Tailhook Daily Briefing

CAPT John E. "Jack" Taylor, USN-Ret.

With the neck down in platforms, officer accession and student naval aviator (SNA) training pipelines, there is a certain homogenization characterizing Naval Aviation today. Not that that is all bad mind you, especially when one considers the reduction in mishap rates and capabilities today's anchor-winged warriors bring to the fight. Still, for those of us who had the opportunity to train, fly and fight with those who entered in the 40's - 60's we had the fortune of knowing some real characters and, occasionally, some real pioneers and pillars of the community. For that was a period of interesting, challenging and oft times, awkward growth as Naval Aviation moved past the breakout period of WWII and through the early days of the jet age to arrive at the version more recognizable today, repleat with super carriers and supersonic fighters. Getting to that point, however, required a distinct breed of aviator, formed in a time before NATOPS, honed on the small decks of 27C's and the early "supercarriers" of the Forrestal class CVA, with new missions and (then) leading edge technology to master and fight with.

One of the signature aircraft of that period was the A3D/A-3 Skywarrior, aka "Whale." Originally designed to be the Navy's contribution to long-range nuclear strikes, the Whale eventually morphed through a number of other platform variations and missions -- tanking, photo-recce, ELINT, electronic warfare, DV hauling, and the like. It was at once a typical life that the Whale led, compared to some of its contemporaries (viz., AD/A-1 Skyraider and F3D Skynight) - yet it outlived all those and many of the more modern and specialized aircraft that followed.

Like their aircraft, the men who worked on and flew the Whale were (are) of a particular bent and were central in establishing the tenor and tone of that era. Today, courtesy Andy Niemyer (A-3 Skywarrior Association) we learn of the passing of a true pioneer and pillar of the VQ community from that era - and Naval Aviation Pilot, CAPT John E. Taylor, USN-Ret:

Former VFP-62 CO and DFC Recipient, CAPT William Ecker, USN-Ret Passes Away

On Oct. 19, 1962, the Pentagon’s Bureau of Aeronautics contacted Koch while he and Ecker were fishing in Orange Park, Fla. The bureau had a top-security mission in mind. “They called up and said, ‘Can you really take pictures this good?’ ” Ecker recalled. “We said not only ‘yes’ but ‘hell yes.’ ” A few days later, Ecker got his assignment to fly over Cuba. Ecker and the pilot of a plane that flew just off his starboard wing were assigned to photograph a suspected missile site at San Cristobal. After the Havana skyline appeared, Ecker banked to the west, flying right over a fleet of Cuban trawlers.

Despite that warning, the jets proved too fast for Cuban air-defense gunners. The flight time over Cuba totaled only 4 minutes. “You could see the popcorn in your mirrors,” Ecker said, referring to the white puffs of smoke left by anti-aircraft fire. “But we never got hit.” One of the jet’s photos even captured a soldier scrambling from an outhouse. More importantly, the photos also showed soldiers conducting activities around missile bases.

“Then it got kind of hectic,” Ecker recalled. “We were flying right into the granddaddy of all thunderstorms. We’re talking a wall of clouds rising to 50,000, 60,000 feet. “Here I’ve got the pictures, and if the airplane gets busted all to pieces, it wouldn’t do anybody any good,” Ecker said. At the last second, Ecker saw a jet-sized hole open up in the clouds. “It was just a sunspot,” he said. “I said, ‘Burners, now!’ We popped out the top.”

On November 5th, 2009 CAPT William Ecker, USN-Ret passed away at the age of 85 near his home in Punta Gorda, Florida. Born in Omaha, Nebraska, he joined the Navy in October 1942 and completed fight training in April 1944. From there he was assigned to VF-10, embarked in USS Intrepid (CV-11) and flew combat operations in the Pacific Theater until he left the squadron in November 1945. A series of assignments at sea and ashore stretched through the following decade until he reported for duty in Research & Development at the Bureau of Aeronautics and Bureau of Naval Weapons from 1958 to 1961. After that he reported to VFP-62 as the Commanding Officer where he played a critical role in leading the first and subsequent low-level reconnaissance missions over Cuba to confirm the presence of medium-range ballistic missiles emplaced by the Soviet Union. He was awarded the DFC and VFP-62, the first peacetime Presidential Unit Citation in a ceremony attended by President Kennedy.

Following VFP-62, Captain Ecker became the Head of Naval Photography and Reconnaissance in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations until he was ordered to the Naval War College in 1966. While at the Naval War College, he received his Master of Science degree and after language training, he reported to the Military Assistance Advisory Group, Denmark, as Chief, Navy Section.

