Enright was launched on 29 May 1943 by Philadelphia Navy Yard; sponsored by Mrs. Katherine L. Enright, mother of Ensign Enright; and commissioned on 21 September 1943, Lieutenant Commander A. Wildner in command. On 16 April 1944, while westward bound, Enright was struck by a merchantman ship approaching the convoy. A 65-foot hole was torn in her port quarter, forward living spaces were flooded, and she took on a 9° list. The high quality of her crew was shown both in damage control work and the seamanship which brought her safely back to New York, where she was repaired in a month.