VigilanteVigilanteRVAH NAVY NewsletterRVAH NAVY Newsletter February, 2019

1. After a naval aircraft carrier is completed, whattakes place?•Ceremonial ship launching•Its first mission•A speech from the president•Nothing

2. What does the red disk on the USS Wasp's coat ofarms represent?•The sun•Neptune•Japan•The ocean

3. Which of the following ships are not part of the KittyHawk Class?•USS Enterprise•USS America•USS Constellation

8. What is the USS Theodore Roosevelt's nickname?•Eagle Eye•Independence Day•Big Stick•The Armed One

9. How many Navy ships have been named afterAbraham Lincoln?•One•Two•Eight•Ten

10. True or False - The USSR built an aircraft carrierduring WWII.Answer: ( easy)

11. Which country experimented with the first mirrorlanding system?•England

Aircraft Carrier Trivia Quiz(Answers given on a later page! No cheating!)

The winner gets Shore Duty unless deemed otherwise by your detailer!

•USS Constellation•USS Kitty Hawk

4. What Royal Navy carrier served with the USN in thePacific in 1943?Answer: ( Not the Ark Royal)

5. What was the name of the first USN carrier sunkduring WWII?•USS Hornet•USS Yorktown•USS Lexington•USS Wasp

6. Which movie was the USS Carl Vinson used in?•"Dunkirk"•"The Terminator"•"Behind Enemy Lines"•"Inception“

7. How many planes can fit on a supercarrier?•14•300•90•500

England•Japan•USA•France

12. How many aircraft carriers were laid down byGermany during WWII?Answer: ( more than 1)

13. True or False: The USN is the only Navy to operatenuclear powered carriers.

14. What 2 carriers were involved in the Doolittle Raidon Japan?•Lexington, Ranger•Yorktown, Saratoga•Enterprise, Hornet•Hornet, Wasp

15. Which was the first carrier that went operationalwith jet fighters on her flight deck?•USS Enterprise•USS Franklin D. Roosevelt•USS Saratoga

Thanks to Mike Mercer for the lead on this article!!

James M. JonesJanuary 14 at 10:09 AMIt is time once again to pause and be thankful to theheroes of January 15,1962. Tomorrow marks the57th anniversary of a selfless act that saved the livesof many of us in Oviedo.January 15, 1962, Navy Lt. Charles Hodgate took offon a routine training mission in his A3D Skywarriorout of Naval Air Station, Sanford, FL. Shortly aftertake off the plane experienced engine failure andbegan to loose power and altitude. Lt. Hodgateattempted to return the plane to Sanford. He wasjust over Oviedo barely above tree top level whensuddenly the Oviedo School came into his view only600 yards directly ahead. The school was atraditional two-story brick structure (nowdemolished) with about 400 students in grades 1 to12 (no K at that time) mostly under one roof. Herealized that in only seconds he would hit the schooland it was reported that he could see the studentson the ground. There was no way to clear the twostory school and crashing short was impossible asthe playground was also directly in his path and fullof children. Without hesitation and ignoring ordersto bail out Lt. Hodgate somehow veered the plane

Mary Kelsey-Walker I was there with my Dad.Military personnel was not going to let him on thesite because he was not in uniform (it was was dayoff) He told them he was the police chief and they lethim through. The Heat burn the paint on the mobilehome next to the crash. Mr. Gott's trailer.

to bail out Lt. Hodgate somehow veered the planesharply causing the plane to somersault and crashless than 100 yards from the school property in whatwas known as the Ward grove (SW corner of LakeJessup and Clark St). If it were not for his heroicaction and sacrifice of his own life, it is likely thathundreds of school children would have died in aninferno of blazing jet fuel. Two of his crew membersalso died in the crash. One had successfully bailedout at the last second.Oviedo is planning a memorial to be placed at thesite of the crash near what is now T. W. LawtonElementary School. I am glad to hear of this becausethere is little mention or knowledge of the incidentotherwise. Without this marker the incident wouldfade away into history and go without therecognition it deserves. I hope they hurry while someof us who witnessed this will be here to appreciateit. The picture is of a Navy A3D Skywarrior and crewas printed in the school yearbook.

Linda Kasell Sutton I was on the playground and sawthem above my head. I'll never forget their sacrifice.

Welcome to Our New Members!Barry KarchnerRobert E. Rodgers

Alan L JonesDaniel H. HaydenCharles E. Frailing

The following was passed along by BradJones.Sun, Jan 27, 12:11 PM (19 hours ago)to BradI was recently contacted by Barbara Klein, daughterof LCDR A. Gene Klein who was an RVAH-11 RA-5CVigilante pilot in the 1966-1968 period aboard USSForrestal (CVA-59) and USS Kitty Hawk (CVA-63).Anyway, I sent her the following email to bring herup to date and thought some of you may also find itand the attached photos of interest so I'm passing iton.

