Spy Ship?

C.D. Andersen

Description

Spying
This is the story of the last cruise of USS Belmont (AGTR-4), one of the American spy ships used in the 1960s. Half of the crew worked in signal intelligence while the other half ran the ship. The crazy things that happened during the last year of this ship’s life, made me wonder about that word, intelligence.

Sujets

• Spying
• Histoire
• Armada de los Estados Unidos
• Military
• Security
• Espionage
• Navy
• History

Informations

• Publié par: Archway Publishing
• Date de parution: 09 mai 2023
• Nombre de lectures: 2
• EAN13: 9781665743525
• Langue: English

Extrait

SPY SHIP?
IF THIS IS AN INTELLIGENCE SHIP, WHY IS EVERYTHING SO CRAZY?
 
 
 
C.D. ANDERSEN
 
 
 

 
 
Copyright © 2023 C.D. Andersen.
 
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
 
This book is a work of non-fiction. Unless otherwise noted, the author and the publisher make no explicit guarantees as to the accuracy of the information contained in this book and in some cases, names of people and places have been altered to protect their privacy.
 
 
 
Archway Publishing
1663 Liberty Drive
Bloomington, IN 47403
www.archwaypublishing.com
844-669-3957
 
Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.
 
Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.
Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.
 
Interior Graphics/Art Credit: C.D. Andersen
 
ISBN: 978-1-6657-4353-2 (sc)
ISBN: 978-1-6657-4352-5 (e)
 
