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US Submarine Veterans Inc. (USSVI) Volume 7, Issue 2

Seattle Base March - April 2005

Commander’s Corner By Ric Hedman, Base Commander

We are starting off 2005with a mix of old and newbase officers. It is good tosee such stability plus theinflux of new and freshideas into the Executive

Board. I’d like to welcometwo new shipmates to theboard, Stephen“Diamond” Friedley as Jr.Vice Commander andSteve Shelton who hascome forward andvolunteered to be theBase Secretary. Karl“Dutch” Krompholz andJim Harper are remainingin their previous positionsas Sr. Vice Commanderand Base Treasurer. Thankyou to the Base Chaplain,COB, Cobra COB,Webmaster, Storekeeper,Newsletter Editor andMemorials and

Ceremonies volunteers forbeing willing to stay on intheir positions. BZgentlemen! We have awinning team. (I hope Ihaven’t missed anyone.)

The base stands at139 members and wehope to attract newmembers through somecreative and means. Itwould be wonderful tofind all those bubbleheadsthat are out there andshow them what we areabout.

The year alsostarted off on a sad note

See “Corner” on Page 12

Iraq Vet Speaks at Seattle BaseThe speaker for our February meetingwas YN1(SS) Karl Rosenkranz. PORosenkranz was one of the 3 submarinequalified volunteers to serve with theCoalition Military Assistance TrainingTeam in Iraq.

PO Rosenkranz described hisexperiences getting to and in Iraq;including a lot of information that youwon’t see in the news reports coming outof Iraq. After a short indoctrination in theU.S., he flew to Iraq, was sent to theKirkush Military Training base, and giventhe mission of helping to outfit, train, andassist the new Iraqi Army. He also relatedstories about communication issues; notjust with the locals, but also with the U.S.Army (most of whom didn’t understandhow a Navy guy ended up in the desert) PO Rosenkranz delivering a soccer ball in Iraq

and Allied Forces (never get Brits andAussies talking about football/soccer). Inaddition to his humorous ‘sea/sandstories’, PO Rosenkranz talked about thegood work the Soldiers, Marines, andSailors are doing in Iraq; including hisown work in distributing soccer balls toIraqi children.

During his last days in Iraq, PORosenkranz received a field promotion forhis work there. Proving what all of usalready knew, that you can put a Dolphinwearer anywhere and he will be able todo the job.

You can read more about PORosenkranz’s exploits in the Winter 2004issue of Undersea Warfare, which can befound online at:http://www.chinfo.navy.mil/navpalib/cno/n87/usw/issue_21/sandcrab.htm

Page 2 THE DOLPHIN BROTHERHOOD

Navy, DARPA Seek Smaller SubmarinesBy Robert A. Hamilton, Special Correspondent

The Navy and the Defense Advanced ResearchProjects Agency (DARPA) plan to pour $97 millionduring the next four years into a new joint projectknown as Tango Bravo, intended to lead to thedesign of a new attack submarine that would haveall the capabilities of the current Virginia-classboats, but would be half the size and built at halfthe cost.

Begun in November, the project comes asthe Navy continues its internal debate over the$2.2 billion unit procurement cost of Virginia-classsubs and the future size of the attack submarinefleet, which now numbers 54 boats. An internalNavy study suggests that 37 boats would besufficient, but some experts, such as retired Adm.Frank L. “Skip” Bowman, former director of navalnuclear propulsion, say the subs continue to be inhigh demand by the nation’s combatantcommanders.

Until now, however, the Navy has notofficially focused on the prospect of cutting thesize of its attack boats by half. The Virginia class is377 feet in length and has a 34-foot beam.Led by Naval Sea Systems Command’s ProgramExecutive Officer for Submarines, the Tango Bravoproject is not designed to help rectify the Navy’snear-term quandary. It is a demonstration projectaimed at bringing fundamental change to futureU.S. submarines while maintaining or improvingtheir current capabilities. The two agencies willlook at reducing or eliminating the nuclear powerplant, for example, and fit future subs with aretraction system for the bow planes with noassociated hydraulics, a major change from thecurrent design.

“Submarines have always been sizedaround the propulsion plant, and if you get rid ofthe reduction gears and the shaft, you’re talkingabout many tons of weight and cubic yards ofspace, which drive down the size that you need,”said Nicholas L. Flacco, a former submarinecommanding officer and now a senior scientist atAreté Associates in Sherman Oaks, Calif.Shaftless propulsion is one of the five keytechnology domains that will subjected tointensive scrutiny during the Tango Bravo projectin hopes that innovations therein will fosterreductions in cost and size of the nation’s subs.This spring, the two agencies will fund up to $19million in technology demonstration projects inexternal weapons stowage and launch, hull-adaptable sonar arrays, an automated attackcenter and general “radical ship infrastructurereduction” initiatives, in addition to shaftlesspropulsion.

