PS - Its Monday! Time for all you worker-bees to go back to work.

Lets try Navy bases in the desert--
This is good for some thought about the conspiracy crowd--

http://www.amkon.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=5466#5466
U.S. Navy Submarine Base In the Nevada Desert?
________________________________________
Over the past 20 years I have heard and read stories of a huge U.S. Navy submarine base under the desert in Hawthorne, Nevada.

During that time I have driven from Las Vegas to Reno many times and was always intrigued at the guard gate and sign just before entering the town of Hawthorne. (Hawthorne is about two and a half hours drive from Reno.)

It used to read ‘Naval Undersea Warfare Training Center’. Today it reads ‘Naval Undersea Warfare Center’. They must have made the change in the past year or so. Maybe longer.

Hawthorne Nevada is a U.S. Army Depot where Naval ammunition, bombs and other explosive devices are made, tested and stored. Endless rows of bunkers dot both sides of the road. Nobody that I know has ever seen an explosives laden truck pull out of the depot and head north or south on highway 95. Nobody I know has ever seen an explosives laden truck traveling north or south on Highway 95.

Just to the north of Hawthorne is Walker Lake. The East Walker river drains into it and over the past 20 years has become shallower and shallower. The lake is about 18 miles long and about 8 miles wide the longer axis running north and south.

It can’t be very deep. I am not good at judging lake depths, maybe 80 feet? Certainly wouldn’t seem deep enough for a Ohio, Virginia, Seawolf or Los Angeles class sub. Maybe that new, little nuclear powered Fast Attack Sub (about 70 feet long). But I know nothing about submarines.

And the lake itself certainly wouldn’t be big enough or deep enough to train for Undersea Warfare. Or so it would seem.

There are stories that California and Nevada sit on a shelf underneath which lies an eastern portion of the Pacific Ocean. Maybe the Pacific Ocean extends under that shelf to Hawthorne Nevada (and even further?). From sources I consider reliable submarines can travel under the U.S. as far as St. Louis. Maybe even farther east. Maybe all the way to the Atlantic.

There are stories that Navy submarines can travel from Puget Sound direct to the Lake Pend Oreille in Idaho.

Maybe there is some kind of access from the surface of the desert within the area occupied by the Naval Undersea Warfare Center in Hawthorne. And maybe if you go deep enough there is a huge part of the Pacific Ocean in which the Navy conducts Undersea Warfare training.

http://www.amkon.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=5466#5466

Dave, interesting stories.

Overhauling the Georgia cost $1 billion and took two years at the Navy's shipyard in Norfolk, Va. The 560-foot sub's Trident nuclear missiles were replaced with an arsenal of Tomahawk cruise missiles and room to carry a platoon of special forces troops undetected into enemy territory.

"When we were in the shipyard the ship's motto was, 'Let's bring Georgia home,'" said Capt. Brian McIlvaine, the sub's commanding officer. "Now our goal is let's get Georgia to the fight."

Commissioned in 1984, the Georgia served for 20 years as a Cold War deterrent that lurked at sea ready, if necessary, to launch its nuclear weapons.

Now it's been outfitted for stealth missions in the war on terrorism. The sub carries 154 conventional cruise missiles. It also sports a built-in war room, extra bunks and special airlocks for launching elite Navy SEALS on clandestine missions.

Though nearly the length of two football fields, the Georgia's black hull was designed to dodge radar and its mechanical innards are made to absorb sound vibrations to evade sonar detection.

"Soon the Georgia will deliver the stealth, precision and flexibility that is in high demand from our military commanders," said Vice Adm. John J. Donnelly, commander of the Navy's submarine force.

The Georgia is the second of the converted submarines to be stationed at Kings Bay Naval Submarine Base, the only base for naval nuclear subs on the east coast. The other, the USS Florida, arrived in 2006. Their two sister submarines, the Ohio and Michigan, are stationed in Bangor, Wash.

However, the Georgia is the only vessel in the Navy to be based in its home state, a matter of pride for boosters here. Gov. Sonny Perdue presented the sub's 166-man crew with a Georgia state flag that traveled through each of the state's 159 counties before arriving for the Friday ceremony.

Interesting reading since most of Mayport's assets are FFGs which are going away soon.

I need to decide between Hugh Woods Inc & Collectibles Ins. Agency for coverage on my personal collection. Does anyone have any thoughts on the subject. If you wish, you can send me an e-mail at dd224@att.net. Thanks.

