US Navy duty stations - picture gallery

[UtahPete]

I don't have a lot of unit pics handy, too busy for photo's..... But I was stationed at; DE/FF-1092 USS TC Hart and my wife was at; AD-44 USS Shenedoah Just a couple of old retired Chiefs.

AD-44 USS Shenandoah (Destroyer Tender) USS_Shenandoah_(AD-44)_with_frigates_in_the_Med_c1987.jpg

DE/FF-1092 USS TC Hart (Destroyer Escort / Fast Frigate) Thomas C Hart.jpg I believe it is still on duty with the Turkish Navy.

[pitzerwm]

Congrats to all of you for surviving. I was to be on the Forestal when it blew up off of Vietnam, but I met a Capt. in charge of the Memphis base hospital and he didn't believe in the Vietnam war when he found out where I was going, he hid me in the hospital until those orders were cancelled. I would have been where the guys that died were. AQF shop.

I happened to be in SE Asia in 2009, for you of those that never went back. Da Nang base is still there like a surplus whatever, but across the road, in both directions as far as the eye can see are Condos, casinos, golf courses and luxury resorts. Capitalism in Vietnam is rampant, it is amazing to see. I'm not sure how the government handles it, but if you want to open a business you need to find a Vietnamese partner.

Being ADD with authority issues, I wasn't worth a damn, but I did use my time wisely and made it out with an honourable discharge.

[UtahPete]

I was to be on the Forestal when it blew up off of Vietnam, but I met a Capt. in charge of the Memphis base hospital and he didn't believe in the Vietnam war when he found out where I was going, he hid me in the hospital until those orders were cancelled. I would have been where the guys that died were. AQF shop.

Thank you for your service, and for the story. Where did you serve, if not on the Forrestal?

The USS Forrestal is a storied, conventionally powered aircraft carrier that was the largest carrier built at that time. The fire in 1967 resulted from a shortage of modern munitions available for the intensive bombing runs, resulting in some old WWII munitions being brought out of storage and used aboard the carrier. The riveting story can be found here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1967_USS_Forrestal_fire

1024px-USS_Forrestal_(CV-59)_under_Verrazano-Narrows_Bridge.jpg F-8_Crusaders_fly_over_USS_Forrestal_(CVA-59)_in_1962.jpg

[pitzerwm]

I was at Virginia Beach AQ84 , then 11 months on the Independence, Caribbean, and the Med. IMO the Forrestal was jinked. It had that incident (McCain was in the lead plane, 139 killed) repaired sent to the Med to replace the Roosevelt. Back then normal attrition of dead was 12 on a 9-month cruise. We lost our 12, all negligent over the 9 months. You also had so many fires, a major one every month, as we did. The Forrestal lost their 12 men in the 30 days going to the Med, and had major fires all of the time.

[UtahPete]

I was at Virginia Beach AQ84 , then 11 months on the Independence, Caribbean, and the Med. IMO the Forrestal was jinked. It had that incident (McCain was in the lead plane, 139 killed) repaired sent to the Med to replace the Roosevelt. Back then normal attrition of dead was 12 on a 9-month cruise. We lost our 12, all negligent over the 9 months. You also had so many fires, a major one every month, as we did. The Forrestal lost their 12 men in the 30 days going to the Med, and had major fires all of the time.

Yes, the Forrestal certainly seemed jinxed. I think Senator McCain might have flown his last mission off that ship; not sure about that.

[vided]

"As a naval aviator, McCain flew attack aircraft from carriers. During the Vietnam War, he narrowly escaped death in the 1967 Forrestal fire. On his twenty-third bombing mission in October 1967, he was shot down over Hanoi and badly injured. He subsequently endured five and a half years as a prisoner of war, including periods of torture. In 1968, he refused a North Vietnamese offer of early release, because it would have meant leaving before other prisoners who had been held longer. He was released in 1973 after the Paris Peace Accords."

[UtahPete]

"As a naval aviator, McCain flew attack aircraft from carriers. During the Vietnam War, he narrowly escaped death in the 1967 Forrestal fire. On his twenty-third bombing mission in October 1967, he was shot down over Hanoi and badly injured. He subsequently endured five and a half years as a prisoner of war, including periods of torture. In 1968, he refused a North Vietnamese offer of early release, because it would have meant leaving before other prisoners who had been held longer. He was released in 1973 after the Paris Peace Accords."

One of the bitter ironies of war; to escape death on the Forrestal only to be shot down and captured and tortured for 5 years in a POW camp. Senator, I will miss your steady voice of reason and quiet strength on the national stage. If only you had chosen an equally credible running mate in 2008, the world might be a very better place today.

[Trickie Dick]

I don't remember all the ships with which we operated during 1965 but it was a very busy year. USS Orleck spent most of her time along the coast and Chu Lai, Da Nang and Nha Trang were three of our most popular areas for shore bombardment. We were there in Chu Lai when the Marines went ashore as well as Da Nang. Glad to know yt rou came home OK.