Tango Bravo grew out of a joint Navy-DARPA study that was finished in May, whichlooked at a number of factors that affect the sizeand cost of hull, mechanical and electrical systemson a submarine.

“The study provided early indications thatreduced size and cost would be feasible, so DARPAand the Navy embarked on the Tango Bravo effortwhich will conduct demonstrations to overcomeselected technological barriers in order to enabledesign options for future submarines,” said DARPAspokeswoman Jan Walker.

“DARPA and the Navy are excited aboutembarking on this new endeavor. We believe thatthe Tango Bravo technology demonstrationspromise to go a long way toward providing newsubmarine capabilities for the Navy,” she said.

Interest in the program has been runninghigh on the outside as well, Walker said, withmore than 140 people attending DARPA’S classified“Proposers Day Conference” Nov. 8 in Arlington,Va. DARPA hopes to be able to decide by late 2006on what concepts to move into prototypeproduction, which would be followed by full-scaledemonstrations in early 2008, and at-seademonstrations in 2009.

Flacco said another reason the powersystem will get a lot of attention is that Navywants an efficient propulsion plant that will be atleast as quiet as that of the Virginia class, and costa minimum of 40 percent less.

In addition to looking at eliminatingreduction gears and shafts - perhaps by relying onelectric drive - “any shielding you would be able toeliminate from a smaller reactor will drive thespace and weight down as well,” Flacco said.

“You get an exponential decrease in thepower requirements when you have weightreduction, so if there’s anything you can do to

Conceptual drawing of the next generation sail for

the Virginia class SSN

VOLUME 7, ISSUE 2 Page 3

achieve that, it pays big dividends,” he said. “All ofthose features could pretty quickly move you downtoward a half-sized ship.”

External weapons stow-and-launch alsoholds out considerable promise for reducing theprice of a submarine by making the pressure hullsmaller. DARPA is seeking a method of stowing anunencapsulated Mk48 Advance Capability torpedooutside the pressure hull, and the capability tolaunch it at up to flank speed and test depth, atechnique that could be expanded to multipleweapons.

Hull-adaptable sonar arrays would allowsubmarine designers to do away with the sonardome that takes up so much space at the bow, andinstead fit the components into the skin of thesubmarine itself. That would require more complexsignal processing, but advances in computer speedhave made the concept feasible.

But DARPA is setting the bar high. It wantsa system to replace the Virginia-class hull-mounted arrays, which can be built at the same orlower cost, and cover a wider range of frequencies,while reducing the “footprint” of sonar processingequipment inside the submarine by at least 50percent. It must be able to maintain “situationalawareness” of all contacts within five nauticalmiles, even in near-shore areas where it mighthave 250 contacts in hearing range.

Retired Vice Adm. Albert H. Konetzni, aformer Pacific submarine force commander, saidhe’s not surprised that, once again, the underseafleet is pushing the technological boundaries.“The submarine force has already been the mosttransformational of any of the services. Look atthe SSGN. We’ve been coming up with the bestideas for years,” Konetzni said, though adding, “Ithink we have to be very careful about how weapproach the new ideas. We need to look at newways of doing things, I understand that. But youcan’t afford to give up what works until you aresure about its replacement.”

Still, submariners seem excited about theprospects. Flacco said submariners wouldn’t haveany problem embracing technology that makestheir ships smaller, so long as it improved war-fighting potential.

“The great thing about nuclear submarinesis they lend themselves so easily to newtechnology that comes down the pike,” Flacco said.“Submariners look at capability more than size —speed and depth and armament, those are thethings that are going to be much more importantconsiderations than how many tons the shipdisplaces.”

Retired Rear Adm. Charles H. “Chip”Griffiths, now the director of command-and-controlsystems at Raytheon’s Rhode Island division, saidhe was encouraged by the promise of the program.“You’d be surprised how much more we can go inthis direction. Our ability to continue to thinksmarter, more out of the box, more from a humanengineering approach, really hasn’t begun toapproach the boundaries,” Griffiths said. “Theconservative side of me … knows that the humanis indispensable, because of our ability to adapt tothe situation, so, yes, there is some concern aboutdriving the size of the crew down too far. Butwe’ve had crews much smaller than what we havetoday successfully operating submarines, so Ithink we still have a lot of room to maneuverthere.”

DARPA is setting similarly high standardsfor the automated attack center it envisions on thenew submarine. There are 17 sailors currentlyrequired for battle stations on the Virginia, butDARPA hopes to trim that to eight throughautomation and better displays that would allowone sailor to do the work that now might take two.The final area getting a look in the new program isa generic “radical ship infrastructure reduction”category, a sort of wide open “show us how youcan make the ship smaller but better” challenge.DARPA will look at replacing hydraulic, pneumaticand mechanical controls with reduced-complexitysystems such as electrical actuators, which arealready used heavily in the Virginia torpedo roomwith remarkable results. Its only caveat is that anyproposed system has to be rugged enough towithstand a submarine environment, and reliableenough to bear up under a boat’s extendeddeployments.

