USS Vella Gulf (CG-72)
Lambert M. Surhone, Mariam T. Tennoe, Susan F. Henssonow
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USS Vella Gulf (CG-72) is an American Ticonderoga class Aegis guided missile cruiser.
She is named for the Battle of Vella Gulf, a naval engagement in the Solomons campaign of World War II.
This engagement was historically significant because it was the first time that destroyers were allowed to operate independent of the cruiser force during the Pacific campaign.
The battle was fought between the islands of Vella Lavella and Kolombangara on the night of 6 August 1943.
In the battle of Vella Gulf, six American destroyers - Dunlap, Craven, Maury, Lang, Sterrett, and Stack - engaged a group of four enemy destroyers attempting to reinforce Japanese troops on Kolombangara.
The American warships closed the enemy undetected with the aid of radar and fired torpedoes which sank Hagikaze, Arashi, and Kawakaze with no damage to American ships.
