Dazzle camouflage of warships was adopted by the U.S. Navy during World War II, following research at the Naval Research Laboratory. Dazzle consists in painting obtrusive patterns on vertical surfaces. Unlike some other forms of camouflage, dazzle works not by offering concealment but by making it difficult to estimate a target's range, speed and heading. Each ship's dazzle pattern was unique to make it more difficult for the enemy to recognize different classes of ships. As a result, a profusion of dazzle schemes were tried, and the evidence for their success was at best mixed.
Dazzle camouflage patterns used on destroyers are presented here; Measures 31, 32 and 33 referred to dark, medium and light color combinations.
Colors
| MS-31 | MS-31a | MS-32 | MS-33 | MS-33a | Horizontals | |||||||||
| Haze Gray 5-H | Haze Gray 5-H | Light Gray 5-L | Light Gray 5-L | Pale Gray 5-P | Pale Gray 5-P | Light Gray 5-L | Ocean Gray 5-O | |||||||
| Ocean Gray 5-O | Ocean Gray 5-O | Dull Black 82 | Ocean Gray 5-O | Haze Gray 5-H | Haze Gray 5-H | Ocean Gray 5-O | Deck Blue 20-B | |||||||
| Dull Black 82 | Navy Blue 5-N | Dull Black 82 | Navy Blue 5-N | Ocean Gray 5-O | ||||||||||
Patterns
| Name | Description | Pattern sheet | Photo | Known examples |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MS-32/1D | for Gridley (DD-380) and Bagley (DD-386) classes [a] | .jpg) Port | .jpg) | Bagley,[b] Helm,[c] Mugford,[d] Ralph Talbot |
| for Sims (DD-409) class | Port and starboard | Anderson | ||
| for Fletcher (DD-445) class | Port and starboard | Taylor, Mullaney, Bush, Hoel,[c] Hall, Halligan, Newcomb | ||
| MS-32/3D | for Wickes (DD-75) and Clemson (DD-186) classes | Port and starboard | Lea, Badger, Breckinridge,[e][f] Barney, DuPont, Bernadou, Cole, Bainbridge | |
| for Porter (DD-356) class[g] | Port and starboard | Selfridge,[h] Moffett, Phelps | ||
| for Mahan (DD-364) class | Port Starboard | Downes | ||
| for Somers (DD-381) class | Somers, Warrington, Sampson, Davis, Jouett | |||
| for Benham (DD-397) class | Mayrant, Trippe, Rhind | |||
| for Sims (DD-409) class | Russell, Wainwright | |||
| for Benson (DD-421) and Gleaves (DD-423) classes[i] |  Port | _1944.jpg) | Benson, Mayo, Niblack,[e] Charles F. Hughes, Livermore, Eberle, Plunkett, Lansdowne,[c] Mervine, Quick, Farenholt, Doyle, Endicott, McCook,[c] Frankford, Kendrick,[e] Laub, MacKenzie, Baldwin, Thompson, Cowie, Knight, Butler, Tillman, Rodman,[e] Harding [e] | |
| alternate for Benson (DD-421) and Gleaves (DD-423) classes[j] | Buchanan, Kearny,[c] Lardner,[c] Boyle, Champlin [e] | |||
| for Fletcher (DD-445) class | Radford,[c] Haraden,[c] Paul Hamilton, Hickox, McNair | |||
| for Allen M. Sumner (DD-692) class | Ingraham, Cooper, English, Walke, Laffey, O'Brien, Meredith, DeHaven, Mansfield, Hyman, Shannon,[k] Adams,[k] Brush, J. William Ditter[k] | |||
| MS-31/6D | for Farragut (DD-348) class | Dewey, Hull, Dale, Aylwin | ||
| for Benson (DD-421) class | Woodworth,[d] Bailey, Meade | |||
| MS-3_/6D | for Fletcher (DD-445) class |  | _in_Puget_Sound,_Washington_(USA),_on_21_July_1944_(BS_71253).jpg) | Jenkins (MS-32), Capps (MS-31), Ross (MS-32), Rowe (MS-31), Twiggs (MS-32), Bearss (MS-32), John Hood (MS-32), Monssen (MS-31), Colhoun (MS-32) |
| MS-31/7D | for Farragut (DD-348) class | Farragut, Monaghan[d] | ||
| MS-32/7D | for Gamble (DM-15) class[l] | Gamble, Preble, Sicard, Pruitt | ||
| for Chandler (DMS-9) class[m] | Dorsey, Hovey, Hamilton | |||
| MS-3_/7D | for Fletcher (DD-445) class |  | _off_San_Francisco,_California_(USA),_on_17_October_1944_(19-N-83725).jpg) | Waller (MS-32), Pringle (MS-32), Evans (MS-31), Porterfield (MS-32), Callaghan (MS-31), Cassin Young (MS-32) |
| for Allen M. Sumner (DD-692) class | ||||
| MS-31/9D | for Fletcher (DD-445) class | Saufley, Van Valkenbugh, Cotton, Hopewell, Uhlmann | ||
| MS-32/9D | for Dunlap (DD-384) class | Dunlap, Fanning | ||
