USS Mullany ( DD - 528 ) USS " Mullany " ( DD - 528 ) , a " Fletcher " - class destroyer , was the second ship of the United States Navy to be named for Rear Admiral James Robert Madison Mullany ( 1818 – 1887 ) . World War II service . " Mullany " was originally " Beatty " ( DD - 528 ) but was renamed on 28 May 1941 . Laid down 15 January 1942 by Bethlehem Steel Co . , Union Plant , San Francisco , Calif . , she was launched 10 October 1942 , sponsored by Mrs . Elton W . Grenfell ; and commissioned 23 April 1943 , Commander Baron J . Mullaney in command . After shakedown and training off San Diego and escort duty in the Aleutians , " Mullany " joined the 7th Fleet in the southwest Pacific in December 1943 . Her first action came 2 to 4 March 1944 when she protected minesweeper s clearing the approaches to Seeadler Harbor , Admiralty Islands , prior to the amphibious landings on Los Negros , the island forming the northeastern side of the harbor . Attracting Japan ese gunfire , " Mullany " silenced the Japanese harbor defenses with 5 inch fire , enabling the minesweepers to complete their vital mission . For the next 2 days " Mullany " fired to support American troops fighting ashore . Screening 7th Fleet flagship during the invasion of Leyte Gulf , " Mullany " fired to help drive off nine separate enemy air attacks from 20 to 29 October , then sailed for overhaul at San Francisco . After training near Hawaii in January 1945 , she joined Task Force 54 ( TF 54 ) for the invasion of Iwo Jima , to which she escorted troop transports . After firing in the preinvasion bombardment , she supported troops landing and fighting ashore , hitting caves and machinegun nests on Mount Suribachi 19 February . An anti submarine picket guarding the Okinawa invasion force 6 April 1945 , " Mullany " opened fire on a Japanese kamikaze plane at 17 : 45 . A few seconds later the fighter was smoking from numerous hits , but somehow managed to stay together . Skipper Comdr . Albert O . Momm ordered the ship to turn out of the kamikaze ' s path , but couldn ' t get out of the way in time . The plane slammed into the after deckhouse . Before damage control parties could remove all the wounded from the twisted metal and exploding ammunition , the ship ' s depth charge s exploded . In the next 20 minutes three more enemy aircraft attacked stricken " Mullany " . Her forward gunners downed two and drove the other away . An hour later , Momm received a report that the bulkhead of one of the aft magazine s was hot and an explosion was apparently imminent . Many of the ship ' s officers had seen the disastrous consequences of a magazine explosion , and at 18 : 29 Momm gave the order to abandon ship . stood by to take on survivors while her rescue and assistance team continued to spray water on " Mullany " . The rescued 70 members of the Mullany crew from the water . The " Execute " then came alongside and helped fight the fires . In the next hours came alongside the burning ship and extinguished the flames . Since the expected explosion had been prevented by punctured fuel and water tanks flooding the compartments above the hot magazine , Commander Momm took a skeleton crew back aboard at 23 : 00 . After the fires were extinguished the " Execute " attempted a tow using her sweep gear . At first the " Mullany " was in tow at low speed . With an increase in speed the sweep cable snapped and the tow attempt was discontinued . The " Mullany " crew then succeeded in lighting off one boiler , and " Mullany " limped off on one shaft for Pearl Harbor and San Francisco , arriving 29 May . Courage and determination had saved their ship , but 21 of her crew were killed , nine missing , and 36 wounded . Completely repaired , " Mullany " put to sea 25 September for the Panama Canal and duty with the Atlantic Fleet , until decommissioning 14 February 1946 to join the Reserve Fleet at Charleston , South Carolina Post World War II service . Recommissioned 8 March 1951 , " Mullany " rejoined the Atlantic Fleet and by January 1954 had made three deployments to the Mediterranean to join in the peace - keeping missions of the 6th Fleet . With her squadron , Destroyer Squadron 18 ( DesRon 18 ) , " Mullany " departed Newport , R . I . 1 December 1954 for San Diego , where the squadron was redesignated DesRon 21 for service in the Pacific Fleet . In the next 10 years , " Mullany " served eight times in the western Pacific with the 7th Fleet , joining in patrol and training operations essential to the protection of freedom in Asia . Vietnam War . Veteran " Mullany " returned to combat during her ninth cruise to the coast of Asia , screening carrier in flight operations off Vietnam in 1965 , as well as serving as harbor defense ship at Da Nang . On 6 July 1965 , " Mullany ' s " five - inch guns were fired in anger for the first time since Okinawa . This time it was in support of the U . S . 7th Marine Regiment landing at Qui Nhon . The following year she returned to the coast of Vietnam to seek out and destroy craft moving enemy supplies . From 20 to 30 November 1966 , she destroyed 28 enemy watercraft and damaged 26 others with her 5 inch guns . She screened until sailing for San Diego in March 1967 . Following an overhaul at Long Beach , " Mullany " spent the remainder of the year conducting refresher training and local operations off the coast of California . In February 1968 , she once again deployed to the Western Pacific . On 9 July 1968 , " Mullany " left Vietnamese waters for the last time . During 137 days at sea , she had steamed 46 , 468 miles , nearly twice around the earth . Over a career that spanned 25 years , she would have circumnavigated the globe more than 40 times . After a visit to Auckland , New Zealand , she returned to San Diego in September . Based in Long Beach , " Mullany " spent the next two years steaming up and down the West Coast as a reserve training ship . By 1971 , " Mullany " was the oldest destroyer on active service . She was decommissioned and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register 6 October 1971 , and sold to the Republic of China for $ 150 , 000 , plus $ 3 , 000 , " administrative charges . " Awards . " Mullany " received seven battle star s for World War II service . " Chiang Yang " . Transferred to the Republic of China Navy 6 October 1971 , the ship was renamed Chiang Yang . " Chaing Yang " was stricken 16 July 1999 . " Chaing Yang " was sunk as an artificial reef on 1 November 2001 .