On August 1, 2009 many of us from the 1967 RVAH-11 and USS Forrestal (CVA-59) communitiesgathered at the Cold War Gallery to dedicate the RA-5C Vigilante that was to be placed "in flight" in thedisplay case just to your left as you enter themuseum. Following the dedication, many of us wentto the Vietnam Wall followed by a visit to ArlingtonNational Cemetery where we visited the mass graveof 18 of the 134 FORRESTAL sailors we lost 7/29/67,the grave of LCDR Vincent Duncan Monroe, and thegrave of our RVAH-11 1967 Skipper aboardFORRESTAL, then-CDR Thomas Kilcline, Sr.

Later, in March 2014, a number of us who were inRVAH-11 in the 1966-1968 timeframe raised themoney to commission another RVAH-11 RA-5CVigilante model to be placed on the flight deck of theUSS Forrestal (CVA-59) model in the Cold WarGallery of the Navy Museum in Washington, D.C.Since it was to be a model in the July 29, 1967 periodwhen we (RVAH-11) were aboard USS Forrestal (Cva-59), we specified it was to be Bureau Number148392, Nose Number 602 and the pilot's name wasLCDR Gene Klein and his RAN was LT John Hoffman. I

From Our Readers!

on.Brad

Barbara,To bring you up to date, here's some background onthe attached photos of RVAH-11 RA-5C Vigilantesnow in place in the Cold War Gallery of theU.S. Navy Museum in Washington, D.C. If you haveany questions, please don't hesitate to ask.In 2009, VADM Tom Kilcline, Jr. and his sister, MaryKilcline Novak, had commissioned a model of an RA-5C Vigilante in memory of their father, VADM TomKilcline, Sr. who was the Commanding Officer ofRVAH-11 in 1967 when we were aboard USSForrestal (CVA-59). At that time, their father wasCDR Tom Kilcline and his RAN was LCDR VinceMonroe. The Bureau Number of their model aircraftwas to be 149305 in memory of one we lost July 29,but the Nose Number was to be 606 rather than theactual number that had been used at that time. In1968 we were back in Vietnam aboard USS KittyHawk (CVA-63) and on May 18 LCDR Monroe and ourExecutive Officer, CDR Charlie James, were shotdown over North Vietnam. CDR James was a POW,but LCDR Monroe was KIA. Therefore, we asked thattheir Nose Number 606 (i.e., poetic license) be usedin his memory..

LCDR Gene Klein and his RAN was LT John Hoffman. Ihave included some photos of the finished product.

WASHINGTON (Aug. 1, 2009) Vice Adm.Thomas J. Kilcline, Jr., center, commander ofNaval Air Forces and Mrs. Suzanne Monroe,

left, widow of Capt. Vince Monroe, display anaircraft model of the RA-5C "Vigilante". Themodel is being inducted into the Cold WarGallery of the National Museum of the U.S.

Navy at the Washington Navy Yard.

See additional pictures on the “Picture Page”(Next page)

The Picture Page See previous page for info

May, 2014

RVAH-11 Featured in Cold War Gallery in Washington D.C.With Help From RecceNet!

VigilanteVigilanteRVAH NAVY NewsletterRVAH NAVY Newsletter

Several years ago the Navy opened the new "Cold War Gallery" (CWG) which operates as part of the U.S. Navy Museum atthe Navy Yard in southeast Washington, D.C. To date it continues to be a slow "work in progress" due to fundingproblems and other costs, but it is operational.One of the CWG highlights is a HUGE model of USS Forrestal (CVA-59) that was built and donated by Newport NewsShipbuilding during construction of Forrestal in the 1950s. The model aircraft on the flight deck were built and placedthere years ago and they are representative of some of the squadrons of Carrier Air Wing Seventeen (CVW-17) which wasaboard Forrestal in 1967 when she deployed to Yankee Station off the coast of North Vietnam. Two Squadrons that arenot represented are the E-2A Hawkeyes of the VAW-123 Screwtops and the RA-5C Vigilantes of the RVAH-11 Checkertails.

On Forrestal's fifth day of combat operations (29 July 1967) at 1052 Hours, a Zuni Rocket accidentally fired from an F-4Phantom across the aft flight deck from starboard to port. A total of at least 21 aircraft were destroyed and many othersdamaged, but repairable. Among them, RVAH-11 lost 3 of their 6 RA-5C Vigilantes and 2 were damaged, but repairable.The only RVAH-11 Vigilante undamaged was: Bureau Number 149283, Modex (Nose Number) 606 .

More than 5 years ago the Naval Historical Foundation (NHF) set out to populate a Display Case with in-flight models ofthe aircraft of the Cold War era. The models would be paid for by tax free donations to the NHF which they would pass onto fund the creators of the models. Most of the models to date have been the handiwork of Mr. Michael "Psycho" McLeodwho is a former Naval Aviator himself.

