VA-15 (XO/CO) Tour

Introduction

Command of fleet squadrons is organized so that a prospective Commanding Officer serves a tour as the Executive Officer (XO) before "fleeting up" to relieve the Commanding Officer (CO).

In my case, I completed VA-43 instrument requalification with VF-43 at NAS Oceana while still at AIRLANT. I completed the VA-174 PXO/CO A7E syllabus at NAS Cecil Field from June, 1976 trough October. I was XO of VA-15 from November, 1976 through December, 1977. I relieved Cdr Kel Huehn as Commanding Officer in Hangar Bay One of the USS America in Palma D'Majorca while on deployment to the Mediterranean Sea.

I became the CO ten years after I left the VA-15 VALION A4 1966/1967 Vietnam era Skyhawk squadron as a Lieutenant.

Getting settled in Jacksonville

Mary and I decided to live again in Orange Park. This time however, we had a home built in a new development called Park West. Heather was 12, Laura was 11, and Stacy was six. The superior schools in Orange Park drove our decision to live there. It turned out to be a wise decision.

Orange Park High School and the associated middle and elementary schools were excellent.

Bosco was still with us at Park West.

I have always had a favorite dog in my life. Bosco was one of the best.
From chasing tennis balls in Wichita in 1969 until; Park West, he was always a loyal friend!

Pictures of Mary, Heather, Laura, and Stacy

So far I have found only one picture!

Stacy about 1977

Building our new home

We decided to build a new house in Park West. I don't recall where we lived while it was being built!

Our address was 575 Gulfstream Trail West

Schools

The girls were not old enough for Orange Park High School yet.
(Although both Heather and Laura would go there while they were still living in Park West).

In September, 1976 Heather was 12 and Laura was 11. They both attended Lakeside Junior High School in grades 6 (Laura) and 8th (Heather).

Lakeside Gators

Lakeside Junior High School

Stacy would have been in 1st grade at Lakeside Elementary School which was right next to Lakeside Junior High School.

Lakeside Elementary School

VA-174
(June, 1976 - October, 1976)

This is a great picture of a VA-174 A7E flying over Cecil Field. The VA-174 hangars and ramp area is directly above the aircraft. The VA-15 hangar and ramp are on the right side of the double hangar complex second from the top.

June 23rd, 1976

The day before I started the VA-174 syllabus (my 35th birthday), I flew in a VA-45 TA4J to Homestead Air Force Base. That morning a VA-174 A7 which was one of a section two aircraft flying a low level route as part of the VA-174 syllabus had collided with a 585 ft tower. I was sent to gather information for the accident investigation. The aircraft had hit and severed a guide wire. The wire had slid down the starboard side of the aircraft damaging the leading edge of the wing. The wire had parted with the impact causing the top 85ft of the tower to tumble to the ground. The aircraft had shook a bit from the impact but the pilot was able to land the aircraft at Homestead. I met with the owner of the tower and with the local sheriff. Both were very cooperative and had not disturbed any of the aircraft and tower debris. The accident board concluded that the A7 was exactly at 500ft when it impacted the tower which was the proper altitude for the low level route that a section of aircraft was using for the mission. I returned to Cecil later that afternoon in the TA4.

The VA-174 Training Syllabus

There were three categories of pilot training in VA-174. The full length syllabus was designed for students who recently earned their wings from advanced jet training or who were transitioning from another aircraft. These students were called "RPs". The Prospective XO/CO syllabus was shorter than the RP syllabus and was especially designed for each PXO/CO depending on his experience level in the A7 aircraft. The third syllabus was for prospective CAGs (Commander of an air group), was much shorter and was specially designed based on the background and wishes of each PCAG.

Ground Training

Completion of ground training was required of each RP before he/she was allowed to start the flight portion of the training. I say he/she because this was during the time that the first woman completed training at VA-174.

Left:
Rosemary Conatser completed the VA174 RP syllabus in 1976 as the first woman to fly a single seat tactical aircraft.

Right:
Cdr Rosemary Mariner was the first woman to command a fleet squadron, VAQ-134.

Captain Mariner retired from the Navy in 1997. She died of ovarian cancer in 2019.

Ground Training Syllabus

The ground training syllabus consisted of completion of learning about the A7 systems, a simulator syllabus, blind cockpit check, requalify in swimming including the "Dilbert Dunker" (at NAS Jacksonville), ejection seat training, hypoxia training in a compression chamber, survival training, and Escape/Evasion/POW training (for those who were going to combat assignments).

Note: The blind cockpit check consisted of the pilot in training sitting in the seat of an actual aircraft (or in a simulator cockpit) blind folded with an instructor sitting on the canape rail. The instructor would call out a control lever, switch or a cockpit instrument. The student would then have to touch that lever, switch, or instrument without delay. A successful blind cockpit check was required prior to the first flight in a single seat aircraft.

Because of my previous background in flying a total of 940.0 A7 flight hours during my first RAG (111.7 hrs), my A7 fleet tour in VA-82 (733.9 A7 hrs.) and "proficiency" flying while at COMNAVAIRLANT (94.4 hrs hours), I did not have to complete the systems training and had a shorter simulator syllabus. But, I did have to requalify in swimming, the ejection seat, and hypoxia training in the pressure chamber. I was previously qualified in survival, evasion, escape, and POW training.

Flight Syllabus

I completed my VA-174 PXO/CO flight syllabus in 76.3 hours. This included basic flight including acrobatics, instrument training including an instrument check, formation flying including air to air refueling, basic air combat maneuvers, weapons training at MCAS Yuma, Arizona, Field Carrier Landing practice (FCLPs) at NAAF Whitehouse, and 10 day arrested landings (traps) and six night traps onboard USS Forrestal CVA-59 November 14th and 15th, 1976.

Scouting and Recruiting Nuggets

While I was going through my PXO/CO training, I carefully observed the flying skills and personalities of the RPs during the classes I flew with; especially at Yuma during weapons training, on liberty and during FCLPs and carrier qualification on Forrestal CVA-59. This group of RPs would be the source of first tour pilots (nuggets) for the squadrons going through workups prior to a deployment. This included VA-15 and our sister squadron VA-87. I identified the best pilots and potentially great shipmates. I communicated my preferences to someone I knew at BUPERS (Bureau of Naval Personnel) who dealt with preparing the orders for the new VA-174 RP graduates. All my request were satisfied except one. An outstanding graduate, Matt Moffet was assigned to our sister squadron, VA-87. It turned out that his brother, Mike Moffet was already in VA-15 so BUPERS sent Matt to the same airwing but a different squadron.

