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U. S. SUBMARINE VETERANSBremerton Base

(Founded in 1981, Membership today is (269)

P O Box 465, Silverdale, WA 98383-0465 USSVI National Office Tel(360) 337-2978 (6-12 PST)

Next MeetingFree Breakfast & Entertainment

Saturday, February 16, 2019, 0900Elks Club, 4131 Pine Rd, Bremerton

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We shall not forget those that were lost in defense of our nation!

USS Shark (SS-174)

USS Amberjack (SS-219)

USS Scorpion (SS-278)

USS Grayback (SS-208)

USS Trout (SS-202)

USS Barbel (SS-316)

Base Member YNC(SS) (USN Ret) Ed Terney Goes On Eternal PatrolPosted February 9, 2019

Base Commander Sends

On Eternal Patrol: Edward Clinton Terney, 90, Okanogan County, WA, passed awaypeacefully at home on January 16, 2019. He was born in Pendleton, OR, on May 27,1928, to Fern and Bessie Terney. Ed left high school to the join the United States Navyon September 15, 1945, and served a total of 26 years.

He qualified in 1962 aboard the RAZORBACK and was a YNC(SS) when he retired in1971. Ed also served aboard STERLET 62-63, SEGUNDO 62-63, PLAICE 63, CUSK63-64, BREAM 68, BLACKFIN 68-70, SCAMP 70-71.

Ed was a member of USSVI Bremerton Base.

After retiring from the Navy, he worked as a commercial salmon fisherman, mechanic,and ultimately, retired as a maintenance manager for a rest home.

During retirement, he enjoyed woodworking, photography, and travel. Most will remember seeing him at the Eagleson steak night, playing pinochle, and attending lunches and dinners at the senior centers around town. Ed was a fatherto seven children; 18 grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; and three great-great-grandchildren.

With Edward departing on Eternal Patrol, let it be known we have lost another hero. Sailor, rest your oar!

--

Steve Corcoran Base Commander

U.S.S.V.I. Bremerton Base P.O. Box 6216

Silverdale, WA 98315 Cell (360) 471-2704

Bremerton Base EventsPosted February 8, 2019

Base Commander Sends:

Hello Bremerton Base Members,

I hope this e-mail finds you doing well. I just wanted to share some information with you that I feel is important.

Saturday, February 16th will be our next general membership meeting. This will be our annual breakfastmeeting. Breakfast begins at @ 0900, followed by a short meeting, and entertainment will be an Amazing

Join UsMonthly General Membership Meeting

3rd Sat, 10 AM(Except Summer Picnic & Dec Christmas Party)

FRA #29, 521 National Avenue, Bremerton

Membership Application

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"When wearing a bikini, women reveal 90% oftheir body. Men are so polite they only look atthe covered parts."

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Magic Show by Philip & Henry. It will be held at the Elks on Pine Road in East Bremerton. If you have yet tonotify the COB or me if you are attending, please do, so we can provide a head count to the Elks. There is nocharge for this event.

The 2019 scholarship season is upon us. Scholarship applications are available on our website and fromScholarship Chairman Wayne Sieckowski. Applications: DOCX or PDF We are also looking for donationsfor our scholarship raffle held in June. The donation letter is attached to this email. If you have any questions,please contact Wayne or me.

The 2019 Submarine Birthday Ball will be held Saturday, April 27th, at the Seattle Sheraton. Cocktail hour willstart at 1700 with dinner to follow. I have been informed we have unlimited invitations for our base. Also, hereis a statement from our representative ITS2(SS) Noguera : The Sub Ball Committee stated that whichevercommand sponsors a sub vet, it will provide a ride for the vet if he/she needs or requests it. If you areinterested in attending, please contact me A.S.A.P., as they need numbers to plan accordingly. I and the COB atthis time, are planning to attend.

I am still looking for volunteers to step up and assist our Base Officers and Committee Chairs to be a secondaryindividual for the respective job. I understand the Commander has the Vice Commander as a backup, but therest are pretty much wide open. It is imperative we have a stand-by for each position, from Treasurer on down.If you are interested, please contact the current Officer or chairman. Thank you.

Well, I believe that is it for now. Our base will be starting the busy season again with the Dolphin Dash in April.I will keep you all informed on future events and it will be posted on Gertrude. Stay safe this weekend. The forecastis not looking good with the predicted snow. Take care my friends. If you have any questions or concerns, pleasecontact me.

--

Steve Corcoran Base Commander

U.S.S.V.I. Bremerton Base P.O. Box 6216

Silverdale, WA 98315 Cell (360) 471-2704

Latest Puget Soundings Issue On LinePosted February 2, 2019 Please take time to to read Editor Dave Pitman's latest issue. You will understand why Puget Soundings was hailedthe USSVI 2018 Newsletter of the Year. It is a professional production.

