The FReeper Foxhole Remembers the USS Forrestal Fire (7/29/1967) - Oct 14th, 2003

Naval Aviation News ^ | October 1967 | Senior Chief Journalist John D. Burlage

[SAMWolf]

Lord,

Keep our Troops forever in Your care

Give them victory over the enemy...

Grant them a safe and swift return...

Bless those who mourn the lost.
.

FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer
for all those serving their country at this time.

...................................................................................... ...........................................

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The Forrestal Fire

The day was a typical one for the 5,000 officers and enlisted men of the attack aircraft carrier USS Forrestal as the huge, 80,000-ton ship cut a wake through the calm waters of the Gulf of Tonkin. It was as typical as it could be, that is, for men at war. And the men of Forrestal were definitely in combat. For the first time since their ship was commissioned in October 1955, they had been launching aircraft from her flight deck on strikes against an enemy whose coastline was only a few miles over the horizon.

The ship in which these men served was the first U.S. carrier built from the keel up with the angled deck that enables aircraft to be launched and recovered simultaneously. For four days, the planes of Attack Carrier Air Wing 17 had been launched on, and recovered from, about 150 missions against targets in North Vietnam. On the ship's four-acre flight deck, her crewmen went about the business at hand, the business of accomplishing the second launch of the fifth day in combat.

Overhead, the hot, tropical sun beat down from a clear sky.

It was just about 10:50 a.m. (local time), July 29, 1967.

The launch that was scheduled for a short time later was never made.

This is the story of the brave men of USS Forrestal.

It is not a story about just a few individuals. Or ten. Or twenty. Or fifty. It is the story of hundreds of officers and enlisted men who were molded by disaster into a single cohesive force determined to accomplish one mission: Save their ship and their shipmates.

It is the story of the acts of heroism they performed-acts so commonplace, accomplished with such startling regularity, that it will be impossible to chronicle all of them. It will be impossible for a very simple reason:All of them will never be known.


This is what is believed to be the last photo taken of the Forrestal on the morning of July 29, 1967

Lt. Cmdr. Robert "Bo" Browning one of the pilots due for launch with many others, he was seated in the cockpit of his fueled and armed Skyhawk; the plane was spotted way aft, to port. Lt. Cmdr. John S. McCain III said later he heard a "whooshy" sound then a "low-order explosion" in front of him. Suddenly, two A-4s ahead of his plane were engulfed in flaming jet fuel — JP-5 — spewed from them. A bomb dropped to the deck and rolled about six feet and came to rest in a pool of burning fuel.

The awful conflagration, which was to leave 132 Forrestal crewmen dead, 62 more injured and two missing and presumed dead, had begun.

As the searing flames, fed by the spreading JP-5, spread aft and began to eat at the aircraft spotted around the deck, Lt. Cmdr. Browning escaped from his plane. He ducked under the tails of two Skyhawks spotted alongside his and ran up the flight deck toward the island area. Twice, explosions knocked him off balance. But he made it.



The fire soon enveloped all the aircraft in its wake. It spread to the fantail, to decks below. Bombs and ammunition were touched off in the midst of early fire-fighting efforts. Black, acrid smoke boiled into the sky. Other ships on Yankee Station sped to the aid of the stricken carrier.

As the fuel-fed fire licked at planes, ammunition and bombs, the heroes of Forrestal rushed to avert a total disaster; some died in the process. A chief petty officer, armed only with a small fire extinguisher, ran toward the bomb that had dropped to the flight deck. He was killed when it exploded as were members of fire-fighting teams trying to wrestle fire hoses into position. Shrapnel from the explosion was thrown a reported 400 feet.

"I saw a dozen people running . . into the fire, just before the bomb cooked off," Lt. Cmdr. Browning was quoted as saying later. He called very one of them "a hero of the first magnitude."

That was only the beginning.


This photo shows one of the bomb explosions at the rear of the ship, with smoke billowing.

"There was a horrendous explosion that shook 'Angel Two Zero.' It seemed as if the whole stern of the Forrestal had erupted. Suddenly there were rafts, fuel tanks, oxygen tanks, trop tanks and debris of every description floating in the water below."

