Hue City

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Hué City is named for the Battle of Huế, fought in the city during the Tet Offensive of 1968 by the 1st Marine Regiment (composed of 1st Battalion, 1st Marines, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines and attached units) during the Vietnam War. The three battalion commanders were the honored guests at her 1991 commissioning. As the only U.S. warship named for a battle that took place during the Vietnam War, Hué City had the opportunity to reach out to the veterans of the battle for which she is named. She frequently held memorials commemorating the Battle of Huế. Hué City also shares her hull number with guided missile destroyer USS Gonzalez (DDG-66), named after USMC Sergeant Alfredo Gonzalez, who earned the Medal of Honor for his actions in Operation Hué City.

In Their Own Story

On 14 April 2014, Monday evening, a fire broke out at just after 6:20 p.m. local time while Hué City was steaming about 200 nautical miles northeast of Bermuda. The crew fought and defeated a major fire in one of the main engineering spaces without suffering any injuries. The ship's executive officer was relieved by the head of Carrier Strike Group 8 in June 2014 for "failing to ensure his crew properly stowed hazardous materials" which subsequently caught fire. According to the investigation report, bales of rags caught fire after they had been improperly stored in an exhaust uptake trunk. The fire caused over $23 million in damage and required over 9 months of repairs. It also caused Hué City to miss the planned deployment to Europe.

Reader's Guide

Hué City sailed on 11 March 1993, for her maiden deployment to the Mediterranean Sea as Air Warfare Commander for the Theodore Roosevelt Carrier battle group. Principally operating in the Adriatic Sea, Hué City developed the air picture and transmitted it to command centers afloat and shore. Hué City also monitored the safety of United Nations relief flights to Bosnia and Herzegovina, ensuring Serb aircraft did not violate no-fly zones. In May 2002, during a three-day Naval Gun Fire Support exercise off the coast of Djibouti, Africa, Hué City fired hundreds of 5-inch rounds in support of Marine Expeditionary Unit Exercise 2002 (MEUEX '02) more than 60 targets that included tanks, bunkers, and various military vehicles. Hué City joined the Wasp Amphibious Ready Group and the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit to conduct this first of its kind exercise in this little-known region of northeast Africa.

Did You Know?

• Hué City is the only U.S. Navy ship named after a battle in the Vietnam War.
• The three battalion commanders of the Battle of Huế were the honored guests at her 1991 commissioning.
• Hué City shares her hull number (CG-66) with guided missile destroyer USS Gonzalez (DDG-66).
• A 2014 fire caused by improperly stored rags in an exhaust uptake trunk caused over $23 million in damage and required over 9 months of repairs.
• Hué City was decommissioned on 23 September 2022 at Naval Station Norfolk.