Naval Aviation Memories
The USS Harry S. TrumanThis "memories"" page has short articles, book synopses, memoirs, poetry, member queries, and other fond memories related to naval and marine aviation. The page is not intended for technical manuals, dissertations, political or religious discussions, or other such writings that are more appropriate elsewhere. We welcome all contributions that fit, and encourage naval and marine aviators to send us your thoughts.
Memories
Marc Frattasio, 06/10/2011 Myemail: marc_frattasio@yahoo.com
I am an author working on a comprehensive illustrated history of NAS South Weymouth. Basically, at this point I am looking for photos involving activities at NAS South Weymouth during the 1950s and 1960s. I would like to hear from anyone who would like to help out Thanks.
1st Sgt John Crouch USMC retired 08/29/2010
I would like the opportunity to spread the word to your members about the book I am writing and my desire to get their memories of what it was like to train as a cadet under the oppression of the Marine DI assigned to their classes.
NAVY AOCS & NAVCAD
THE PRESSURE COOKER
1947 - 1994
A COLLECTION OF PHOTOGRAPHS AND STORIES
FROM THE MARINE CORPS DRILL INSTRUCTORS
and
THE AVIATION OFFICER CANDIDATES THEY TRAINED
Please take some time in the next couple months to write me your memories of your time under the tutelage of a Marine DI. I will also be writing a very comprehensive chapter on the course of training, requirements, nuances and changes throughout the decades.
I am arranging the book front to rear by the decades in order of date of service regarding assignment as a Drill Instructor. I will of course have a very lengthy chapter at the beginning covering the reason why Marine DI's were assigned in 1947 and continued to be assigned throughout the decades as well as the changes that occurred in the training program. Please indicate your class number and assigned DI's. I will be glad to assist you in any capacity necessary to get those stories of trials and tribulations of life under the Marine Drill Instructor's hammer as he shaped you into an officer.
Please share with any other NAVCAD's and AOCS grads that you know of.
I am soliciting stories, short and long. I would love very much for you to send me an E-mail with your stories attached. I know that not everyone has time to type so I will gladly arrange a phone call with anyone to get the story and write it down myself and send to you a copy for final editing if you like. Please send E-mails to aocs.stories@gmail.com and feel free to call me at the numbers below at listed times.
John Crouch
First Sergeant, USMC retired
423-620-5399 Cell
Call 0800-2300 EST
Email aocs.stories@gmail.com
A Career
Naval Aviator's
Life
CampbellPreface: Influences
Rear Admiral Norman D. Campbell has consented to prepare a series of articles about his naval career that spanned from 1956 to 1989. The incentive comes after many years of "planning to get to it." One incentive is the urging of his long-time friend Cdr Norman E Davis, who wrote "Highlights of 20+ Years in the U.S. Navy," a series of magazine articles which also appear on this site. Each of the Admiral's articles will be published in this space as the Muse strikes. This is a series that Adm Campbell's friends have long anticipated.
By Norman D Campbell, RDML USN
As I begin to write this biographic sketch, I find it difficult finding a beginning, let alone an ending, to a life which seems to have been more a sport than a business of national security. In real life terms it was truly a blast; a never-ending personal challenge and love affair.
Thirty-three years in one's lifetime seems long by some standards. But, in the life of a career Naval Officer and carrier jet pilot, where great speeds are common, completion of service and retirement seemed to happen almost overnight. Now, in retrospect these several years later, it's become an end game. I've believed all along that I truly understood and certainly better appreciated the demands and all the blissful aspects of flight over the long haul.
I was born in the early thirties, grew up and was educated in Western Pennsylvania in an era experiencing the deprivations of the depression, followed shortly thereafter by the equally painful and tragic 1940s with WW II and later the Korean war. During those times, all the guys I knew were enthralled with the exploits of fighter pilots, aces, and the movies and novels detailing the combat heroes of that era. We drew or sketched, usually in class during arithmetic or history, all the sleek wartime aircraft; even if it meant detention after school. We also joyfully built those beautiful balsa wood models to claim boy scout merit badges!