The description is from Lt. David Clement, pilot of a rescue helicopter from the carrier USS Oriskany (CV 34), who had been asked to fly plane guard for Forrestal after completing a flight to that carrier. Soon, he and his crew — Ens. Leonard M. Eiland, Jr., Aviation Machinist's Mate (Jets) 3rd Class James D. James, Jr., and Airman Albert E. Barrows — would be on a far different mission. They would be rescuing Forrestal crewmen who jumped, fell or were knocked from the carrier — no less than five times within an hour. Later, they would be shuttling medical supplies to the stricken ship. The continuing explosions on Forrestal's flight deck would rock their helo, leaving the ship's aft end, in Lt. Clement's words, "a mass of twisted steel, with holes in the flight deck, a vacant space where there had been many aircraft and a towering column of black and gray smoke and flames."


As the Forrestal burned, a huge black cloud rolled off the Tonkin Gulf. Note how small the carrier looks in relation to the smoke plume. (It is just barely visible on the extreme lower left.)

At 11:47 A.M., Forrestal reported the flight deck fire was under control.

At 12:15, the ship sent word that the flight deck fire was out.

At 12:45, stubborn fires remained on the 01 and 02 levels and in hangar bay three. All available COD (Carrier Onboard Delivery) aircraft were being sent to the carriers Oriskany and USS Bon Homme Richard (CV 31) to be swiftly rigged with litters medical evacuation.

[snippy_about_it]

Good morning aomagrat. The thread topic today reminds me to thank you for your service to our country. Thank you.

[snippy_about_it]

There's the coffee I've been looking for. Good morning Mayor.

[The Mayor]

Good morning

[manna]

Present!

[snippy_about_it]

Good morning manna.

[weldgophardline]

Good morning to all no rocks this time. Great post the last two days. This ones shows how great our service people are and do thier duty no matter the odds. Have a great day.

[Valin]

On This Day In History


Birthdates which occurred on October 14:
1542 Abul-Fath Djalal-ud-Din, 3rd Mogol emperor of India (1556-1605)
1633 James II king of England (1685-88)
1644 William Penn English Quaker & founder of PA
1712 George Grenville British PM (1763-65)
1734 Francis Lightfoot Lee, US farmer/signer (Declaration of Independence)
1857 Elwood Haynes auto pioneer, built one of 1st US autos
1867 Masaoka Shiki Japan, haiku & tanka poet/diarist (Salt Water Ballads)
1869 Joseph Duveen England, art connoisseur (Elgin marbles)
1871 Alexander von Zemlinsky Vienna Austria, composer (Der Schneeman)
1873 Raymond C Ewry Indiana, polio victim who won 10 Olympic golds
1882 Eamon DeValera NY, Pres of Ireland (1937-48, 51-54, 57-59)
1888 Katherine Mansfield New Zealand writer (Aloe, Garden Party)
1890 Dwight D Eisenhower Denison, Tx (R) 34th Pres (1953-1961)
1894 e. e. cummings Cambridge Mass, poet (Tulips & Chimneys)
1896 Lillian Gish silent film/stage actress (Birth of a Nation)
1899 Alan Washbond US, 2-man bobsled (Olympic-gold-1932)
1906 Benita Hume London England, actress (Vicky-The Halls of Ivy)
1906 Hannah Arendt Germany, historian (Origins of Totalitarianism)
1907 Pert Kelton Great Falls Mont, actress (Cavalcade of Stars)
1910 John Wooden basketball coach (UCLA-10 national championships)
1916 C Everett Koop surgeon general (1981-89)
1924 Robert Webber Santa Ana Calif, actor (79 Park Avenue)
1927 Roger Moore London England, actor (Alaskans, Maverick, Saint)
1928 Gary Graffman NYC, pianist (Leventritt Award)
1931 Rafael Puyana Bogota Colombia, baroque harpsichordist (NY debut 1957)
1935 La Monte Young Bern Idaho, composer (Compostion in 1990)
1938 John Dean III former White House counsel, Watergate figure
1939 Ralph Lauren fashion designer (Chaps)
1940 Cliff Richards [Harry Webb], England, rocker (Suddenly)
1940 Pat Finley Asheville NC, actress (Ellen Hartley-Bob Newhart Show)
1943 Lance Rentzel NFL receiver (Minn, LA)/ex-husband of Joey Heatherton
1943 Noreen Corcoran Quincy Mass, actress (Kelly-Bachelor Father)
1944 Udo Kier Germany, actor (Warhol Dracula, Warhol Frankenstein)
1946 Justin Hayward singer (Moody Blues-Nights in White Satin)
1947 Charlie Joiner Many La, NFL receiver (Houston, Cincinnati, San Diego)
1950 Sheila Young Ockerwitz US, 500m speed skater (Olympic-gold-1976)
1952 Harry Anderson Newport RI, actor (Judge Harry Stone-Night Court)
1952 Nikolai Adrianov USSR, gymnast (Olympic-4 gold/2 silver/bronze-1976)
1953 Greg Evigan South Amboy NJ, actor (BJ-BJ & the Bear)
1956 Beth Daniel Charleston SC, LPGA golfer (1980 player of the year)
1958 Thomas Dolby rocker (She Blinded Me With Science)
1959 A.J. Pero Staten Is, drummer (Twisted Sister-Not Gonna Take It)
1961 Melanie Wilson actress (Jennifer-Perfect Strangers)
1961 Mike Tramp Denmark, heavy metal rocker (White Lion-Mane Attraction)
1967 Arleen Sorkin actress (Day of Our Life, America's Funniest Videos)

