
On the Road Again - CONCORD breakaway tune from the early 80's (song will play only one time).
| Breakaway Flag |

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| Photo submitted by SM2 Rodney Cooke |
LTJG Robert Devins (71 - 74) I remember LTJG Sam Boger falling asleep on the midwatch,
while standing up! The bill to his watch cap was curled up from leaning against the window on the bridge! Also remember
throwing LTJG Scott Keeney's coffee mug over the side every time we went through the Straits of Gibraltar - Great Tradition!
HM3 Ed Dombrowski (79-83) I remember the LaSalle fire at pier 4 NOB. We "Just"
got back from Gitmo for training so we were very up on what to do. I responded with
several others in response
to the fire. It started from welding slag amidship while LaSalle was taking on fuel. Concord was moored behind
LaSalle on pier 4. I remember seeing an MS or a mess-crank opening a watertight around the 04 level and shutting it
quickly, like in a silent movie comedy. Nothing but smoke with just a hint of a orange glow. The OOD called it and we got
the P250 going and attemped to contain the fire. Someone went around the fire early to pier 5 for help. The Iwo Jima
was moored there and I was told later the Master chief on watch refused to provide us AFFF or render any other assistance,
dink. The rest of us continued to spray the foam as Concord began to ease off the pier and out in the harbor, leaving
us behind. Totaly black in smoke was the area. We had an exit to the water if needed but, to our good fortune, fire trucks
showed up; fire contained. No thanks to us on the peer. And, who was the officer who got up
in the fire for what reason, I don't know. Did he get a NAM or something for getting smoke inhalation? If anything
he was a casualty. I remember DP2 Tom Hansen was the MOOW and I think he went to the Iwo Jima for help or, perhaps he may
have been with our fire party.
RM2 Marty Soder (83-87) Lots of sea stories; mostly related to Naples and associated
night spots but a couple that come to mind from shipboard life that all of us should remember; The "bunny tube"
wars we used to have with the OS's; Sinking the buoy on the way back into Norfolk. Didn't we have a ship's Christmas
card with the #3 buoy on it? I'll never forget the time they started selling woks in the ship's store. An SK
opened a "Benny Hanna's" over Hold 3 cooking bacon!
DP3 Peter Knapp (83-86) I'll never forget the time they started selling woks in the ship's
store. An SK opened a "Benny Hanna's" over Hold 3 cooking bacon!
ET1 Danny Huff (72-76) The ETs' had refer hole for Romeo evolution of breaking
out stores for customer ships. As part of the duties (and as any good sailor would do) the products available were sampled
to insure freshness. Chuck "Boom Boom" heeler delivered about half case of gourmet apples to radio central. As he
sat'em down he noticed an officer with his back to Chuck --- just as Chuck sat them down.As Capt. Esterling turned around
to see what was going on --- Chuck reached in the case, pulling huge red apple out and offered it to the Capt.From almost
that day on --- when a long period Unrep went on -- case of apples delivered to bridge for all to eat.
SK3 J.H. Gesling (84-87)I remember the cruise of 86, I was driving a forklift on station
when that ship lost steering, we where in pretty heavy seas. That cable for unrep took off like a fishing line. The deck supervisor
told us to hit the deck becuase that cable was going to snap.
I remember Cheif Kruse, I started out in the s-2 division
running the DLR cage in hold-5, then moved to s-1 as asistant financial storekeeper I think I worked for SK1 Hamilton and
Chief Kruse, you were great to work for.
SKSN Robert Lohmann (71-75) Can't remember exactly what Med cruise it was; partying
hard in Naples I believe. Concord had to pull an emergency exit to retrieve a sailor who had a heart attack aboard a sub.
Leaving us stranded there including the Captain. Extremely long night waiting for the helos to come and retrieve us. It was
an experience I won't forget flying over the ocean for what seemed like hours with a hang over. Do it all again to see some
of my old friends.
LT Clayton Hayden (78-81)Also remember the
coup while we were in Alicante. A bunch of us were ashore hauling as many sheets into the wind as possible, and thought the
recall was a joke until reminded the second time by SP and watching the news on Spanish TV in the bar.And Geoff, I remember
the several-day approach into Palma with the worst seas I ever saw in the Med. Somewhere at home I have pictures of green
water breaking over the first M-frame. I also remember the Bosun "roping" a wild and loose forktruck by jumping
onto it after it speared through the bulkhead next to sick back.There are many days that I miss the time on Concord!
