that accompanied convoys to many destinations. Once at Tompkinsville, the ship's crew continued training and calibrating their equipment, especially the ship's radio direction finder. Besides checking the structural strength of the hull and target practice on the range at Sandy Hook, the ship went through many other tests before going to sea for the first time. Finally, PC-1264 was ready for its shakedown cruise to the Submarine Chaser Training Center in Miami, Florida. Upon arrival at Miami, the shakedown inspectors gave the ship and crew a rough going over for several days. However, the crew was jubilant when the ship received a glowing report. Leaving soon after on its first independent cruise, at about 10:35 am the ship encountered engine trouble and was stopped dead in the water far from land. After some delay, a naval tug returned the ship to post after midnight. On 2 July 1944, the ship's shakedown cruise and post-inspection was completed. PC-1264 was then ordered to a three and a half-days' exercise at the Fleet Sound School in Key West. However, as far as the Submarine Chaser Training Center was concerned, PC-1264 was ready. Fifteen members of the crew also received the ship's first promotions. Escort duty After completing Fleet Sound School, PC-1264 returned to New York and reported for duty on 10 July 1944. She was assigned to Task Unit 02.9, a surface escort group based at the Naval Frontier Base, Staten Island. In the months ahead, PC-1264 would escort convoys from New York to Cuba or Key West and back again, or from Charleston, South Carolina to New York. She escorted the from New York to Key West so that U.S. air and sea anti-submarine forces would not confuse Argo with a German submarine. PC-1264 would also serve in the role of an "enemy destroyer" to provide submarines with anti-escort training, which also gave additional anti-submarine training to PC-1264s crew. Its first convoy duty was Convoy NG-448, from New York to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. On 21 July sonar indicated a large unidentified object nearby and, acting on standard anti-submarine procedures, PC-1264 engaged the contact for three hours before leaving to rejoin the convoy, which was now safely out of range. Afterwards, she regularly escorted convoys from New York to Key West and back again. In September 1944, the engineering section discovered a series of cracks between the engine mounts and bedplates (girders supporting