I reported to VA-15 as the Executive Officer
in November, 1976

Pictures for this section come from my files, the Scrapbook (my departure gift), and Google

I reported to VA-15
with 1016.3 A7 flight hours

Turnaround Training Flight Time and Related Activities

November, 1976

I flew 7 A7E flights in November (14.0 flight hours). The concentration seems to have been on instrument flights with actual instrument TACAN and GCA approaches. One was a night flight with 2.5 hours of night time (2.0 hrs of actual instrument time).

December, 1976

I flew 7 A7E flights in December (14.5 flight hours). The concentration seems to have been on instrument flights with actual instrument TACAN and GCA approaches.

January, 1977

MCAS Yuma Weapons Det

January was dedicated to a weapons detachment at MCAS Yuma

On January 7th, we flew from Cecil to NAS Dallas, TX.

NAS Dallas patch

LTV Plant- Grand Prarie, Texas

A7E Test Aircraft

I had arranged a tour of the LTV plant in Grand Prairie where the A7 was manufactured

Back Row Left to Right: LTV NAVPRO REP.Frank Gerwe, Kel Huehn, Bo Smith, Bob Maloney, Tom Mitchell
Front Row Left to Right; Boh Chimenti, Lt Greg Grimmard, LTV NAVPRO Rep.

Can anyone idenitfy the LTV NAVPRO guys?

On January 8th, we flew from Dallas to Yuma.

I flew 12 weapons training flight from January 10th to January 21st. Three of those flight were night weapons delivery flights.

One of these flights at Yuma involved this excellent diamond formation picture.

The short Yuma weapons det was a great way to start 1978. After all, bombing is what we do!

After my last weapons flight on January 21st, I flew from Yuma to NAS Alameda, CA arriving before sunset.
I flew from Alameda to Albuquerque, NM.

On January 23rd, I flew from Albuquerque to Cecil.

In total, I flew 21 flights (50.9 A7E flight hours) in January, 1977

February, 1977

FCLPS and Fly On to USS America/REFTRA

February 1st through February 2nd was dedicated to FCLP at Whitehouse (4 day flight and 5 night flights).
On February 25th, we flew out to the America.
On February 27th, I flew one day flight and one night flight recording 2 day traps and 2 night traps.

My total flight time for February was 13 flights ( 21.6 flight hours)

March and April, 1977

In March and April we conducted Type Training onboard America

March 3rd-March 31st- I flew 18 flights (33.0 flight hours) during type training.
April 1st-April 23rd- I flew 17 flights (27.0 flight hours) during type training.
The fly off to Cecil took place on April 23rd.

I logged my 300th trap aboard America on April 20th, 1977

May, 1977

Type Training/ORE/ Exercise Solid Shield

May 2nd-May 5th- I flew 9 flights from Cecil (mostly weapons training)
* On May 5th, I completed Day and night weapons compexes (competitive exercises)
May 6th- Fly on America for Type Training Two
May 10th-May 22nd- I flew 14 flights as art of TT2
May 23rd- Fly Off to Cecil

In total, I flew 26 flight in May (46.0 flight hours)

June and July, 1977

South American Deployment

Pictures for this section come from my files, the Scrapbook (my departure gift), the Rio Cruise book and Google

Scrap Book

Rio Cruise Book

June 6th- FCLPs Whitehouse

June 10th- Fly On for transit and operations off the coast of South America

America is headed south

June 11th-June 18th- flight operations off the coast of South America. I don't remember if we were part of a UNITAS Exercise or
independent operations in connection with an important July 4th visit to Rio de Janeiro.

We had two port visits during our deployment of the coast of South America

Crossing the Equator- June 19th, 1977

It is a long maritime tradition that when a ship crosses the Equator, those who have not done so before (Pollywogs) must receive instruction by those who have (Shellbacks) before they can properly enter the realm of King Neptune!

The lowly Polywogs enter the realm of King Neptune on their haunches. The Shelllbacks are in command.

As a seasoned Shellback, I was a member of King Neptune's Court.

The final task before acceptance was to kiss the "Royal Baby", usually crusty Chief Petty Officers

Crossing the Equator Certificate

You might ask why I got a Crossing the Equator Certificate when I was already a Shellback? Good question; administrative error.

Here's the card I received for crossing the Equator with VA-82 in 1972.

We crossed the Equator cruising south on the way around the Cape of Good Hope off South Africa on our way to Vietnam.

In port Salvador de Bahia, Brazil
June 20th-June 24th

Salvador de Bahia was a previous capital of Brazil.
In 1977, it was the home of Base Naval de Atato, a naval base and ship repair facility.
I suspect the purpose of the port visit was to pay our respects to the Brazilian Navy.

African slaves were brought to Bahia to work in the gold mines in the 18th century resulting in the modern
Afro-Portuguese culture in Bahia.

Tourists throng to the Pelourinhoa and other parts of the old city.

The Salsa dance had it's origin in Bahia.


18th century gold mine in Bahia	Modern gold mine in Bahia

June 25th- Air Wing Six flight to Galeao AFB near Rio de Janeiro

We had one day to drive down to Ipanema Beach at
Rio de Janeiro to set up an "admin".

Galeao Air Force Base

Note: It was traditional (in those days) in most Navy carrier squadrons to set up an "Admin" when possible for inport visits.
An "Admin" is a location, usually a couple of adjoining rooms or a suite to crash in rather than get individual hotel rooms.
The squadron usually arranged with the ship to store beer and liquor on the ship for this purpose.

June 27th- We flew back to USS America

10 total flights for June (18.2 flight hours)

Inport Rio de Janeiro

June 28th-to July 6th

Rio de Janeiro is the main location of Brazil's armed forces bases.
Our Independence Day 4th of July port visit was an important political event.

Rio de Janeiro is the most picturesque port I visited during my navy career. Hong Kong is a close second.
There are many things to do in Rio. But, spending some time on Ipanema beach is at the top of the list.

Othon Palace Hotel

We had two rooms with a view of the beach.

Ipanema Beach was right across the street.

The guys that set up the "Admin" (I suspect it was Cisco Chimenti and Norm McCollough) did a masterful job. I think it was on the 13th floor with a view of Ipanema Beach. We had enough room for anyone squadron officer to crash there who was on liberty each night. There was a party every night which was crowded with local guests.

I had a busy schedule both during most days and every night.
As I was a LCDR squadron Executive Officer, I was too junior for the Senior Shore Patrol Watch and too senior to assigned the CAG Duty Officer (usually a squadron LCDR).

The first night, I attended a reception at the American Consulate. Key USS America officers, senior CARGRU 8 Staff, senior CVW-6 staff, and the COs and XOs of the squadrons received invitations to the reception. Many attended. Many did not want to bother having to dress up in their Service Dress white uniform for just another reception. However, I had learned during my 1971 VA-82 Med cruise, that these receptions were a great opportunity to meet local Americans who could be willing to take some time to show me the local port city.

