USS Adroit ( MSO - 509 ) USS " Adroit " ( AM - 509 / MSO - 509 ) was an Acme - class minesweeper acquired by the U . S . Navy for the task of removing mines that had been placed in the water to prevent the safe passage of ships . The second ship to be named " Adroit " by the Navy , " MSO - 509 " was laid down on 18 November 1954 at Boothbay Harbor , Maine , by Frank L . Sample , Jr . , Inc . as " AM - 509 " ; redesignated " MSO 509 " on 7 February 1955 , named " Adroit " on 17 May 1955 ; launched on 20 August 1955 ; sponsored by Mrs . Alice G . Olsen , the wife of Capt . Eliot Olsen , and commissioned on 4 March 1957 , Lt . Comdr . J . G . Nemetz in command . East Coast operations . Following commissioning , " Adroit " completed fitting out and then moved south to Charleston , South Carolina . From that port , she conducted shakedown training in the West Indies and in the local operating area . The minesweeper then began a period of almost 17 years of service with the Atlantic Fleet Mine Force . During that time , she provided services for several Navy organizations most notably the Naval Mine Defense Laboratory ( after 1971 the Naval Coastal Systems Laboratory ) at Panama City , Florida , the Naval Ordnance Laboratory Test Facility at Ft . Lauderdale , Florida , and the Mine Warfare School at Charleston , South Carolina . In addition , " Adroit " participated in Gordon Cooper ' s Project Mercury , space shot in May 1963 and helped the Naval Oceanographic Office to conduct a test in March 1970 . The minesweeper also made occasional deployments to both the Mediterranean sea and the West Indies . During her tour of duty with the U . S . 6th Fleet in the summer of 1958 , she earned the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal as a result of service off the coast of strife - torn Lebanon . For the most part , however , normal operations such as exercises and goodwill port visits occupied her time overseas . While serving in home waters , she concentrated on type training independent ship ' s exercises , regular overhauls , and repair periods . Reassigned to Newport , Rhode Island . The character of " Adroit ' s " Navy career changed significantly midway through 1973 . That summer , she received word of her reassignment to naval reserve training duty and of a change of home ports from Charleston to Newport , Rhode Island . She departed Charleston on 24 September and arrived in Newport on the 28th . The minesweeper spent the remainder of her Navy career training naval reservists . She operated along the U . S . East Coast participating in a number of exercises most frequently independent ship ' s exercises and amphibious assault training . In August 1977 , her base was changed to Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery Maine ( near Portsmouth , New Hampshire ) , whence she operated for more than four years . Early in October 1981 " Adroit " changed home ports once again from Portsmouth Naval Shipyard , to Little Creek , Virginia . As of December 1987 , she was still operating from the Naval Amphibious Base , Little Creek , Virginia . She deployed to the Persian Gulf in 1991 . She operated with The Multinational Coalition Mine Countermeasure Force that found approximately 1300 Iraqi - laid mines in the Gulf . Persian Gulf War service . USS Adroit ( MSO - 509 ) was lifted to the Persian gulf following Iraq ' s invasion of Kuwait . She was loaded aboard the Dutch heavy lift ship Super Servant 3 on 19 August 1990 at Norfolk along with USS Leader ( MSO - 490 ) , USS Impervious ( MSO - 449 ) and USS Avenger ( MCM - 1 ) . She was offloaded 5 October 1990 in the middle east . Impervious returned to Norfolk on 14 November 1991 with USS Leader ( MSO - 490 ) and USS Adroit ( MSO - 509 ) aboard Super Servant 4 . She participated in minesweeping operations to clear mines for anticipated d - day style landing by US Marines as part of the diversionary force which allowed land forces to take Iraqi Artillery positions from behind . On 28 February 1991 at 0500 they were ordered to storm the beaches at 0300 they were ordered to stand down as Iraq had surendered and the war was over . She also did escort duty for the battleships USS Missouri and USS Wisconsin . as part of two naval battle groups built around the aircraft carriers USS Dwight D . Eisenhower and USS Independence to the Gulf , where they were ready by 8 August . She did riggings for HM - 14 Airborne Mine Countermeasures minesweeping helicopters stationed aboard the USS Tripoli . This was the minesweeping gear use to clear anchored mines such as the one that hit Tripoli . Tripoli proceeded into the northern Persian Gulf and assumed duties as flagship for Airborne Mine Countermeasures operations there with HM - 14 deployed aboard . On the morning of 18 February 1991 , at 0436 ( 4 : 37 a . m . ) Tripoli was