Welcome to MSW’s Scuttlebutt! Here’s the news for the day.
WW1 Warships Campaign
Ahoy mates! The World War I Warships campaign will be kicking off on May 15. If you haven’t signed up, please do. We would love to have you. If you have signed up, time to dust off those kits and get ready to start building.
Campaign HQ
WWI – The War at Sea
Today’s website is WWI – The War at Sea. In honor of our upcoming World War I campaign, here is a website that cover the Great War at sea. Enjoy.
Website
This Day in U.S. Naval History
1909 - Great White Fleet anchors in San Francisco.
1916 - First ship-to-shore radio telephone voice conversation from USS New Hampshire off Virginia Capes to SECNAV Josephus Daniels in Washington, DC.
1942 - CAPT Milton Miles arrives in Chungking, China, to begin building an intelligence and guerilla training organization, Naval Group China.
1945 - Naval landing force evacuates 500 Marshallese from Jaluit Atoll, Marshall Islands.
Heart of a warship is restored to glory
Source: Star Bulletin
A rediscovered bell from a WWII aircraft carrier will go on display at West Loch
For sailors, "the ship's bell is the symbolic heart of a ship," says naval historian James Delgado, and so the discovery of a famous warship's bell recently at Pearl Harbor means the artifact will be restored to a place of honor.
The bell had been "kicking around West Loch" for decades, he said, but it was not until it was cleaned up that its origin was revealed: the aircraft carrier USS Hornet, one of the most distinguished ships of World War II.
"This is a very significant find," said Delgado, president of the Institute of Nautical Archaeology at Texas A&M University. "Ship's bells were rung to signal the time changes on ships, the shift from one watch or group of sailors to the next, and the pace of life on a ship. They tolled as well at important times in the ship's life, including commissioning, decommissioning and the burial of the dead at sea."
The Navy Munitions Command East Asia Division is hosting a celebration today to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Naval Ammunition Depot. The Hornet's bell has been polished up and placed near the division flagpole at West Loch.
"It had been left in a state of disrepair near an inactive flagpole with no foot traffic. Now it will be cared for and seen daily," said Capt. Debra Bodenstedt, commanding officer.
"It's unclear how the bell made its way to Lualualei. Hearsay has it there in the 1960s. We know it moved to West Loch with the shift of Naval Magazine Headquarters in 1999," added Bodenstedt.
Best known as the ship that carried the famous "Doolittle Raid," the USS Hornet (CV-8) was in the thick of the war. Exactly a week after launching Doolittle's planes in April 1942, the Hornet steamed back into Pearl Harbor.
Work began immediately to strip as much weight as possible, and National Park Service historian Dan Martinez thinks it was then the bell was removed.
"Ships of that tonnage generally carried two bells, and it wasn't uncommon for one to be removed," said Martinez, who said the Naval Historical Center in Washington certified the bell's pedigree.
The Hornet again sortied in late May 1942 to stop the Japanese invasion of Midway. In August the Hornet aided the invasion of Guadalcanal. The Hornet was the only active American aircraft carrier in the South Pacific until late October, when it joined with the Enterprise in the Battle of the Santa Cruz Islands.
The Hornet sank on Oct. 27, 1942.
"Considering the fact that she rests eternally in the deep, the rediscovery of Hornet's bell is a tangible symbol of a lost ship that made — with many of her crew — the ultimate sacrifice," said Delgado.
Bodenstedt said, "Although Hornet isn't quite 75 years old, she is definitely of the same era as our historic magazine. The ammunition for Hornet's guns came from these very magazines during her two stops here in 1942. It is important for the young sailors of today's Navy to remember the history of those who have gone before us."
And if it gets moved later?
"I think on the mock Hornet deck where the B-25 sits at the Pacific Aviation Museum at Ford Island would be a great place to display it," said news anchor Joe Moore, author of "Righteous Revenge," a historical play about the Doolittle Raid.
USS Truxtun Joins the Fleet
Source: US Navy
CHARLESTON, S.C. --- The Navy's newest Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, USS Truxtun (DDG 103), was commissioned Saturday, April 25, during a ceremony at Naval Weapons Station Charleston, S.C.
Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead gave the principal address.
"I had the privilege of putting an Arleigh Burke destroyer into commission in my younger days, and I know what's ahead, there is a lot of hard work, a lot of challenges, but there is also going to be tremendous satisfaction," said Roughead.
The process of commissioning a Navy ship takes many years of trials and training and to finally reach this milestone is very important said Cmdr. Timothy Weber, commanding officer, USS Truxton.
"I feel exhilarated and relieved because we finally made it to this process after many years of hard work preparing to go operational," said Weber. "It's such a great feeling to join the fleet today with this great crew of men and women that are dedicated to supporting and defending our country."