2019 Lt. William “Willie” Spoon Memorial Scholarship Posted January 26, 2018

The 2019 Bremerton Base Annual Lt. William “Willie”Spoon Memorial Scholarship Drive is underway. This yearthe board has approved to provide five, $1000 scholarships to children or grandchildren of qualified Submariners.The 2019 scholarship applications are available from local high school senior class counselors, the main USSVI

http://deterrentpark.org./brickap.html

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office or from the scholarship chairman Wayne Sieckowski (wsieckowski@gmail.com). Many of the local highschool senior class counselors have sent thank you notes thanking us for supporting local students.

Bremerton Base January 19th Meeting SummaryPosted January 21, 2018 After traditional opening ceremonies, Base Cdr Steve Corcoran introduced visiting members and others thatincluded Florida members JJ Lynch and Doc Sweeney plus a recently retired Army soldier, an Afghanistan veteran.About 35 members & guests were in attendance. Officers and Appointed Officers made their reports. Of note is the upcoming February16th meeting at the BremertonElks' facility that will provide breakfast, a short meeting and entertainment. Breakfast starts at 0900.

Left Click on Headline to go Directly to Back Page ArticleBig Snow Storm Hits KitsapMemorial to be dedicated to loss of USS ThresherSailor's Combat Death Leads to Navy-Wide Policy ChangesRetired Navy Captain Sentenced in Sweeping Corruption Case

Chinese Student Sentenced to 1 Year for Taking Photos of Key West Naval BaseLest We Forget: Fishtailing on the Franks at LeyteFighting To Serve

Top Archives Published for American Submariners by USSVI Bremerton Base -Webmaster Don "Red" Bassler

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gertrude-checkU. S. SUBMARINE VETERANS BREMERTON BASE

P O. Box 465, Silverdale, WA 98383-0465"Stuff you won't see in the local fish wrappers"

Left Click on Headline to go Directly to ArticleBig Snow Storm Hits KitsapMemorial to be dedicated to loss of USS ThresherSailor's Combat Death Leads to Navy-Wide Policy ChangesRetired Navy Captain Sentenced in Sweeping Corruption Case

Chinese Student Sentenced to 1 Year for Taking Photos of Key West Naval BaseLest We Forget: Fishtailing on the Franks at LeyteFighting To Serve

Big Snow Storm Hits KitsapYesterday's view of Bremerton (video)

https://www.facebook.com/KitsapNews/videos/748188718897477/

Memorial to be dedicated to loss of USS Thresher Tragedy prompted new safety program

Andy Hershberger, WMUR News Updated: 6:45 PM EST Feb 8, 2019

KITTERY, Maine — A memorial will be dedicated this fall in Arlington National

Cemetery in memory of the USS Thresher, a submarine thatwas lost off the New England coast more than 55 years ago.

The memorial was announced Friday at the Portsmouth NavShipyard, where the submarine was built.

Carol Norton said she remembers every detail of the day in1963 she learned that her father was lost at sea. Her mothertold her and her brother that the USS Thresher sank, killingher father, Fred Philip Abrams, and 128 other men.

"Our collective loss was devastating," Norton said. "Ourfamilies were torn apart, and life as we all knew it wouldnever be the same again."

The submarine was doing test dives when it sank, killingeveryone on board.

The USS Thresher and the crew will now be given amemorial at Arlington National Cemetery. It's a project thathas been years in the making, and those who fought for therecognition said they believed it was important to recognizethe gravity of the sacrifice.

The legacy of the tragedy is the institution of the SubmarineSafety Program, a system of safety guidelines that was put inplace after the USS Thresher sank.

"The SUBSAFE Program that resulted from the loss of the

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Thresher has meant that, since that time, no SUBSAFE-certified submarine has ever been lost," U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen said.

"He did not die in vain," Norton said of her father. "This is a memorial for all the crew on the USS Thresher, and it is very important that people know the story." ^

Sailor's Combat Death Leads to Navy-Wide Policy Changes

Navy officials are changing what a top admiral called "fundamental flawsin its waiver and appeal process for commissioning programs after a sailowho was denied a chance to pursue a career as an officer was sent to Syria

where she was killed in a suicide bombing.

Adm. William Moran, vice chief of naval operations, sent a letter detailing the changes to the family of Chief Cryptologic Technician (Interpretive) Shannon Kent,Stars and Stripes reported Wednesday.

The action follows a call from seven lawmakers demanding that Navy leaders explain how they planned to update the policies that left Kent deployed to the war zoneafter rejecting a plan that would have allowed her to pursue a doctorate degree as part of a commissioning program.

The Navy denied Kent's plans to attend a clinical psychology program, Stripes reported, because the 35-year-old mother of two had previously been diagnosed withthyroid cancer. Despite that, the service considered her fit to deploy, and the linguist landed on her fifth combat tour in November when she was sent to Syria whereshe -- along with 18 other people -- was killed by a suicide bomber on Jan. 16.

Related content:

Lawmakers Demand Answers in Wake of Navy Linguist's Death in SyriaFamily of Fallen Navy Linguist Fights Regulation That Forced Her Deployment

In his Tuesday letter, Moran told the Kent family he had reviewed and discussed "every aspect of the policies and processes in place during Shannon's application tobecome a clinical psychologist," according to Stripes.