Until 1966 VAH-11 was based at NAS Sanford, Florida and flew the A-3D Skywarrior. They were normally part ofForrestal's Air Wing. In 1966 they transitioned to the RA-5C Vigilante, redesignated RVAH-11, and their first CO was CDRThomas J. Kilcline, Sr., USN. CDR Kilcline's Reconnaissance Attack Navigator (RAN) was LCDR Vincent D. Monroe. CDRKilcline went on to retire with the rank of VADM. LCDR Monroe was shot down over North Vietnam and KIA in May 1968.

Editors Note: This article appeared in the May, 2014 Newsletterand featured the original presentation of the RA5C.

Kilcline went on to retire with the rank of VADM. LCDR Monroe was shot down over North Vietnam and KIA in May 1968.In 2009, CDR Kilcline's son, VADM Thomas J. Kilcline, Jr., and daughter, Mrs. Mary Kilcline Novak, commissioned a modelof their father's RA-5C Vigilante for installation in the CWG Display case. Members of USS Forrestal and RVAH-11participated in the event. The Bureau Number of the model is 149305 which was one of the destroyed aircraftprominently displayed in the August 1967 edition of "Life" Magazine (see pic below). Bureau Number 149305 had ModexNumber 605, but Modex Number 606 was used for the CWG Model thanks to "poetic license".

Now, the CWG has set out to complete the Forrestal "flight deck" models to complete the 1967 CVW-17 complement ofsquadrons. Donors have stepped forward to fund the construction and installation of an RVAH-11 RA-5C Vigilante. Amongthose donors were the men and women of RecceNet who pledged money and the website itself which pledged the final$200 needed for the commission. The Bureau Number will be 148932 and the Modex will be 602 in memory of one of thethree aircraft lost in the 1967 Forrestal Fire. The pilot's name of the canopy rail will be LCDR Gene Klein and his RAN'sname will be LT John Hoffman since they were the men manning that aircraft for the Alpha Strike scheduled for 1100hours on 29 July 1967. (Many THANKS to Brad Jones for the info, pictures and background for this story)

Left-to-right: VADM ThomasJ. Kilcline, Jr.; Mr. MichaelMcLeod; and Mrs. Mary

Kilcline Novak. At the requestof the Kilclines, Michael

McLeod produced the modelof the RVAH-11 RA-5C

Vigilante that he is holding.All markings are as they were

in 1967.

The Funny Page

Answers to Carrier Trivia!1. After a naval aircraft carrier is completed, what takesplace?Ceremonial ship launching takes place when a ship is firstplaced into the water. It can also be referred to as christeningthe ship. This produces large events that often attractmembers of the public as they see the vessel off into the sea.

2. What does the red disk on the USS Wasp's coat of armsrepresent?This disk represents Japan, also where the homeport of theship is. It is in Sasebo, located in southern Japan along thecoast, making it the perfect location for a port.

3. Which of the following ships are not part of the Kitty HawkClass?USS EnterpriseThe USS Enterprise is not part of the Kitty Hawk Class, andinstead, the lead ship of the Enterprise class. AdditionalTrivia: The USS Enterprise that sailed the seas from the '60sto the late 2000s was the first nuclear powered carrier?

4. What Royal Navy carrier served with the USN in the Pacificin 1943?Answer: HMS VictoriousAfter damage and losses suffered during the Guadalcanalcampaign, the USN asked the RN to loan them a carrier.

9. How many Navy ships have been named after AbrahamLincoln?Two -Although two ships owned by the Navy have beennamed after the president, only one was an aircraft carrier.USS Abraham Lincoln (SSBN-602)was built in the ‘60s and it isknown to be fast and quite agile.

10. True or False - The USSR built an aircraft carrier duringWWII.Answer: False

11. Which country experimented with the first mirror landingsystem?Answer: JapanThe Japanese first used a mirror landing system on the IJNHosho.

12. How many aircraft carriers were laid down by Germanyduring WWII?Answer: 2The Germans laid down the Graf Zeppelin and the PeterStrasser but didn't complete either one.

13. True or False: The USN is the only navy to operate nuclearpowered carriers.Answer: FalseFrance's "Charles De Gaulle" carrier is powered by twin K15

5. What was the name of the first USN carrier sunk duringWWII?Answer: USS LexingtonThe USS Lexington was the first USN carrier sunk duringWWII, at the Battle of Coral Sea.

6. Which movie was the USS Carl Vinson used in?"Behind Enemy Lines“The USS Carl Vinson was used in the filming of "BehindEnemy Lines". Did you know that after the death of Osamabin Laden, this was the ship that was used to conduct hisburial?