Disappointing that no one has received a GWF cancel from any ship. After 90 days into the year we would have expected something. Not like the old days when Taze Nicholson or other gents would walk on board ship and chat with the postal clerk and "encourage" or assist in canceling philatelic mail. Nothing quite matches face to face discussion.

A great idea for an "anchor pool" German beer for the first report of sighting of a GWF postmark.

Best, Larry

From the Navy News Service

1800 - Essex becomes the first U.S. Navy vessel to pass the Cape of Good Hope.

1814 - HMS Phoebe and Cherub capture USS Essex off Valparaiso, Chile. Before capture, Essex had captured 24 British prizes during the War of 1812.

1848 - USS Supply reaches the Bay of Acre, anchoring under Mount Carmel near the village of Haifa, during its expedition to explore the Dead Sea and the River Jordan.

KINGS BAY, Ga. (NNS) -- USS Georgia (SSGN 729) held a return-to-service ceremony at the Naval Submarine Base in Kings Bay, March 28.

The ceremony marks one of the biggest milestones for this newly converted SSGN submarine since its commissioning ceremony in February 1984.

That same year, Capt. Brian McIlvaine, Georgia's current commanding officer, graduated with distinction from the United States Naval Academy. Twenty-four years later, the boat and its captain find themselves together at an exciting time and McIlvaine couldn't be happier.

"This is the job that I asked for. I'd have to say it is the best one that I have had," McIlvaine said.

At the end of 2006, his detailer asked him if he wanted to roll early and change to a new command in 2007.
The Georgia crew has been back in port for a week working the plethora of details that it takes to pull off a successful ceremony of this scale. Working the detailed life on board a submarine at sea makes the crew familiar with this type of up-tempo.

There are a number of submarines that are named for a state and could potentially be stationed in their home state – Texas, Hawaii, Virginia, Connecticut and North Carolina. The fact that Georgia is currently the only one that is stationed in its home state isn't lost on McIlvaine.
Following the return-to-service ceremony, the boat and its crew continue with their busy timetable. The boat has scheduled May 3, as the official date for their crew split to Blue and Gold, in conjunction with an exchange of command ceremony.

Georgia is scheduled for their first deployment in July 2009.

No covers today. I hope the Portland postmark is extended so I can re-send.

I'm planning on coming down to WESTPEX. Will be able to be at the show on Saturday for most of the day.

Looking forward to it!!

Also covers arrived today from Arlington, Va for the 200th Birthday of Robert E. Lee dated 1-19-2007. Better 14 months behind than never.

From the Navy News Service

1813 - USS Essex takes the Peruvian corsair ship Nereyda, marking the first capture by the Navy in the Pacific.

1898 - Assistant Secretary of the Navy Theodore Roosevelt proposes the Navy investigates the military application of Samuel Langley's flying machine, beginning naval aviation.

1915 - F-4 (SS 23) becomes the first American submarine casualty, sinking off the coast of Honolulu.

Still no covers from Portland, OR.