He commanded the Naval Air Technical Training Unit, which included the Naval Schools of Photography, for one year before being ordered to report to the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations in September 1971. From there, he retired in 1974.

(h/t Msgt Tony Tang USMC Retired for bringing it to my attention)

Ghosts of Naval Air

I thought I dedicate this Halloween post to a little paranormal in our Aviation Navy.  Most Tailhookers are not too concerned with ‘Things that go bump in the night”… cuz usually it’s us!

However there are a number of haunting tales told about sightings of strange humanesque shapes walking the passageways of long retired flattops like the Oriskany, the Midway and many others.  However probably the most famous Ghost of an Aircraft Carrier is “Charly” the well mannered, well dressed former sailor of the USS Lexington who perished in a Kamikaze attack on Halloween night 1944 off the coast of the Philippines   .

[Charly]  - a white-uniformed, blue-eyed young seaman who has been known to tell the tales of the ship to museum visitors who have come to tour her. Only this tour guide is a ghost.

Staff of the floating museum call him "Charly". Visitors have often called him helpful. But whatever you call him, the neatly-dressed sailor in white is not part of the museum staff, but reportedly  a former crew member that simply failed to depart the ship after giving up his life…

On a Corpus Christi Caller-Times web site, as many as 200 visitors to the museum have reported encounters with Charly. Without exception, the reports indicate the ghostly seaman is a "polite young man" that seems to share a great deal of information about the Lexington's engine room far below deck.

[More here]

Charly is rumored to primarily frequent the engine spaces and the lower decks of the ship known to the Japanese as “The Gray Ghost” (due to the Japanese, having mistakenly thought they had sunk her no fewer than four times, yet she kept returning).

Charly has become so much of an accepted part of the Lexington’s lore that even a web cam has been installed in the engine spaces.  In one now infamous image taken by this camera, one can possibly make out what appears to be a crewman standing in space.

 

Many visitors to the ship claim to this day feeling the presence of numerous spirits as they tour the decks.

Visitors say they feel a cold chill when they pass the room and one claimed to have seen something moving around in the darkness of the empty engine room. Another said he saw the engineer’s ghost looking intently at the engine as though trying to fix something.

Others have told stories of feeling something hurriedly push past them, hearing footsteps in the halls, being in the bathroom when the lights turned on and off by themselves and being in bed and feeling the covers beging tugged off them.

Recently, some cadets were staying overnight on the USS Lexington. They got up during the night and ran around the ship on a dare. Running through the engine room, they came face to face with the ghost of the dead crewman.

I’ll leave you all with that image, wishing you all a fun, safe, and Happy Halloween!

If you have any navy ghost stories you’d like to share please feel free to add them to the comments, just click “Comment” below and have at it.

Ginger Ramage… “It was ALL a highlight”

It is with collective heavy heart we have to share the sad news of the passing of Ginger Ramage.

RADM James “Jig Dog” Ramage is a well known and highly respected member of the Tailhook Association, equally revered in our history is his lovely bride, Ginger. 

Ginger epitomized the “Navy Wife”, loyal, dedicated, strong, humorous, passionate, independent, and generous. For 45 years James and Ginger stood together taking care of our navy, our navy’s sailors and our navy’s history.  And for many more years shared their love for us here at Tailhook and at the Association of Naval Aviation which he co-founded.

Upon hearing the news there was a collective gasp from all in attendance at the Awards Luncheon named in Jig Dog’s honor, we were all saddened and immediately reminded of the strength our spouses provide to all of us in this great community.  Our hearts, and prayers go out to all who knew Ginger she will be missed dearly, and remembered fondly by all of us in Tailhook.

Our prayers especially go out to “Jig Dog,’ please know you are certainly not alone in your grieving, we will miss Ginger’s smiling eyes and laughing spirit.  We thank you for allowing us all to get to know Ginger these many years.

Upon hearing this sad news, I was reminded of last year’s Hook, when Kathy Schmoldt sent me an email detailing her interaction with Jig Dog and Ginger republished below.

"Jig Dog" for whom the awards luncheon is named for, and his beautiful wife Ginger were sitting next to the registration desk after they walked every aisle of the booths. I asked if I could take their picture and they both just beamed.  And they stated that they were more than happy to share information for the Daily Briefing.

I asked him, "What was the highlight of your career?"

And with no adjectives verbs or anything, he rattled this off:

"Commanding Officer of Bombing 10 USS Enterprise, Battle of Philippines Sea June 19 & 20, 1944!"

Kathy continues...

I then asked Ginger, what was the highlight of her "career?"

She smiled slyly and said, "It was ALL a highlight!"