"There were many shortcomings in Shannon's case, mainly in our communications throughout and in fundamental flaws in our waiver and appeal process -- I offer nexcuses," Moran wrote to the family. "... We believe this new policy will improve the quality, fairness, and consistency of the medical waiver process for all enlisted officer commissioning programs, and I will report back to you in one year to inform you of our progress."

Now, sailors who are deployed and seek a waiver, like Kent did, will have the highest consideration, according to a memo detailing the changes that Moran’s officeprovided to Military.com. The Navy will also standardize its appeals process, including peer reviews for waivers and an option for sailors to get a second medicalopinion, the memo states.

Kent's family had asked Moran to review the policies after her death. It's work Kent started last summer when she, along with her husband, sought the help fromlawmakers after her waiver requests to pursue her doctorate had been denied.

Enlisted troops who want to become officers must meet higher medical standards than those already in uniform, Stripes reported. Since Kent had previously beendiagnosed with cancer, she was disqualified.

Rep. Walter Jones, a Republican congressman from North Carolina whohas gone to bat with several Pentagon leaders on troops' behalf, wrote tothe Navy secretary last summer to get that rule changed. He called thepolicies discriminatory, adding that they prohibited upward mobility forenlisted personnel.

When asked whether the Navy would take the policy review a step furtherby allowing personnel who have previously been diagnosed with cancerbut are now in remission a chance at a commission, Chief of NavalOperations Adm. John Richardson told reporters last week that it wouldrequire help from Defense Department leaders.

"That's a DoD rule," Richardson said. "The first thing we ought to makesure is that we honor Chief Kent for her tremendous sacrifice and hercommitment to her oath to support and defend the constitution. We want tbe mindful that we're ... communicating with her family first and foremosas we work through this."

Kent's family told Stripes they hope to take up the issue with DefenseDepartment leaders next for a military-wide fix. In the meantime, Kent'shusband said he is pleased with Moran's response.

"The Navy has done all they can and moved rather quickly," Joe Kent toldStripes. "They "changed as much of the commissioning process and waivprocess as they can in their capacity as an individual service." (Sounds likeupper echelon including congressional oversight covering their tracks by deflecting to a"commissioning" subject/ed) ^

Retired Navy Captain Sentenced in Sweeping Corruption Case

SAN DIEGO -- A former Navy captain has been sentenced to six months in prison for moonlighting for a Malaysian contractor nicknamed "Fat Leonard" at the centof one of the maritime service's worst corruption scandals.

Former Capt. Jeffrey Breslau was sentenced Friday by a federal judge inSan Diego after pleading guilty to criminal conflict of interest. He wasfined $20,000 and ordered to pay the Navy the $65,000 he earnedmoonlighting.

Prosecutors say Breslau ghostwrote emails and provided talking points the contractor, Leonard Francis, to help him win over five Navy admiraand land lucrative contracts for his company that supplied ships in thePacific.

Prosecutors say Francis overbilled the U.S. Navy by more than $35million for services for ships.

Nearly two dozen people have pleaded guilty in the case.^

Chinese Student Sentenced to 1 Year for Taking Photos of Key West Naval BaseMIAMI -- Zhao Qianli says he's a musicology student from China whotraveled to the United States for a summer exchange program. After hefinished his studies in September, he booked a flight to Miami and thenheaded for Key West.

But rather than see the Hemingway House and other sights, Qianli gotcaught by Key West police for trespassing onto the high-security NavalAir Station. He later told federal authorities that he lost his way on thetourist trail and did not realize it was a military base.

Investigators found photos and videos on Qianli's smartphone as well ason his digital camera that he had taken of government buildings and aDefense Department antenna field on the military base.

Qianli, 20, who is being held in Monroe County Jail, pleaded guiltyTuesday to one count of photographing defense installations at the KeyWest military facility and was sentenced to one year in prison by U.S.District Judge K. Michael Moore. The judge gave him the maximumsentence, which was higher than the sentencing guidelines between zeroand six months. The U.S. attorney's office sought nine months in prison.

Five other counts in his indictment were dismissed as part of Qianli's pleadeal. He made his appearance via a remote video hookup from the federacourthouse in Key West, with his defense attorney by his side. Headmitted through a Chinese interpreter that he took the unlawful photos oSept. 26 while trespassing the restricted grounds of the Naval Air Station

but expressed no remorse.

Although federal authorities charged Qianli with photographing defense installations, they implied in court filings and during Tuesday's hearing that he was not just atourist but rather a possible spy for the Chinese government who lied when he was questioned by FBI agents after his arrest.

Federal prosecutor Michael Sherwin said that Qianli waded into the water in his clothes to go around the security fence on the southern end of the naval base, wheresigns say it is a restricted area -- and to keep out. He said that, contrary to his claim that he was just a tourist and got lost, FBI agents found no pictures of the typicaltourist spots such as Mallory Square on his smartphone or digital camera.