SEATTLE - Four people died Sunday off the coast of Alaska when a commercial fishing boat carrying 47 people began sinking west of the remote port town of Dutch Harbor, officials with the Coast Guard said.
Forty-two people were rescued by the Coast Guard about 120 miles west of Dutch Harbor, in the Aleutian Islands. One person remained missing on Sunday afternoon, and a search was being conducted with helicopters and a C-130 plane, officials said. One of the four died in the rescue operation, they said. The authorities on Sunday had not released the names of the four people who died or the missing person.
The ship later sank, The Associated Press reported Sunday night.
The crew of the boat, the 184-foot Alaska Ranger, contacted the Coast Guard at 2:50 a.m. Sunday to report that it was taking on water. The entire 47-member crew is believed to have put on rescue suits and abandoned the ship for lifeboats, said Petty Officer Third Class Levi Read of the Coast Guard office in Juneau.
The Coast Guard said a rescue helicopter from St. Paul, Alaska, a C-130 from Kodiak, Alaska, and the Coast Guard Cutter Munro were involved in the rescue mission. A sister ship of the Alaska Ranger, the Alaska Warrior, also helped in the rescue.
It was not immediately clear why the Alaska Ranger began to sink, the Coast Guard said.
"It's been reported that they were having rudder trouble before they called for help, then they called to say they were taking on water," Petty Officer Read said. "It has not been reported where the water was coming from." He said the case would be investigated.
Dutch Harbor is one of the largest fisheries ports in the United States. Until recently, it was the No. 1 fishing port in terms of tonnage and value of catch.
The Ranger is owned by the Fishing Company of Alaska, which is based in Seattle. A person who answered the phone at the company's offices on Sunday afternoon said the company was not yet prepared to comment.
In 1996, after a fire on another vessel owned by the company killed one person and caused $3 million in damage, the National Transportation Safety Board concluded that the company had not made proper fire-safety precautions. The fire also led the safety agency to revise fire safety policies for more than 200 fishing and fish processing vessels.
In 2006, the company was among several entities fined by the National Marine Fisheries Service for interfering with the work of industry regulators. The company later won an appeal in Federal District Court in which it claimed that rules intended to reduce unwanted catch were improper and should be vacated.
Commercial fishing is one of the most dangerous occupations. Petty Officer Read said the Coast Guard in Alaska had responded to 205 cases in the current fiscal year, which began in October, and 14 of them had included fatalities. But he said it was unclear how many of those cases had involved commercial fishing.
In testimony last year to a Congressional subcommittee, Jennifer Lincoln, a specialist in occupational safety with the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, said the rate of fatalities in Alaska's commercial fishing industry had declined by 51 percent from 1990 to 2006.
In her testimony, Ms. Lincoln said the leading cause of fatalities in commercial fishing was drowning due to the loss of a fishing vessel. According to a 2006 report she cited by the Office of Investigation and Analysis at the Coast Guard, from 1994 to 2004, 641 commercial fishermen died in the United States. Of these, 332 were due to the loss of a vessel. In each year, an average of 127 vessels was lost, the report said.

Best, Larry

Greg, I'll send the scans this weekend.

From the Navy News Service

1820 - Commodore Stephen Decatur dies after a duel with Capt. James Barron.

1915 - "Naval aviator" replaces "Navy air pilot" for officers qualified as aviators.

1929 - Navy ships protect Americans and their property during a Mexican revolution.

1946 - USS Missouri (BB 63) departs the United States to return the body of a deceased Turkish ambassador to Turkey for burial. Missouri arrived in Istanbul April 5.

GWF covers from San Diego today. Fine job!

Dozens of Japanese defense officials punished over scandals, accident The Associated PressPublished: March 21, 2008TOKYO: Japan fired its navy chief Friday and slapped dozens of defense officials with penalties over a series of scandals, while a report found the military negligent in a deadly crash between a destroyer and a fishing boat.
Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba, who faced pressure to resign following the collision, said he would take a two-month pay cut as part of disciplinary measures aimed at restoring public trust in his battered ministry.
Topping the list of ministry troubles has been a leak of sensitive missile data last year that led to a naval officer's indictment, and the collision last month between a destroyer and a tuna trawler that left two fishermen presumed dead.
"We promise to take preventive measures firmly and promptly," Ishiba told reporters, repeating his apologies for "impermissible" scandals and accidents.
Ishiba said he would set up an investigative panel to prevent future problems, but gave no details.

Bunker Hill Undergoes Cruiser Modernization

SAN DIEGO (NNS) -- Guided-missile cruiser USS Bunker Hill (CG 52) began preparations to install new technologies aboard the ship, at the General Dynamics/National Steel and Shipbuilding Company shipyard, March 18.
The year-long modernization process will enable Bunker Hill with cutting-edge technologies, with emphasis on combat systems and the power plant.
"Cruiser modernization is basically broken down into three parts: hull, mechanical and electrical, and combat systems upgrades," said combat systems officer, Lt. Cmdr. Tim Long. "Bunker Hill is the first cruiser to go through both parts simultaneously."
Work began in mid-February to remove the former systems on the Ticonderoga-class cruiser. The upgrades will result in fewer hands required to stand watches, and ultimately, a smaller crew.
"There will be significant changes in the way we do business," said Gas Turbine System Technician (Mechanical) 1st Class (SW) Guy Huff, leading petty officer, Bunker Hill main propulsion division. "Besides needing fewer people, everything will also be more user-friendly."
Long added that many Bunker Hill Sailors are attending advanced training to learn to use the new technologies. Consequently, some Sailors may be expected to learn skills outside their rates.
"With the upgrades in engineering, I will be (somewhat) acting as an IT (information systems technician)," said Gas Turbine Systems Technician (Electrical) 2nd Class (SW) Alex Foley, Bunker Hill Engineering Department."Bunker Hill will still be the 'Sword of the Sea' with our cutting-edge technology."
Bunker Hill expects to complete the modernization process early in 2009.