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Deaths which occurred on October 14:
0530 Dioscurus, anti-Pope (530), dies
1066 Harold II, King of England (1066), dies
1880 Victorio, Apache chief, killed by Mexican army
1944 Erwin Rommel German Field Marshall (WW II-Africa), dies at 52
1959 Errol Flynn actor, dies
1977 Bing Crosby dies of a heart attack at 74, in Madrid, Spain
1983 Paul Fix actor (Rifleman), dies at 82 of kidney failure
1986 Keenan Wynn actor (Dallas, Call to Glory, Last Precinct), dies at 70
1990 Leonard Bernstein composer (West Side Story), dies at 72

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Reported: MISSING in ACTION

1966 THOMAS DARWIN JOEL---SANTA CLARA CA.
1967 CONAWAY GARY LEE---BLUE ISLAND IL.
[REMAINS RETURNED 8/84]
1967 VAUGHAN ROBERT REDDINGTON---LOS ANGELES CA.

POW / MIA Data & Bios supplied by
the P.O.W. NETWORK. Skidmore, MO. USA.

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On this day...
530 [Discorus] ends his reign as Catholic Pope
1066 Battle of Hastings, in which William the Conqueror wins England
1322 Robert the Bruce of Scotland defeats King Edward II of England at Byland, forcing Edward to accept Scotland's independence
1586 Mary Queen of Scots goes on trial for conspiracy against Elizabeth
1651 Laws are passed in Massachusetts forbidding the poor to adopt excessive styles of dress
1773 Britain's East India Company tea ships' cargo is burned at Annapolis, Md.
1774 1st Continental Congress is 1st to declare colonial rights (Phila)
1806 Battle of Auerstadt-French beat Prussians
1834 1st black to obtain a US patent, Henry Blair, for a corn planter
1843 British arrest Irish nationalist Daniel O'Connell for conspiracy
1862 Baseballer James Creighton ruptures bladder hitting HR, dies 10/18
1867 15th & last Tokugawa Shogun resigns in Japan
1884 George Eastman patents paper-strip photographic film
1905 NY Giants beats Phila A's, 4 games to 1 in 2nd World Series, Giant's Christy Mathewson's 3rd straight world series shutout
1906 All Chicago World Series, 1st AL victory, White Sox win 4 games to 2 (World Series #3)
1908 Cubs beat Tigers 4 games to 1 in 1st 5th World Series rematch
1912 Bull Moose Teddy Roosevelt shot while campaigning in Milwaukee
1920 Part of Petsamo province ceded by Soviet Union to Finland
1922 1st automated telephones-Pennsylvania exchange in NYC
1926 Alan Alexander Milne's book "Winnie-the-Pooh"
1929 Phila A's beat Chicago Cubs, 4 games to 1 in 26th World Series
1929 Philadelphia A's set world series record of 10 runs in an inning (World Series #26)
1933 Nazi Germany announces withdrawal from League of Nations
1934 "Lux Radio Theatre" premieres
1939 BMI (Broadcast Music Incorporated) formed
1943 US 8th Air Force loses 60 B-17 bombers during assault on Schweinfurt
1944 German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel commits suicide rather than face trial for his part in an attempt to overthrow Hitler