| for Allen M. Sumner (DD-692) class |  | _underway_on_30_May_1944_(19-N-66338).jpg) | Moale, Charles S. Perry, Ault, Waldron, John W. Weeks, Wallace L. Lind, Lyman K. Swenson, Maddox, Blue, Taussig | |
| MS-3_/10D | for Fletcher (DD-445) class | _off_the_Mare_Island_Naval_Shipyard,_California_(USA),_on_19_March_1944_(BS_63270).jpg) | Daly (MS-32), Boyd (MS-31), Stembel (MS-32), Bullard (MS-31), Kidd (MS-31) | |
| MS-31/11D | for Sims (DD-409) and other single-stack classes |  | _1944.jpg) | Ellet, Stack,[d] Sterett,[d] Hughes |
| for Fletcher (DD-445) class | Fullam, Watts, Killen, Metcalf,[d] Hale, Chauncey,[d] Jarvis, Gregory, Rooks [d] | |||
| MS-32/13D | for Fletcher (DD-445) class |  | _underway_in_the_Pacific_Ocean_on_24_July_1944_(USN_243852).jpg) | Hudson, Stanly, Anthony, Kimberly, Morrison, Prichett, Robinson, Sproston, Cogswell, Knapp, Bennion, Richard P. Leary, McGowan, Picking, Halsey Powell, Norman Scott, Irwin, Preston, Porter |
| MS-3_/14D | for Fletcher (DD-445) class |  | _in_Massacre_Bay,_Attu,_on_9_June_1944_(NH_97804).jpg) | Terry (MS-31), Wadsworth (MS-32), Aulick (MS-32), Charles Ausburne (MS-32), McKee (MS-32), Wickes (MS-32), William D. Porter (MS-32), Lewis Hancock (MS-32), Marshall (MS-32) |
| MS-31/16D | for Fletcher (DD-445) class | Leutze, Isherwood, Hailey, Smalley, Stoddard, Claxton,[d] Dyson, Young, Hart, Braine, Hunt, Cushing, Little | ||
| for Allen M. Sumner (DD-692) class |  | _at_Federal_Shipbuilding,_Kearny,_New_Jersey_(USA),_on_21_June_1944_(NH_45510).jpg) | Allen M. Sumner, Haynsworth, Hank, Gainard, Barton, Laffey, Collett,[d] Harry F. Bauer,[k] Tolman,[k][d] Harry E. Hubbard, Lowry | |
| MS-32/16D | for Benson (DD-421) and Gleaves (DD-423) classes [j] | Meade, Edwards, Thorn | ||
| MS-32/18D | for Fletcher (DD-445) class | .jpg) Starboard | _off_San_Francisco,_California_(USA),_on_26_August_1944_(NH_51451).jpg) | Foote, Luce, Heywood L. Edwards |
| MS-31/21D | for Dahlgren (DD-187) class[n] | _in_port,_circa_in_1944_(NH_77470).jpg) | Thornton | |
| for Fletcher (DD-445) class | Ringgold, Conway, Cony, Healy | |||
| MS-32/21D | for Fletcher (DD-445) class | Beale, Twining, Bradford, John D. Henley, Longshaw, Burns, Albert W. Grant, Stockham | ||
| MS-31/22D | for Fletcher (DD-445) class | ,_1944.jpg) | Howorth, Wedderburn | |
| MS-32/22D | for Porter (DD-364) class [g] | Selfridge [h] | ||
| MS-31/23D | for Mahan (DD-364) class | _off_the_Mare_Island_Naval_Shipyard,_California_(USA),_on_12_June_1944_(19-N-67558).jpg) | Mahan, Cummings, Drayton, Lamson, Flusser, Reid, Conyngham, Smith | |
| for Fletcher (DD-445) class | O'Bannon, McCord, Wren, Bryant,[d] Hickox [d] | |||
| MS-32/23D | for Benson (DD-421) class[o] | Frazier, Kalk | ||
| MS-32/24D | for Fletcher (DD-445) class | _underway_off_Leyte_in_October_1944.jpg) | Nicholas, Ammen, Hazlewood, Heermann | |
| MS-31/25D | for Allen M. Sumner (DD-692) class | _underway_off_Staten_Island_on_30_August_1944.jpg) | Borie, Walke, Purdy, Massey, Robert H. Smith,[d][k] Thomas E. Fraser,[d][k] Henry A. Wiley,[d][k] Shea,[d][k] Gwin [d][k] | |
| MS-33a/27D | for Allen M. Sumner (DD-692) class | _off_Staten_Island,_New_York_(USA),_on_22_November_1944_(19-N-76474).jpg) | Alfred A. Cunningham | |
| MS-33a/28D | for Gearing (DD-710) class | _off_the_Boston_Navy_Yard_on_6_January_1945_(19-N-30278).jpg) | Gearing, Frank Knox, Southerland, Chevalier | |
| MS-33a/30D | for Allen M. Sumner (DD-692) class | _off_Staten_Island_on_22_November_1944_(19-N-76835).jpg) | John R. Pierce | |
| Adapted patterns | ||||
| MS-32/11A (aircraft carrier) | adapted to Allen M. Sumner (DD-692) class |  | .jpg) | Compton, Soley, Mannert L. Abele, Drexler, Samuel N. Moore, Putnam, Willard Keith, Lindsey, Aaron Ward |
| MS-31/2C (cruiser) | adapted to Fletcher (DD-445) class | Fletcher, Converse, Spence, Thatcher, Yarnall,[d] Harrison, Charles J. Badger, Benham | ||
| MS-32/2C (cruiser) | adapted to Sims (DD-409) and other single-stack classes | Patterson, Morris | ||
Notes
See also
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