One real-life Army Air Corps fighter pilot stood out in particular. His name was Francis Gabreskie, from nearby Oil City, Pa. His parents lived down the street from a great aunt of my family. I never met him personally but he was truly one of my personal heroes. A career military aviator, he flew P40s out of Bellows Field, Hawaii, during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. A short time later he was assigned to the European theatre flying P47 Thunderbolts over Germany. He quickly attained ace status, shooting down a grand total of 34 enemy aircraft. Following WW2, remaining on active duty, Colonel Gabreskie transitioned to jets and the F86 Sabre. Later, in the early fifties in Korea, he became one of the first jet aces (a double ace), shooting down six North Korean Mig15s. A true hero and worthy example for all aspiring aviators!
With the help and support of a loving wife and family plus many friends and educators with prior naval service, I was shepherded eventually into the Navy. The trip had more than a few twists and turns along the way.
My first exposure to aviation occurred when I was nine-years-old. I got to touch and crawl in and over a Piper Cub that had made a forced landing (dead stick) into a farmer's field across the valley from my home. It wasn't until much later, when I was 22 and after college, that I enjoyed my very first flight! That brief flight lasted 25 minutes in a Navy R4D (C-47) from Allegheny Airport in Pittsburgh to the Naval Air Reserve Unit, Akron, Ohio for an aptitude test battery and a flight physical. Even then, as a passenger of that ageing bird, I experienced a great, unforgettable thrill and the beginning of a long lasting association and love for aviation.
It wasn't until the end of my sophomore college year that I actually gave much thought to military service. The Selective Service act and the local draft board came calling in May 1953, during the Korean War. I was less than gently encouraged to proceed immediately to Pittsburgh for an induction physical. As all young men knew at the time, there was little difficulty or delay in passing such exams! My college grades, and those of most of my other young male classmates, were average or maybe slightly above. However, at the time of the physical unbeknownst and fortunately for me, more serious negotiations were taking place in Korea after a stalemated year. On July 23, 1953, a cease fire, then an armistice was declared, ceasing hostilities.
It turned out to be a most eventful happening for me personally. My induction into the army was deferred, and I was able to successfully complete the last two college years, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in Education from Slippery Rock State Teachers College in 1955. And, because of this new interest, my marks improved significantly in the final two years of study. My own good fortune as a young civilian continued through the next twelve months following graduation. In the fall of 1955 Allan and I signed teaching and coaching contracts in nearby small towns. He went to a district near Butler, Pa, named Penn Township. My position took me to the town of Spartansburg, north of Titusville, not far from Erie, PA. The school in this case was named Sparta, appropriately enough! In addition to teaching History, girls and boys Physical Education and Health, I coached the basketball and baseball teams. Suffice it to say, we suffered losing seasons in both sports that year.
In the interim my two college team mates, Michael Estocin (1954) and Allen Proctor (1955) encouraged me to sign up for the relatively new Aviation Officer Candidate (AOC) program via the Naval Air Reserve Unit (NARU) based in Akron, Ohio. Both Mike and Allen, from Turtle Creek, PA, and graduates of Slippery Rock State College (now university) had enrolled earlier. Stating a very humble premise, they were salt-of-the-earth individuals and true American heroes. As personal mentors to me and with their able assistance and guidance I completed the requisite aptitude and flight physical standards required by the Navy.
My tenure at Sparta was short-lived, but it was not because of the aforementioned losing record, honest! By this time I had exhausted all the draft board's patience and they came to me for a decision that May. Fortunately for me the naval flight program remained open as an option, and looked a great deal more enticing. Allen and I resigned from teaching and, together, entered Naval Pre-Flight School, Pensacola, FL, in the summer of 1956.
Tragically, Michael and Allen were later killed in service to their country, in strike flights off aircraft carriers. Mike died in a combat mission over North Vietnam, flying from USS Ticonderoga, in April 1967. For his courage and heroism under fire, Michael was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor in 1976, the nation's most prestigious award for heroic service and sacrifice. [Ed: See Michael Estocin's Biography on this site.] Allen died in 1969, in a VF-31 F4J Phantom accident flying from USS Saratoga, in the Mediterranean Sea near the island of Malta.