Conceptual drawing of a

ceramic hull-adaptable

sonar array that will

replace the standard

hull array

Conceptual drawing of a future attack submarine

with vertical launch tubes and a dock facility for a

mini-sub

Page 4 THE DOLPHIN BROTHERHOOD

Confessions of an SSBN Sailor

(A letter to my SSN colleagues)by CDR John Elnitsky, USN

Fellow Submarine Warfighters,Admittedly, I came by it honestly: the

concept that SSNs were somehow moreprestigious, more glamorous, and even better thanSSBNs. Perhaps it was the clichés most of us haveheard, “Fast Attack Tough,” “SSN: Saturdays,Sundays, and Nights,” and “Ain’t no slack in FastAttack” - as opposed to “Boomer Weenies,” “Part-time Sailors,” and “On patrol going two knots tonowhere.” Maybe it was our training pipelines thatuntil recently have been wholly SSN-centric. Eventhe Prospective Commanding Officer (PCO) courseonly recently started having SSBN PCOs embarkon a TRIDENT submarine for their underwaytorpedo firings. Out of fiscal necessity, all ourprogrammatic rhetoric justifies the SSN inventoryand leaves our junior officers with themisconception that only attack submarines areimportant.

We may have reached the point where areal dichotomy exists between SSBNs and SSNs.Are SSBNs just this other part of the SubmarineForce that we SSN purists tolerate, like F-18jockeys tolerate their helicopter pilot counterparts?Have the myths generated a potential schism?For me, these myths began on my first SSN. Onthat boat, our Commanding Officer, Navigator, andEngineer were all previous SSBN sailors, but youwouldn’t know it. They never wore their StrategicDeterrent Patrol pins and rarely discussed theirpatrol operations out of Guam. Not the SSN thingto do, I guess? The Executive Officer, who hadnever been “corrupted” by an SSBN patrol, forbadediscussions of “Boooo…ooooomers” at thewardroom table.

Later in my career, I encountered similarattitudes. A senior staff member once told me that“…not much goes on during those Trident refits.It’s sort of Sleepy Hollow down there in KingsBay.” More recently, a Captain told me how much itbothered him to see sailors in Kings Bay wearinggold patrol pins (signifying 20 SSBN patrols). Toomuch time on “boomers” doing the same old thing.And I confess that I unwittingly perpetuated someof those same myths. But I had it wrong, and ifyou are propagating that same attitude, you mayneed to reconsider.

I was fortunate to get some great adviceabout SSBN operations amidst all the sniping.Despite having served entirely on SSNs, I askedfor command of a TRIDENT and just recentlycompleted my first patrol. Having learned a lotmyself during this first operating cycle, I provide

the following perspective to help dispel some ofthe myths regarding SSBNs.

Myth #1: The SSBN force is comprised of “part time

sailors.”SSBN junior officers (JOs) will complete at

least five patrols during their first sea tours. Onaverage this amounts to only two weeks less thantheir SSN counterparts in total underway time.TRIDENT crews prepare for and execute adeployment about every 220 days. Admittedly, it’snot a six-month Mediterranean run, but thechallenges of preparation and deployment are thesame, and the cycle repeats itself more frequentlythan our current SSN Inter-Deployment TrainingCycle.

The “off-crew” period is undoubtedly themost inappropriately named portion of the cycle. Itshould really be called “off-boat” because in termsof the crew’s activity, there is nothing “off” aboutit. A former SSBN Commanding Officer once toldme that he worked his crew very hard underwayjust to be able to pass the many graded trainingsessions during off-crew. This may be a littlebackwards in priorities, but it’s somewhat truenonetheless. Because about 30% of the crew turnsover between each patrol, we must make full useof the hands-on training opportunities available atthe TRIDENT Training Facility to be ready for ourwartime mission.

The first time I watched our Battle StationsMissile Navigation Team complete the transition toreadiness for missile launch in the StrategicNavigation Lab, I realized how challenging andeffective these trainers can be. At first, Iquestioned why we ran such complex and layeredcasualties. With their multiple anomalies, thesetraining sessions make most engineering drills looklike they’re moving in slow motion, but theyprovide the hands-on training that enables us totruly practice like we will fight. This sameintensive casualty response drill is also found inthe Ship Control Trainers, Tactics Team Training,Sonar trainers, Command and Control Exercises,Piloting Lab, Mariners Skills Labs, and StrategicWeapons Labs, to name just a few.

