PORT HUENEME : Ship Saves Day for Seabee Celebration

The frigate Fanning steamed into the Port of Hueneme on Friday, saving the day for organizers of this weekend’s 50th anniversary party for the Seabees after its sister ship bowed out due to maintenance problems.

When the Fanning pulled in at the Naval Construction Battalion Center, organizers celebrated the fact that their party, dubbed Seabee 50 Fest, would have a real-live Navy ship as its star attraction.

The Reasoner, a 440-foot Knox-class frigate, was scheduled to hold tours today and Sunday as part of the festivities, which will also feature live music, a military parade and equipment displays.

But when the Reasoner literally sprang a leak, Navy officials were able to provide the Fanning, another 440-foot Knox-class frigate, as an able-hulled replacement, Navy spokeswoman Jeanie Pelkey said.

Guided tours of the Fanning, which is based in San Diego and regularly carries its 20 officers and 275 enlisted men on duty tours across the western Pacific, will be held from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. today and Sunday, Pelkey said.

Most of the Fanning’s missions are as a member of destroyer squadrons, Pelkey said. The vessel is equipped to conduct surveillance duties and anti-submarine warfare.

The Fanning is a third-generation naval vessel, having had same-name predecessors in World War I and World War II, Pelkey said.

The World War I version was the only U. S. ship to sink a German submarine during the war, while the World War II Fanning, which was based at Pearl Harbor but was out to sea during the Japanese air attack, participated in a daring raid on Japan, Pelkey said.

Switching from the Reasoner to the Fanning was easily done, Pelkey said. The Fanning was at sea in the Pacific, Pelkey said, so when the dilemma arose with the Reasoner, phone calls were made and the ship was directed to fill in.

“We are very pleased that they came through for us and we have the ship to offer to the public,” Pelkey said.