USS Bryant ( DD - 665 ) USS " Bryant " ( DD - 665 ) was a " Fletcher " - class destroyer of the United States Navy , named for Rear Admiral Samuel W . Bryant ( 1877 – 1938 ) . " Bryant " was launched 29 May 1943 by Charleston Navy Yard ; sponsored by Mrs . Samuel W . Bryant , widow of Rear Admiral Bryant ; and commissioned 4 December 1943 , Commander Paul Laverne High in command . 1944 . After fitting out at the Charleston Navy Yard , " Bryant " conducted a month - long shakedown cruise near Bermuda before returning to the Charleston Navy Yard on 28 February 1944 for a 10 - day , post - shakedown availability . The destroyer then set sail for the Boston Navy Yard and arrived there on the 13th . Two days later , she and got underway for the Pacific as escorts for . The trio transited the Panama Canal on the 20th and then steamed north for a one - day replenishment stop at San Diego before heading on toward Hawaii . On 3 April , " Bryant " entered Pearl Harbor and , following three days of exercises there , devoted the remainder of April and the beginning of May to a yard availability to repair leaks in her reduction gear and fireroom hull . Her repairs completed , the warship conducted antisubmarine warfare patrols and participated in landing and bombardment exercises near Pearl Harbor during the latter half of May . She got underway on 29 May for Eniwetok , the staging area for the invasion of the Marianas . On 11 June , she set out for Saipan in the Northern Attack Force and spent D - Day , the 15th , in the transport screen . For the next month and a half , the destroyer patrolled the waters surrounding Saipan and Tinian on radar picket station , occasionally providing fire support and illuminating fire to help troops fighting ashore . " Bryant " returned to Eniwetok Atoll on 5 August and settled in alongside for 10 days of engineering repairs . Following a six - day tender availability at Purvis Bay , she stood out to sea on 6 September for the Palaus . During the morning watch of the 12th , " Bryant " approached Peleliu in the destroyer screen of Task Group 32 . 5 ( TG 32 . 5 ) , which consisted of the flagship , , , and . When firing positions had been achieved , the roar of the battlewagon s ’ guns heralded the opening of a three - day long pattern of rotating bombardment by air and sea . Daily , " Bryant " took leave of her screening duties with the capital ships to close the beach and dump 40 - millimeter rounds on enemy positions which threatened the operations of the underwater demolition team s ( UDTs ) . On 16 September , the day after the initial landings on Peleliu , Vice Admiral Theodore S . Wilkinson received Admiral William F . Halsey ' s order to " seize Ulithi as early as practicable … with resources at hand . " " Bryant " served as part of the screen for the 323rd Regimental Combat Team tasked with occupying the atoll , needed as an advance base for operations to liberate the Philippines . The landings , which took place on 23 September , encountered no opposition because the Japanese garrison had already abandoned the islets and moved to Yap . A decision by the American high command to cancel the landings at Yap and Mindanao in favor of accelerating the timetable for operations against Leyte and Luzon afforded " Bryant " little time to replenish her depleted supply of fuel and ammunition . On 24 September , she departed Ulithi , made a brief stop at Kossol Roads , and reached Seeadler Harbor on the 28th for two weeks of voyage repairs , drills , and recreation . On 11 October , she " topped off " her fuel and commenced a week - long passage to Leyte Gulf . During the early morning hours of 20 October , " Bryant " stood off Leyte approximately from Catmon Hill conducting indirect fire in support of the troops landing with the Southern Attack Force near Dulag . Later in the day , she helped to silence a mortar position which had earlier damaged with a near miss . On the 21st , she joined TG 77 . 