VOLUME 7, ISSUE 2 Page 5

Myth # 2: SSBN refits are sleepy affairs requiring

little effort on the part of the ship.I had survived several pre-overseas

movement up-keeps on SSNs, so I figured howbad could an SSBN refit be? A Selected RestrictedAvailability (SRA) on steroids is the best analogyto a TRIDENT refit. In addition to correctivemaintenance, numerous incremental overhaulwork items and a host of pre-patrol tests must becompleted during each refit. The average refiteasily matches an SRA in man-hours of effort, yetit is accomplished in about half the time.

The TRIDENT Refit Facility completes a refitand gets a ship ready to deploy every two weeks.It takes active involvement of both the Blue andGold crews to complete the required maintenanceand preservation, and if they don’t hit the deckrunning and work together as a team, they quicklyfind themselves behind the power curve. In thecase of the officers, imagine an SSN junior officerwho has completed five SRAs and seen most of hisship taken apart and put back together, and youhave the equivalent of an SSBN JO’s expertise.This experience provides essential skills for thesefuture department heads.

Myth #3: SSBN operations consist of driving around

at two knots going nowhere.The increase in Modified-Alert periods, with

more flexible scheduling, has gone a long way tobreak down the myth of boring underwayoperations. During my first two weeks underwaywe acted as the opposition force for a destroyersquadron’s undersea warfare exercise, whichculminated in a night-time choke-point defenseagainst eight darkened and deceptively litwarships. It proved pretty challenging even for thisexperienced SSN sailor. We followed that evolutionwith an open-ocean submarine tracking exercisecoordinated with Maritime Patrol Aircraft. As anewly initiated strategic sailor, I didn’t think I evenneeded to be able to spell BULLPEN, much lesshave to establish one. Fortunately, our JOs weremore than up to the challenge. By the time we

began our alert patrol, I could easily haveforgotten I wasn’t on an SSN any more, if not forthe Chief of the Boat’s reminders that “This is aTRIDENT submarine, not a little boat!” Theoperations were frequent, tactically challenging,and just plain fun.

Alert patrol added a dimension to underwayoperations that I never experienced on an SSN. Inaddition to the challenges found in fast attackoperations, SSBN patrols include the requirementto maintain constant communications connectivity,missile system readiness, and navigationalaccuracy while remaining completely undetected.Couple this with externally-generated round-the-clock weapons readiness tests, “mini-war”exercises with strategic scenarios, andpreparations for the next inspection, and you havea good picture of an SSBN on alert. I found I wasconcerned about issues I never considered on anSSN, such as communications buoy operations,TACAMO aircraft reception paths, ELF connectivity,and Aguada VLF down times. Contrary to thepopular misconception that SSBN patrols areboring, my crew and I found the patrol period busyand challenging.

So are SSBN Sailors really very differentfrom our SSN brethren? Maybe we’re more justdifferently evolved than actually different. Wemaintain our ships as national assets, practicemany of the same warfighting skills, and exercisemany of the same tactics. The only real distinctionis that we’ve had to learn the additionalcomplexity of operating strategic weapon systems.I tell all my newly reporting Sailors that whatmakes SSBNs different from the ships they’veserved on before is that every time we go to sea,we’re there to execute our primary, real-worldmission. This is not a drill! In deterring the use ofweapons of mass destruction, we shoulder a heavyresponsibility in our dangerous and constantlychanging world.

If we go by current force level plans forSSNs - the schedules for new construction anddecommissioning - approximately 42% ofsubmarine commands will be on TRIDENTS by theyear 2001. You owe it to yourselves to try one andunderstand what we do. I’ll see you out there.You’ll know me. I’m the CO with the shiny newpatrol pin.

Page 6 THE DOLPHIN BROTHERHOOD

A view of the damage to San Francisco’s bow

San Francisco SagaEditor’s Note: While most of you have followed thestory of the grounding of USS San Francisco (SSN711) through other sources, it didn’t feel right tonot have anything about it in the newsletter. So, Iwanted to include some information and picturesto summarize the events of the past two months.The information included below was gathered fromvarious Navy press releases and other newsreports.

At approximately 4 p.m., January 7, HawaiiStandard Time (12 noon, January 8, Guam Time)USS San Francisco ran aground while conductingsubmerged operations approximately 350 milessouth of the island of Guam. According to reportsthe submarine was traveling at a speed around 30knots when it careened off part of an underseamountain and made a nearly instantaneousdeceleration to about 4 knots. It was only throughthe extraordinary efforts of the crew that thestricken submarine was able to reach the surface.

After the accident it was apparent that thebow of the submarine sustained heavy damage,which caused the submarine to sit deeper in thewater and made it hard to maneuver. Sailors hadto keep pumping pressurized air into the ballasttanks to maintain buoyancy. But the full extent ofthe damage wouldn’t be determined until thesubmarine returned to port.