They were married in Rome in 1964 where he said that culture's 'rules' were:
#1  Husband was head of household
#2  Everything owned was the husband's
#3  Everywhere he went, she went

I thanked him for his service to our country and with a humble smile, he nodded at me.  Then I thanked her for her service, too. She said, "Oh, I was just in it for the paycheck !"

Not to let that go... "Jig Dog" was quick to point out, "And she got 100% of it!"

They both exuded sunshine with their giggles and smiles and adoration for each other.

I explained once more that this could possibly be posted on the Internet, to which she said, "Oh, we have nothing to hide in our lives."  He quickly interjected, "Maybe not in YOUR life..."

We are all better people for having known Ginger.  She will be missed.

God Bless you Ginger, thank you.

June 4th, 1942

Pause...

Ponder...
Remember...

Honor...
 

From these honored aviators, Marines and Sailors - those departed and the few left with us, we draw our heritage...our ethos. 

May they and their actions this day never be forgotten.  And from their stand, may we evermore draw strength.
- SJS

USS Stockdale Commissioned

Today a Hero to not only Naval Aviation but to a Grateful Nation was honored.  The USS James Stockdale (DDG 106) the Navy’s latest Arleigh Burke class destroyer was commissioned at Naval Base Ventura County Port Hueneme.

Most all of us in the Tailhook community are very well aware of the legacy this man represents.  But his philosophical foundations could easily benefit all.

From the Ships Biography:

On September 9, 1965, then-Commander Stockdale catapulted his A-4E Skyhawk off the flight deck of the U.S.S. Oriskany on what turned out to be his final mission over North Vietnam .  Approaching his target, his plane was riddled with anti-aircraft fire.  Within seconds, his engine was aflame and all hydraulic control was gone.  He "punched out," watching his plane slam into a rice paddy and explode in a fireball.  Stockdale himself best describes what happened next:

"As I ejected from the plane I broke a bone in my back, but that was only the beginning.  I landed in the streets of a small village.  A thundering herd was coming down on me.  They were going to defend the honor of their town.  It was the quarterback sack of the century."

They tore off his clothes and beat him mercilessly.  Stockdale suffered a broken leg and paralyzed arm before a military policeman took him into custody.  He was now a prisoner of war, the highest ranking naval officer to be held as a POW in Vietnam.

     Stockdale wound up in Hoa Lo Prison - the infamous " Hanoi Hilton" -- where he spent the next seven and a half years under unimaginably brutal conditions. He was physically tortured no fewer than 15 times.  Techniques included beatings, whippings, and near-asphyxiation with ropes.  Mental torture was incessant.  He was kept in solitary confinement, in total darkness, for four years, chained in heavy, abrasive leg irons for two years, malnourished due to a starvation diet, denied medical care, and deprived of letters from home in violation of the Geneva Convention.

     Through it all, Stockdale's captors held out the promise of better treatment if he would only admit that the United States was engaging in criminal behavior against the Vietnamese people, but Stockdale refused.  Drawing strength from principles of stoic philosophy, Stockdale heroically resisted. His courage was an inspiration to his fellow POWs, with whom he communicated in an ingenious code, maintaining unit cohesion and morale.  His jailers increased the level of torture, so Stockdale determined to fight back in the only way he could.

     Told that he was to be taken "downtown" and paraded in front of foreign journalists, Stockdale slashed his scalp with a razor and beat himself in the face with a wooden stool.  He reasoned that his captors would not dare display a prisoner who appeared to have been beaten.  When he learned that his fellow prisoners were dying under torture, he slashed his wrists to show their captors that he preferred death to submission.  Stockdale literally gambled with his life, and won. Convinced of Stockdale's determination to die rather than cooperate, the Communists ceased trying to extract bogus "confessions" from him.  The torture of American prisoners ended, and treatment of all American POWs improved.  Upon his release in 1973, Stockdale's extraordinary heroism became widely known, and he received the Congressional Medal of Honor in the nation's bicentennial year.  He was one of the most highly decorated officers in the history of the Navy, with 26 personal combat decorations, including four Silver Star medals in addition to the Medal of Honor.

 

Throughout Stockdale's captivity, his wife Sybil campaigned for respectful treatment for the families of all POWs by founding the League of Families. Sybil Stockdale was presented with the U.S. Navy Department's Distinguished Public Service Award by the Chief of Naval Operations. She is the only wife of an active-duty officer ever to be so honored.