2 and readied herself to meet a Japanese attempt to force through Surigao Strait and destroy the American transports in Leyte Gulf . Surigao Strait — a waterway bracketed by Leyte and Panaon Island s to the north and west and by Mindanao and Dinagat Islands to the south and east — constitutes the southern approach to the gulf . Rear Admiral Jesse B . Oldendorf deployed his battleship s and cruiser s across the northern mouth of the strait and arrayed his destroyers on either flank . The Japanese strike force under Vice Admiral Shoji Nishimura — composed of the battleships and , the heavy cruiser , and four destroyers — steamed into the strait from the south during mid - watch on the 25th . Deployed to the east side of the strait , " Bryant " , , and comprised one of the three destroyer sections assigned to screen Rear Admiral Oldendorf ' s left - flank cruisers . By the time " Bryant " closed within range of the enemy column , many of his ships had been sunk or were burning as a consequence of the right - flank destroyers ’ torpedo attack and the gunfire of the battleships and cruisers in the battle line . At 03 : 39 , under the cover of salvos from the battleships and cruisers , the trio commenced their attack to the starboard side of the enemy battle line as it pressed northward . " Bryant " closed to and loosed a spread of five torpedoes , none of which found their target , and then retired unscathed to a position near Hibuson Island . After receiving word that American escort carrier s had come under fire in the Battle off Samar , TG 77 . 2 discontinued pursuit of Nishimura ' s force and steamed to aid the baby flattops . When the task group arrived too late to influence events near Samar , it dispatched " Bryant " to a radar picket station between Suluan and Dinagat Islands . Although the majority of 7th Fleet units returned to Ulithi at the end of October to rest after the nearly - continuous operations of the summer , " Bryant " , three battleships , four cruisers , and 12 other destroyers remained in Surigao Strait lest the Japanese attempt another thrust through that entrance to Leyte Gulf . No surface threat materialized , but the task group endured repeated air attacks on 1 November which , according to the destroyer ' s war diaries , the Japanese pilots pressed home with " fanatic determination . " Though " Bryant " splashed one of the enemy dive bomber s , the kamikaze suicide planes wreaked havoc on the destroyers , damaging five and sending to the bottom . After two more weeks of uneventful patrols in Surigao Strait , she departed those dangerous waters and headed for the Admiralty Islands , tallying an enemy plane en route . She reached Seeadler Harbor on 21 November and promptly commenced a much - needed six days of voyage repairs and replenishment . The destroyer set sail on the 28th , fueled from at sea , and reached Leyte Gulf on 2 December . She patrolled off Leyte for two weeks before anchoring in San Pedro Bay . There , " Bryant " joined the first resupply echelon bound for Mindoro since that island had been invaded on the 15th . The supply convoy departed late on the 19th with " Bryant " , the primary fighter director for the convoy , responsible for coordinating combat air patrol ( CAP ) . Two days into the voyage , she stood a severe test on that capability . Following an inconsequential dawn raid by two Nakajima Ki - 43 " Oscar " Army fighters , the Japanese fell upon the convoy that evening with a tenacious attack involving approximately 30 planes . As the enemy pilots pressed toward the landing ships located in the center of the formation , antiaircraft fire from " Bryant " felled one enemy flier and assisted in the splashing of another . However , three " Oscars " broke through the screen and crashed into " LST - 460 " , " LST - 749 " , and the Liberty ship " Juan de Fuca " , sending both of the amphibious ships to the bottom . The next morning , the convoy reached Mindoro , and the destroyers formed a circular screen about five miles ( 8 km ) from the beach to cover the unloading of the remaining landing ships . At 09 : 45 , as " Bryant " waited on station , her commanding officer sighted a Mitsubishi A6M " Zeke " fighter at . The pilot commenced a suicide run , and the destroyer maneuvered furiously to unmask her battery to starboard . Despite hits from " Bryant " ' s 20 - millimeter and 40 - millimeter guns , the kamikaze seemed destined to strike her at the number 2 stack . However , the plane overshot the target , the right wing narrowly clearing a 40 - millimeter mount , and splashed away just even with the bridge . As the plane disappeared beneath the waves , it exploded , showering the agile warship with fragments of the tail assembly . These punctured her portside shell plating in numerous places and injured one of her crewmen . That evening , after the LSTs unloaded , the convoy reformed and returned to Leyte where " Bryant " anchored for the remainder of the year . 1945 . On 2 January 1945 , she departed Leyte Gulf in the screen of the battleships and cruisers in TG 77 . 