— RDML Norm Campbell,
September 30, 2007
MallickBook by Former
Navy/NASA Aviator
LCDR Jake Mallick (Ret) is a rarity. He used his Navy flight expertise to launch a 31-year career as NASA's top flight test examiner. A few years ago, he wrote a book — THE SMELL OF KEROSENE — about his experiences, which NASA published as part of its public education mission. Only a few copies were turned out and were quickly snapped up by NASA and military insiders. The book may still be found on www.alibris.com for a price. Or it may be found on the NASA website or on Tailhook Ebooks by clicking here.
— Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader
Introduction
It was April 30, 1952, a beautiful spring day at NAS Kingsville, Texas. I stood on the parking ramp, waiting to cross the taxiway. I felt about 10 feet tall. I had just finished my A-2, FAM flight in TV-1 (P-80) Bureau Number 33841. It was my first solo flight in a jet. I was a commissioned Naval Aviator and I was going to be a jet pilot. Several other TV-1s taxied by on their way to parking — their jet exhaust swirling about my legs. For a moment, the odor carried me back to the family farm in the hills of Western Pennsylvania, where the lamps and stoves burned similar fuel. Some 40 years later, I selected that "moment in time" to name my book that discusses my 35 years of professional flying. — THE SMELL OF KEROSENE
Why Write a Book?
Typically after retirement, I became involved in several volunteer type functions that were associated with aiding people and community. I still had a lot of time to think about the career that I had in aviation and the things I had been able to do. Some years before I retired, I had written a family history book. In the search for information on that book, I found an autobiography written by a distant family member in the mid 1800s. I was very impressed with the information in the book and the assistance it was to me, in writing the family history.
I made the decision to write a book about my life and primarily my career in aviation. In the back of my mind, I had the idea that it would be nice if I could finish a book and have it published; but, if not, it would provide my kids and their kids with a little history and information. Sort of a continuation of the family history book that I had written.
I'll not go into the nuts and bolts of writing the book; but be assured, it took a lot of time, work and reviews before it came close to being published. Several commercial publishers told me they were not able to get books published that some of the astronauts had written, so I didn't think there was much of a chance for mine. About that time, my manuscript got into the NASA Dryden (Edwards AFB) system via a good friend, Betty Love. Betty was a NASA Retiree who did volunteer work in the Dryden History Office.
About a year later, I received a call with a request to use part of my book in a NASA Dryden Monograph of the Blackbird flight test program from 1969 to 1979. I had flown that program along with the legendary Air Force/NASA test pilot, Fitzhugh Fulton. The History Office at Dryden liked my treatment and story of that flying. I had given up all hope of having the complete book published, so I gave them approval to use my material. Peter Merlin was the primary author of that Monograph named: Mach 3+ NASA/USAF YF-12 FLIGHT RESEARCH 1979.
Peter came by my home on a number of visits to have me review the edit what he had done on my material. I was completely impressed with his ability as a writer and editor to smooth up and make my writing more readable. He was able to do this without changing my story or the message that I wanted to give. I told Peter at the time, I wish he had time to edit and review the rest of my manuscript.
Several months passed and Peter called and told me that the NASA Dryden History Office had decided to publish my complete book. The first thing I asked him was, "Are they going to leave in the Navy Flying, too?" His answer was a positive yes. He said there had been some talk about just publishing the NASA flying; but he had intervened and told management that it would take away a great deal from the book, if it were not complete, including the Navy flying experience. I was very excited about this for two reasons: It would be great to have the book published; but even more important, to have Peter Merlin as my editor and reviewer.
On the Lecture CircuitOne of the biggest compliments that I received on my book was from a former Naval Aviator, who was working at NASA Dryden as a research engineer. He told me that it was the best description of Naval Air Flight training that he had ever read. He said that it took him back to his days in flight training. That was a big compliment for me. I have always considered one of my biggest accomplishments in life was completing Naval Air Flight Training and being designated a Naval Aviator. After flying a tour as a carrier pilot in F2H-2 Banshee's, I had the feeling that I could tackle or fly anything that came along. I think that accomplishment and that attitude helped me to be successful in a long flight test career.
