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The USS Peleliu is being decommissioned.

Discussion in 'Military History' started by A-58, Jan 18, 2015.

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  1. Carronade

    Carronade Ace

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    CIC Officer, 1980-82. Stood watch as TAO or OOD. Didn't get to spend much time in the engineering spaces; now I wish I'd had more.
     
    Carronade, Jun 19, 2018
    #61
  2. OpanaPointer

    OpanaPointer I Point at Opana Staff Member WW2|ORG Editor

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    "Shipmates that pass in the night". CIC was too nose-bleed for me. They did haul me out of the starboard shaft alley in a stokes litter once. Pin holding the reduction gear in lock broke and wheeeeeee into a bulkhead. Still not really sure how long I was out of it.
     
    OpanaPointer, Jun 19, 2018
    #62
    CAC likes this.
  3. USMCPrice

    USMCPrice Idiot at Large

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    Small world, I did a WestPac on Peleliu, in 1982. Supposedly it was her first deployment.
     
    USMCPrice, Jun 19, 2018
    #63
  4. CAC

    CAC Ace of Spades

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    Good story, can see that in my mind...someone would have been "keel hauled" (look at me trying to sound navy) for that wouldn't they?
     
    CAC, Jun 19, 2018
    #64
  5. OpanaPointer

    OpanaPointer I Point at Opana Staff Member WW2|ORG Editor

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    Meh, defective pin trying to restrain a 16' 6" screw while the other one is doing max turns to keep us up with the group. Lost a spring bearing when the oil drained out of the sump "for some reason". I had a hell of a headache and saw double for a few days.
     
    OpanaPointer, Jun 20, 2018
    #65
  6. Carronade

    Carronade Ace

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    Glad you're o.k! As I said I didn't have much involvement with the engineering plant, but I understand that class had some problems. I do recall waking up in the middle of the night a few times with everything dark and silent.... When I got home after a deployment, in February, I had to run an air conditioner in my bedroom because the quiet would wake me up!
     
    Carronade, Jun 21, 2018
    #66
  7. OpanaPointer

    OpanaPointer I Point at Opana Staff Member WW2|ORG Editor

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    The plants were supposed to be automated, so two men could run them from the control booth. Guess what. As I understand it they were removing the automation gear from LHA-1 while LHA-3 was waiting to have her turn at the downgrade and LHA-5 was having the exact same proven-to-have-failed gear installed on her in the builder's yards. The two-man watch section became eleven men, and sometimes that was not enough. I remember grabbing the squawker once and saying TOPWATCHLOWERLEVELLOSTNUMBERTWOALPHAMAINCONDENSATEPUMPSTARTINGTWOBRAVO. The pump was trying to chase me around the lower level. 785 pound motor on that puppy.

    I ran casualty control drills even after I transferred to A-Gang, and I can tell you no two men on the planet could have handled most of those situations alone, especially from the control booth. The tech might exist today, but it didn't when they built those ships.
     
    OpanaPointer, Jun 21, 2018
    #67
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