Thanks. I don't remember which ship but I do remember using Naval gunfire in support of a couple of missions we went on later. Damn those things were accurate. Gnat's eye at 10,000 yds. We had a Naval FAC attached to us. I don't know what he said but it worked.

[RinconRyder]

I'll never forget, on my last overseas deployment aboard the USS Long Beach, I was up on deck, and went over to where one of the Chiefs was hanging on the rail staring blankly at the horizon. He seemed a little 'down' although I knew he was retiring soon after 30 years' service. I asked him what was going on.

He said "Well, Nixon, it's like this...my wife and I have been happily married for my entire career even though I've been gone a lot. Now I'm about to retire and we're going to be spending every day together with no respite in sight. It's worked out well so far; my wife was boss of the home front and used to running her own show. When I came home on leave, it was like a honeymoon all over again and I was treated like a valued guest at a 4-star resort. I'm just not sure we're going to be able to hold it together if I'm around all the time!"

That's when I decided to end my career at 10 years.

It is interesting to note that 3 years following my retirement my wife decided to go back to work......and has worked ever since.

[RinconRyder]

Thanks. I don't remember which ship but I do remember using Naval gunfire in support of a couple of missions we went on later. Damn those things were accurate. Gnat's eye at 10,000 yds. We had a Naval FAC attached to us. I don't know what he said but it worked.

Yes, we very rarely had to fire more than 1 or 2 rounds of Willy Peter before the land forces would ask us to "fire for effect".

Unfortunately, they happened to call fire down on their own CP somewhere off Da Nang and we hit it on the first shot. The inquiry as to what happened was the reason I was in that whaleboat in Da Nang harbor. We used to listen to the FAC as they directed fire. They had balls of brass sitting up there in their little fragile Birddog's.

[RinconRyder]

Yes, the Forrestal certainly seemed jinxed. I think Senator McCain might have flown his last mission off that ship; not sure about that.

We referred to the Forrestal as the "Fireball". USS Ranger was another birdfarm with a dubious safety record. They broke down frequently. Meanwhile the old Ticonderoga just chugged along (although their radio shack wasn't so hot).

[pitzerwm]

It is interesting to note that 3 years following my retirement my wife decided to go back to work......and has worked ever since.

One of my lawyers retired at 80, later that year they were celebrating the 60+th anniversary and the wife announced that they were getting a divorce, of course, everyone, especially their kids are going nuts. Then she said, that "she had promised for better or worse, NOT for lunch".

[RinconRyder]

I happened to be in SE Asia in 2009, for you of those that never went back. Da Nang base is still there like a surplus whatever, but across the road, in both directions as far as the eye can see are Condos, casinos, golf courses and luxury resorts. Capitalism in Vietnam is rampant, it is amazing to see. I'm not sure how the government handles it, but if you want to open a business you need to find a Vietnamese partner.

I go to a neighborhood barber shop owned by a Vietnamese woman and have had some very interesting conversations with her regarding the transition of Viet Nam after the war ended. She goes home once per year, usually around Christmas, to visit her extended family and has put together some photo albums of the country today. It is amazing!

When my buddies and I sat aboard my ship hurling shells toward the beaches I told them that if it weren't for the war this place would be an ideal resort area. That is exactly what has happened. Chu Lai and Nha Trang both are now covered in resorts and flower-lined streets with beautiful pink sand beaches. A cousin who was a helo pilot in the army visits Viet Nam frequently to scuba dive and has moved to the P.I. to be closer to Viet Nam.

I can't say the Vietnamese people are any more thrilled with their government than we Americans are with ours but they certainly have made a remarkable recovery.

[UtahPete]

I go to a neighborhood barber shop owned by a Vietnamese woman and have had some very interesting conversations with her regarding the transition of Viet Nam after the war ended. She goes home once per year, usually around Christmas, to visit her extended family and has put together some photo albums of the country today. It is amazing!

When my buddies and I sat aboard my ship hurling shells toward the beaches I told them that if it weren't for the war this place would be an ideal resort area. That is exactly what has happened. Chu Lai and Nha Trang both are now covered in resorts and flower-lined streets with beautiful pink sand beaches. A cousin who was a helo pilot in the army visits Viet Nam frequently to scuba dive and has moved to the P.I. to be closer to Viet Nam.

I can't say the Vietnamese people are any more thrilled with their government than we Americans are with ours but they certainly have made a remarkable recovery.

They are beautiful, resilient people. My tour there turned me into a peace-nik.

[Snowbelt Spyder]

That was the USS Nathanael Greene SSBN-636, one of the Freedom 41 nuclear-powered ballistic missile armed submarines. They were designed, built and operated to act as a deterrent to Soviet aggression in the early years of the Cold War. You must be proud to have served on her.

Thank you, I am. You know the saying - two types of ships in the Navy....submarines and targets. Although subs are referred to as boats, not ships. Amazing how many nuclear warheads we and the Russians had pointing at each other not that many years ago.