Of 137 aboard, 98 sailors experienced someinjury, 23 were injured seriously enough that theywere unable to stand duty during the sub’s transitback to Guam, and one died of injuries. MachinistMate 2nd Class Joseph Allen Ashley of Akron, Ohiosuffered “significant trauma to the head” while hewas working in one of the ship’s engineeringspaces. He was initially listed in critical condition,but died the next afternoon.

On January 11, it was reported via e-mail

messages sent by Rear Adm. Paul F. Sullivan,Commander of the Submarine Forces in thePacific, that San Francisco’s hull was severelydamaged after the head-on crash into what wasbelieved to be an uncharted undersea mountain.

These messages painted a more direpicture of the accident than had been originallydisclosed, indicating the outer hull had been rippedopen at the submarine’s nose, causing flooding inthe sonar dome and in four of the ballast tanks.They also revealed the extensive efforts to steadythe vessel and save Petty Officer Ashley. One e-mail indicated that the Navy had tried to evacuateAshley within hours after he had been thrownforward and hit his head on a metal pump. PettyOfficer Ashley’s father, Daniel L. Ashley, said in aninterview he had been told that a helicopter hadbeen sent to evacuate his son, but in the choppyseas the submarine’s crew members could notmaneuver a stretcher carrying his son through thesubmarine’s hatches before he died.

On January 20, the commander of U.S. 7thFleet, Vice Adm. Jonathan W. Greenert, directedthat the commanding officer of USS San Francisco,Cmdr. Kevin Mooney, be reassigned pending theresults of an investigation into the sub’sgrounding. Cmdr. Andrew Hale, SubmarineSquadron 15 deputy commander, assumed theduties as commanding officer of San Francisco.

On February 12, Greenert, formally relievedCmdr. Mooney of his command of USS SanFrancisco. The decision to relieve Cmdr. Mooneywas made following Non-Judicial Punishment (NJP)proceedings held in Yokosuka, Japan. Additionally,as a result of the NJP, Mooney received a Letter ofReprimand. It was reported that during theconduct of the investigation into this incident, itbecame clear to Greenert that several criticalnavigational and voyage planning procedures werenot being implemented aboard San Francisco. Bynot ensuring these standard procedures werefollowed, Mooney hazarded his vessel.

By February 22, San Francisco, sitting in adry dock in Guam, was having its bow fitted with atwenty foot long metal dome. This, plus the repairof ballast tanks, will make the sub seaworthy, andable to make its way under its own power to a shipyard for additional repairs. The underwatercollision with a sea mount, just about destroyedthe sonar sphere in the bow. The pressure hull wasapparently not damaged, but equipment in thebow area outside the pressure hull was.

The collision was a unique event. NoAmerican sub has suffered so much damage, andsurvived. The state of the sub is being carefullystudied to determine repairs needed, and how thedesign of American subs might be modified.

VOLUME 7, ISSUE 2 Page 7

Navy Honors Sailor for Emergency SurgeryBy Steve Hartsoe, The Associated Press

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - More than 60 years ago,Wheeler Lipes performed a successful emergencyappendectomy in a submarine 120 feet below thePacific Ocean - an act that has finally earned him amedal from the Navy.

Lipes, then 23, relied on makeshiftinstruments - bent spoons for retractors andalcohol from torpedoes for sterilization. He and anassistant wore pajamas rather than operatingroom gowns.

went right after it,” said Killam, who attended themedal ceremony. Killam and Lipes reconnected afew weeks ago for the first time since the war.

Rector was back on duty in 13 days. Hedied two years later aboard a different submarine,the USS Tang, when the Tang fired a torpedo thatcircled back and struck the vessel.

Reporter George Weller of the now-defunctChicago Daily News wrote about Lipes’ underseasurgery and won a Pulitzer Prize. Several motionpictures also portrayed the feat, including onetitled “The Pharmacist’s Mate,” produced by theNavy.

Lipes said about 100 people attendedSunday’s medal ceremony.

“It was spectacular,” he said, describing theceremony in a telephone interview with TheAssociated Press. “The Navy certainly made up forthe 63 years of delay in the medal.”

Lipes received the award after Jan Herman,historian of the Navy Medical Department, beganlooking into his case.

“I found that he had never gotten any kindof recognition from the Navy,” Herman told TheDaily News of Jacksonville, N.C. Hermaninterviewed and videotaped Lipes several times forthe Navy.

The surgery wasn’t Lipes’ only harrowingexperience. He escaped death early in the warwhen the submarine USS Sealion was hit by twoJapanese bombs. He still has scars from thatattack.

Lipes, who is battling pancreatic cancer,retired to North Carolina in 2002 after a longcareer as a hospital administrator. He said he wascheered by Sunday’s ceremony.

“I certainly was privileged and honored tobe the subject of that presentation,” he said.

Wheeler Lipes and his late wife show off kitchen utensilssimilar to the ones he used during the emergency surgery.