rocked by a mine explosion on her starboard bow . The explosion ripped a 16 by 20 ft hole in the ship ' s hull and injured four sailors . The Tripoli was towed off of three other unexploded mines by two MCM ships . After 20 hours of damage control , the ship was stabilized and was actually ready to resume operations . However her HM - 14 fuel tanks were damaged by the mine hit and she was unable to deploy her HM - 14 ' s due to a lack of fuel . The Impervious and sister MSO ' s were her escorts . USS Impervious was responsible for removing these mines that threatened the Tripoli . Soon after the Iraqi invasion , it became clear that Iraq was laying mines in international waters . U . S . ships discovered and des ' troyed six mines during December . The U . S . Mine Countermeasures Group ( USMCMG ) was established with the objective of cleanng a path to the beach for a possible amphibious landing and battleship gunflre support . The minesweepers USS Adroit ( MSO 509 ) , USS Impervious ( MSO 449 ) , and USS Leader ( MSO 490 ) along with the newly commissioned mine countermeasures ship USS Avenger ( MCM 1 ) arrived in the Gulf aboard the heavy - lift ship Super Servant III . More than 20 Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal ( EOD ) teams were also deployed to support the mine countermeasures force . Allied minesweepers from Saudi Arabia , Great Britain and Kuwait , and the MH - 53 Super Stallions of Mine Countermeasures Helicopter Squadron 14 joined the MCM effort . After months of training off Dubai , United Arab Emirates , USMCMG staff embarked in USS Tripoli ( LPH 10 ) on 20 January , and proceeded to the northern Gulf waters to perform their mission . As flagship for the combined operation , Tripoli ' s flight deck was the base for the mine - sweeping helicopters . Six British minesweepers joined their U . S . counterparts , with British and U . S . warships providing air defense . USMCMG began its work 60 miles east of the Kuwaiti coastline , working initially to clear a 15 - mile long , 1 , 000 - yard wide path . The mine - clearing task force spent the flrst few weeks of DESERT STORM pushing 24 miles to " Point FOXTROT , " a 10 - mile by 3 . 5 - mile box which became the battleship gunfire support area south of Faylaka Island . While sweeping further toward shore , the task group was targeted by Iraqi fire control radars associated with Silkworm missile sites inside Kuwait . Task force ships moved out of Silkworm range and worked to locate the radar site . During those maneuvers on 18 February , Iraqi mines found their mark . Within three hours of each other , Tripoli and USS Princeton ( CG 59 ) were rocked by exploding mines . As damage control teams successfully overcame flres and flooding aboard Tripoli and Princeton , Impervious , Leader and Avenger searched for additional mines in the area . Adroit led the salvage tug USS Beaufort ( ATS 2 ) toward Princeton to tow her to safety . Tripoli was able to continue her mission for several days before she was relieved by USS La Salle ( AGF 3 ) and USS New Orleans ( LPH 11 ) and proceeded to Bahrain for repairs . New Orleans provided the helicopter deck while the mine group staff moved aboard La Salle to coordinate the operation . Princeton restored her TLAM strike and AEGIS anti - air warfare defense capabilities within fifteen minutes of the mine strike , whereupon she reassumed duties as local anti - air warfare coordinator and remained on station , providing defense for the mine countermeasures group for an additional 30 hours , until relieved . Charts and intelligence captured from Iraq showed the mine field where Tripoli and Princeton were hit was one of six laid in a 150 - mile arc from Faylaka Island to the Saudi - Kuwaiti border . Within that arc , there were four additional mine - lines — a total of more than 1 , 000 mines — laid over a five - month period . Three days later , the massive 31 - ship amphibious task force moved north to assist in battlefield preparation as the deadline for the ground offensive neared . As Wisconsin and Missouri steamed in the vicinity of recently - cleared " Point FOXTROT , " their gun crews continued to pound Iraqi targets . Marine AV - 8B Harriers launched from the flight deck of Nassau conducted strikes ashore . " Adroit " had 34 . 9 years of service . Final decommissioning . " Adroit " was decommissioned 12 December 1991 and was stricken 8 May 1992 . She was sold for scrap 15 April 1994 and scrapped at Wilmington , North Carolina , 30 May 1995 . In 1994 , Wilmington , North Carolina became the site of a ship scrapping operation . There were twenty decommissioned U . S . NAVY warships and one maritime ship . Wilmington Resources , Inc . , and Sigma Recycling , LLC , operated the facility . The USS ADROIT MSO 509 was dismantled and scrapped at this facility .