"The primary pictures on that camera were of the military facility," Sherwin said, noting that a witness saw Qianli go directly to the Defense Department antenna fieland snap pictures. "It did not have the hallmark of a tourist who got lost and wandered onto the military facility."

But Qianli's defense attorney, Hongwei Shang, repeatedly said her client was a college student at North University of China who was visiting Key West as a touristafter completing a summer exchange program.

"He's not a spy," Shang argued at Tuesday's hearing. "A spy would not do things like him. There's no proof. ... He committed a stupid mistake. He confessed to it. Hejust wants to go home."

Shang talked about Qianli's parents and their desire to see him again, as she choked up during her comments to the judge.

Seeking mercy for her client, Shang talked about North Korea's detention of an American student, Otto Warmbier, who was released in 2017 after 17 months incaptivity and one year in a coma. Warmbier, a Ohio native who later died, had visited North Korea with a tour group after traveling in China. He was charged andconvicted of a "hostile act" -- trying to steal a propaganda poster -- against North Korea's authoritarian government.

Shang's reference to that highly controversial case clearly offended the judge, who noted that Warmbier was not caught taking pictures and videos of North Koreanmilitary installations, as her client did at the Naval Air Station in Key West.

Qianli's conviction and sentencing followed a recent CNN report that said U.S. intelligence officials have warned that China is enlisting some of its students studyingin the United States to act as spies in gathering information on business, technology and science for the Beijing government.

Might want to go to this map to view Google map for orientation/ed ^

Lest We Forget: Fishtailing on the Franks at Leyte

The war came into sharp focus for Quartermaster Bak on the morninof 25 October, during the Battle of Leyte Gulf. The loudspeakersounded general quarters.

We ran to our battle stations. I ran to the bridge and looked out, and saw what looked like toothpicks on the horizon, right across thehorizon—many, many ships.

Our carrier planes started taking off. We were protecting the jeepcarriers at that point, the USS White Plains [CVE-66], St. Lo [CVE-63], and Gambier Bay [CVE-73]. When the Japanese fleet wascoming at us, our job was to stay between the carriers and theJapanese ships.

We were going back and forth, sort of fishtailing, because our carriecouldn’t go too fast. The Japs were shooting at us and dropping shelaround us, 150, 200 yards. We were going right full rudder, left fullrudder, right full rudder, and the shells were coming all around us. Wwere told to go in for a torpedo run. Then, they decided it was crazy

to go in. They found a couple of ships had been sunk. We were told to lay a smoke screen between the Jap fleet and the carriers—all the time fishtailing.

I was on the bridge at the quartermaster station, putting entries in the ship’s log. The shells were dropping around us. I went under the chart table, which was aridiculous place to go. Then I was on a long glass, and I couldn’t believe you could see these ships so close. I couldn’t believe that that fleet had got so close to uswithout our admirals knowing about it in advance. It was Vice Admiral Takeo Kurita’s fleet, the Japanese commander involved.

From about 0715 to 1030, it was several hours of not knowing what was happening. We did see some burning out there. We got a report later that the burning was ouships being sunk. If we had held one course, they would have blown us out of the water that day. That’s what I liked about our skipper, Commander David Stephan.He was out there giving orders, right full rudder, left full rudder.

For some reason, later on the Japs turned around and went the other way. They left us when they could have had a kill. They didn’t realize what they had. I believe,reading back in history, they thought our destroyers were cruisers.

During all this, the planes were taking off and landing. I remember getting behind these carriers. We had sort of dual duty, fishtailing, trying to pick our pilots out ofthe water when they crashed or went overboard, and keeping between the Jap fleet and the escort carriers. I saw the smoke and the hit when the Gambier Bay wentdown. The jeep carriers didn’t have the maneuverability we had. In a fight like that, when you’re quartermaster, you can see what’s going on, but the people below decks can’t. The captain would give the results later on to all handsbut never during the battle.

Mr. Clift is the U.S. Naval Institute’s vice president for planning and operations and president emeritus of the National Intelligence University. ^

Fighting To ServeThe first African American sailors—including the noted “Golden Thirteen”—suffered discrimination, but their service and successes paved the way for future African American sailorsand other minority groups.

Throughout U.S. Navy history, African Americans have sought to serve, despite not having the same rights, respect, and privileges enjoyed by other Americans. Mygrandfather enlisted in 1942 and was assigned the rating of carpenter’s mate third class in an all-black Seabee battalion. The Seabees were one of the few battalions ithe Navy that permitted black enlisted men to serve during World War II, albeit as segregated units.

I remember vividly my grandfather’s story of what inspired him to join the Navy. On 7 December 1941, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor. After hearing President FrankliDelano Roosevelt’s famous “A Date Which Will Live in Infamy” address, my grandfather, like many Americans, was galvanized and volunteered his services to the

nation. He not only would see combat in the South Pacific and help construcforward operating bases such as those in Hollandia, Papua New Guinea, butalso would endure abject racial discrimination. For example, his unit was notallowed to socialize with white enlisted units, and they had to ride insegregated train cars on the long journey from Portsmouth, Virginia, toShoemaker, California.