USS Seadragon shown off

Mare Island in 1943

Though a news report on Wheeler Lipes’feat aboard the USS Seadragon amid World War IIwon a Pulitzer Prize and prompted the Navy tomake a movie about his actions, Lipes was neverhonored. Until Sunday.

“Personally, I’m not overwhelmed withawards, but I think it was important they presentthe medal because it helps to bring about someclosure of things that fall through the cracks,” hesaid.

Lipes, now 84, was awarded the NavyCommendation Medal. He said past efforts toaward him the medal failed because officialsbelieved a statute of limitations had passed.But Lipes said his patient was the courageous one.

“I always thought he was the guy who hadthe courage,” Lipes said. “I’ve asked myself,‘Would I have gotten up on that table and letsomeone do the same thing to me?’ He was one ofthe most courageous people I’ve ever met.”

The surgical environment was less thanideal: The patient, Darrel Dean Rector, was too tallto lay on the makeshift operating table, so anearby cabinet was opened and Lipes put thepatient’s feet in the drawer.

The table was bolted to the floor, so Lipeshad to stand with his knees bent throughout theoperation. After nearly two hours, Lipes removed aswollen 5-inch appendix that had several inches ofblackened tissue.

Arthur Killam, 84, who served aboard theSeadragon with Lipes, said the young pharmacists’mate never wavered during the emergencysurgery in 1942.

“Lipes said he’d seen an appendectomy onetime so he told the skipper that he could do it. He

Page 8 THE DOLPHIN BROTHERHOOD

Yacht Club members visit Cobra

At the request of Seattle Basemember Jay Davis, Karl ‘Dutch’Krompholz, Bill Giese, Cliff Nutterand Pat Householder conducted aspecial tour for about 30members of the MeydenbauerBay Yacht Club on Saturday,February 19th. Jay ‘prepped’ hisvisitors with a special Foxtrot‘quiz’ and following the tour atdinner, the members wereawarded prizes based on theaccuracy of their answers. Someof the things they saw includedthe newly dressed up Helm andnewly installed diving controlboxes, plus the newly strippedand re-stained after battery walls(photos of some of the changesare provided here). The visitorsseemed pleased and impressedwith all the complexities inherentin submarine construction.

The ‘Rusty Ruskie’ looking good

in the Seattle sunshine

The Control Room with the new bow and stern plane controls and depth gauges (shown on

the right side of the photo)

A view of the stripped and stained aft

battery passageway

VOLUME 7, ISSUE 2 Page 9

New exhibit features Trident subs, crews

and familiesBy Chris Barron, Bremerton Sun, 12 Feb 05

Natalie Griffen entered the Naval UnderseaMuseum’s new exhibit and immediately felt athome. “It looks like our living room,” she said.Griffen, the wife of a submariner on USS Alaska’sGold crew, helped the Keyport-based museum puttogether its newest exhibit, “Service & Sacrifice:The Trident Family.” The exhibit, which debutedFriday, tells about Trident submarines, their crewsand the families who support the sailors. “It’s veryemotional, just to be able to show people what wego through on a daily basis,” Griffen said. “Peopledon’t get to see it. “It’s nice to see the things thatwe experience and have in our homes areimportant to other people.”

The Naval Undersea Museum, which boastsan impressive amount of permanent exhibitschronicling Navy undersea history, is open from 10a.m. to 4 p.m. six days a week. Admission andparking are free.

The Trident exhibit mostly comprisesdonations from Bangor submarine crews and theirfamilies. From pictures of homecomings to a realbunk taken from a sub to a detailed drawingshowing the inside of a Trident, visitors will get ainside look at the world of submarines. He addedthat the exhibit, which will be on display for atleast a year, will evolve and increase over time asmore is added to the displays.

One display sitting above a shopping cartfull of groceries shows the food inventory a Tridentsub needs to complete a normal 72-day patrol.The Naval Undersea Museum at Keyport is openfrom 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. six days a week. Admissionand parking are free. The museum is closed onTuesdays.

From the Storekeeper’s ShackHere are a few items you might be interested in:

Cold War - SilentService Patch $6.00

Foxtrot Patch $4.00

Submarine – Vietnam Service Patch $4.00

If you are interested one of these patchesor any other Base Store item, you can get in touchwith Bill at the next meeting, email him atbill.giese@verizon.net, or call him at (425) 355-5590.

Also, if you are looking for somethingspecial or have any ideas of new items, let Billknow.

The National Storekeeper also has a newitem. Your very own “no parking” sign dedicated tosubmariners only. The sign is 12" x 18,” thickaluminum, and made to withstand the weather orcan be used inside your garage.

