Best Moment
The trip to Nagaski, Japan. Then standing at "Ground Zero" with my shipmates in our Dress Blues! Port visits to Sasebo, Japan followed by Hong Kong, crossing the equator (Shellback) then Brisbane, Australia and Nelson, New Zealand. *1st American warship in Nelson since World War II.
Worst Moment
02/03/69 - collision with USS Wrangell AE-12. Wrangell suffered a steering casualty, she closed & collied with us during the underway rearming evolution. Emergency Breakaway proceeded with No deaths or injuries. We lost our Port Anchor and some other minor damage. Scared the crap out of most of the crew! We went right back to the gunline, then later went to Subic Bay.
Chain of Command
Commander Edwin L. Herring USN
Other Memories
Return trip home via Pearl Harbor. Our ship was used as a prop for the filming of the movie - Tora, Tora, Tora. You will have to look extremely hard to see the aft section of same!! Don't blink!!!
Criteria The National Defense Service Medal is awarded for honorable active service as a member of the Armed Forces during the Korean War, Vietnam War, the war against Iraq in the Persian Gulf, and for service... The National Defense Service Medal is awarded for honorable active service as a member of the Armed Forces during the Korean War, Vietnam War, the war against Iraq in the Persian Gulf, and for service during the current War on Terrorism. In addition, all members of the National Guard and Reserve who were part of the Selected Reserve in good standing between August 2, 1990, to November 30, 1995, are eligible for the National Defense Service Medal. In the case of Navy personnel, Midshipment attending the Naval Academy during the qualifying periods are eligible for this award, and Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC) Midshipmen ae only eligible if they participated in a summer cruise that was in an area which qualified for a campaign medal. MoreHide
Criteria This medal is awarded to members of the Armed Forces of the United States who: 1. Served for 6 months in South Vietnam during the period 1 Mar 61 and 28 Mar 73; or 2. Served outside the geographical l... This medal is awarded to members of the Armed Forces of the United States who: 1. Served for 6 months in South Vietnam during the period 1 Mar 61 and 28 Mar 73; or 2. Served outside the geographical limits of South Vietnam and contributed direct combat support to the RVN Armed Forces for an aggregate of six months. Only members of the Armed Forces of the United States who meet the criteria established for the AFEM (Vietnam) or Vietnam Service Medal during the period of service required are considered to have contributed direct combat support to the RVN Armed Forces; or 3. Did not complete the length of service required in item (1) or (2) above, but who, during wartime, were: a. Wounded by the enemy (in a military action); b. Captured by the enemy during action or in the line of duty, but later rescued or released; or c. Killed in action or in the line of duty; or 4. Were assigned in Vietnam on 28 Jan 73, and who served a minimum of 60 calendar days in Vietnam during the period 29 Jan 73 to 28 Mar 73. MoreHide
Description Jan 13 – Feb 9; HMM-362, SLF-A, ARVN 2nd Division, 2/26th Marines, HMM-164 cordon, search, and sweep operation was the largest amphibious assault of the war in the Batangan Peninsula, Quảng Ngãi ProJan 13 – Feb 9; HMM-362, SLF-A, ARVN 2nd Division, 2/26th Marines, HMM-164 cordon, search, and sweep operation was the largest amphibious assault of the war in the Batangan Peninsula, Quảng Ngãi Province.... More
Best Moment
Taking her to the Philadelphia Naval Yard for decommissioning (to totally rebuild the boilers and engines) in April '68. Being meet by my father & family members at the pier. They got a great tour of the ship and the crew. 1st warship that my dad was ever aboard, he never forgot it.
Worst Moment
Seeing the USS Liberty AGTR-5 all shot to hell and tied up at a pier in Malta. A sad chapter in Naval history. Our ship constantly having problems with it's propulsion system. It was not a lot of fun to go dead in the water while in the North Sea.
Chain of Command
Commander William A. Kanakanui Jr. USN
Other Memories
Visting Oslo, Norway and Helsinki, Finland plus Copenhagen, Denmark among other ports while in the North & Baltic Seas. Going into the Med. with stops at Malta, Rota, Naples and Palermo, Sicily. Also did a couple of deployments in the Caribbean Sea, stopping in Puerto Rico, Gitmo and the US Virgin Islands.