The American Consulate in Rio

Service Dress white with ribbons was normally the required uniform at summer receptions.

Service Dress white with medals required a sword and was restricted to Changes of Command.

The Rio reception was no exception. I met several very interesting people. The most important for me was the "nany" for Doctor Ivo Pitanguy.
Ivo Pianguy was a famous plastic surgeon and one of the richest men in Brazil. He was not at the reception as he and his wife were in China.
But the "nanny" invited me to check out the estate.

Ivo Pitanguy

A small part of Ivo Pitanguy's estate.

The estate was amazing. It consisted of a main house, rolling landscaped grounds and several out buildings. The main building was incredible. The large "family room" had beautiful leather couches and expensive tables with ornate lamps and objects d'art. The most valuable of the art objects were two large birds (probably Aztec) made of solid gold with green emeralds for eyes!. One of the out buildings was a Japanese "pagota" which housed the Karate instructor who Dr. Pitanguy hired from Japan to teach his 17 year old son the marshal arts. Dr. Pitanguay and his wife had three children. In addition to the 17 year old son, they had a 15/16 year old daughter and a younger son about 10 or so. A part of the "nanny's" job was to teach the children English.
The 'nanny" was a graduate of Syrasuce University in New York. Her major was English.

In exchange for my visit to the Pitanguy estate, I invited the "nanny" and the Pitanguy children for a tour of the USS America. The 17 year old boy declined. Like it was beneath a 17 year old "Latin" male (almost man) to get excited about such things. But the teenage girl and the young son were very excited about the tour, as was the "nany". After the tour the next day and as the kids returned to the estate loaded down with America and VA-15 patches etc., I could tell that the 17 year old was very interested in the tour.

I enjoyed giving tours of the ship!

Most days in port, I would get up at 0700, have breakfast, and be in the Ready Room by 0800 or so. My first task was to read the message board and take care of any XO stuff that needed action that day. I would also listen to whatever "port stories" were emanating around the Ready Room. I was usually able to leave the ship by 1100 or so; free to enjoy Rio's many day time pleasures.

One day, I was able to play tennis at a private club with red clay courts. I received the invitation as a direct result of the first night's reception at the Consulate.

I don't remember whether I played with Tom Michell (who was my regular tennis partner) or whether a local opponent had been arranged.

Before we left Jacksonville on our "Rio Cruiuse", I learned that the President of Lions International was a member of the Rio de Janeiro Lions Club.
Well, I thought that since VA-15 was known as the VA Lions, there could be a relationship established with our local Lions Club that could produce something interesting during our visit to Rio. The Orange Park Lions Club came through for us. They established a relationship that encouraged the Rio Lions Club to plan an event during the USS America's visit.

Lions International badge

Rio de Janeiro Lions Club

Just a cool stamp.

The Rio Lions Club invited the VA-15 officers to a dinner a a fine Rio restaurant. We met a boat at a dock which took us to the restaurant on an island with the city. When we arrived the restaurant was crowded with Lions Club members, their wives, and their children. We had a great dinner with lots of Salsa dancing. It seemed that every Lion's wife and older Lion's daughter wanted to dance with American carrier pilots. About 0200 or so, the children disappeared. The drinking and dancing continued. About 0400, all the remaining party goers were on boat from the island. But, some of the Rio Lions and remaining Lions' women, were not through! The next step was to watch the sunrise from a seaside bar; an apparent Rio tradition. The VA 15 VALions and the Rio de Janeiro Lions Club relationship was well established!

July 6th- Underway from Rio de Janeiro
July 6th- July 16th- Flight operations from South Atlantic enroute to Norfolk
July 16th- Fly off from America to Cecil

6 total flights for July (10.3 flight hours)

Naval Aviation Tennis Tournament
NAS Pensacola, Florida

During the two week break between the Rio de Janeiro trip and August 1st, Tom Mitchell and I were able to participate in the Naval Aviation Tournament over a weekend.
Tom and I proved to be an excellent doubles team and did well. I also competed in the men's singles and won a few rounds.

Tom (AKA Demon) and I played a lot of tennis together while we were in VA-15.
At first, I usually won our matches. I was the better tennis player. But, Demon was the better athlete and
every time we played, he got better and better until at the end, he was as likely as me to win the set!

I was using a YONEX tennis racquet during those days.

My call sign "YONEX" was the result. Thanks Demon!

August, 1977

Type Training/COMTUEX

August 1st-August 10th- 6 Cecil based flights
August 14th- Fly on to America
August 16th-August 22nd- 9 type training flights
August 23rd- Fly Off to Cecil
August 26th-August 30th- 4 Cecil based instrument cross country flights
Total number of A7 flights for August was 21 (46.8 flight hours)

Note: On August 5th, 10th, and 11th, I flew 3 TA4 intsrument flights (4.1 flight hours) with VA-45 to renew my Special Instrument Rating

September, 1977/REFTRA

September 1st-September 15th- I flew 8 flights from Cecil including two Adversary flights on September 6th and a Coordinated strike lead with RESCAP compex on September 14th.

September 22nd- We flew on to America andI had a subsequent night flight
September 23rd or 24th- USS America back in port Norfolk

Note: It was not unusual for a deploying air wing to fly aboard every possible aircraft and then return to port for a few days to continue to load the non flyers from the squadrons with their maintenance ssupport equipment, to load last minute supplies needed for deployment and crane about the remainder of the aircraft.

That resulted in about a five day period in port Norfolk for the fly aboard pilots before getting underway.

There are three activities I remember about our time in Norfolk before we got underway.

Of course, I spent some time on the hard courts at NAS Norfolk. I particularly remember playing with Bob Chimenti and I think Jack Sheehan.
Second, we spent quite a bit of time at the Oceana Officer's club. I think I rented a car to take care of the transportation problem.

The third activity actually occurred after one of the nights at the Oceana O Club. Despite being only a day or two from deployment, CDR Jim "Grumpy" Lusk had gathered some of his officers at the club. Representatives from VA-15 gt together with CDR Lusk and some other "Pukin Dogs" and decided that we would continue the party at the Lusk home.

CDR Jim Lusk
CO, VF-43

Mrs Lusk was not stressed about her house suddenly being the site of a party just a day or two before deployment. In fact, she enthusiastically joined the party.

I remember drinking some of Grumpy's scotch from one of Mrs. Grumpy's best Waterford glasses; or maybe it was the cream pitcher!

September 29th- USS America underway for deployment
September 30th- I flew a day and night flight after getting underway for the Med deployment

The Transit from Norfolk to Rota

Note: The competitive cycle for the Battle "E" started October 1st, 1977

The transit from Norfolk on September 29th through our arrival in port Rota on October 9th took eleven days. The time was not wasted for most of us. We had lots of squadron AOMs (All Officer Meetings) and APMs (All Pilot Meetings) and Kel Huehn and I had a few meetings with the air wing COs and XOs. Of course there was lots of time for jogging on the flight deck and other sorts of leisure shipboard activities.