2005 Submarine Calendars are still available.

Page 10 THE DOLPHIN BROTHERHOOD

2005 Seattle Base Officers and Chairs Commander: Ric Hedman 206-335-7424

Sr. Vice Commander: Karl “Dutch” 253-631-5736Krompholz

Jr. Vice Commander: Stephen Friedley 425-806-9116

Secretary: Steve Shelton 206-526-1130

Treasurer: Jim Harper 425-357-6485

Membership Chair: Stephen Friedley 425-806-9116

Ceremonies Chair: Don Masoero 253-569-1916

Base Chaplain: Don Smith, 360-273-9416Mike Bennett 206-767-1934

Chief of the Boat: Ted Taylor 425-228-3764

Newsletter Editor: Dave Schueler 206-243-6784

Base Storekeeper: Bill Giese 425-355-5590

Webmaster: Don Smith 360-273-9416

Foxtrot COB: Dave Goodson 425-823-3507

Upcoming Meetings Mar. 16 at Redmond VFW Hall Apr. 20 at Redmond VFW Hall

Charitable Foundation OverviewThe CF is contributing $ 1,000.00 to the AshleyScholarship fund in memory of MM2(SS) JoeAshley who was killed in the USS San Franciscogrounding. Since the Convention last September,thirty-six Seattle Base members have contributed$1,628.00 to the CF. The national goal is just10.00 per member per year. Thank you,Shipmates, and well done!

“Books for Boats” ProgramThe Lockwood Internet Base started a program todonate paperback books to operating submarines,and invited other Bases to participate. SeveralSeattle Base members (Tim Floresch & PatHouseholder) collectively contributed in excess of200 paperback books for our young men serving insubmarines. Over 1,000 total paperback bookshave been collected to date from various bases.

District 9 MeetingFarragut Base is excited to host the upcomingDistrict 9 Conference to be held April 22 - 24,2005. The location will be beautiful EasternWashington/Northern Idaho at Templin’s Red LionHotel overlooking the Spokane River in Post Falls,Idaho. Plans are in the works for an interestingand fun weekend to include:

• A tour of the Naval Acoustic Research Center in Bayview, Idaho on scenic Lake Pend Oreille.

• A Friday evening social, possibly a cruise on the Spokane River or Lake Coeur d’Alene.

• A submarine birthday ball and banquet on Saturday evening to highlight the weekend.

We have negotiated a special room rate of$59.00 for standard rooms and $79.00 for riverview rooms. A block of rooms has been reservedat these discounted rates. These rates can only beguaranteed for reservations made prior to April1st, so make your plans as soon as possible. Forreservations, call 1-800-283-6754 ext. 523 andask for the USSVI group rate. We are lookingforward to a great weekend. For more informationcontact Jerry Parker at (208) 665-7805 (emaildbf487@msn.com) or Jim Dunn at (208) 683-0998(email jimandjean@jjdunn.com).

Birthday WishesHere is a list of Seattle Base member birthdays forMarch and April. Be sure to wish them a ‘HappyBirthday and many returns’ the next time you seethem, offer to buy them a drink, and see if theyremember what year they were born.

Carrol Burlingame March 8Patrick Householder March 8Robert Shirer March 12William Linn March 14Lawrence Abbott March 15Peter Berkebile March 15John McFarland March 16Ted Taylor March 25Isaac Peterson March 28Andreas Benson March 29Dennis Kerton March 29

Michael Bennett April 9Robert ‘Lem’ Riddell April 10Michael Stevenson April 11Donald Masoero April 18John Myhre April 23Eric Muller April 27Wayne Barger April 27Victor Horgan April 29Robert Keeler April 29

On the Internet:USSVI National Website: http://www.ussvi.org

Seattle Base Website: http://seattlebase.donmac.org

Ron Martini’s BBS: http://rontini.com/bbs

Don Gentry’s BBS: http://www.submarinesailor.com/forum

VOLUME 7, ISSUE 2 Page 11

A Bridge for WWII SubVets.

Last fall, Groton Base sent several letters tovarious politicians in the state of Connecticutrequesting that one of the I-95 bridges over theThames River be designated as ‘SUBVETS WWIIMemorial Bridge.’ In short although both bridgeshave signs identifying them as the Gold StarMemorial Bridge, only one has actually beennamed. Additionally, designating the bridge thisyear would be in line with this year’s 60thanniversary of the end of WWII.

On Monday, February 14 Groton BaseCommander John Carcioppolo provided testimonyat a Public Hearing in Hartford. The text of histestimony follows:

Good afternoon Chairman Ciatto, ChairmanGuerera, and members of the TransportationCommittee. My name is John Carcioppolo; I amthe Base Commander of the U.S. SubmarineVeterans with over 2400 members. My purpose isto appeal to you in support of naming one of thebridges over the Thames River as the U.S.Submarine Veterans WWII Memorial Bridge.

After Pearl Harbor the Navy turned to thesubmarine force, which had been miraculouslyspared. One commander when reporting toWashington said, “The submarines are all we haveleft.”

