboats were fitted with various missile systems replacing the 40mm guns . " Benicia " conducted test firings in the spring of 1971 of a modified Bullpup surface - to - surface missile system and the " Antelope " and " Ready " were fitted with two launch cells aft plus reload boxes on deck . The " Grand Rapids " and " Douglas " were fitted with an improved Standard ARM missile . Ships . A total of 17 " Asheville " - class gunboats were built between 1966 and 1971 . During the Third Cod War between Iceland and Great Britain in 1975 - 1976 the Icelandic Coast Guard , through the Minister of Justice Ólafur Jóhannesson ( the political leader of the Coast Guard ) , requested the loan of one or more Asheville boats from the United States Navy . With their high speed they were considered ideal for the Icelanders to counter the British frigates protecting trawlers on the Icelandic fishing banks . The U . S . Secretary of State Henry Kissinger categorically turned down the Icelandic request . This hardly came as a great surprise to the Icelanders , as the request for the Asheville boats was probably a political ploy , intended to show how serious Iceland was in overcoming the Royal Navy in the struggle for the fishing banks . The seaworthiness of the Ashevilles in the rough seas of the North Atlantic around Iceland has to be considered doubtful , at best . Original commission . The following " Asheville " - class gunboats were commissioned for the U . S . Navy . ( PG93 , PG95 , PG97 , PG99 & PG101 were built by Peterson Builders , Sturgeon Bay , WI ; most of the remaining PG84 class were built by Tacoma Shipyard ) Hellenic Navy . Two of the ships were transferred to the navy of Greece ; both ships were in reserve from April 1977 before being refitted and transferred . The gas - turbine propulsion engines were removed prior to transfer and the ships were reclassified as coastal patrol craft .