[1] USS Mahan (DD-102) was a Wickes-class destroyer built for the United States Navy by the Fore River Shipyard, Quincy, Massachusetts.

With the exception of a cruise to Pearl Harbor for maneuvers in early 1925, Mahan operated along the United States East Coast, in the Caribbean Sea, and off the Panama Canal Zone for the next 10 years.

During this time, the destroyer participated in fleet training exercises, and patrolled courses for the International Six Meter Sailing Races of 1922 and 1927.

Mahan assisted in salvage operations for submarines S-51 in September 1925 off Block Island, and did so for S-4, periodically, from 17 December 1927 through mid-March 1928 off Provincetown, Massachusetts.

Throughout the decade, in addition to her regular duties, Mahan served as an experimental ship testing new equipment for the Navy's future use.

In the books, Mahan and her sister ship USS Walker are pursued by superior Japanese naval forces after the Battle of the Java Sea and seek refuge in a squall.