Popeye's Sea Stories

R/A-5C Vigilante of RVAH-12 "Speartips" aboard the USS John F Kennedy (CVA-67) in the MED.. circa 1973...Photo credit to bd popeye

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bd popeye said:

The continuing story of the Last WESTPAC of the USS Hancock CVA-19 in 1975..

5 April 1975 Hancock was in near collision with USS Kawishiwi.....

By my recollection we were along side the Kawishiwi about 1800 or so to take on fuel and water. Oh yea the Hanna had to unrep water...I was behind the island in the bomb farm watching the unrep.

It seemed to me that the Kawishiwi was very close and moving back and forth in a very calm sea state. I decided to go down to the shop..so as I got to the front of the island I heard a horn blast from the bridge then on the 1 MC & 5 MC I heard "Take a brace!!, Take a brace!!" The Hanna made a turn to port. I dove down and hit the flight deck and grabbed a couble of padeyes on the flight deck. as the Fightin' performed a real emergency break away.

Next the collisional alarm was sounded but there was no collision. Actually what had happened was the USS Kawishiwi had lost steering and we had an emergency breakaway with them. We almost had a collision.

Some say our STBD aft aircraft elevator did hit the Kawishiwi. I did not see any damage though.

Well I went down to the hangar deck and saw Bos'un mates covered in fuel. Fuel lines ruptured during the emergency & them fellas were covered with fuel & needed to be hosed down. I did not see any injuries.

Shortly the skipper passed the word on just what had happened.

When we finally arrived in Subic the next day I went down on the pier to get a good look at that #3 aircraft elevator. I saw no damage.

Another recollection of that incident by a man who was on the bridge.

The following was posted on a Hancock website by a QM2 Shaklett who was on the bridge at the time of the near collision;

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Eagle Pull
Meanwhile, the Seventh Fleet focused its attention on Cambodia, in imminent danger of falling to the Communist Khmer Rouge guerrillas. Since 1970, the United States had aided the government of President Lon Nol in its struggle with the indigenous enemy and with North Vietnamese forces arrayed along the border with South Vietnam. The American support included a bombing campaign launched from Navy carriers and Air Force bases as far away as Guam and the delivery to Phnom Penh of arms, ammunition, and essential commodities through airlift and Mekong River convoy. Material assistance to the 6,000-man Cambodian Navy included the transfer of coastal patrol craft, PBRs, converted amphibious craft for river patrol and mine warfare, and auxiliary vessels. Despite this aid, by early 1975 the Communists in Cambodia controlled every population center but Phnom Penh, the capital. As the enemy tightened his ring around the city, the resistance of Cambodian government forces began to crumble.

Concluding that it was only a matter of time before all was lost in Cambodia, American leaders prepared to evacuate American and allied personnel from Phnom Penh. Fleet commanders revised and updated long-standing plans and alerted their forces for this special mission, designated Operation Eagle Pull. On 3 March 1975, Amphibious Ready Group Alpha (Task Group 76.4), and the 31st Marine Amphibious Unit (Task Group 79.4) embarked and arrived at a designated station off Kompong Som (previously Sihanoukville) in the Gulf of Siam. By 11 April, the force consisted of amphibious ships Okinawa, Vancouver, and Thomaston (LSD 28), escorted by Edson (DD 946), Henry B. Wilson (DDG 7), Knox (DE 1052), and Kirk (DE 1087). In addition, Hanco*k disembarked her normal complement of fixed-wing aircraft and took on Marine Heavy Lift Helicopter Squadron (HMH) 463 for the operation. Anticipating the need to rescue as many as 800 evacuees, naval leaders decided that they needed all of the squadron's 25 CH-53, CH-46, AH-1J, and UH-1E helicopters and Okinawa's 22 CH-53, AH-1J, and UH-1Es of HMH-462. The amphibious group also carried the 2d Battalion, 4th Marines, which would defend the evacuation landing zone near the U.S. Embassy, and reinforced naval medical-surgical teams to care for any casualties. Land-based U.S. Air Force helicopters and tactical aircraft were also on hand to back up the naval effort. Commander U.S. Support Activities Group/7th Air Force (COMUSSAG) was in overall command of the evacuation operation.

On 7 April 1975, the American command put Amphibious Ready Group Alpha on three-hour alert and positioned the force off the Cambodian coast. In the early morning hours of 12 April Washington ordered execution of the daring mission. At 0745 local time, Okinawa began launching helicopters in three waves to carry the 360-man Marine ground security force to the landing zone. One hour later, after traversing 100 miles of hostile territory, the initial wave set down near the embassy and the Marines quickly established a defensive perimeter.

Within the next two hours, U.S. officials assembled the evacuees and quickly loaded them on Okinawa and Hanco*k helicopters. Because many already had left Cambodia by other means prior to the twelfth, the evacuees numbered only 276. The group included U.S. Ambassador John Gunther Dean, other American diplomatic personnel, the acting president of Cambodia, senior Cambodian government leaders and their families, and members of the news media. In all, 82 U.S., 159 Cambodian, and 35 other nationals were rescued.

By 1041 all the evacuees had been lifted out, and little more than one-half hour later the ground security force also was airborne and heading out to sea. At 1224 all aircraft and personnel were safely on board Amphibious Ready Group Alpha ships. Although one Khmer Rouge 75-millimeter shell landed near the embassy landing zone, no casualties were suffered during the entire operation. The following day, task group helicopters flew the evacuated personnel to Thailand and the naval force set sail for Subic Bay (Not Hanna we eventually went to Singapore). Thus through detailed planning, preparation, and precise execution, the joint evacuation force successfully accomplished the military mission in Cambodia.