In addition to the previous activities, I spent some time on the America's bridge and in the engineering spaces. I wanted to get as much time on the bridge as possible.

This transit was very different from previous transits in my career!

During my first fleet tour in VA-15, I made two transits on USS Intrepid through the Suez Canal to the Indian Ocean then on to Subic Bay in the Philippines for operations off North Vietnam. During my first transit I was only concerned with being a skillful bomber and good wingman (for my normal lead; Jerry "Possum" Terrell) and doing as good a job as possible a the Aircraft Division Officer for my Maintenance Officer boss, LCDR Jerry O. Tuttle.
On my second transit, I was the Weapons Training Officer responsible for conducting Electronic Warfare training as our squadron was the air wing designated Iron Hand squadron (Anti-SAM and AAA missions). We conducted a lot of training for this mission during the transit.
I participated in bridge and engineering training on both transits.

During my second fleet (Department Head Tour) in VA-82, I made two transits onboard the USS America. The first was a short transit to and from the Med. The second was the long transit around Africa enroute Subic Bay in the Philippines. In both cases, I was the squadron Maintenance Officer. The first short transit to the Med required that I spend a lot of time with my Maintenance Officer responsibilities. I was division leader but most of my flying was as a squadron leader not as an air wing flight leader. The second transit was entirely different in that it was much longer but my responsibilities were much different. I had delegated most of my Maintenance Officer responsibilities to the department ground officers and the senior chief petty officers of the department. The big difference was that I was a designated air wing combat strike leader for the first time and my flying responsibility included air wing level flights. I participated in bridge and engineering training on this transit.

This current cruise would be much different. Not only would I have air wing strike leader responsibilities but also, I would be an Executive Officer for 21/2 months and the Commanding Officer for the remaining four months of the cruise. As Executive Officer, my job was to support the policies of the Commanding Officer (Kel Huehn). A big part of the job was to try to eliminate as much of the stress of possible for the CO such as by monitoring the maintenance program and coordinating the discipline program in accordance with his policies so that he could concentrate on mission matters. But, while doing this, I would access the strengths and weaknesses of the squadron so that I could implement changes after I was the CO.

As Commanding Officer, I would be compared to other squadron commanding officers in the air wing in my fitnes reports. I decided that I would not worry too much about that. I was confident that the performance of my squaron would be the most important factor in my fitness reports.

I believed the most important elements required for a squadron to be great were:

1. A strong aircraft maintenance program resulting in an outstanding readiness rate.
2. A discipline program that is fair but firm.
3. The key to strong morale in a squadron is instill in all hands that their performance is important to achieve mission success.
4. Provide a challenging mission.

This picture was taken in early October, 1977 on the ship; probably during the Atlantic transit or in port Rota.

Back Row (L-R: CWO2 Will Hinkle, LT Mike Harris, LT Norm McCollough, Ltjg Mike Groothousen, Ltjg Jack Sheehan, Ltjg Bert Johnston, LTjg Bob Yakeley,
LT Russ Nolan, Ltjg Kevin Brown, LTjg Doug Magnant, LT Lew Richards, Lt John Ilhenburg, ENS Pete Gray, ENS Jeff McComb
Front Row (L-R): ENS John Hodgkinson, LT Bob Chimenti, LCDR Bob Moloney, CDR Kel Huehn, Me, LCDR Tim Vogel, LCDR Tom Mitchell, LCDR Frank Gerwe

Note: John Mazach (PXO) and George Webb (PMaintenance Officer) were undergoing RAG training at VA-174 when this picture was taken.
They would report to VA-15 in Palma in December, 1977.

1977-1978 Med Cruise

Pictures for this section come from my files, the Scrapbook, the America Mediterranean Cruise book and Google

Scrap Book

A Mediterranean Mosiac

October 9th-12th- In Chop Turnover/Port Visit Rota, Spain (5 days)

Naval Station Rota, Spain

The first stop for most of us in Rota besides the Officer's Club bar was the famous Rota Naval Exchange. The Rota Exchange was well known as one of the best navy exchanges for Spanish items such as LLadro sculptures made in Valencia. Also, Rota was the key place to stock up on soft drinks, beer and alcohol items we would need on cruise to support squadron picnics in ports like Naples and officer "Admins" in many ports. Our in port Rota experience was pretty normal except for the following event:

There was an excellent restaurant a few miles from the Rota main gate. We decided to have a squadron officers gathering there for those who could make it. We took taxis from the Rota gate to the restaurant. We had a great time; lots of drinks before dinner, a great dinner, drinks after dinner, etc. When we though it was a good time to leave; about 0130 (a "Safety Stand Down" was scheduled for the next day), we found out that the taxi service stopped at 0100. We would have to walk back to the base. About halfway back to the base, we found a bar that was still open. We decided that we needed some refreshments to make it the rest of the way back to the base. The conversation that occurred during that hike back to the base was "very interesting" but will remain CONFIDENTIAL! We made it back about sunrise; in time to get a quick shower and breakfast before starting the Safety Stand Down.

October 12th- Safety Stand Down

The turnover with the outgoing Battle Group complete, we were underway October 13th for our deployment.
The USS America portion of our Battle Group consisted of the following:

USS America CV-66

Squadrons and Aircraft of CVW-6

	HS-15 (Red Lions) Sh-3H
	VA-15 (VALions) A7E
	VA-87 (Golden Warriors) A7E
	VA-176 (Thunderbolts) A6E
	VS-28 (The World Famous Hukkers) S3A
	VF-142 (Ghostriders) F-14A
	VF-143 (Pukkin Dogs) F-14A
	VAW-124 (Bullseye) E2-C	0
	VAQ-137 (Prowler) EA6B
	VFP-65 Det 5

The Mediterranean Sea

October 13th-October 23rd- USS America Battle Group underway from Rota to Brindisi, Italy (11 days)

Between October 15th and October 22nd, I flew ten flights between Sardinia and Sicily.
Flights such as a Sardinia and Sicily low level routes multiple flight to the Capo Fresca target area.

Port Visit dates from USS America 1977-1978 Cruise book ("A Mediterranean Mosaic")

Brindisi, Italy
October 24th-November 7th (20 days)


Brindisi Map	Brindisi Harbor	Brindisi Port


Brindisi	Brindisi Citadel	Brindisi Old Town

Brindisi Beach

November 1st, 1977- I was promoted to Commander. I don't remember it, but we might have had some sort of a party to recognize my promotion; called a wetting down party. A wetting down party is a tradition from the sailing ship days. It's called a "wetting down party" because it symbolizes wetting down the new stripes on the uniform sleeves with salt water.