Thanks for your input on Jagyi, will pass the word along to the gentleman who has the cover up for sale on STAMMPOFFERS.com
Had not seen one signed by Jagyi in pen before, but I don't do that many covers.

Also covers arrived today from Vermont for the USS MONTPELIER Anniversary. Very nice.

TR Sailors will be conducting general quarters and man overboard procedures along with daily flight operations. This underway will mark the first time since TR left Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY) that cyclic air operations will be performed on the flight deck. The flight schedule will resemble those on deployment.

Pilots who have been completing their needed qualifications will now use a full flight schedule for the squadrons. This will benefit both squadron personnel and flight deck crew on what areas need to be improved upon in the future.

Seven squadrons that make up Carrier Air Wing 8 will also be completing the necessary qualifications needed by pilots in addition to the cyclic operations. These landings will help familiarize pilots with the proper carrier launch and recovery procedures.

"It is important that everyone is on the same page and that individuals get accustomed to working together," said Lt. Todd Anderson, Assistant Strike Operations officer.

Many Sailors on board were not on the last deployment, so this underway will help both airwing and ship's company get acquainted with the tasks that must be accomplished during deployment.

Also, for the first time since leaving NNSY, TR will be performing drills with the entire strike group. These drills consist of communication and ship movement techniques that will be evaluated.

"Improving communication within the strike group along with coordinating ship movement is a vital part of the at sea period," said Cmdr. Karl Hines, strike operations officer.

These scenarios are a major part of the certification process of the strike group. Throughout the underway period, a naval afloat training group (ATG) will be observing these drills, making sure they are properly completed.

"ATG will not only be making sure TR completes these tasks, but that they are done properly and in a safe manner," said Anderson.

The strike group exercises will involve air, sub and surface exercises. Many of these exercises will involve pilots firing at targets, the various ship weapons systems, along with .50-calibre shoots by Sailors.

"This underway is the first step for the TR strike group to be prepared for deployment," said Hines. "What we accomplish over the next few weeks will go a long way towards us completing our mission in the future."

Commanded by Capt. Ladd Wheeler, USS Theodore Roosevelt is the centerpiece of the Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group (TRSCG). The TRSCG is preparing for a scheduled deployment later this year.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Navy Tows JFK from Norfolk to Philadelphia for Storage
WASHINGTON - The decommissioned aircraft carrier ex-John F. Kennedy (CV 67) departed Norfolk Naval Station, Va., March 17 and is currently in tow to the Navy's Inactive Ship Maintenance Facility in Philadelphia. The ship is scheduled to arrive at the Navy's facility on March 20 for preservation and safe storage until a decision is made by the Secretary of the Navy on the carrier's final disposition. A contracted tug boat will tow the carrier up the East Coast to Philadelphia via the Delaware River. The Navy is working closely with the Coast Guard and maritime authorities to ensure that the carrier is towed in a safe manner that protects both the ship and other maritime
traffic. The public may view the carrier's journey up the Delaware River from many locations along the river in Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey. These include Gov. Printz Park in Essington, Pa.; Fox Point State Park in Wilmington, Del.; Ft. DuPont State Park, Del.; New Castle Battery Park in New Castle, Del.; Delaware City State Park, Del.; Red Bank Battlefield, Red Bank, N.J.; other public parks between Cape May and National Park, N.J. The ship was originally scheduled to be towed to Philadelphia in August 2007, but was instead towed to Norfolk while the Navy dredged in the vicinity of Pier 4 to further increase the safety of the ship mooring process and the surrounding waterway. Due to safety and security concerns, the carrier will not be open for tours while in storage in Philadelphia. Ex-John F. Kennedy is currently in the Navy's inactive inventory, meaning the ship has been taken out of commission and laid up for safe storage pending a future SECNAV decision regarding the ultimate disposition of the ship. As required by the FY07 National Defense Authorization Act, the Navy will maintain the ship in a state of preservation that would allow for reactivation in the event the carrier is needed in response to a national emergency. The ship's historical items have been removed and transferred to the Curator of the Navy for preservation and storage. Named in honor of the 35th President of the United States, ex-John F. Kennedy's keel was laid in 1964 at Newport News Shipbuilding and Drydock Company in Newport News, Va. In 1967, nine-year-old Caroline Kennedy, daughter of the late president, christened the ship. "Big John," as the ship would become known, was commissioned in September 1968. A veteran of 18 deployments to the Mediterranean Sea and Middle East, ex-John F. Kennedy amassed more than 260,000 arrested landings on her flight deck while operating virtually every tactical aircraft in the Navy's arsenal. In 1989 two of the embarked air wing's F-14 Tomcats shot down two Libyan MIG-23s that were approaching the battle group in a hostile manner. The carrier also participated in numerous other campaigns including Operations Desert Storm, Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom, and was sortied following the 2001 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center.
Homeported at Naval Station Mayport since 1995, ex-John F. Kennedy most recently served as a training platform for naval aviators to obtain their carrier landing qualifications. Her final port call was to Boston in March 2007.
The ship measures over 1,050 feet long, displaces 82,000 tons and could carry 70 combat aircraft - the full complement of today's carrier air wing. The crew consisted of more than 4,600 personnel when including the air wing. Ex-John F. Kennedy was one of the two remaining fossil-fueled aircraft carriers in the U.S. Navy.