LT Peter Gregory (90-93)
Being my first
sea duty I was behind the power curve, with all the Navy traditions of breaking in the "new guy". The ship's 1st
LT (an SOB if there ever was one) had me convinced the mail-bouy watch was the most important activity any given week. So
I dressed up in my deck-gear, stood out there on the foc'sle awaiting the mail-plane to come by so I could catch the weekly
mail. I learned the ropes rather quickly from there. I could tell some tales about the old AFS-5, but best to leave those
at sea.
LT Geoff Easter (79-81)
I'll
add my two cents worth to the Alicante coup story. I was Shore Patrol officer on the night in question. I remember the Captain
calling me up to the bridge (which was unusual) and telling me that the Guardia Civil was staging a coup and that I was to
find all of you people on liberty and get you back on board safely. We did not have a vehicle to work with and we walked around
Alicante for hours that night checking bars and restaurants. Nearly wore out a pair of shoes! Some of the liberty party went
to ground so well that we didn't see them until late the next day. We listened to the Guardia firing into the air to emphasize
their curfew while we were out and about. They didn't bother us as they realized we were trying to get our people out of the
way.
Do any of you remember the mess we had going into Palma for two weeks? The OOD turned us into the troughs
to enter port about 0300 and we started taking 30 degree rolls. The mess that made took the storekeepers the whole port call
to clean up. They were not happy!
AB1 David Imlay (73-75)
I was there at that time and
it was in 1974 mede cruise. I also remember that we went fishing and we caught a ell off the fantail had some fun with it
by tying someone up on the fantail and setting the ell on him and telling him it was a electric ell. I was wondering
if
any one remembers the helicopter crash that happened off the side of the ship. Or does any one have a cruise book from 1973-1975
it is in the front of the book if someone would email me that it would mean alot. airdaledave@inbox.com . Thanks God bless all.
QM3 Chuck Totten (68-71)
Usually, as QM1, I drive during
transfers, but this time I was on deck watching. The helo picked up cargo to transfer to another ship. The helo
just fueled up and hovered over the fantail ready to pick up a full cargo net of stores. He was able to pick it up but
you knew he was in trouble. He pulled off the deck and went hard over to port, dropped the net, and landed upside down
in the water. The amazing part was that the crew was out of the bird and floating in less than 10 seconds. I couldn't
believe how fast they exited that helo. What an amazaing sight that was. Many more stories were had on the "grape".
BM3 Gary Sterner (70-72)
Please forgive me because
this was a long time ago. I don't remember if it was 1971 or 1972, but we were at the end of our "Med Cruise",
tied up at Rota, Spain counting the minutes until the USS Sylvania would arrive to relieve us. I was standing on the
fantail watching the tugboats bring Sylvania up the channel. Suddenly they start blasting away on their air horns.
The tugs have lost control and she is headed straight for us. I was frozen and couldn"t move and she slammed into
us. It was the most incredible thing I have ever personally witnessed in my life. Concord sustained very little
damage but Sylvania lost everything on their port side from the motor whale boat on back. Beside that incident, I sure had
fun during my time on board. I remember during UNREPS we flew a flag that said "Giant Open Air Supermarket"
HT2 Charles "Chuck" Thomas (77-78)
I was
on 1200-1600 watch in the log room. An SK from hold 5 came charging into the log room in a panic. Thomas! there is flooding
in Hold 5. I walked with him to the lowest level of Hold 5 and sure enough there was about an inch of water on the deck. I
reached down and tasted it. It was potable water. I walked back to the log room,opened the chart and sure enough,there was
a potable water tank below the hold. I called main control,MM2 Johnson picked up the phone. John, are you making water? Yea.