1945 Chicago Cardinals end a record 29-game losing streak, beat Bears
1947 Chuck Yeager in Bell XS-1 makes 1st supersonic flight (Mach 1.015)
1949 14 US Communist Party leaders convicted of sedition
1950 Rev Sun Young Moon liberated from Hung Nam prison
1951 Det Lion Jack Christiansen returns 2 punts for touchdowns vs LA Rams
1953 Ike promises to fire as Red any federal worker taking 5th amendment
1958 Malagasy Republic becomes autonomous republic in French Community
1960 Peace Corps 1st suggested by JFK
1962 US U-2 espionage planes locate missile launchers in Cuba
1962 Houston Oiler George Blanda throws for 6 TD passes vs NY Titans 56-17
1964 Martin Luther King Jr wins Nobel Peace Prize
1965 Joe Engle in X-15 reaches 80 km
1965 Sandy Koufax hurls his 2nd shutout of world series beating Twins 2-0 (World Series #62)
1968 1st live telecast from a manned US spacecraft (Apollo 7)
1968 Gruener & Watson (US) set scuba depth record (133 m) in Bahamas
1968 J.R. Hines of US runs 100 m in world record 9.95 sec
1969 Race riots in Springfield Mass
1970 Cleve Cavaliers lose to Buffalo Braves in their 1st game 107-92
1971 2 killed in Memphis racial disturbances
1975 Pres Ford escapes injury when his limousine is struck broadside
1976 Chris Chambliss' 9th inning lead off homer gives Yanks pennant #30
1976 Soyuz 23 carries 2 to Salyut 6, but returns without docking
1977 Linda Ronstadt sings the national anthem at the 74th World Series
1978 1st TV movie from a TV series-"Rescue from Gilligan's Island"
1978 Despite Denis Potvin hat trick in 3:21 Islanders lose 7-10, making Islander record when scoring a hat trick-22-2-1
1979 Flyers start 35 game unbeaten streak beating Toronto 4-3
1979 NHL's greatest scorer Wayne Gretsky scores his 1st NHL goal
1980 Bob Marley's last concert
1980 Pres nominee Ronald Reagan promises to name a woman to Supreme Court
1982 6,000 Unification church couples wed in Korea
1982 Islanders assessed 108 penalty minutes Penguins 125 (233 total)
1982 NY Islanders greatest shutout margin (9-0) vs Pittsburgh Penguins
1983 US Marine peacekeeper Sgt Allen Soifert killed by sniper in Beirut
1984 Detroit Tigers beat SD Padres, 4 games to 1 in 81st World Series
1985 On Mon Night football, Jets retire Joe Namath's #12, beat Miami 23-7
1986 Concentration camp survivor Elie Wiesel wins Nobel Peace Prize
1986 The IOC decides to stagger the Winter & Summer Olympic schedule
1986 Tim Kides of West NY, NJ performs 25,000 leg raises in 11:57:15
1987 In Midland, Tx 1«-year-old Jessica McClure falls 22' (7m) down a well
1988 Mike Tyson countersues Robin Givens for divorce and annulment
1988 NJ Devils raise their 1st pennant (Patrick Div Playoff Champs)
1989 Texas A&I, Johnny Bailey sets NCAA season rush record at 6,085 yards
1990 Jeff Goldblum & wife Geena Davis file for divorce
1990 SF 49er Joe Montana passes for 6 touchdowns vs Atlanta (45-35)
1994 - Nobel Prize awarded to Yasser Arafat, Yitzhak Rabin & Shimon Peres