The submarine force immediatelycommenced unrestricted warfare against theJapanese and brought the fight right to their homewaters. Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz said, “Weshall never forget that it was our submarines thatheld the lines against the enemy while our fleetsreplaced losses and repaired wounds.”

Submariners made up less than 2% of theentire navy. Yet they sunk 201 warships, and1,113 merchant ships. More than 55% of all shipssunk. They also performed many other tasks suchas carrying ammunition to Corregidor, evacuatingthe Philippine government and all it’s gold.Attacking enemy land positions, landing spottersand raiders, rescuing downed pilots, and secretsurveillance. Submarines scouted every landingmade in the Pacific guiding invading forces to theinvasion place.

Submariners had the island of Japanisolated long before the end of the war. PresidentRoosevelt when secretly briefed on submarineoperations said, “I can only echo the words ofWinston Churchill, never have so many owed somuch to so few.”

They paid a heavy price for their successes.52 submarines were lost, with over 3500

casualties. One in five submariners neverreturned. At over 20%, it was the highestmortality rate of any U.S. service during the war.There has never been any formal recognition ortribute to the Submarine Veterans of WWII butthey certainly deserve our recognition and thenaming of this bridge would be a fitting tribute. Ascitizens of this state we owe it to the WWIIsubmarine sailors to recognize them for theiraccomplishments.

Groton Connecticut is considered thebirthplace and home of the submarine force. It isthe submarine capitol of the world. Thousands ofsubmariners were trained in Groton andsubmarines built by Electric Boat contributed to39% of all Japanese ships sunk. It is only fittingthat those that served in submarines beremembered here more than any other place onearth.

There is a sense of urgency in this request.Only an estimated 5,000 submarine veterans ofWWII are still living. The youngest of these heroesis 79. Last year over 400 shipmates were lost.That number climbs higher each year. The time forhonoring WWII submariners is now.

This summer we will honor the submarineveterans of WWII on the 60th anniversary of theend of that war. WWII veterans are referred to as“members of the greatest generation” WWIIsubmariners are the finest example of the men ofthat great generation. Wouldn’t it be spectacular ifon that anniversary if we could truly honor themby naming this bridge in their memory.

Groton and New London feel that naming ofthis bridge is a fitting tribute. I ask the state ofConnecticut to do the same.

Ladies and gentlemen - I urge you, passthe bill, join us in our ceremony and honor thesemen with the naming of this bridge as U.S.Submarine Veterans WWII Memorial Bridge.

John has said that he will keep the SubVetcommunity informed as things develop. But itwouldn’t hurt if those of you who are Connecticutresidents contacted your local Representatives andSenators to ensure that they get behind this bill.

USSVI Seattle Basec/o Ric Hedman24222 1/2 54th Ave W, Unit BMountlake Terrace, WA 98043-5545

To:

“No matter where you travel, when you meet a guy who’s been...There’s an instant kind of friendship ‘cause we’re brothers of the ‘phin.”

- Robert Reed, G.W. Carver (SSBN-656) -

with the accidental grounding of the USS SanFrancisco SSN 711 that resulted in the untimelydeath of MM2(SS) Joseph Allen Ashley. At this timethe facts are not in as to the cause of the accidentor the ultimate fate of the San Francisco.

The board is working on trying to puttogether some events trips and speakers that wehope will please the membership. If you have anyideas for programs or speakers please feel free tocontact Dutch or me with that information.

For those of you that haven’t alreadyrenewed your membership with your annual dues,I would encourage you to do so. You mightconsider taking advantage of the 2, 3 or 5-yearmembership options.

A motion has been made to amend thebylaws to roll back the Base Life Membership duesto the 2004 rate since it has not seen as necessaryrevenue item for the base. This will be voted onhopefully at our February meeting.

I hope this will be and exciting and fun yearfor all of us.

Smooth sailing.Ric Hedman

“Corner” Continued from Page 1 SUBVET Book ReminderIn the last issue of The Dolphin Brotherhood wereported that USSVI had teamed up with TurnerPublishing Company to publish a history andpictorial coffee-table book on USSVI, how U.S.Submarine Forces have played a strategic role inwinning the Cold War, and are still prowling theseas today. This is a USSVI fundraiser, with allroyalty proceeds going to the USSVI treasury.

In addition to a detailed history of the first40 years of USSVI, this commemorative book willinclude stories, photographs, and personalbiographies from you…our members! Biographiesare brief vignettes (approx. 150 words) detailingindividual military individual histories, with “thenand now” photographs. Your help is needed to tellthe complete story of submarine veterans…ourbook will be incomplete without your contributions!

A detailed brochure in being mailed to allcurrent USSVI Association members. Adownloadable copy of this brochure in PDF formatis also available on our web site at:http://www.ussvi.org/notices/Book_Project.pdf

The number of books printed will be basedupon the number of copies reserved in advance, soyou must order this limited edition publication nowto be assured of receiving a copy!