Please Report Any Broken Links Or Trouble You Might Come Across To The Webmaster
Please Take A Moment To Let Us Know So That We Can Correct Any Problems And Make Your Visit As Enjoyable And As Informative As Possible.

Navsource Online: Destroyer Escort Photo Archive

USS Ira Jeffery (DE 63 / APD 44)


Flag Hoist / Radio Call Sign:
N - X - Q - F
Awards, Citations and Campaign Ribbons


Precedence of awards is from top to bottom, left to right
Top Row: Combat Action Ribbon (retroactive) - American Campaign Medal
Second Row: Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal - Europe-Africa-Middle East Campaign Medal - WWII Victory Medal
Specifications:
Class: Buckley
Type: TE (turbine-electric drive, 3" guns)
Displacement: 1400 tons (light), 1740 tons (full)
Length: 300' (wl), 306' (oa)
Beam: 36' 9" (extreme)
Draft: 10' 6" (draft limit)
Propulsion: 2 "D" Express boilers, G.E. turbines with electric drive, 12000 shp, 2 screws
Speed: 24 kts
Range: 6,000 nm @ 12 knots
Armament: 3 x 3"/50 Mk22 (1x3), 1 twin 40mm Mk1 AA, 8 x 20mm Mk 4 AA, 3 x 21" Mk15 TT (3x1), 1 Hedgehog Projector Mk10 (144 rounds), 8 Mk6 depth charge projectors, 2 Mk9 depth charge tracks
Complement: 15 / 198
Ira Jeffery (DE 63) Building and Operational Data:
  • 13 February 1943: Keel laid as Jeffery by the Bethlehem Steel Corp. Hingham, Mass.
  • 15 May 1943: Launched and christened, sponsored by Mrs. D. C. Jeffery, mother of Ensign Jeffery
  • 29 July 1943: Renamed Ira Jeffery
  • 15 August 1943: Commissioned at Hingham, Mass., Lcdr. R. A. Fitch in command
  • 23 February 1945: Reclassified APD 44, converted at the Brooklyn Navy Yard
  • 18 June 1946: Decommissioned at Green Cove Springs, Fla. after 2 years and 10 months of service
  • 01 June 1960: Struck from the NVR
  • 31 July 1962: Sunk as a torpedo target by USS Sennet (SS 408) using an experimental Mk16 torpedo, 200 mi. SE of Charleston, S.C. in 2821 feet of water
    Click On Image
    For Full Size Image    		 Size Image Description Contributed
    By And/Or Copyright
    Ira Jeffery 248k circa 1943: undated WWII photo, exact date / location unknown. Darryl Baker
    PNCM, USNR (ret.)

    Vallejo Naval & Historical Museum
    Ira Jeffery 263k July 1944: the Atlantic Ocean - USS Ira Jeffery (DE 63) on training exercises off Montauk Point, New York. Picture is from the National Archives and was taken by an aircraft from NAS New York at a height of 300 feet. Everett N. Schrader
    SoM1/c
    Ira Jeffery 120k July 1944: the Atlantic Ocean - Taken off Montauk Point, Long Island by an aircraft from NAS New York.
    Ira Jeffery 0k A video I made in honor of my father, S1c Charles Kopcho, using his yearbook from Ira Jeffery during WWII.

    Link to YouTube. Open in new window so you can stay on Navsource.    		 Charles J. Kopcho
    Schnecksville, Pa.
    Ira Jeffery History
    View the USS Ira Jeffery (DE 63) DANFS history entry located on the Naval History and Heritage Command web site.
    View the official War History of USS Ira Jeffery as submitted by the ship at war's end.
    Ira Jeffery's Commanding Officers
    Thanks to Wolfgang Hechler & Ron Reeves
    Dates of Command Commanding Officers
    1.) 15 Aug. 1943 - 10 Feb. 1944Lcdr. Robert Atwood Fitch (Comm. CO) (Omaha, Nebr.)
    2.) 10 Feb. 1944 - 02 May 1944Lt. George Reginald Cassels-Smith, USNR (hospitalized)
    3.) 02 May 1944 - 30 May 1944Lcdr. Alexander Marvin White, USNR (temporary assignment)
    4.) 30 May 1944 - 12 Oct. 1944Lcdr. George Reginald Cassels-Smith, USNR
    5.) 12 Oct. 1944 - 15 Nov. 1945Lcdr. William Henry Doheny, USNR (Los Angeles, Cal.)
    6.) 15 Nov. 1945 - 30 Jan. 1946Lt. Wayne Thomas Ash, USNR
    7.) 30 Jan. 1946 - 18 Jun. 1946Lt.(jg) Alexander Niblock (Decomm. CO)
    Crew Contact And Reunion Information
    Contact Name: Everett N. Schrader
    Address: 3800 Snowden Hill Road
    City/State: New Hartford NY 13413
    Phone: (315) 737-9788
    E-mail: irajay@adelphia.net
    Note About Contacts

    Contact information is compiled from various sources over a period of time and may, or may not, be correct. Every effort has
    been made to list the newest contact. However, our entry is only as good as the latest information that's been sent to us. We list
    only a contact for the ship if one has been sent to us. We do NOT have crew lists, rosters, or deck logs available. Please see the
    Frequently Asked Questions section on NavSource's Main Page for that information.

    Additional Resources
    Navsource APD Pages, USS Ira Jeffery (APD 44)
    Charles J. Kopcho's Video Tribute to USS Ira Jeffery
    Tin Can Sailors
    The U.S. Navy Memorial
    Destroyer Escort Sailors Association
    The Destroyer Escort Historical Museum
    The Destroyer History Foundation
    Tin Can Sailors Shipmate Registry - USS Ira Jeffery
    To The DE, FF, LCS Photo Index Page
    Back To The Main Photo Index

    Comments, Suggestions, E-mail: Webmaster.

    This Page Created And Maintained By Mike Smolinski
    All pages copyright Navsource Naval History
    by Paul R. Yarnall, All Rights Reserved.
    Page Last Updated: 28 March 2022