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Holidays
Note: Some Holidays are only applicable on a given "day of the week"

Bangladesh : Durga Puja
Malagasy Rep : Independence Day (1958)
Maryland : Peggy Stewart Day-US sinks ship against taxes (1774)
Peo's Dem Rep of Yemen (South Yemen) : Independence Day (1962)
Western Samoa : White Sunday (2nd Sunday) (Sunday)
Canada : Thanksgiving Day (Monday)
Florida : Farmers' Day (1915) (Monday)
Hawaii : Discoverer's Day (Monday)
US : Columbus Day (1492) (Monday)
Virgin Is & Puerto Rico : Friendship Day (Monday)
Firefighters Week (Day 2)
[CT, NY, MA] Dictionary Week (Day 3)
national lower case day
Country Music Month
National Sarcastics' Awareness Month

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Religious Observances
Orth : Protection (Intercession) of Mary (10/1 OS)
RC : Memorial of St Callistus I, pope (217-222), martyr (opt)
Ang : Commemoration of St Teresa of Avila

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Religious History
1656 The first punitive legislation in Massachusetts against Quakers was enacted. (The marriage of church-and-state in Puritanism made them regard the ritual-free Quakers as spiritually apostate and politically subversive).
1735 Methodist pioneer John Wesley first set sail to America, to minister to the Indians under Georgia Gov. Oglethorpe. On this same date, Wesley began keeping his famous, 55-year-long journal, whose last entry was dated Oct 24, 1790.
1835 Birth of William G. Fischer, American sacred chorister. Three of his compositions later became hymn tunes: FISCHER ("Whiter Than Snow"), HANKEY ("I Love to Tell the Story") and ROCK OF REFUGE ("The Rock That is Higher Than I").
1876 Birth of Harry A. Ironside, American clergyman. Converted at 14, he preached for the Salvation Army, later for the Plymouth Brethren. From 1930-1948, he pastored at the Moody Memorial Church in Chicago.
1983 The National Council of Churches issued "The Inclusive Language Lectionary -- " Scripture readings translated to omit or blur gender references. God was thus called "Father and Mother" or "the One"; and "man" was replaced by "humanity" or "humankind." The translation proved shortlived.

Source: William D. Blake. ALMANAC OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH. Minneapolis: Bethany House, 1987.

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Thought for the day :
"He who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe is as good as dead; his eyes are closed."

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Confucius Say...
Man who eat many prunes get good run for money.

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Murphys Law of the day...
In any calculation, any error which can creep in will do so.

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Astounding fact # 654,985...
The word "Checkmate" in chess comes from the Persian phrase "Shah Mat", which means "the king is dead".

[snippy_about_it]

Good morning and thank you weldgophardline. Glad there are no rocks today.:)

[snippy_about_it]

Thought for the day :
"He who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe is as good as dead; his eyes are closed."

Good morning Valin. I like this thought for they day.

[Darksheare]

I'm in.

[Johnny Gage]

Air Power
North American (R)A-5 "Vigilante"

The Vigilante, designed and built for the U.S. Navy by North American Aircraft Division at Columbus, Ohio, was the only Mach 2 bomber to serve aboard a Navy carrier. Initially designated the A3J-1 attack bomber, it was one of the largest and heaviest aircraft ever accepted for service aboard U.S. Navy carriers. Production began in 1956 and it entered squadron service in June 1961. It was redesignated the A-5 and fully deployed by August 1962, when the USS Enterprise, the Navy's first nuclear aircraft carrier, made its inaugural cruise.

A serious design shortcoming involved the unique linear bomb bay. In simple terms it consisted of a tube running inside the fuselage, between the two engines. The weapon was loaded through an opening between the two jet exhausts. Weapons ejection was also effected via this opening, with a solid fuel cartridge used to propel the device clear of the aircraft once the jettisonable tail-cone faring had been ejected. The weapons bay was considerably longer than the nuclear weapons which the Vigilante was originally intended to carry therefore some of this space was utilized for additional fuel. This fuel was contained in two jettisonable tanks located aft of the weapon and linked to it. The tanks, which were ejected with the bomb, acted as aerodynamic stabilizers for the bomb's free-fall to the target.