My grandfather’s experience with racial inequality did not discourage himfrom serving his country in a time of need. His actions and those of otherAfrican Americans of his generation ultimately opened doors for futureminorities, women, and eventually lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgenderedindividuals to serve honorably in the Navy.

Opening Doors

During World War II, African Americans were allowed to be commissioned officers, albeit against great opposition from Secretary of the Navy FrankKnox and Rear Admiral Randall Jacobs, Chief of the Bureau of NavalPersonnel. The attitudes of such top Navy leaders created environments thatwere conducive to hostilities toward African Americans. Indeed, the firstblack sailors selected for officers’ school at Great Lakes Training Stationwould endure significant discrimination and had to prove they were just ascapable as—or even more capable than—their white counterparts. 1

In his oral history with the U.S. Naval Institute, James E. Hair, one of “TheGolden Thirteen,” explained, “We had to do a lot of things in order to getwhere we got. But the way I look at it is that all of our achievements weregreat in view of the situation at that time, because Jim Crow ran the Navy atthat time.”

The men were kept segregated, and their training was just half the normalperiod, but they came together and taught each other. Their initial examinatioscores were so high the Navy ordered that they be retested. The results wereeven higher. 2

Graham Martin, who held a master’s degree from Howard University, wasanother of the Golden Thirteen. While at Great Lakes, he initially was notallowed to play on the all-white football team. When the Navy kept losing,however, the head coach went to the black camp to recruit players, includingMartin. The team would go on to win nine games and endure only two lossesafter Great Lakes allowed the black officer candidates to play.

Others of these 13 officers told of not being welcome in the Officer’s Club or having sailors cross the street to avoid saluting. They were not accorded a graduationceremony. Nevertheless, these men worked hard, were successful in whatever assignments they were given, and became role models for future African Americansailors. They paved the way for other men and women who would make significant contributions to the Navy: Michelle Howard, the first black female admiral andVice Chief of Naval Operations; Samuel Lee Gravely Jr., the first black vice admiral; and Carl Brashear, the first black Navy master diver, among others.

Building Today’s Diverse Fighting Team

Before the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, or affirmative action, the military was working to ensure the rights ofminorities. What started with the honorable service of many black sailors was formalized in 1948 with President Harry S. Truman’s executive order mandating the“equality of treatment and opportunity for all persons in the armed services without regard to race, color, religion, or national origin.”

In 1969, Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird issued the first Human Goals Charter, which established the Department of Defense’s goal to “provide everyone in themilitary the opportunity to rise to as high a level of responsibility as possible, based only on individual talent and diligence.” 3 As a result, more doors were opened toAfrican Americans, women, and other minorities to pursue careers as commissioned officers. Many African Americans who sought to join the Navy as officers,myself included, benefited tremendously from this initiative.

I was commissioned as a lieutenant through the Navy’s direct commissioning program. This program was designed to allow prior enlisted or civilians withprofessional degrees in medicine, nursing, the natural and physical sciences, engineering, mathematics, religion, the humanities, or sociology to join the Navy as stafofficers. After completing Officer Development School in Newport, Rhode Island, I had the opportunity to manage and lead teams of civilian and military personnelin forensic drug-testing laboratories. This likely would not have happened in the civilian sector as it typically takes a scientist several years to become a lead ormanager in the pharmaceutical industry and academia. In addition, being a member and officer of such organizations as the Medical Service Corps OfficerAssociation has allowed me to develop friendships with people from many cultural backgrounds.

A Call to Serve

In his September 2016 message, Chief of Naval Operations Admiral John Richardson stressed, “A culturally diverse team enables the U.S. Navy to build partnershipwith other cultures, which should ultimately build trust and confidence. Without trust, it is impossible to win the tough fights.” 4 Individuals from diverse backgroundbring different views and ideas to the table. By increasing the enlistment of minority sailors and commissioning of minority officers, the Navy can make itself an evestronger combat-ready organization.

1. Paul Stillwell, T he Golden Thirteen: Recollections of the First Black Naval Officers (Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press, 1993).

2. Bruce Lambert, “James E. Hair, 76, Naval Officer Whose Unit Broke Color Bar, Dies,” The New York Times , 11 January 1992.

3. S. D. Hosek, P. Tiemeyer, R. M. Kilburn, D. A. Strong, S. Ducksworth, and R. Ray, Minority and Gender Differences in Officer Career Progression (Santa Monica, CA: RANDCorporation, 2001).

4. “One Navy Team,” Chief of Naval Operations Message, 27 September 2016.