From the Navy News Service

1898 - USS Oregon departs San Francisco for a 14,000-mile trip around South America to join the U.S. Squadron off Cuba.

1917 - The Navy Department authorizes enrollment of women in the Naval Reserve with ratings of yeoman, radio electrician or other essential ratings.

1942 - The Secretary of the Navy gives the Civil Engineering Corps command of the Seabees.

Greg C: Nice job on CORMORANT cover, thanks. Its
COASTIES rule, MARINES drool!

Stewart

1 sort of. I'm looking for covers for articles about the end of ww ii. Perhaps an article re tico and her role in ŕug 45 and in Vietnam in Aug 64, 19 years later

2 let's chat.

Best
Larry

(but wait until May 5th!)

Taze Nicholson was a cover collector for 60 years sponsoring many many covers. One of our members even put together a book listing all of his covers that he sponsored.

Tried sorting covers for an hour today. I'm hopelessly disorganized.

1/285 #H337-149 Revell
US Coast Guard Icebreaker Eastwind 'S' Kit
Exc++ Injection Molded old $125

Original issue from 1956 with the classic boxart of this time period at Revell. Like most of Revell's older ship models, this one is well molded and well detailed. Features rotating turrets/elevating guns, helicopter pad with helicopter and full rigging instructions. Molded in correct white, wood brown, and butterscotch. Never started. Missing one part: small bridge AA machine gun. Otherwise inventoried complete with all other parts, decals and instructions.

1/1 #H1900-198 Revell
Walt Disney's Perri Squirrel (From the Movie)
VG++ Injection Molded old $150

This 1957 "S" kit was the first of Revell's very limited line of animals. Perri was the real squirrel who starred in the Disney full length 'True Life Fantasy Film' named for the animal. The original inspiration for the film came from a book by Felix Salten, the author Bambi. It took Disney cameramen over three years to film Perri in her natural home in the heart of a western mountain wilderness. Without interrupting or disturbing the wild free state, they recorded the thrill and drama of real life in the forest. The film was popular and seen by millions. The model is a life sized representation of Perri, made directly from film stills. The kit features dark brown body parts, clear green-tinted eyes, whisker material, the correct "Revell" marked paint brush, flocking in three realistic colors, a flock funnel and bottle, and a glass bottle of Revell "S" cement that is still good! The kit has not been started and is complete with all parts, flock tools and cement. However, the eyes have been cut from the instructions (these are placed on the inside of the green tinted lenses). These could be easily made

Greg, Great work with USS Staten Island. In the back of my memory I think I had a Revelle (sp??) model of her along with some other obscure ships like Los Angeles from the late 50s. Larry

James R. Tryon—born on 24 September 1837 at Coxsackie, N.Y.—was appointed an Acting Assistant Surgeon (Volunteer) on 17 March 1863. After serving briefly at the United States Naval Hospital in New-York City, Tryon spent the last two years of the Civil War at Pensacola, Fla., caring for sick and wounded officers and men of the West Gulf Blockading Squadron.

After duty ashore in Boston and Washington, Tryon served in Idaho on the Asiatic Station from 4 February 1870 to 9 December 1872. Next came an assignment in New York City from 1873 to 1876. Following two years in Swatara on the North Atlantic Station, he was transferred to Vandalia. Next came duty in New York City for two and one-half years and service in Alaska on the Pacific Station until 1883. He served on board Quinnebaug on the European Station and off Africa until 1887 when he was assigned to the Medical Examining Board in New York.