However, I do not remember much about our two week visit to Brindisi. I don't remember if we had an "admin" there.

I do remember playing tennis at a tennis club near the Navy's communication station nearby Brindisi. I remember that Cisco (Bob Chimenti) was one of the players with me. The locals at the club were impressed by Cisco's calabrese looks. But, they gave him a bad time about not speaking Italian.

Note: The calabrese are Italians from Calabria (the boot of Italy).

November 7th through November 9th- Transit to Souda Bay, Crete (3 days)

During the transit on November 8th, I flew two flights (4 flight hours), two night hours, a day and night trap

November 9th- Training anchorage Souda Bay Crete (1 day)


Souda Bay Crete Map	Souda BayTraining Anchorage

November 10th-November 18th- Transit from Souda Bay, Crete to Kythira anchorage, Greece (8 days)

From November 10th through November 18th, I flew 14 flights (26.8 flight hours) in the Agean Sea.

The flights were mostly day and night live ordnance (MK 82s and 83s) at the Avgo Nisi target.

On November 14th, I lead a live ordnance strike mission (6 MK 82s each).

Avgo Nisi target.

November 10th- F-14A lost at sea (crew recovered)

November 11th- EA-6B lost at sea (crew recovered)

November 19th- Training anchorage Kythira, Greece (1 day)

The Russian navy liked to use the
Kythra anchorage for their ships from the Black Sea fleet when operating in the Mediterranean.

They would depart their Black Sea ports transit the Sea of Marmara and the Dardanelles in to the Aegean Sea and then transit to Kythra.

Of course our NATO ally, Turkey, kept track of the Dardanelles transits so we knew what types and numbers of Russian ships were operating in the Mediterranean from the Black Sea Fleet.

Note: We occasionally took a look at the Kythra anchorage to confirm our intelligence about what Russian ship were there. That was about it. We didn't spend much time thinking about what tactics we would use against Russian ships like the Kirov if we were to be required to strike them. I saw that as a mission that we could take on when I became the CO.

We were currently flying low level routes, practice and live ordnance missions, air to air combat maneuvering with F-14, and were "showing the flag" at a lot of Mediterranean ports. This was routine stuff for light attack squadrons deployed to the Med. There was no requirement for high tempo high threat missions compared to Vietnam deployments. I thought the squadron could raise it's level of performance and add excitement by taking on an aggressive war at sea program.

Underway November 20th-November 21st- transit to Dubrovnik, Yugoslavia (2 days)

On November 20th, I flew two missions (3.2 flight hours). One mission was a 3 V 4 ACM mission (3 aircraft versus 4 aircraft for air combat maneuvering).
I lead an air show at USS America for the second flight.

Map of our transits to Dubrovnik, Yugoslavia (November 22nd-26th) and Trieste, Italy (November 28th to December 3rd).

Dubrovnik, Yugoslavia
November 22nd-November 26th (5 days)

Dubrovnick is now located in the extreme southern tip of Croatia.


The ancient walled city of Dubrovnick	16th Century Old City	Beaches, condos, and casinos outside of Old City

I remember visiting the old city and enjoying good food, fine wine, and coffee. We visited the casinos and restaurants outside the old city. I don't remember if we had an "admin".

But what I remember best was playing tennis on a local tennis club red clay courts. I think we played a couple of days. I remember that the weather was on and off drizzle and the balls got quite wet.

The local club arranged for local club opposition on the second day, I think. I don't remember if Tom Mitchell was my partner.

Underway from on November 27th- transit to Trieste arriving on November 28th (1 day)

On November 27th I flew one flight (1.6 flight hours) during our transit to Trieste.

November flight time- I logged a total of19 flights (35.6 flight hours)

Trieste, Italy
November 28th-December 2nd (5 days)

Trieste is a beautiful city with a mixture of Italian and slavic cultures. Unfortunately, it was cold and rainy when we visited in November.
Again, I don't remember many details about our visit. Did we have an "admin"? Hopefully, one of my shipmates will add some details.

I remember giving this tour to this of school children and their teacher in Trieste

I also a fantastic dinner a group of us had at a very unusual restaurant.

This is not the actual restaurant. Actually, it is a very popular tourist attraction at Trieste.
The actual restaurant looked like a castle. You had to drive across a bridge (moat?) to arrive into a large entrance where a valet parked your car. Next, you walked along corridor which brought you to a large medieval style dining room. It was a ***** restaurant.
It was there that I started the tradition that a dinner group that went with me would split the check evenly no matter what you had for dinner. That meant that if you had a cheeseburger and fries, it would be a very expensive cheeseburger

December 3rd-December 7th- Transit to the Training Anchorage Souda Bay, Crete (5 days)

My logbook entries:

December 5th- 2.1, 1 field landing; Remarks:fly off Souda
December 6th- 1.7, 1 trap, 1 T&G,; Remarks: Fly By Souda CV-66

This flight was a four plane "cross country flight to the Hellenic AFB at Souda Bay, Crete. The flight consisted of two planes from VA-15 and two planes from VA-87. I was the flight lead and my wingman was Jack Sheehan (I think). Number 3 was from the CAG staff. He was part of the contingent at VA-174 who was involved in the training at Cecil field of the Hellenic Air Force pilots. He spoke Greek but that proved to be unnecessary as most if not all of the Greek pilots we would meet at Souda spoke reasonable English. Number 4 was at Ltjg Matt Moffit from VA-87. We landed at Souda Bay and were met by the CO of the American base. He waved us through to the end of the runway where we taxied to the Greek Base. After a short "meet and greet", we were showed to the Greek BOQ to our rooms. We changed in to civilian clothes and were escorted by the Greek pilots to the "old Town of Chania. Normally Chania was "off limits" to American personnel. This didn't matter in our case as we were the guests of the Greek pilots. We had dinner followed by some partying at various establishments where we were introduced to some locals. Somewhere in the excitement, I decided that we would conduct a fly by of the town and the Greek hangar after take off the next day. The next day, we joined up after take off and did a four plane diamond of the town followed by a low fly by of the hanger. I was at eye level with the roof of the hangar and watched as the Greek A7 pilots on the roof through their hats in the air as we flew by. Matt was in the "slot" remembers looking up at the roof of the hangar. After leaving Souda, we conducted a fly by of the America before landing.

Map of Souda Bay and Chania

The Greek side of the base.

Chania

Greek A7

Greek A7 Diamond

Greek A7 Take Off from Souda Bay

We had a great time with the Greek A7 pilots. We compared notes and told sea stories and then enjoyed partying in the town.