Although a viable system in theory, in actual practice difficulties were encountered in clearing the linear bomb bay during operational use. At the same time a major shift in Navy policy deleted the strategic bombing role. Consequently plans to produce the improved Vigilante attack-bomber were abandoned after it had reached the flight-test phase.

Changing defense strategies marked a change of focus away from carrier-based, heavy attack squadrons. In 1964, all the Vigilantes were reconfigured as reconnaissance aircraft and designated RA-5C. Reconnaissance gear was mounted in what had been the Vigilante's bomb bay. Other modifications allowed the RA-5C to carry four external fuel tanks. These additions increased the airplane's range on reconnaissance missions and allowed it to keep its attack capability with externally mounted bombs and rockets.

The RA-5C Vigilante first flew on June 30, 1962, and was capable of all-weather, long-range, carrier- or land-based, multisensor, reconnaissance missions involving high-altitude supersonic, or very low-altitude, high-speed penetrations. Its inertial navigation system provided the precise position location information demanded. The Vigilante pilot and the reconnaissance/attack navigator (RAN) sat in tandem under individual clamshell-type canopies. The RAN controlled all reconnaissance functions, although the pilot could assume control of the oblique-mounted serial frame cameras. Each crewmember had a catapult/rocket-powered ejection seat, also designed and produced at the Columbus facility, capable of high-altitude, high-speed, or ground-level recoveries.

The combination of the RA-5C Vigilante's ability to deliver conventional weapons, day or night in all kinds of weather, as well as to complete tactical reconnaissance missions made it one of the most versatile aircraft in the world. RA-5Cs served throughout the Vietnam War and were retired from service in 1979.

It was one of the biggest aircraft that ever operated from a carrier.

Specifications:
Primary Function: Tactical reconnaissance, carrier-based attack aircraft
Contractor: North American / Rockwell
Crew: Two (pilot, navigator)
Powerplant: Two turbojet General Electric J79-GE-8 engines (10,800 lb each)
First Flight: August 31, 1958
End of Service: November 20, 1979

Dimensions:
Length: 76 ft 6 in (23.32 m)
Wingspan: 53 ft (16.15 m)
Height: 19 ft (5.79 m)
Weights: Empty: 37,500 lb (17,009 kg) / Maximum Takeoff: 79,588 lb (36,094 kg)

Performance :
Speed: 1,385 mph (2,230 km/h)
Ceiling: 48,400 ft (14,752 m)
Range: 1,500 miles (2,415 km)

Armaments:
1 nuclear weapon, and conventional weapons on two hard points

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All photos Copyright of aviaweb.calexo.org

[w_over_w]

Morning Glory Snip & Sam~

Who was it that said, "a fire on a ship is a serious matter"? Mercy.

[w_over_w]

Regarding your "tagline" . . . it can be answered in the game of golf with what we call a "nice miss".

[SAMWolf]

Good Morning Snippy.

20 Minutes to bring up the thread and post Good Morning, think I'll be back later.

[SAMWolf]

Morning Johnny.

[snippy_about_it]

Morning SAM. It appears to be just FR for me. I can get to the front page but after that, navigation is SUPER SLOW.

Good time to get some reading or something else done. ;)

[snippy_about_it]

Morning SAM. It appears to be just FR for me. I can get to the front page but after that, navigation is SUPER SLOW.

Good time to get some reading or something else done. ;)

[snippy_about_it]

Morning Darksheare.

FR's slow this morning. I've been trying for quite a while just to post and then double posted to SAM. I think I'll take a lunch break and a walk. LOL. Arrrghhh!

[firewalk]

Thanks for the ping
bttt

[SAMWolf]

Morning E.G.C. Man it felt like I was stuck in the slow motion part of the Matrix this morning.