Tryon was promoted to medical inspector on 22 September 1891 and served in Chicago on the North Atlantic Station until 1893 when he was promoted to Surgeon General of the United States Navy with the rank of commodore. The culmination of his career came on 7 September 1893 when Commodore Tryon became Chief of the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery and Surgeon General. He retired on 24 September 1899. In 1911, Tryon was promoted to the rank of rear admiral, retroactive to his date of retirement. Admiral Tryon died on 20 March 1912 at the Naval Hospital in New York City .where he had begun his naval career almost half a century before.

(APH-1: dp. 9,920; 1. 450'0"; b. 62'0"; dr. 23'6"; s. 18 k. (tl.); cpl. 455; trp. 1,274; a. 1 5", 12 40mm.; cl. Tryon; T. C2-S1-A1 (c))

Tryon (APH-1) was laid down under Maritime Commission contract (MC hull 175) on 26 March 1941 at Oakland, Calif., by the Moore Drydock Co., as Alcoa Courier; launched on 21 October 1941; sponsored by Mrs. Roy G. Hunt; renamed Comfort in June 1942; renamed Tryon on 13 August 1942; acquired by the Navy from the Maritime Commission on 29 September 1942; and commissioned on 30 September 1942, Comdr. Alfred J. Byrholdt in command.

The transport evacuation ship got underway for San Diego on 9 October and departed from there on the 21st, bound for New Caledonia. On 7 November, she arrived at Noumea; joined the Service Squadron, South Pacific; and remained with that organization for the next 15 months, evacuating combat casualties from the Solomons to Suva, Noumea, Wellington, Auckland, and Brisbane. On her return trips to the forward areas, she carried priority cargo and troops for forces fighting the Japanese.

Tryon's first combat duty came in the Marianas during the summer of 1944. On 16 July, she joined Task Force 51 at Lunga Point and sortied for the invasion of Tinian. The hospital transport arrived off the beaches on the 24th, combat loaded with troops and equipment. After unloading, she embarked casualties for a week and then got underway for the Marshalls. The ship called at Eniwetok, New Caledonia, Espiritu Santo, and the Russell Islands before anchoring off Guadalcanal on 27 August.

Tryon embarked 1,323 marines of the 1st Marine Division and sortied on 8 September, with Transport Division 6 of Task Force 32, for the assault on the Palaus. She was off the beaches of Peleliu on the morning of the 15th and disembarked elements of the assault wave. Then, serving as a hospital evacuation ship, she embarked 812 combat casualties and, on the 20th, stood out for Manus. She disembarked the patients at Seeadler Harbor four days later and headed back to Peleliu the next morning. The ship remained off the beaches from 28 September to 4 October and then joined a convoy bound for the Solomons.

When Tryon arrived at Tulagi on 11 October, she was assigned to the 7th Fleet to participate in the Leyte campaign. She called at Hollandia and Humboldt Bay en route and reached Leyte on the 30th. The ship completed unloading the next day and began the return voyage to the South Pacific. The transport loaded troops and cargo at Langemak Bay from 13 through 27 December and headed for Manus on 28 December 1944.

On 2 January 1945, Tryon stood out of Manus with Task Group 77.9, the reinforcement group, for the invasion of Luzon on the beaches of the Lingayen Gulf. She arrived off San Fabian on the morning of the 11th and began unloading troops and supplies. From 13 to 27 January, she received casualties on board and headed to Leyte Gulf where they were transferred to Hope (AH-9) and Bountiful (AH-7). On 2 February, she joined a convoy and departed for the Solomons.

On 22 February, the evacuation hospital ship got underway and proceeded via Pearl Harbor to the United States for an overhaul. She arrived at San Francisco on 11 March and remained in the navy yard until 20 May. After refresher training in San Diego, she sailed for Hawaii on 3 June and arrived at Pearl Harbor the following week. The transport then called at Eniwetok, Guam, and San Francisco before returning to Hawaii on 2 August. The next day, she headed for Guam and arrived there on the 15th to hear that hostilities with Japan had ceased. Tryon was routed to the Philippines, embarked occupation troops at Leyte, and joined a convoy for Japan on 1 September. The transport disembarked the troops at Yokohama and received liberated Allied prisoners of war en board for transportation to the Philippines. She disembarked them at Manila on the 18th.