I wish I had a picture of the flyby the hangar.
The Greek pilots threw their hats in the air as we flew by!

December 7th- The America arrived at the anchorage at Souda Bay.

December 8th- December 15th: Transit from Souda Bay to Palma de Majorca (8 days)

December 8th through December 15th- I logged 9 flights (16.9 flight hours). Seven of the flight involve aerial refueling.
Three were night flights (6.0 night hours).
We conducted a PASSEX with the USS Nimitz Battle Group on Dec 15th.

Palma de Majorca

December 16th-December 26th (11 days)

The beautiful port of Palma de Majorca
To get o fleet landing, we took liberty boats from the anchorage.

There are three major Balaric Islands.

The largest is Majora where Palma is located.

Minorca to the northwest is a popular tourist location.

Ibiza to the southwest has a controversial past. In the 1960s and 1970s, it was well known for it's clothing optional dress code. It was normally off limits to
Navy personnel.

Old Town

To get to Old Town, you turned right.

Old Town consisted of buildings and cathedrals hundreds of years old. There were many fine traditional restaurants located there.

Many British retirees settled on the coastline near Old Town.

I met a retired British couple who prepoared a traditional English lunch of roast beef and Yorkshire pudding.

Palma Nova

Palma Nova Beach

Palma Nova Tapas Bar

In the 1970s Palma Nova was populated mostly by Scandinavian tourists and expatriates. They were attracted not only by the beautiful beaches and lively night life but also by the relaxed free spirited attitude of the Palma Nova crowd. There were many excellent restaurants, Tapas Bars, and dancing establishments. There was one particular bar that I was my favorite over many visits to Palma. But, unfortunately I can't recall it's name. Next door from the bar was an excellent tapas bar. One of my favorite restaurants in Palma Nova proper was called "The Hollywood Restaurant" which served great steaks and salad. My most favorite restaurant was up the hill from Palma Nova which served "joints" of lamb and Majorcan vegetables.

Palma was an ideal port to have a squadron "admin" because of the long liberty boat ride from the ship to fleet landing which was subject to weather cancellations. Once ashore, you wanted to stay ashore if possible. The best location for the "admin" was at one of the high rise hotels at Palma Nova.

My Palma Nova Tennis Club

I made many visits to Palma over my Navy career. Early on, I found a tennis club that I could rely on for a good game of tennis, time at the pool, excellent food, and friendly club members. I don't remember the exact name of the club but it was something like Club Playa de Tennis.

Club Palma Nova Playa de Tennis had all the essentials.

Excellent red clay tennis courts

A terrific restaurant and bar

A refreshing pool with a view

Over the years, I made many friends at "my Palma Nova Tennis Club". If there were no "admin", I would stay at a nearby reasonably priced hotel.

VA-15 Officers Before the Change of Command
(I think Kel Huehn might have taken the picture)

Back Row Left to Right: Russ Nolan, Frank Gerwe, me, Tom Mitchell, Bob Maloney, Bob Yakeley
Front Roe Left to Right: Bert Johnston, Jack Sheehan, Norm McCoullough, Lew Richards, Bob Chimenti

VA-15 Change of Command

December 17th, 1977

USS America CVA-66

Bo relieving Kel in Hangar Bay 1

Kel, RADM CC Smith, COMCARGRU Eight, me, and Capt Byron Fuller; CO USS America
RADM CC Smith was the guest speaker.

Kel receiving his departing gift,
a painting by Alex Rucker (VF-142)

My Mom and Dad attended the ceremony. The signed up for a cruise that permitted them to depart from the itinerary. They took the ferry from Barcelona to Palma. Unfortunately, I don't remember where they stayed or for how long or what we did while they were there.

It was a privilege that they went to all that effort to attend my change of command.

CDR John Mazach (XO) and LCDR George Webb (Maintenance Officer) reported to the squadron after the Change of Command. Maz was an exceptional leader and was a a significant addition to the squadron. Spider, a test pilot and previous CAG-6 LSO was one of the finest carrier pilots in the Navy.

LCDR Frank Gerwe checked out of the squadron and along with Kel returned to Jacksonville. Frank screened for command while at VA-15 and went on to be the XO and then CO of VA-66 from June 1978 to October 980.

December 25th- Christmas Day Underway from Palma

Left to Right: Cisco, Doug Magnant, Ens Jeff McComb, Tom Mitchell (Demon), John Ihlenburg (Shortstop), me

OK guys. It's my ready room now!!

I can't believe I can't smoke a cigar in my own ready room!

John Mazack was an excellent leader and extremely supportive as my XO. He would go on to have an outstanding CO tour, make CAG, command an aircraft carrier, make Admiral, and retire as a Vice Admiral. He would also join me as a Golden Eagle.

Tom Mitchell (Demon) my Operations Officer, was the top hook in the air wing. He consistently flew OK 3 passes. He would string 20 to 30 "greenies" (OK) on the ready room landing performance board without a "yellow" (Fair) pass.

George Webb (Spider) created immediate competition for Demon. As a test pilot with carrier landing expertise, he would challenge and often surpass Demon's landing performance. VA-15 now had the top two "Hooks" in the air wing. I consulted Spider requesting his opinion on how I could improve my carrier landing performance. His suggestions were responsible for my significant improvement in my "greenie" (OK) to "yellow" (Fair) passes on the ready room board.

Their smooth stick skills that enabled them to perform so superbly in carrier landing performance would prove to be instrumental in our competitive exercise performance in air to air gunnery during the next training cycle.

VS-28 Change of Command:

CDR Goodman (right) relieved CDR Austin on December 17th also in Hangar Bay One on board the America

Underway from Palma on December 27th- transit to Genoa, Italy arriving on December 30th (3 days)

Left to Right Top: Norm McCoullough, Bert Johnston, Jack Sheehan
Next Row: Tom Mitchell (Demon), George Webb (Spider), Lew Richards

Left to Right Top: Lew Richards, Harvey Swift
Front: John Mazach (Bohunk), Bob Maloney

VALION One- I'm in my element; underway and in charge!
VALION Two- I'm next in line!

My logbook entries from December 27th through December 29th- I flew 5 flights (7.8 hours).

On December 27th, I recorded my 400th carrier landing onboard USS America.

1978

Genoa, Italy
(December 30th- January 9th)

Genoa is a major sea port

Genoa combines the old and new like most Italian coastal cities.

The streets are narrow with walls that don't identify what is located on the other side of the steel door.

I have no memories of our port visit to Genoa. Perhaps the weather was bad limiting liberty.

Could this skit have been for a departing CAG? Bert Johnston says the guy by the whiteboard was a LCDR from one of the fighter squadrons.

At the Table Left to Right: Bert Johnston, Bob Chimenti, Doug Magnant,
Next to whiteboard; a VF 142/143 LCDR ?