After serving as the President of the Naval War College, Stockdale retired from the Navy in 1978 and embarked on a distinguished academic career, including a term as President of the Citadel, and 15 years as a Senior Research Fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution. In 1992 he graciously agreed to a request from his old friend H. Ross Perot to stand with Perot as the vice presidential candidate of the Reform Party, and throughout the campaign he comported himself with the same integrity and dignity that marked his entire career. Together, the Stockdales told their story in a joint memoir, In Love and War. Admiral Stockdale and his wife lived quietly on Coronado Island, off of San Diego, until his death in 2005.

Admiral Stockdale, legacy provides for much more than a story of angst and management of desperate times, these are not what made him the leader he was.  It is what Admiral Stockdale learned from these times, and how he applied the test of these experiences to formulate the principles of Leadership he could then share with other future leaders in the US Military as well as civilian world.  Admiral Stockdale provides us with the following guiding principle:

"The challenge of education is not to prepare a person for success, but to prepare him for failure." It is in disaster, not success, that the heroes and the bums really get sorted out.

Admiral Stockdale is known in the Navy as the Fighter Pilot Philosopher, and a truer moniker could not be applied.  His teaching at Stanford and the War College have prepared many a student in the better ways to deal with life’s unexpected events rather than the expected.

The Stoics said that "Character is fate." What I am saying is that in my life, education has been fate. I became what I learned, or maybe I should say I became the distillation of what fascinated me most as I learned it. Only three years after I left graduate school, I participated in the refounding of my own civilization after doom's day, when the giant doors of an Old World dungeon had slammed shut and locked me and a couple hundred other Americans in--in total silence, in solitary confinement, in leg irons, in blindfolds for weeks at a time, in antiquity, in a political prison.

Stockdale encouraged us all to “Become Educated” both for our selves and for those we affect, having the tools to manage and experience our lives, not just live them.  Most importantly to have full understanding that our pursuits should always be grounded in the "Foundations of Moral Obligations!”

If you do not fully understand what Admiral Stockdale was onto here, and most (I would go out on a limb and state…) do not… I would highly recommend reading the Scholarly Article  “In War, In Prison, In Antiquity” and then you may choose to also brush up on the capabilities of the “Stoic” in today’s modern warfare and leadership environments.  They ring more true today than ever.

The Reading list:

1. The Stoic Warrior's Triad: Tranquility, Fearlessness and Freedom
2. Master of My Fate: A Stoic Philosopher in a Hanoi Prison
3. The Enchiridion (by Epictetus)

Today a crew begins to serve our nation on a ship that will proudly bear the name USS Stockdale, our blessing is on this ship and all that sail her, do us proud, do Admiral James Bond Stockdale proud, and most importantly, do yourself proud!  Welcome to the fleet USS Stockdale!

Fair Winds and Following Seas USS Stockdale!

More on the USS Stockdale here USS Stockdale DDG-106 Home Page

Ban on Media Photographs of Flag Draped Coffins Lifted

In a move that is sure to meet with adulation from certain political circles and outrage from others, the Obama Administration continues its string of Reversing Bush Administrations military policies.  The latest being the Media Ban on photographing Flag Draped Coffins of those Sailors, Marines, Airmen and Soldiers on their final journey.

Reuters:

Pentagon to allow pictures of flag-draped coffins

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Pentagon will relax its ban on media coverage of returning U.S. war dead by allowing families to decide whether to allow photos and television footage of the flag-draped coffins of their loved ones, Defence Secretary Robert Gates said on Thursday.

Gates ordered the change after reviewing a 1991 ban that prevents news organizations from recording images of war dead arriving at Dover Air Force Base in Delaware, where the Pentagon has its main mortuary.

"If the family of one of the fallen says that they do not want media coverage ... then that will be the decision. There will be no media decision. If they say that's OK with them, then it will be available," Gates told reporters at a Pentagon briefing.

…The ban has been imposed since the days of the first Gulf War with some exceptions including the return of Navy seamen killed during the attack on the USS Cole in October 2000.

But former President George W. Bush asserted a stricter ban during the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, sparking criticism that the federal government was hiding the human cost of its military operations.

Gates, who was also Pentagon chief in the final years of the Bush administration, said he first asked about changing the policy over a year ago. But Pentagon officials advised him that the ban should be retained to protect family privacy.

President Barack Obama asked for a policy review early this month and Gates said that drew a call for change from the U.S. Army, which represents the largest portion of war dead.

"My conclusion was that we should not presume to make the decision for the families," Gates said.

This opens a number of logistics questions relating to said and implied permissions, and who exactly has legal authority to grant permission? 

One has to ask, who is to benefit of lifting this ban?

Tailhook Mourns the Loss of Capt. Johnny "Turk" Green

It is with heavy heart we at Tailhook note the loss of Captain Johnny "Turk" Green.  We learned yesterday of Turk's passing after his continuing battle against cancer that had returned in May.