Designated DDG 103, the destroyer honors Commodore Thomas Truxtun (1755-1822) who embarked upon a seafaring career at age 12. When the U.S. Navy was initially organized, he was selected as one of its first six captains on June 4, 1798. He was assigned command of USS Constellation, one of the nation's new frigates. Truxtun put to sea to prosecute the undeclared naval war with revolutionary France. On Feb. 9, 1799, Truxtun achieved one of his most famous victories when Constellation battered the French warship L'Insurgente into submission in one of the most illustrious battles of the quasi-war with France.
The newest ship in the fleet shares its namesake with five previous Navy ships: a brig launched in 1842, two destroyers DD 14 and DD 229, a high speed transport APD 98 (initially designated as destroyer escort DE 282), and a nuclear-powered frigate (DLGN) later re-designated cruiser CGN 35.
The plank owners of Truxton will share in this great naval history.
"This crew will be close for the rest of their lives," said Roughead. "The things that they have had to do, the effort they have put into building this ship, preparing this ship for where it is today, it's something that's brought them together in ways that ship crews don't normally have the opportunity to do."
The 53rd Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, Truxtun, is able to conduct a variety of operations, from peacetime presence and crisis management to sea control and power projection. Truxtun can also fight air, surface and subsurface battles simultaneously and she contains a myriad of offensive and defensive weapons designed to apply maritime power to protect U.S. vital interests in an increasingly interconnected and uncertain world.
"I feel confident, because my crew is such a great group of young professionals dedicated to doing a job well done," said Weber. "If we have to steam into harm's way we are ready for action."
Carol Leigh Roelker and Susan Scott Martin, descendants of the ship's namesake, served as sponsors of the ship and the ceremony was highlighted by a time-honored Navy tradition when they gave the first order to "man our ship and bring her to life!"
The 9,200-ton Truxtun was built by Northrop Grumman Ship Systems, Ingalls Operations, Pascagoula, Miss .and has a crew of 276 officers and enlisted personnel. The ship is 510 feet in length, has a waterline beam of 59 feet, and a navigational draft of 31 feet. Four gas turbine engines can power the ship to speeds in excess of 30 knots and push her wherever her country needs her next.
Navy’s Next Maritime Patrol Plane Makes First Flight
Source: US Naval Air Systems Command
NAVAIR Patuxent River, MD --- P-8A Poseidon, the Navy’s next maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft, took to the skies for the first time April 25. The first test aircraft, designated T1, successfully completed a series of flight checks in Seattle. The aircraft took off from Renton Field and landed 3 hours and 31 minutes later at the nearby Boeing Field.
“The Fleet is ready for the P-8A Poseidon,” said Rear Adm. Bill Moran, Commander Patrol and Reconnaissance Group. “It has been 50 years since the Navy introduced a new maritime patrol aircraft, so seeing T1 fly for the first time marks an incredible milestone for the Poseidon program and for the maritime patrol and reconnaissance community. I can assure you that all of our young pilots and aircrew are watching with anticipation as Poseidon readies for flight test and Fleet introduction.”
Industry partner Boeing used the flight as an opportunity to complete runway taxi tests and a limited series of flight checks that included engine starts and shut downs prior to takeoff. Boeing test pilots took the aircraft to 25,000 feet and completed several airborne systems checks including engine accelerations, decelerations, autopilot flight modes and powering the auxiliary unit up and down.
Prior to the start of the integrated flight test program, Boeing will install additional flight test instrumentation, conduct a series of ground tests and apply the Navy’s paint scheme. Formal testing of the Poseidon begins third quarter of this fiscal year.
“T1’s first flight is a clear demonstration of the program’s commitment to delivering this critical capability on time and the result of a tremendous effort by the joint Navy/Boeing team,” said Capt. Mike Moran, Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft program manager. “I commend Boeing for putting its ‘A-Team’ in place on this program and enabling the Navy to leverage Boeing’s experience, expertise, and, more importantly, dedication to make this aircraft a reality.”
As the aircraft readies for test, the Poseidon program also moves toward the next milestone in the acquisition process. Last month, the Honorable John Young, Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, gave the program approval to begin procuring long lead items required in anticipation of a Low Rate Initial Production decision. LRIP is a phase in the acquisition process that allows the program to produce aircraft in a limited quantity for testing and evaluation.
The Poseidon is designed to replace the P-3C Orion as a long-range anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft.
It maximizes the experience and technology of P-3C capabilities to meet the Navy’s requirements to develop and field a maritime aircraft equipped with an open systems architecture, significant growth potential, greater payload capacity and higher operating altitude.
Boeing was awarded a contract in 2004 to deliver five test vehicles. This acquisition phase provides three flight test aircraft (T1, T2 and T3), one full-scale static loads test airframe (S1), and one full-scale fatigue test airframe (S2). Currently, all five are in various stages of assembly and testing at either Spirit AeroSystems in Wichita, Kan., where the fuselages are manufactured, or at Boeing in Seattle.
The Navy plans to purchase 108 production aircraft. Initial Operational Capability is slated for fiscal year 2013.
Photo of the Day
The Peruvian Navy submarine BAP Arica (SS-36) prepares to moor to a pier at Naval Submarine Base Point Loma.
Gator