Underway from Genoa January 10th arriving in Naples January 15th (5 days)

Flight operations while in transit from Genoa to Naples
I logged five flights (8.7 flight hours). One was a practice bombing flight to Capo Fresca. One was a Sardinia 1 low level navigation flight.
On January 12th, I participated in a air power demonstration.

Naples, Italy
(January 15th-19th)

According to the America cruise book and compared with my logbook, it appears that we only spent four days in port Naples on this port visit.

There were two important events that occurred during this port visit to Naples.

Umberto's Restaurant

Galleria Umberto was a very popular indoor shopping mall, a first for Naples. It had many high quality shops, restaurants, and coffee houses. I visited the Galleria many times during my naval career.

Umberto's was a very popular restaurant near Galleria Umberto. Umberto''s was known for the guitar player and his violin partner who played during dinner. But, Umberto's was equally well known for the propensity of the customers to begin singing after dinner. As many of these customers were members of the Naples Opera Company, the singing was fantastic.

There are many stories I can relate about nights spent at Umberto's. But, they will be covered in future chapters of my memoir.

On this particular night, 'Bohunk' (John Mzach) is enjoying a relaxing evening. Demon (Tom Michell) is enjoying joining in the singing of "Dixie" by the customers.

The Second Important Event
An Evening at the AFSOUTH Officer's Club

A group of VALIONS decided to go to the Bagnoli Officer's Club at AFSOUTH, the NATO base near Naples. We had a large group, about 12 or so. During a trip to the men's room, I overheard a young woman on the phone saying to a friend that there were a group of carrier pilots at the O' Club and to come on over. I reported that intelligence to Cisco and instructed him to save a place next to my place at the table for one of the expected females. Meanwhile, I spotted a old Navy friend and A7 pilot, Jack Fetterman, at the bar and went over to talk to him. He was Captain Fetterman at the time and Commanding Officer of the USS LaSalle, an LPD home ported in Bahrain which was the flag ship COMMIDEASTFOR (Commander Middle Easter Force). I knew a little about COMMIDEASTFOR because my fiend Jeff Lapic had been the Aide and Flag Lt for the Rear Admiral there. When I was ready to return to my place at the table, the space next to me sat Catherine Hull-Ryde.

Allied Joint Forces Command

Typical O'Club Bar

Catherine Hull-Rydel Ryde

Cathy's father, Captain Don Hull-Ryde was the Chief of Staff for Strike Force South. He had been CO of an A4 squadron at NAS Lemore on the west coast and had a Vietnam deployment on his resume. He also had been CO of NAS Cubi Point in the Philippines. Cathy had all of this in her background so we had a lot in common.
Although I was 13 years older than her, I think that being the CO of a carrier squadron was an advantage. We got on very well.

January 18th: VF-142 Change of Command:

CDR "Bad Fred" Lewis (right) relieved CDR McFillen (left) as CO of VF-142 2ieved CDR McFillen

Underway January 21st through January 28th- transit to Catania, Sicily (8 days)

We conducted operations in the Tyrhannian Sea.

On our way to the Straits of Mesina,
we passed the active volcano Stromboli.

Flight operations while in transit from Naples to the Straits of Messina
I logged nine flights (16.3 flight hours).
January 12th- Air Demo
January 23rd- War At Sea (WAS) Strike (I was beginning to introduce the squadron to my ideas about WAS strikes versus Russian ships)
January 25th- Two ACM flights with F-14s
January 26th- Sardinia 1 Low Level Navigation Flight
January 28th- Diamond formation pictures taken over Mt Etna (unfortunatly I haven't been able to fing a copy yet)

Catania, Sicily
(January 29th-February 2nd)

Again, unfortunately I do not remember much about short the Catania port visit except for the following wonderful story.
(Which is quite relevant considering that I'm writing this just past midnight on Independence Day (July 4th, 2021).

Old Town Catania near Fleet Landing

Cappucchino Bar

I managed to leave the ship early one day in Catania and went to a cappucchino bar in the old city. In this particular bar, they served the cappouchino in a glass which was too hot to drink at first. While I was waiting for it to cool, an older man came up to me and asked if I was from the US Navy ship in the harbor. When I said yes his eyes began to tear up as he told me his story.

He was in the Italian army during World War 2 and was captured by General Patton's Seventh Army in North Africa. He said that he was well treated as a prisoner in North Africa and was transferred as a POW to the United States by ship. He told me that passing by the Statue of Liberty in New York was one of the best days of his life. He was moved by train to the midwest where he remained for the rest of the war. He worked on farms and was paid a few dollars an hour for his work. He couldn't believe that the USA would pay a POW for his work. He felt respected as a individual and not like a slave. He has been forever grateful for his treatment and he loves America as a result.

Happy Independence Day
July 4th, 2021

Underway February 3rd through February 12th- transit from Catania to Palma de Majorca (10 days)

Flight operations were conducted while in transit from Catania on February 3rd to Palma on February 12th. I logged twelve flights (25.3 flight hours). Our transit through the Tyrrhenian Sea then south of Sardinia to Palma allowed us to practice some of our War At Sea (WAS)) tactics.

Palma de Majorca (2nd visit)
(February 13th-February 27th) (15 days)
Two weeks in Palma-Fantastic

Cathy Hull-Ryde decided to meet the ship in Palma.

Cathy may have flown from Naples to Palma. I don't remember.

Or, she may have used a Euro pass and taken the train from Naples through Rome, Genoa, Monaco and stopped in Toulon overnight. She had a Seal boyfriend there she might have wanted to see before getting serious with me. I really haven't a clue.

From Toulon, she would have taken the train through Marseilles to Barcelona and then taken the ferry to Palma.

February 15th- VA-87 Change of Command (CDR Lew Dunton relieved CDR Bill Catlett)

CDR Bill Catlett

CDR Lew Dunton

Note: Lew Dunton would be the CO of VA-87 for the remainder of my tour as CO of the VALIONS

I'm not sure which day Cathy arrived in Palma or what specific places we visited during her stay. I'm sure that we spent most of our time in Palma Nova perhaps staying at the hotel I usually used that was nearby the "Palma Nova Playa de Tennis" club.

Cathy was not a tennis player. So, I suppose she would use the pool or hang out at the restaurant while I was on the courts.
Also, I suspect we spent some time with some of the VALIONS at the Palma Nova restaurants, Tapas Bars and clubs.

There was a great bar and restaurant located in "Old Town" called The Bar Abaco (AKA the " Rose Bar"). The food was excellent but expensive.
I normally went on weekends about 2230 for desert and coffee,

The "Rose Bar" was not well known to many visiting tourists in the days before Google. I found out about it from my local friends at the
"Palma Nova De Playa Tennis Club". It was officially "Off Limits" to Navy folks although it was not often enforced as there were few Shore Patrol assigned to that area of "Old Town " Palma. It was very popular for those who knew about it and was a great place to go with a friend for desert and coffee. On weekend nights at at midnight rose petals were thrown over the balcony; very romantic!