Can you shift to another tank,youre flooding hold 5? Yea,let me shift now. I said, take a little suction on the tank to bring
the water down.O.K. Tom.We hung up and I started to make the entry into the daily log. About that time,crashing through the
door comes the DCA. (LTjg William F. Barnes). A good man and a really good officer. It was obvious that he had just been awakened
from a nap. THOMAS! there is Flooding in hold 5! Yes sir,I have contacted main control and they have shifted tanks,and
are taking a suction on the tank below hold 5. THOMAS, I REALLY NEED TO KNOW THESE THINGS! Yes sir, I just didnt have time
to call you.
RM1 Lester Solomon (82-86)
After initiation to RMC,
on the way back from the med, i had to bunk with the master chief(Chick). Talk about
being nervous the way back to norfolk.
I recall one night, while we were in Ibiza spain, he came back so drunk that when he tried to take his clothes off, all his
coins went rolling about the state room. He tried to wake me up to help him find his coins at 4am, but i pretended to be asleep!
E4 Bruce Lewis (84-87)
Soooo many,
but one in particular is when we were at an unrep and the other ship lost stearing. Due to great teamwork, bridge was able
to avoid a "collision at sea". I was a phone talker. I "cranked" in the
Chiefs Mess and Master Chief Cheeks, the best CMC to date was KING. The only music that the Chiefs were "allowed"
to listen to was country music. Every now and then a Chief would have the "courage" to put in music, but not often.
Master Chief ran a tight ship! He didn't take crap from nobody, even the CO! One day a SCPO threw all of the
Chiefs ballcaps overboard because he was tired of finding them all over the place! LOL. Of course he had to replace them all.
That same SCPO retired, but within a year was returned and we had a "Burial at Sea" for him. I can't remember
his name, but sure can remember the face.
Steel beach picnics were the best! Boy, did I see the
world. I did 5 med cruises. My first port visit coming out of Indiana was RIO!!!! Need I say more. I will never, ever, ever
forget my shipmates from 84-87 and my experiences onboard the USS CONCORD (AFS-5)
HMC Joe Vitelli
The hat thing in the Chief's mess
was Senior Chief Larry Webb. A tear in my eye as I read and remembered that. At the funeral ceremony we all threw
our ball caps overboard. I can also remember Larry smoking a cigarette while doing PFT up and down ladders.
To this day if I hear the song "my bucket's got a hole in it" all I can think about is BMCM Chick and the
rest of the Chief's mess.
SKSN Gordon Meyer (90-92)
The USS Concord was the first
ship that I served on when I was in the Navy. It was a great time for me. I remember GITMO... and being there for her last
Med Tour before she was changed over to be USNS... I did not understand how much I actually missed her and the pride that
had grown in me until I was on my second ship, USS Inchon (LPH-12) in the Med and there she was... The USNS Conord sailing
out there in the open water. Seeing her steam along actually brought tears to my eyes and somehow I understood that was the
last time that I would actually get the chance to see her in my life. I am sure that I will not see her again but I am never
going to forget the pride and love that I have for her and all of my shipmates.
SKSN James Gollinger (73-75)
I remember our training at the GITMO base
in cuba. One afternoon a small group of sailors were fishing while
the ship was tied up in port. There were two members
of the crew from American Somoa aboard who caught a fish and began to eat it while the fish was still alive! This caused quite
a reaction and to put the icing on the cake they asked if anyone had any salt as they said "it tastes better with salt."
YN3 Gannon (79-83)
Hey DP3 Johnson, you are right it was a military coup in
Alicante Spain, I was out there with, MM2 Armando Gomez,SN James Brown, PN3 Frank Vinas and MM3 David Karue. We were also
told to get back to the ship by SP. But instead we chose to go into another bar (typical huh). When we left that bar,"
after being told to report back to ship for the second time", We were approched by three Alicante Soldiers and were asked
for our ID's. SN Brown told them to go to hell and one of the soldier reached back and slapped him across the face. We
all produced our ID's real quick after that. After they told us to leave we ran back to the ship as fast as we could..
As for the hash that was stolen. Some one had gone over the false celing from the T&E room into the MA's office
cut the hasp off the safe with a portable cutting torch put the torch in a trash can and tossed the torch over the Aft part
of the ship but left the trash can there. When I went to open the MA's office the next morning I noticed the the lock
cut and notified MAC Zinchuck.
P.S The Hash was found on the Helo deck by an Airman frrom the Helo Det. and
was turned in the night before.