2 ' s fire - support unit . During the approach to Luzon , the Japanese subjected the task group to a series of heavy air raids which inflicted damage on several ships . Early on the 9th , " Bryant " closed the beach to provide fire support for the Lingayen landings , then patrolled the area , weathering heavy seas and high winds , during the next week to parry a possible incursion by the enemy . Following a two - day visit to Leyte , the warship entered Ulithi lagoon on 26 January for three weeks of replenishment and preparation for the invasion of Iwo Jima . On 10 February , she got underway in company with TG 52 . 19 , conducted rehearsals near Saipan from the 12th through the 14th , and reached Iwo Jima two days later . While the island received a ferocious pounding from air and sea during the two days before the landings , " Bryant " provided close - in support to cover beach reconnaissance and minesweepers . On the morning of the 19th , the 4th and 5th Marine Divisions landed on the eastern shore of Iwo Jima , inaugurating a bloody and hard - fought campaign for the heavily fortified base . On 27 February , " Bryant " came under heavy fire from a Japanese shore battery , but was saved by the efforts of the . For the balance of February and into March , " Bryant " patrolled her fire support area lashing out at enemy targets when needed and occasionally acting as a radar picket . On 9 March , she set sail for the Western Carolines . En route , the destroyer made a refueling stop at Saipan , before putting in at Ulithi on the 13th for a week of voyage repairs and tender availability in preparation for the Okinawa assault . On 21 March , she departed for the Ryūkyūs in the antisubmarine screen of the minesweeper s . The destroyer rendezvoused with a minesweeping group on the 25th and shepherded them during two days sweeping mines to the west of Okinawa . Over the five days following , she alternated between radar picket duty and gun - fire missions on Japanese efforts to improve their beach defenses . On 1 April , " Bryant " started two weeks of radar picket duty . Her relatively quiet patrols contrasted with the grim experiences of destroyers on station elsewhere . On 16 April , however , her luck changed . That morning , the Japanese launched a 165 - plane kamikaze mission , the third of 10 " kikusui " or " floating chrysanthemum " attacks launched during the Okinawa campaign . suffered the first and most intense attack of the day , being struck by no less than six kamikazes , four bombs , and numerous near misses . " Bryant " received word that " Laffey " required assistance and rushed to aid her . After turning back sporadic attacks , she found herself the target of a coordinated attack by six enemy planes . First , three " Zeke " fighters closed the warship in a shallow glide . Her port batteries dispatched one , and the CAP splashed another ; but the third attacker , though hit repeatedly and trailing smoke , made it through and crashed into " Bryant " just below the bridge near the main radio room . A bomb from the kamikaze then exploded , engulfing the entire bridge in flames and doing major damage to communication , fire - control and radar equipment . Damage control teams , standing by to assist " Laffey " , extinguished the major fires within a couple of minutes and soon the wounded destroyer was making . Still , despite the prompt response , the attack exacted a heavy toll . In addition to her human casualties , 34 dead and 33 wounded , the destroyer suffered material damage enough to require repairs in the United States , and so she limped back to Kerama Retto to begin temporary repairs . On 27 April , with the patching necessary for a homeward voyage completed , she got underway for the United States . Steaming via Guam , Eniwetok , and Pearl Harbor , " Bryant " reached San Francisco on 28 May and , the next day , settled in for a yard overhaul at the United Engineering Co . , Ltd . , at Alameda . In addition to repair of the battle damage , the yard endeavored to improve her antiaircraft armament . However , the work stretched out over almost four months , and the war ended during the interlude . Finally , on 20 September , she stood out for a six - day " ready for sea " period which exposed a number of electrical problems that remained uncorrected by her overhaul . Declared unfit for duty by her commanding officer , the destroyer steamed southward to San Diego . Soon after her arrival on the 27th , " Bryant " commenced preparations for inactivation and was eventually placed in commission , in reserve , on 9 July 1946 . After another 18 months in that bureaucratic limbo , she was decommissioned at last on 15 January 1947 . She remained a part of the Pacific Reserve Fleet for nearly 30 years . Then , on 30 June 1968 , her name was struck from the Navy List , she was sold in April 1976 to Luria Brothers , and scrapped in July 1976 .