The "Rose Bar" was difficult to find as it was located behind a large wooden door located on a narrow alley way with no signs. The only way I knew how to find it was that I was taken there by one of my Palma friends. Once inside, it was a spectacular sight!


Inside there were tables on the ground floor and in small balconies around the room.	The outside courtyard had a few tables and chairs located around a fish pond.

February 24th- USO show in Hangar Bay #1 featuring Miss Black America

Miss Black America, Claire Ford of Tennessee along with Miss Indiana Mary Bentley, and Miss South Carolina, Valerie Haynes entertained a packed Hangar Bay One with the best soul and disco music while the America lay at anchor in Palma, 24 February.

Miss Black America, Claire Ford of Tennessee along with Miss Indiana Mary Bentley, and Miss South Carolina, Valerie Haynes entertained a packed Hangar Bay One with the best soul and disco music while the America lay at anchor in Palma, 24 February.

Underway from Palma February 28th through March 2nd- transit to Naples (3 days)

Flight operations were conducted while in transit from Palma from February 28th to Naples on March 3rd. I logged only five flights (10.0 flight hours). Our transit northeast from Palma gave us the opportunity to work with the French armed forces. On February 28th, my flight flew with 4 French Mirage aircraft on an 8 plane low level strike on a French target. On February 28th, I flew a second flight with French Mirages. This time it was an ACM flight with 3 Mirages versus 3 A7Es.

Naples, Italy (2nd visit)
(March 3rd-March 8th)

This is pretty much all I knew about Naples before I met Cathy. I wasn't able to show the private tennis club club on the other side of the "Egg" Castle.

This was my new Naples after I spent some time with Cathy and her parents.

Cathy's parents, Captain Don Hull-Ryde and his wife Gail lived in a restricted community of nice villas. Cathy has three brothers. Two of them, Ted and Brett were in Germany at school. The youngest brother, Greg was living with his parents at the villa. Don reported for duty before the family arrived in Italy. While he was waiting for Gail, the teenagers, and the household goods to arrive, Don lived in a Hotel Restaurante called dal Tedesco. One of the most significant events of the in port period was that I met and spent some time with the Rupelt family, owners of dal Tedesco.

dal Tedesco is Italian for the Germans

The owners of dal Tedesco were Trudy and Wolfgang Rupelt. They had two teenage sons, Manual and Roberto. Wolfgang and Trudy had emigrated from the eastern part of Germany prior to World War Two. Wolfgang was responsible for keeping the hotel, family quarters, and restaurant in good repair. Trudy was responsible for running the restaurant with Manual and Roberto's assistance. All three were master chefs.l and Roberto's help. Trudy was the head chef

The restaurant was capable of serving fine Italian food to a regular nightly group up to 300 or so at an Italian wedding. All hands were on deck for the weddings. Don had helped out in the kitchen when he was there. I helped by making the bruschetta for weddings during subsequent visits to Naples.

The main dinning room was a spectacular venue for weddings with a beautiful view of Baia Bay.

From this view, the hotel and family quarters doesn't look like much. This is the business side. The other side features a patio on the ground floor. Off the patio is a stone fireplace, seating area and herb garden. There is a balcony on an upper floor off of the family quarters with a spectacular view of Baia Bay. From the balcony looking across the bay, you can see the "Old City" Pozzouli. Pozzouli is a common name associated with Naples. This Pozzouli is special in many ways. One is that It is known as the home town of the famous Italian actress, Sophia Loren (born in Rome but grew up in Pozzouli). It is also known forfor it's Flavian amphitheater and numerous Roman ruinss throughout the city.

\Sophia Loren

"Old Town" Pozzouli

Flavian Amphitheater

Roman Ruins in Pozzouli

If you looked to the right from the balcony at dal Tedesca, you could see the location of famous Roman archeology; Julius Caesar's Summer Palace, the Roman Baths, and Nero's Summer Palace where Nero supposedly played the fiddle while Rome burned. Cathy and I visited several of these archeology sites during this port visit.

Roman Bath Complex

Baia Archeological P{ark

Roman Bath Complex

On one day after visiting the Archeological Park, Cathy and I had lunch in Baiae, a town a little further along the coastline. After a very enjoyable lunch, somehow Cathy's keys ended up down a storm drain. After making a call from the restaurant (no cell phones in those days) and several hours waiting for a locksmith to replace the ignition, we were on our way back to Cathy's parents' villa. Either after this incident, or on another occasion during the Import visit, I had a conversation with Cathy's father, Don, about the practicality of my relationship with his daughter. I thought that he would be concerned about me being 13 years older than his daughter. He surprised me when he replied, "I'm more worried about whether you understand what you're getting into! "

I respected and admired Don Hull_Ryde.

He was always honest and respectful towards me from the beginning of my relationship through Cathy and my divorce 2000.

The underwater Roman road between Pozzouli and Baiae

I have never been able to dive on the underwater road in Baia Bay. But, I have had conversations with Manuel Rupelt about his finding amphoras and other antique objects in Baia Bay. The underwater road would be an important factor during a Naples port visit when I was Executive Officer of the USS Saratoga CV-60. I'll discuss it in more detail when I get to the XO Saratoga chapter.

Underway from Naples on March 9th- transit to Barcelona, Spain March 9th (11 days) Flight operations were conducted while in transit from Naples from March 9th to Barcelona, Spain March 19th. Our longest operating period sine our first transit from Rota to Brindisi at the beginning of the cruise.

I logged16 flights (36.7 flight hours) during the transit.
My first few flights involved flying a low level navigation flight and a bombing hop to Capo Fresca target in Sicily. On March 10th, I lead two WAS strikes against the USSS Nimitz Strike Group. We were beginning to work on the details of our WAS tactics.

On March 19th, I logged my 450th trap aboard USS America. Note: It was obvious from the number of days in port or in training anchorages compared to the number of flying days that the amount of fuel oil for steam powered ships and JP5 for jet aircraft and gas turbine ships was being strictly budgeted by COMSIXTHFLT. We did a great job of "showing the flag" portion of our mission through our many port visits, maintained our NATO exercise requirements, but were operating just enough to maintain ship and aircrew readiness. I will provide the OPTEMPO data for the cruise during the section about the transit from Rota to Norfolk following the cruise.

Barcelona, Spain
(March 20th-March 28th) (9 days)

Fleet Landing with the statue of Columbus

Las Ramblas where most of the shops, restaurants, and bars where located.