I think this covers the reasons I came to write my book, THE SMELL OF KEROSENE I enjoyed the challenges of my aviation career and I wanted my family to know more about it, and perhaps a few others to. It all started with Naval Air and I am still proud of that today. If you follow up and read the book, I hope that you enjoy it. Perhaps it will bring back memories. I have had a lot of "positive feedback" from readers and that is my reward. Because it is a government publication, I receive no royalties on the sale. I understand the book is available on this web site. It can also be ordered in a paperback from: www.alibris.com or downloaded free at Tailhook Ebooks
— Don "Jake" Mallick, LCDR USNR-RET
August 26, 2007
The Way We Were in 1954
CathcartDonald E. Cathcart, LCol USMC, contributed photos of his Navcad Class 30-54 Golf and Hotel sections all decked out in splendor with swords and winning smiles:
"We were given an 8x10 of our Hotel section of Navcad Class 30-54 while in Pre-Flight. George [Rowell] got an 8x10 of the Golf section. Bill Neuberg sent me his picture of the 30-54G. Some of the guys in the pictures are in my stories such as 'Rebel Yell' and 'Trader Jon's.' Botens and Contratto in 30-54H were killed coming back to Whiting from Pat O'Brien's in New Orleans."
Navcad Class 30-54G —Top Row: Bob Skagen, Spence Thomas, Bob Bohlen, Charles Cook, Jim Jahn, Joe Brady, Clint Snow, Mark Keany. >2nd Row: Bill Coakley, Dick Deluese, Russ Frederick, Bob Mills, Bud Smook, Bill Neuberg, John Gruenwald, Roy Turk. 1st Row: Oscar Pages[Cuba], Maurice Getty, George Rowell, Dave Krogh, Eddie Anderson, Stan Livingston, FR Masses[Cuba].
Navcad Class 30-54H — Top: Bob Herzing, Bob Fitch, Botens, Gates, Bill Jeter, Carlin 2nd Row: Fowler, Donald Cathcart, Ed Mullins, JB Spear, Dentworth, Controtto 1st Row: Richard Longeruia[Cuba], JC Daniels Jr, Smith, Joe Royal, Joe Nickelson, Bascaro[Cuba]
— Submitted by LCOL Mofak Cathcart,
September 19, 2007
Navcad Days Photos
MoserCDR Carter Moser sorted through photos he made in the mid-1950s as a Navcad with Class 28-54. He shares them here for all nostalgia buffs.
Click Here for the Moser Nostalgia Album
— Submitted by CDR Carter Moser
May 2007
CDR Norman E. Davis Memoirs
DavisIn 2005-2006, Norm Davis wrote a series of articles about his 20-year (1954-1974) U.S. Navy career for AOPA Magazine in New Zealand. One sample of CDR Davis' adventures may be found HERE.
While Norm had adventures with the Navy all over the world, his home base for many years has been in New Zealand. He met and married a New Zealand native early in his career, and in 1974 retired there to become a gentleman farmer, a main-stay in civilian aviation, and a world renown scientist.
To learn about his remarkable life from seaman apprentice to Naval Aviator to research scientist, see Highlights of 20+ Years in the U.S. Navy at Tailhook Ebooks.
— CDR Norm Davis,
April 28, 2007
Last Combat Mission for VA-25 in Skyraiders
THE LAST MISSION - This picture is from the USS Coral Sea, CVA-43, taken circa February 1968. The occasion was a presentation to LTJG Ted Hill for piloting the last combat mission of VA-25 in the last U.S Navy, A-1H/J Skyraider (Bureau Number 135300). It includes VA-25 squadron pilots and other officers in the squadron. Under the side number on the cowl is nose art reading "Puff the Magic Dragon" Presenting the award to LTJG Hill (center) are CDR Cliff Church (left), CO, and CAPT Bill Shawcross (right), CO, CVA-43. Sitting on the wing (l to r) LCDR Carter Moser, LCDR Ralph Smith, LT Al Nichols, LTJG Bob Hagen, LTJG Bruce Marcus, and LT McGee. Standing in same order, CDR Stu Skelton, XO, LTJG Zip Rausa, LTJG Dale Pellot, LCDR Speed Ritzmann, LTJG Larry Gardiner, LTJG Chuck Thom, LCDR Ron Bolt, LCDR Jack McDermott, and LTJG Jay Stone.
MUSEUM PIECE - This is the Skyraider Ted Hill flew on the last combat mission. The plane now resides at the Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola. — Submitted by Bill Ritzmann, May 4, 2007
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