MM3 Tom Barron (68-69)
CONCORD was the first ship to have the
AOS system on her main engine. The idea, (I surmise) was to eliminate the need for an E-2 to run around and do readings. So
... the thing didn't work worth a damn. Instead, it took three electronics (E-4's and 5's) to take care of this
magic box. The computers back when Concord was built were kind of primitive. Each seperate gague being read required it's
own card.. which set back the government something like three hundred bucks a pop. And pop they did. Every single watch I
ever stood in the engine room, the teletype (and IBM selectric typewriter) would start chattering out and if it wasn't
just a single alert, it would keep typing and the SOP was to reach over and shut it off. The cards, when they'd go bad,
would cascade the whole system and it would all go into alert status.
We were down in Gitmo undergoing shake down training
and I was a talker. We had the IBM and were ignoring it, but for some reason, I looked down and there was a number out that
I didn't recognize and it turned out we hadn't turned the lube oil cooler on to one of the ship's service generators.
Hmm.. pointed it out to the engineering officer and we had to stop our drill and do the real casuality.
Well, we got
through Gitmo, but with less than flying colors. Matter of fact, they passed us, but ..
We got back to Norfolk and
had acceptance and other engineering trials. One of the engineering officers asked, "How in the hell did you ever get
this plant through Gitmo?" I shrugged. "Well, every time we had a casuality control drill, we'd have a real
emergency and I guess they figured we didn't kill anyone steaming it and so we kinda deserved a break." He gave me
this 'what the hell' look, and just then the alarm went off and I checked it and yeah, another damn card fried. He
just shook his head.
Not fun getting that thing to steam in the early days. I'd come up for lunch and find out
it was mid rats. Sixteen, eighteen hour days were the norm. Always wondered what they ever did with that piece of garbage
system we had to live with.
FTG1 Wayne Hostilo (73-77)
We had
just entered the Med and were independent steaming toward Naples to start our tour. I'm guessing this was 74 or 75 but
it's been a while. The mid watch had just set when all of a sudden we went to GQ for a man overboard. The fantail watch
reported hearing a man screaming from the water. The ship came to all stop and we lowered the whaleboat. It took about an
hour but they located the man and brought him back on board. Within minutes the ship was enveloped in pea soup fog. We were
over 90 miles off the coast of Spain. the story gets better because the sailor reported he was thrown overboard by unknown
assailants as he climbed the athwart-ships ladder on the way up to the mess decks to catch some midrats! Only a few in the
crew knew the whole story but the CO placed the sailor under 24hr watch and as you know we didn't have a brig so we used
sickbay. The reason I know this is because D3 Division got the job of standing watch on him until we reached Naples!
P.S. Scuttlebutt was he was a NARC as in those days drugs were quite a problem on our
ships. At any rate, once we hit Naples he was escorted off the ship never to be seen again. The angels were watching out for
that guy!
ET1 Danny Huff (72-76)
The
guy that got thrown overboard was either and OS2 or RM2 (can't remember which)and it was 25miles off coast of Malaga, Spain.
He was wearing combat boots and wasn't able to swim and undo the strings. The resue motor whale boat had actually given
up finding him and was returning to the ship (due to extremely heavy fog rolling in). The next AM the ship pulled into
Malaga with NIS agents getting onboard prior to arrival. At some point lie-detectors and interviews were given to several
and one guy was sent to Naples for further interviewing.
One funny little ditty. We were leaving The Isle
of Rhodes (I had OOD watch). Just after the last liberty boat returned --- sailor got off, went back to flight
deck, and proceeded to dive off. His was souped on the drink. The recovery group just about broke every bone in
his body during and after his recovery. Once back abroad he was handcuffed (four points) to bunk in sick bay.
SK1/SKC Dan Kruse (83-86): You may recall that there was always a giant sweat-x over the cookies
that had to go in the billing package. The same was true the day of the New Jersey engagement. But when the NJ
CO decided he wouldn't come alongside, Capt. Dougherty got P O'd and insisted that the cookies be removed... Can't
remember if he and the bridge crew ate them or if we had a spare box in stock control.