Library of Congress Control Number: 2023908075
 
 
Archway Publishing rev. date: 05/09/2023
 
 
“If you want to learn to pray, go to sea.”
Old Spanish proverb
DEDICATION
This book is dedicated to my shipmates. Even on our worst days, we were family.
AUTHOR’S NOTES
These stories are based on my memories, occasionally bolstered from letters I wrote, and from stories told to me over the years by shipmates. It is likely that some memories are not quite correct, and for that, I apologize. Two people who witnessed the same scene can have very different memories of that scene, even one hour later, let alone fifty-plus years. Hence, my memories will likely be different from others who served with me.
A large majority of sailors in the Navy during the Vietnam War were “volunteers.” By volunteers, I mean that they avoided duty in Vietnam, for the most part, by enlisting in the Navy, Coast Guard and Air Force, and various National Guard units before the draft caught them. They were not interested in military careers. Most of them were not “military types.” We tended to be anti-authoritarian in nature, laid-back, while the military was all about authoritarian rule. Communications Technicians tended to be brainy guys who would not likely have joined any military branch if not for the draft. There was occasional friction between career military (“Lifers”) and these volunteers. Most of the “volunteers” would have quit and gone home if it were possible.
Some ladies do not understand that guys trash-talk each other constantly. Guys will toss a verbal jab to question the marital status of someone’s parents, or we might use a deft comment to challenge their manhood or their IQ, or what animal they might be fornicating. It’s a way to learn who will crack under strain. You learn, if you are stable, that it is all in good humor, and so there is a competition to be the best at these verbal jousts. They were almost always done in good humor.
Navy lingo is full of slang, acronyms, and foreign phrases. Refer to the Glossary of Navy Terms. Communications are also awash with 3-letter/number abbreviations.
I have included a list of ratings, or job names, and their initials in the Navy, and another list of ranks, from the bottom swab to the top admiral. A list of spy ships is also included.
I salute those friends whose actions were as forward observers in the Army and Marine Corps, and to those who flew. The Navy and Air Force operated spy planes, such as the AWACS of recent history. During the 1960s and early 1970s, they used the 1950s Super-G Constellations as EC-121’s, and a host of other patrol aircraft. Several planes were shot down by various foes, and their crews lost, with little or no mention to the media, other than “a crash.”
Another salute to friends who served on submarines. These people not only had to master their communications skills, they had to pass some incredibly difficult physical tests to serve on a sub.
This is not intended to be a historical account of all spy ships in the US Navy. The charts are merely for the reader to get a rounded picture of the operations in 1968-69. It is intended to be part of the historical record. There is more to military history than just the decisions by the brass.
CONTENTS
DEDICATION
AUTHOR’S NOTES
THE AMERICAN SPY SHIP PROGRAM
INTRODUCTION
Chapter 1 :     FIRST DAYS IN NORFOLK
Chapter 2 :     USS MATTABESSET (AOG-52)
Chapter 3 :     THE HOLDING BARRACKS
Chapter 4 :     USS BELMONT ARRIVES
Chapter 5 :     MY CT SHIPMATES
Chapter 6 :     THE RADIO SHACK
Chapter 7 :     GENSER CREW
Chapter 8 :     THE TV ROOM
Chapter 9 :     THE MESS DECKS
Chapter 10 :   CHRISTMAS ON THE MESS DECKS
Chapter 11 :   NAVY FOOD SERVICE
Chapter 12 :   PETTY OFFICER LA VACA
Chapter 13 :   GENSER CREW
Chapter 14 :   COOKS AND MESS COOKS
Chapter 15 :   PORTSMOUTH
Chapter 16 :   GOING ON LIBERTY
Chapter 17 :   THE DAILY GRIND
Chapter 18 :   OUR LENDING LIBRARY -- OURSELVES
Chapter 19 :   NORFOLK
Chapter 20 :   NORFOLK AND PORTSMOUTH, VA
Chapter 21 :   CHANGE OF COMMAND
Chapter 22 :   THE SURROUNDING AREA
Chapter 23 :   SEA TRIALS
Chapter 24 :   VIRGINIA BEACH
Chapter 25 :   WE CROSS THE ATLANTIC
Chapter 26 :   INTO THE MEDITERRANEAN
Chapter 27 :   NAPLES
Chapter 28 :   OFF TO THE AEGEAN SEA
Chapter 29 :   ATHENS AND PIRAEUS
Chapter 30 :   BACK TO KYTHIRA
Chapter 31 :   OFF TO MALTA
Chapter 32 :   BACK TO KYTHIRA AGAIN
Chapter 33 :   RHODES, GREECE
Chapter 34 :   BIG NEWS
Chapter 35 :   ATLANTIC STORM
Chapter 36 :   CHANNEL FEVER
Chapter 37 :   HOME LEAVE
Chapter 38 :   BACK TO THE BELMONT
Chapter 39 :   BACK HOME AGAIN
Chapter 40 :   REFLECTIONS
SPECIAL THANKS
GLOSSARY OF NAVY TERMINOLOGY
THE AMERICAN SPY SHIP PROGRAM
The American spy ship program began in the 20 th century with cargo ship   USS Gold Star (AK-12) , which made regular trips back and forth from the U.S. to Japan pre-WWII. More expansive operations began in earnest during the 1920s and 30s, with a huge jump during WWII, and then the Cold War. A spy ship or intelligence platform is a ship or aircraft dedicated to gathering electronic and visual intelligence by means of sophisticated eavesdropping. In a greater sense, any ship intended to gather information could be considered a spy ship, but the U.S. spy ship program sent out ships with a single purpose, much like the Soviet “spy trawlers” of that era.
Spying began with history’s first leader, millennia ago, but the spy ship idea began when American military planners realized that they needed more information about our foes during the Cold War. In 1963, the Navy acquired several WWII-vintage Liberty and Victory cargo ships, and some Army Cargo ships, from its mothball fleet, for use in intelligence gathering. These ships were modernized from their old cargo ship status, to house crews of communications and electronics technicians, along with the regular crews. Those ships were then sent to areas where we had no other way of intercepting electronic signals. The ships plied the coasts of Africa, South America, the Mediterranean, the Caribbean, North and South Vietnam, the North Sea, North Korea, and various other countries worldwide.
Navy Brass decided that they did not want warships to do this work because these ships were inherently threatening to local governments. Instead, they modified the cargo ships and mounted nearly useless defensive weapons, including the twin-barreled Oerlikon 20mm guns, already obsolete during WWII, and standard .50 caliber machine guns. This light weaponry allowed one of the ships, USS Pueblo (AGER-2) to be captured by the North Korean Navy without a fight, and USS Liberty (AGTR-5) to be attacked and nearly sunk by Israeli jets and torpedo boats. The crews remain furious about the lack of defensive weapons and the lack of Navy response to their emergencies. The Navy and State Department’s lack of reasonable explanation spoke louder than the silence.
In ordinary times, since just before the sinking of the Titanic in 1912, we have had radio monitors on ships and shore stations. At first, what we now call Radiomen were actually Marconi Company employees, not Navy personnel. By WWII, there were numerous listening stations in both the European and Pacific Theaters of War by nearly all parties in both the Allied and Axis spheres. The Cold War forced the U.S.A. and other allied countries to become bolder. In the end, these ships were decommissioned and scrapped, the Navy returned to putting our electronic eavesdropping gear on warships.
Some of these warships were Gearing-class destroyers, the greyhounds of the fleet, and lovingly called “tin cans” because not only did they bob up and down like a tin can on a pond, they were also not heavily armored. Many of these destroyers had modifications that removed their number three 5"-gun and replaced it with a DASH, or Drone Anti-Submarine Helicopter. A hangar was placed where the #3 gun had been, and the landing pad was aft of the hangar. This program was cancelled after several of the dro