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bd popeye said:

The below photo is of an VS-33 S-3A Viking firing Zuni rockets near Fallon NV in late 1980. At that time VS-33 was the first west coast S-3 squadron to fire Zuni rockets.

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Jeff Head said:

Sorry, popeye, I know you guys were doing your job and making those aircraft do what ever Command Authority wanted them to do...but it always just kind of grates on me...like fingernails on a chalkboard...to see an S-3 in the ground pounder mode.

I know those aircraft. My Dad was very involved with their design on the Vought side. They were designed to hunt and kill subs! We had plenty of aircraft on deck and in the airwing that could pound the ground.

Oh well...just me moanin' over ancient history.

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An SH-3G helicopter assigned to HC-1 crashes off MIDWAY's bow on take-off for an SAR mission. All three crew on board are killed. The helicopter was supposed to get underway to the crash site of two other MIDWAY aircraft that had a mid-air collision. Involved in the mid-air collision were an A-7A (VA-56) and an EA-6A (VMCJ-1). This collision killed all three crew of the aircraft involved.

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On April 8th 1972 Aviation Structural Mechanic (Safety Equipment) 3d Class Mark W. Raymond of VA-34 died in an A-6 canopy accident. Two days later, the carrier hosted Operation Rivets, the retirement ceremony for Admiral Horacio (“Rivets”) Rivero.

Only five days after the canopy accident that claimed the life of AM3 Raymond, an A-6 crashed during a conventional ordnance exercise on 13 April 1972, and a search and rescue effort ensued for Lieutenant (j.g.)s William T. Hackman and David L. Douglas, without success. Two days later, however, debris from the missing Intruder was sighted near the Avgo Nisi target range.

CVW-1 lost three more aircraft (two from VA-72) before the year was out. The first was an A-7 (BuNo 154386) to hydraulic failure on 20 May 1972, with Lieutenant Bernard J. Hedger, from VA-72, being rescued by an HH-2D flown by Lieutenants LeRoy E. Hays and Roy E. Hey, with Aviation Structural Mechanic (Structures) 3d Class F. L. Barthold and Aviation Machinist’s Mate (Jet Engine Mechanic) 3d Class G. H. Trouton, as crew. The second was an HH-2D Seasprite (Angel 013) to a lost tail rotor on 11 June, its four-man crew (Lieutenants Larry E. Crume and James R. Palmquist, Aviation Machinist’s Mate (Jet Engine Mechanic) 3d Class Kent D. Swedberg and Aviation Structural Mechanic (Safety Equipment) Airman Richard F. Diaz) being rescued by Angel 010 flown by Lieutenants Hays and James C. Harrison, with Aviation Machinist’s Mates (Jet Engine Mechanic) 2d Class David T. Warmkessel and James C. McDonald as crew. The third was another Corsair (Decoy 401) due to a stall spin, on 27 June, with Lieutenant (j.g.) Newton R. Gaines, also of VA-72, being rescued by Angel 010 (Lieutenant Palmquist and Lieutenant Commander Lawrence B. Kauffman, with Swedberg and McDonald as crew), with British guided missile destroyer HMS Antrim providing wind velocity data to the inbound helo.

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bd popeye said:

The navy in recent years has lost few aircraft..better safety is practiced these days.

I was aboard the Midway only two months when this tragedy struck..



.. a total of seven aircrew dead that evening. The Midway was ordered immediately to her home port of Yokosuka Japan for an investigation.

In 1972 aboard the JFK we lost several aircraft...



On the Nimitz in '91 we lost only one aircraft an A-6E Prior to entering Subic Bay..on the America in '81 we lost no aircraft..however an Tomact did crash on the flight deck shearing off it's starboard landing gear.

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Equation said:

What happened to the bodies of those poor dead sailors? IS there a morgue aboard the ship or do they get sea burial?

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On Sunday since I have no life and still love the
Navy I decided to go to North Island to take some Video of the three carriers in port since this does
not happen very often. I was sure I could take pictures because I have seen many people on base after
9/11 taking photos. As i soon found out taking any sort of photography was frowned on in certain locations on base.

First I went to the "Connie"(CV-64) then
Nimitz(CVN-68). No problem. Then I went to that fine shipnamed after that great American, USS John C. Stennis CVN-74. While I was taking video of the ship two of CVN-74 Master-at-arms(USN Police)saw me and shouted for me to "stop
filming!!" I did!

I was detained in the "Master-at-arms shack" on the Stennis's berth for about one hour and twenty minutes. They asked me all sorts of questions. I had to talk to the CDO(Command duty officer) & the intelligence duty person.

They took my picture.They explained no photography was allowed on base. That was
news to me because the people on the 'Connie" asked me did I come on base for their tour. I wondered why all
those civilians were lining up to go on board CV-64. They reviewed the tape and "EDITED" the portion with
the master-at-arms telling me to stop filming. These men where only doing their job. They where very polite
and professional. I felt very nervous(YA THINK!) I was sweating like Shaq O'Neal. They let me go and said
they where sorry to detain me. I was given the camcorder back with the tape minus about one minute.
Bet you did not have that much fun on Sunday!

When I picked up my (ex)wife from work I told her what happened. She laughed and said "I wish they would have kept you.Then I would not have to feed your fat ass!"

I think she was kidding!?

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