Lieutenant Commander King is a Navy biochemist serving at the Naval Medical Research Unit in Dayton, Ohio. He holds a bachelor of science degree in biochemistry from Florida StaUniversity and a Ph.D. in cell biology from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. ^

HMS Dreadnought (S101)Published on Apr 13, 2014

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXmXW6w_wgU

On board the nuclear powered submarine, HMS Dreadnought we see several shots ofseamen steering in the wheel house; most of the men have tattoos on their forearms. Ina mess room (? - apologies for limited knowledge of submarine jargon) a rating climbthrough a hatch with a jug of rum which is poured into a bucket and served out to themen. Nice M/S shows men in tiny bunks; one gets up and has a shower.

In a rest room with chintzy armchairs the men drink cans of beer and watch a filmshow from a projector; the film shows dusky maidens in Hawaii doing a hula dance ingrass skirts (I'm not convinced this is genuine submarine crew film entertainment!).

Commentator talks of anti-radiation precautions as Seaman Harvey climbs through a

hatch into the radiation area. Men buy cigarettes and sweets from a tiny kiosk. A man is seen putting beer cans into a special crushing machine; another tough-lookinman stabs holes in bags of rubbish and sends them down a chute - the gash ejector. An officer looks through the periscope; M/Ss of the exterior of the periscope andsubmarine, rising above the surface of the water.

Bacon and a steak are cooked on a kitchen meat grill; a plate with salad and meat is served from a tiny hatch; a rating serves officers in their mess; it lookscomparatively spacious! Elsewhere on the sub, a man folds out a shelf to reveal the library; another man chooses a book. A rating is seen sorting clothes in the laundand putting them in a washing machine.

We see an officer and ratings in the steering room intercut with M/Ss of the exterior of the periscope and conning tower going down as the submarine dives.Commander Cobb is seen looking through the periscope. Various shots in the torpedo chamber as two men load the weapons into firing position.

Note: a note on file suggests this sub story was filmed near Invarary in Strathclyde, possibly on Loch Fyne. ^

Latest Puget Soundings Issue On LinePosted February 2, 2019 Please take time to to read Editor Dave Pitman's latest issue. You will understand why Puget Soundings was hailed the USSVI 2018 Newsletter of the Year. It is aprofessional production.

2019 Lt. William “Willie” Spoon Memorial Scholarship

Posted January 26, 2018 The 2019 Bremerton Base Annual Lt. William “Willie”Spoon Memorial Scholarship Drive is underway. This year the board has approved to provide five, $1000scholarships to children or grandchildren of qualified Submariners. The 2019 scholarship applications are available from local high school senior class counselors, thmain USSVI office or from the scholarship chairman Wayne Sieckowski (wsieckowski@gmail.com). Many of the local high school senior class counselors have senthank you notes thanking us for supporting local students. ^

Rushing Navy Ships into the Arctic for a FONOP is Dangerous

While the warming Arctic promises to open dramatic newpossibilities for shipping and commerce, plans for Arctic operationsrecently discussed by U.S. Navy leaders are premature and potentialdangerous.

Speaking at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) on 8January, Secretary of the Navy Richard Spencer stated that he haddiscussed Navy ship operations in the Arctic with the Chief of NavaOperations (CNO). Secretary Spencer was quoted as saying:

“As an example, this summer, the [CNO] and I have talked abouthaving some ships make the transit in the Arctic. It’s going to be amultiservice task—I think you’ll see the Coast Guard involved. We’just fleshing it out right now. But what is the purpose of that? Wehave to learn what it’s like to operate in that environment. . . .freedom of navigation should be plied up there. We’re going to try todo it.”

In addition, Secretary Spencer mentioned possible interest indeveloping a “strategic port” in the Bering Sea region.

In a follow-up interview published in the Wall Street Journal on 12January, Secretary Spencer expanded on his CNAS remarks: “A Nav

warship will sail through Arctic waters in coming months on what is known as a freedom of navigation operation, or FONOP, said Navy Secretary Richard Spencer.”Spencer also discussed plans to “station resources” at the defunct military base in Adak, Alaska, possibly including surface ships and P-8A aircraft.

Within these stories are three different ideas: first, that the Navy is interested in expanding its physical presence in Alaska, through returning to Adak and/or a port onthe Bering Strait ( Nome has been discussed for years); second, that Navy personnel need to regain operational familiarity with the Arctic environment; and third, thathe Navy appears to be considering a freedom of navigation operation (FONOP) in the Arctic for summer 2019.

The first two ideas are unremarkable. Given the dearth of infrastructure and the challenging environment, both improved facilities and practical learning opportunitieare required to ensure Navy vessels and aircraft operate safely and effectively. The third idea—conducting a FONOP in the Arctic in just a few months—is a bombshell.

There are two basic options for a FONOP in the Arctic: testing Canada’s claims regarding the Northwest Passage (NWP), or testing Russia’s claims in the NorthernSea Route (NSR). The Canadian and Russian claims are broadly similar: both claim these passages are internal waters, and in particular, point to Article 234 of theU.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), which permits coastal states to exercise extra precautionary management over ice-covered waters. (For moredetail on Canadian and Russian claims, see James Kraska , Ocean Development and International Law 38, no. 7 , The Arctic Review on Law and Politics 4, no. 1, anDevelopment and International Law 46, no. 3.)