On 1 October, Tryon was assigned to the "Magic-Carpet" fleet which was established at the end of the war to return troops to the United States. She served with it through the end of the year. In mid-January 1946, the ship was slated for inactivation. She was decommissioned at Seattle on 20 March 1946, returned to the War Shipping Administration in April, and struck from the Navy list on 17 April 1946.

Tryon was turned over to the United States Army on 17 July 1946 and converted into a troop transport by the Todd Shipyard, Seattle, Wash. She emerged from the yard on 25 August 1947 and was placed in service as Sgt. Charles E. Mower. The Secretary of Defense, by a directive dated 2 August 1949, established a unified sea transportation service; and, on 1 March 1950, the ship was transferred back to the Navy Department, assigned to the Military Sea Transportation Service, and designated T-AP-186.

Sgt. Charles E. Mower operated as a dependent transport shuttling between San Francisco and Pearl Harbor until she was inactivated in 1954. Sgt Charles E. Mower was placed out of service, in reserve, on 16 June 1954; transferred to the reserve fleet at Suisun Bay; and struck from the Navy list on 1 July 1960.

Tryon (APH-1) received six battle stars for World War II service.

Army Ships
Eight Former East Coast Passenger VesselsAcadiaAlgonquinCharles A. StaffordErnest HindsJohn L. ClemSeminoleShamrockThistle
Five Former Transoceanic Passenger VesselsAleda E. LutzEmily H. M. WederFrances Y. SlangerMarigoldRepublic
Two Former FreightersErnestine KorandaLouis A. Milne
Six Converted Liberty ShipsBlanche F. SigmanDogwoodJarrett M. HuddlestonJohn J. MeanySt. OlafWisteria
Three Former TroopshipsChateau ThierryLarkspurSt. Mihiel
Navy Ships
One Vessel Designed and Built as a Hospital ShipRelief
Two Former East Coast Passenger VesselsRescueSolace
One Former Transoceanic Passenger VesselRefuge
Two Former TroopshipsBountifulSamaritan
Three C1 Freight Hulls Completed as Hospital ShipsComfortHopeMercy
Six C4 Freight Hulls Completed as Hospital ShipsBenevolenceConsolationHavenReposeSanctuaryTranquility
   Entries contain data on when and where the ship was built, tonnage, measurements, engineering specifications, etc. Most also include pre-war service, records of wartime voyages, and assorted stories and anecdotes. In addition to photos of the ships and crews, the author includes reproductions of miscellaneous ephemera such as meal tickets, menus, telegrams, ration cards, passes, etc.    The most tragic tale in the book involves the Navy hospital ship Comfort which was hit by a Japanese kamikaze aircraft off Okinawa on 28 April 1945. The plane smashed through the deck and directly into a surgical room.
   The resulting explosion instantly killed 29 people on the ship. One navy and five army medical officers, six nurses, one navy, and nine army enlisted men, and seven patients died in less than a second. Thirty-one army and seven navy crewmen were injured. Ten patients also sustained additional injuries. At the time of the attack, the entire surgical staff was working in surgery, operating on casualties recently evacuated from Okinawa. The majority of them died.

Now if Billy Crystal could pitch, that might be different but he was the DH.

From the Navy News Service

1863 - Rear Adm. Farragut's squadron of seven ships forces its way up the Mississippi River to support Union troops at Vicksburg, Miss., and Baton Rouge, La.

1929 - Naval Air Station Pensacola aircraft make 113 flights for flood rescue and relief.

1970 - Navy hospital ship USS Repose (AH 16) leaves South Vietnam after four years of service there.

New "Victory Mail" Exhibit Opens

V-Mail"Victory Mail," a new temporary exhibition opened March 6 at the National Postal Museum, showcases the museum's collection of World War II V-Mail correspondence. "V" for "Victory," a popular WW II symbol, was the inspiration for the name of this new-fangled correspondence style.

Among the exhibit highlights are V-Mail letters-including illustrated greetings awash in local color and humor of military life in the Pacific and European theaters-items that reveal the writer's recorded thoughts and sentiments to visitors; a rare strip of 16 mm V-Mail microfilm; and advertisements and posters from the era that demonstrate the depth of community and business cooperation in helping the military promote V-Mail service to the American people.
Make plans to visit this exciting new exhibit!

http://www.postalmuseum.si.edu/VictoryMail/operating/flipbook_flash.html

Dan your going to need a nap this afternoon.