Criteria The Vietnam Service Medal was awarded to members of the Armed Forces of the United States who served at any time between July 4, 1965, and March 28, 1973, in Vietnam or its contiguous waters or airspa... The Vietnam Service Medal was awarded to members of the Armed Forces of the United States who served at any time between July 4, 1965, and March 28, 1973, in Vietnam or its contiguous waters or airspace; or, for any period of service during the same time period in Thailand, Laos, or Cambodia or the air spaces thereover and in direct support of operations in Vietnam. MoreHide
Description Yankee Station was a point in the Gulf of Tonkin off the coast of Vietnam used by the U.S. Navy aircraft carriers of Task Force 77 to launch strikes in the Vietnam War. While its official designation Yankee Station was a point in the Gulf of Tonkin off the coast of Vietnam used by the U.S. Navy aircraft carriers of Task Force 77 to launch strikes in the Vietnam War. While its official designation was "Point Yankee," it was universally referred to as Yankee Station. Carriers conducting air operations at Yankee Station were said to be "on the line" and statistical summaries were based on days on the line.
The name derived from it being the geographic reference point "Y", pronounced "Yankee" in the NATO phonetic alphabet. In turn the term Point Yankee derived from the launch point for "Yankee Team" aerial reconnaissance missions over Laos conducted in 1964. It was located about 190 km due east of Dong Hoi, at 17° 30' N and 108° 30' E.
During the two periods of sustained air operations against North Vietnam (March 2, 1965-October 31, 1968 and March 30, 1972-December 29, 1972) there were normally three carriers on the line, each conducting air operations for twelve hours, then off for twelve hours. One of the carriers would operate from noon to midnight, another from midnight to noon, and one during daylight hours, which gave 24-hour coverage plus additional effort during daylight hours, when sorties were most effective. However at the end of May, 1972, six carriers were for a short period of time on the line at Yankee Station conducting Linebacker strikes.
The first aircraft carrier at Yankee Station was USS Kitty Hawk, which was ordered there in April 1964 for the Yankee Team missions. Kitty Hawk was joined by Ticonderoga in May and Constellation in June, two months prior to the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. Ticonderoga and Constellation launched the first bombing missions from Yankee Station on August 5, 1964. Constellation was also the last carrier conducting operations at Yankee Station on August 15, 1973. USS Forrestal suffered a major accident while at Yankee Station when a series of fires and explosions on her deck killed 134 men and injured another 161.
A corresponding Dixie Station in the South China Sea off the Mekong Delta was a single carrier point for conducting strikes within South Vietnam from May 15, 1965 to August 3, 1966.... More
Worst Moment
Guarding the outside dumpster on the Parade Ground in the middle of the night and freezing my butt off!!!
Other Memories
1. Being issued uniforms that were 1x2 size to big and being told that I'd grow into them. Never did!!! 2. Hearing another recruit say that his NEW Navy shoes were the very first NEW shoes that he ever owned! 3. Having our 'Southern' Company CO, a PO1, calling me a Damn Yankee! First, I thought that the Civil War was over and second, I thought that Illinois was a Northern State!
The trip to Nagaski, Japan. Then standing at "Ground Zero" with my shipmates in our Dress Blues!
Port visits to Sasebo, Japan followed by Hong Kong, crossing the equator (Shellback) then Brisbane, Australia and Nelson, New Zealand. *1st American warship in Nelson since World War II.
02/03/69 - collision with USS Wrangell AE-12. Wrangell suffered a steering casualty, she closed & collied with us during the underway rearming evolution. Emergency Breakaway proceeded with No deaths or injuries. We lost our Port Anchor and some other minor damage. Scared the crap out of most of the crew! We went right back to the gunline, then later went to Subic Bay.
Commander Edwin L. Herring USN
Return trip home via Pearl Harbor. Our ship was used as a prop for the filming of the movie - Tora, Tora, Tora. You will have to look extremely hard to see the aft section of same!! Don't blink!!!