The United States has not challenged Canadian or Russian claims through FONOPs (as opposed to statements) in a long time. With an interim working solution inplace for Canada, there has been little desire to aggravate a close ally. In 1988, the U.S. government pledged that “all navigation by U.S. icebreakers within watersclaimed by Canada to be internal will be undertaken with the consent of the Government of Canada.” This has worked out through the Canadians granting permissionon notification by the United States of a planned transit. The U.S. Navy has used a similar formula in transiting other straits.

Unsurprisingly, the United States has been somewhat more aggressive in challenging Russian claims regarding the NSR. During the early days of the Cold War, U.S.Coast Guard icebreakers conducted several scientific missions to demonstrate freedom of navigation through straits claimed by the Soviet Union—although thesemissions occurred before the days of the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). In 1965 and 1967, however, the Soviets successfully forced theicebreakers to turn back rather than transit through Vilkitsky Strait, which connects the Kara and Laptev seas through the Severnaya Zemlya archipelago. Using Sovi

Navy ships and planes, as well as strong diplomatic pressure, Moscow succeeded in getting Washington to back down at the last moment. Since then, the UnitedStates has not conducted surface FONOPs through the NSR. While U.S. submarines have likely transited the straits in contravention of Russian claims, these transitshave been unpublicized and do not contribute to the U.S. legal position that the passages are international straits.

Using Navy ships, with or without Coast Guard icebreaker escort, to conduct FONOPs in either the Northwest Passage or Northern Sea Route is unwise at present.

Such a transit will be extremely hazardous and there is a significant chance of national embarrassment if Navy vessels encounter ice hazards. Neither of the twofunctioning USCG icebreakers is fully reliable (one likely will be in drydock this summer), and with no effective backup, the possibility of an unplanned crisis—forwhich Canadian or Russian help would be the only solution—is a risk. Without icebreaker escort, the risks of an embarrassing incident escalate. As the problemsassociated with the 2018 Trident Juncture exercise demonstrate, there are significant operational hazards in the northern environment. In 1972, a RAND report notedthe lack of U.S. icebreaking capacity, and observed that this inadequacy rendered FONOPs in the NSR unacceptably risky: “If an American icebreaker were to getstuck in heavy ice during such a traverse attempt, the United States would be in the embarrassing position of having almost no choice but to ask the Soviets to free itForty-seven years later, the United States remains in the same position. Until the Coast Guard has enough icebreaker capability to ensure U.S. assets could mount asatisfactory response to any incident during transit, transit should not be risked. While Arctic sea ice is in precipitous decline, significant variability in ice conditionsremains, and accidents are regular occurrence s .

Meanwhile, a FONOP through the Northwest Passage would place significant strain on a close U.S. ally—one with whom the United States has fallen out over

NAFTA renegotiations in recent years. A FONOP also would threaten the ongoing cooperation in the Arcticbetween the U.S. and Canadian coast guards, whichincluded a non-FONOP transit by the Coast Guard’s MAPLE cutter , planned in close coordination with the Canadians. An assertive FONOP by the Navy would undthe careful balance that has been maintained for many years, and risk undermining cooperation that is now more important than ever. It seems more likely the Navy is mulling a FONOP through the NSR, perhaps as retaliation for the recent Kerch Strait incident in which Russia barred UkrainianNavy passage through a strategic strait. A FONOP through the Northern Sea Route might appear to be a chance to poke the bear in retaliation. However, there isnothing proportionate about this. The NSR, and the Arctic more broadly, is one of Russia’s core interests. Rather than poking the bear, a FONOP through the NSRwould be more akin to crawling into the bear’s den and kidnapping one of her cubs. Challenging Russia in the NSR is perhaps one of the strongest provocative legalactions Washington could use to throw down a gauntlet at Moscow. It is hard to see how this level of provocation is justified by the present circumstances.

In the 1960s, at a time of high U.S.-USSR tension (the Cuban Missile Crisis was still fresh), the Soviets called the American bluff not once, but twice. It is not hard timagine how an unintended conflict could be triggered through one slip or accident. In the Arctic, accidents happen all too often. And if the Russians again block thestrait, what then? Is the United States prepared to fire on them? Or turn back? Which is more mortifying—the prospect of a U.S. Navy ship calling a Russianicebreaker for help, or turning around after being blocked by a Russian warship? Both scenarios are very real possibilities.

The U.S. Navy should think twice before sending ships on an unwise and provocative Arctic FONOP transit of questionable value. Continuing to gain operationalfamiliarity, perhaps through joint exercises with the Danish Navy east and north of Greenland, would advance practical Navy objectives without dialing up tension inthe Arctic. FONOPs are needed elsewhere, and the Navy’s resources are both scarce and valuable. It would be wise to put the Arctic transit back on ice. ^

USS Connecticut, among Navy's most secret subs, returns to BremertonJosh Farley |

BREMERTON — The USS Connecticut motored into Sinclair Inlet onTuesday, showered by the fire hose of a Navy tugboat as her crew arrived homfollowing months at sea.