7. How many planes can fit on a supercarrier?9090 planes are able to fit on a supercarrier, while othercarriers can vary in number.

8. What is the USS Theodore Roosevelt's nickname?Big StickThe ship's nickname comes from the phrase that PresidentTheodore Roosevelt was famous for saying: "speak softly,and carry a big stick." This massive ship can carry up to 90planes on its deck.

France's "Charles De Gaulle" carrier is powered by twin K15pressurized water reactors, 150MW each.

14. What 2 carriers were involved in the Doolittle Raid onJapan?Answer: Enterprise, HornetThe Hornet carried 16 B-25 bombers that were launchedagainst Tokyo. Enterprise was her escort.

15. Which was the first carrier that went operational with jetfighters on her flight deck?USS Franklin D. RooseveltThe USS Franklin D. Roosevelt (CV-42) was the first to carryoperational jet fighters. In July of 1946 the first jet aircraft,an FH Phantom, took off from US Navy aircraft carrier USSFranklin D. Roosevelt gave the US Navy its first jet fighter.

FH Phantom launching from USS FDR, 1946

February BirthdaysI’m thinking that most of us have finally made it to “DirtyOld Man” territory… Just sayin….

Happy Birthday,Ya Swabs!

Joseph W. Smithey Jr. 1-FebruaryCarroll E "TRAIL" Blazer 1-February

Jerald J. Lange 1-FebruaryRichard Kerlin 1-FebruaryDon F Bailey 2-February

Stephen P. Johnson 2-FebruaryPaul Tischhauser 2-February

Jesse O. (Jay) Anthony III 3-FebruaryGus Young 3-February

Tommy Anderson 3-FebruaryJanet Shea 3-February

Charles C. Finton 4-FebruaryHorace O. Foil, Jr. 4-FebruaryStanton W. Betts 4-February

Ron Cossey 4-FebruaryRichard Butler 4-February

Eddie H. LeFiles 5-FebruaryRicky L. Henrickson 6-February

Ralph Smith 6-FebruaryKenneth M. Carlton 7-February

Troy Zipperer 7-FebruaryHoward Moody 7-February

David Orders 7-FebruaryMoe Ryan 8-February

Harry D. Polny 14-FebruaryRonald E. Moseley 14-FebruaryRobert F. Vipond 14-February

Guenter Kleinmaier 15-FebruaryJerry R. Batson 15-February

Dale Adkins 15-FebruaryBruce Moore 16-February

John S. Manuse Jr. 16-FebruaryEdward R. Harig 17-February

Casey L Hill 17-FebruaryWilliam Nedostup 18-FebruaryJohn B. D'Albora 18-FebruaryWilliam Sargent 18-February

William J. Nedostup 18-FebruaryTony "Hook" Albright 19-February

Michael Davis 19-FebruaryJohn Mouw 19-February

Jeanette Keel 20-FebruarySteve Hyatt 20-February

Michael P Andrews 20-FebruaryAlan Weiss 20-February

Mark A. Breeding 20-FebruaryWalt Rosenquist 21-FebruaryRobert L. Tegel 21-FebruaryMoe Ryan 8-February

Davis K. Harold 8-FebruaryBruce H. Greenwood 8-February

Joe Trigg 8-FebruaryJoseph B Obusek 8-February

Wesley D Williams 10-FebruaryBud Steil 10-February

Norman Oubre 10-FebruaryTimothy R Canady 11-FebruarySandra LaPlante 11-February

Chuck Hoskin 12-FebruaryDennis M. Brown 12-February

Jerry Gehrig 12-FebruaryGary T. Kilbride 12-FebruaryLeslie E.Jones 12-FebruaryBob Jellison 12-FebruaryJames Dick II 12-FebruaryPaul F. Shea 12-February

Danny Conatser 13-FebruaryMike McAllister 13-February

Susy House 13-FebruaryDieter F Palmer 13-February

Danny Conatser 46 13-February

Robert L. Tegel 21-FebruaryMarshall Kelly McClary 22-February

Dean Kelly 23-FebruaryRon "Skee" Hlozansky 23-February

Mike Clay 24-FebruaryLarry Q. Sawyer 24-February

Marvin E. Terhune 24-FebruaryJohn Snively 24-February

Jim Augherton 24-FebruaryRoland R Landry 25-February

Ron Stephens 25-FebruaryCleve Turner III 25-February

James H.(Jim) Cromwell 25-FebruaryDavid M. Brooks 26-February

Kenneth M Colgate 27-FebruaryRobert Geopfarth 27-FebruaryJohn L. Brammer 27-February

Jack Smith 27-FebruaryCharles Latham 27-February

Ronald E. Florance 27-FebruarySteve Daniel 28-February

Charles J. Davis 28-FebruaryAlbert Perrella 28-February