DP3 Darryl Johnson (79-82):
The place; Alicante, Spain. I was on liberty with a shipmate (can't
remember his name) but we had just gotten a bottle of rum and a military coup happened. Well, shore patrol was telling everyone
to head back to the ship. We proceeded to find a place to down our bottle of rum expecting to see troops or tanks rumbling
through Alicante. After the bottle we were walking along and the shore patrol party saw us again and yelled after us as we
took off running. My buddy fell down, but I got away, or so I thought. LCDR Bender, whom I had worked with in the helo tower
durning VERTREP, happened to be cruising around in a car and offered me a ride. I was probably pretty lit. I proceeded to
accept his offer and I guess I told him what had transpired. Well I ended up explaining the whole story again in a much more
sober state at XO screening with the XO reprimanding me for eluding shore patrol and sternly telling me to get a haircut (the
'fro was a bit 'Linkish) before dismissing me and the charges. (Whew!)
EM3 Kevin Canney (79-83):
I have got so many stories, I'm not sure which ones
I should tell and which ones not. Let's throw out a few headlines and see what everyone remembers!
By the way Darryl I think it was Barcelona, and we heard machine gun fire...and
I did not fall down!!!!
Anyway...Atlantic
crossing, Portugese sailor nearly cut in half helo transported to the Concord and the doc performed emergency surgery, in
that little sickbay!!!
Rock
apes (not Deck) in Gibralter stealing and biting everyone (thing) in sight! Fantail frolic where that yeoman dressed in a pink tutu and did a little dance. Helo'd
off the next day!
Heavy seas
in the Med 30-40 degree rolls, all fork trucks break loose and start smashing everything in sight, a JP-5 line crushed nearly
cause an explosion HT1 Hoole lasso's them down and saves the day.
On our way back to States, big Hash package found and locked tightly in MAA's office. When
hit Norfolk, NIS boards and someone had re-stolen it.
Fire
on the Pier; welding accident on large white ship (USS Lasalle) in front of us. I just happened to be on duty (fire team);several
of us end up in hospital for smoke inhalation. Got more but not
enough time,
BT3 Herbert Ainsworth (81-85)
Kevin, Darryl is right, it was Alicante. We were
all in that little bar and the National Police came in and started running everyone out. There was a lot of machine gun fire
that day. No one knew for sure what was going on for a while there! That was my first Med cruise. The rest were just as memorable.
I can still see the Lasalle burning when I stop and think about it. That was one of the hottest fires I had ever been near.
Oh, by the way Kevin, you did fall down!!!
FTG1 Wayne Hostilo (73-77):
In 1975 we set
sail for Concord MA with the idea of supporting the July fourth celebration commemorating the 'Shot Heard Round the
World' starting the American Revolution on Concord Bridge. In preparation for that trip we formed a marching division,
if you can imagine, and each day we would march up and down pier #6 at Norfolk NOB. What a mess. Everytime I see 'Animal
House' and those guys crashing into the wall I think of our marching ability. The XO finally gave up and reported to the
old man we were as ready as we'd ever be. We got underway and headed out to the mid Atlantic for exercises before turning
to the North West. Only problem was by the time we made the turn were in the teeth of a Cat 3 hurricane. We steamed at full
speed for three days and made about three knots of headway. We had green water over the bow and the weather decks were secure
but being an FT we would always have to get up on the 05 level and check out our gun directors. I remember very clearly having to lean into the wind at greater than a 45 degree angle to make any headway. The
boat pitched so deeply that you could go forward near the bos'n locker on the cargo deck and jump a foot or two in the
air and the boat would drop from under you and we'd fly through the air like supermen. After a valiant attempt to make
port the skipper gave up and we turned away from the storm and we just happened to be a hundred miles East of the 'Big
Apple'. We got three wonderful days there and it made all the marching and drills and sea sickness worthwhile.
ET1 Danny Huff (72-76):
To amplify on the 1975 event of going to Concord,MA. The the rear magnetic compass was destroyed when a huge reel
of rope broke away. After the compass -- the reel went off the starboard side of ship heavily damaging the motor whale boat. The
fantail watch either got his back broken or badly hurt --- due to ship direction being turned around in 30-35foot seas.
The damm thing just about turned over!! Worst seas I was in while aboard (in almost 4years -- was only in Norfolk, VA for
little over 3full months).
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