"The Seawolf-class, nuclear-powered, fast-attack submarine was on a regularlyscheduled deployment to the Pacific in support of national security interests anmaritime security operations," said Lt. Cmdr. Tim Gorman, a spokesman for thNavy's Pacific Fleet public affairs office.

No other detail about the Bremerton-based submarine's latest missions wasreleased. That's not unusual in the covert world of the silent service — andespecially among the Navy's three Seawolf-class submarines, often recipients osome of the Navy's most sensitive assignments.

The cold war-era built Seawolf-class boats — the Connecticut, USS Seawolfand the USS Jimmy Carter — were designed to outrun and outgun the latest

Soviet designs of the day. Only three were completed in what was planned to be 29. All of them currently call the Kitsap Peninsula home.

The Seawolf, which also came into Sinclair Inlet Monday, recently wrapped up a 38-month overhaul at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard.

The third of the trio, the Jimmy Carter, has a pier at Naval Base Kitsap-Bangor. But there are plans to move the Seawolf and Connecticut, which round out theSubmarine Development Squadron Five, to Bangor as well. Before that can happen, a pier will need to be extended. The project has been funded by Congress.

The Seawolf and Connecticut came to Bremerton from New London Connecticut in 2007 and 2008, respectively. The Connecticut was in the Puget SoundNaval Shipyard for an overhaul from 2012 to 2017, according to Kitsap Sun archives.

Last year during a previous deployment, the Connecticut participated in exercises in the Arctic with other U.S. and U.K. submarines. ^

The Torpedoes of WWII DocumentaryHistory Of WarsPublished on Aug 28, 2016WWII Collection: Brothers in Combat: 30 Documentaries Collection: https://tinyurl.com/ycuxogxf

History Presents: The Definitive WWI and WWII Documentary Collection: https://tinyurl.com/yc82qs8d Fury of War: 20 WWII Documentaries Collection: https://tinyurl.com/y9tkrm9d

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJttDDx0Axs

^

Navy SEALS granted immunity in Iraq war crimes case against decorated leader Edward Gallagher By Lucia I. Suarez Sang | Fox News

Seven Navy SEALS -- who have been granted immunity -- and up to 13 additional witnesses are expected to be called to testify against a decorated chief specialwarfare operator accused of multiple war crimes stemming from a 2017 incident in Iraq, prosecutors said.

Edward R. Gallagher has been charged with killing a wounded ISIS prisoner of war, who Navy prosecutors believe was about 15 years old, and firing sniper rounds ainnocent civilians during a tour in Iraq. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges, which include premeditated murder.

During a motion hearing Friday, prosecutors said witnesses told NCIS investigators Gallagher bragged about killing up to 200 people – “three a day” he allegedly sai– during his 2017 deployment to Mosul, Iraq, the San Diego Tribune reported.

Prosecutors said they also have a knife recovered from Naval Special Warfare Group 1 in Coronado that's tested positive for DNA. They did not reveal whose DNAwas allegedly found on the knife or state definitively that it was the murder weapon used to stab the ISIS fighter.

Gallagher, 39, fought in Iraq and Afghanistan several times during a nearly two-decade military career, but it was during his last combat deployment, in 2017, thatprosecutors say he lost his way and “decided to act like the monster the terrorists accuse us of being.” Read all ^

Private company launches "largest fleet of satellites in human history" to photograph Earth60 minutes : David Martin | January 27, 2019

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/private-company-launches-largest-fleet-of-satellites-in-human-history-to-photograph-earth-60-minutes/

A private company has set off a revolution in space by launching hundreds of small satellites, enough to photograph the entire landmass of the Earth every day

For decades the U.S. Has relied on spy satellites to look deep inside theterritory of its adversaries. These giant billion-dollar satellites take highresolution photographs which can see objects as small as a fist inside Russia,North Korea or wherever the target is. Tonight we will take you inside theintelligence agency where those photos are analyzed, and we will also take yoinside a revolution that is rocking the top secret world of spy satellites. Aprivate company named Planet Labs has put about 300 small satellites intospace, enough to take a picture of the entire land mass of the Earth every day.Those small satellites have created a big data problem for the governmentwhich can't possibly hire enough analysts to look at all those pictures.Welcome to the revolution.

This is how the revolution began. Twenty-eight small satellites sent out intoorbit by astronauts from the biggest of all satellites, the International SpaceStation.

Robbie Schingler: We took a satellite that would be the size of a pick-up truckand we shrunk it. We wanted to make it about the size of a loaf of bread.

Robbie Schingler began building satellites 20 years ago, working for NASA.

Robbie Schingler: The way that I grew up-- at NASA is we would spend about five to ten years, even-- to build one satellite.

Now he's one of the founders of Planet Labs.

Robbie Schingler: This is our satellite manufacturing building.

A company that turns out satellites in months not years.

Robbie Schingler: You can pick these up. They're about 12 pounds or five kilograms

Read all and see this video ^

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