 

From LCDR Kevin "Proton" McLaughlin (Strike Force Colorado):

It is with profound sadness that I pass along to you the death of CAPT Johnny "Turk" Green last night. As many of you know, his cancer returned in early May and despite numerous (and sometimes radical) attempts to beat it back, he ultimately succumbed to it last evening with his family by his side. He and Barb made the decision in early September to go on hospice care and try to enjoy the remaining time he had left, but I don't think anyone could have anticipated the speed at which the cancer would take him. Beloved by all, he and Barb were celebrated two weeks ago in DC by hundreds in a crowd that included both ADMs Keating and Willard. The presence of so many great Americans was a true to testament to an incredible aviator, officer, and man.

Please keep Barb and the Green family in your thoughts and prayers and I will pass along more information about services as I get it.

VR,

Proton

And from Andrew Bahjat,

The only two words to adequately describe Turk Green are "Man-God". He was a Naval Aviator and aircraft carrier commander straight out of central casting. He looked and sounded the part and he was a LEADER! If you were in the Navy, he was who you wanted on your wing or commanding your carrier when you were in 'Indian country...if you were a civilian, you slept better, knowing that men like Turk Green were in command of the most powerful ships in the world out on the tip of the spear, at the edge of the empire, defending this nation and inspiring younger officers and sailors. He was the best of Naval Aviation. We are all blessed to have known him.

VR/WR,

Baghdad

To Barb and all of Turk's family and friends we offer our deepest sympathies for your great loss, all of our loss.  We thank you for sharing him with all of us for all these years!

God Bless...

More over at Lex's place too: [Link]

Tailhook Bids Farewell to One of Our Founding Members... Captain Robert M. "Bob" Elder

It is with heavy heart I report the following sad news, one of Tailhook's founding members, Captain Bob Elder has passed...

Captain Robert M. Elder, USN (Ret) passed way on 12 September 2008. He is survived by his wife Irene of Palos Verde Estates, CA.

Bob joined the Navy in June 1940, completed flight training in April 1941, and was commissioned Ensign on 15 May 1941. His first assignment was with Bombing Squadron 3 on board USS Saratoga (CV-3) out of San Diego. His combat experience during WWII began at the outbreak of hostilities on 7 December 1941 and included involvement in every major carrier engagement in the Pacific Theater through September 1943. He flew missions from USS Saratoga (CV-3), Yorktown (CV-5), and Enterprise (CV-6). Bob was back in combat during the Korean War as Commanding Officer of VF-191 in 1953, flying the F9F-6 Cougar from the USS Oriskany (CVA-34). For his combat missions flown in both wars, Bob Elder's awards included two Navy Crosses and the Distinguished Flying Cross.

From the F8F Bearcat era and into the 1960's, Bob Elder was recognized throughout Naval Aviation for his expertise in test and development of flying qualities, performance, carrier suitability, and in-flight refueling of Navy tactical aircraft. He was among the first Naval Aviators to fly jet aircraft, beginning with the Bell YP-80 and ME-262, and was a pioneer in the introduction of the first operational jet -- the FJ-1 Fury -- into Naval Aviation. Bob Elder's "firsts" in the test and development of naval aircraft were numerous. His contributions to the conception of the F/A-18 Hornet were his legacy to the United States Navy. Over his career as a Naval Aviator, Bob piloted 142 different types of aircraft, was carrier-landing qualified in 34 types, onboard 28 different aircraft carriers.

In 1964, Bob Elder was selected as the Tailhook Association's award as Tailhook Aviator of the Year. In 1973 he was elected as the President of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots. In 1990, he was enshrined in the Carrier Aviation Test Pilot Hall of Honor.

During Captain Elder's 24 year Navy career, he served notably as Director of Flight Test, Patuxent River, and as commanding officer of a fighter squadron, an air group, and the aircraft carrier USS Coral Sea (CV-43). He retired from active duty on 1 January 1964.

We have lost a true Naval Aviation hero and leader. He will be missed.

Sad Regards,

Harry Blot - Pilot

All at Tailhook, wish Bob's friends and family our deepest respects and sincerest thanks for having the opportunity to have Bob touch our lives and enrich our history.  He will be missed... But NOT forgotten. 

For more on Bob Elder's service I draw your attention to an earlier Tailhook article written for the pages of "The Hook" by the great Naval Aviation historian and writer Barrett Tillman (Click the page below to open the PDF)

 

Farewell Bob...

We take comfort in knowing that Jeremy was living his life’s dream flying with VFA-15, the Valions

These were the words offered by Lt. Jeremy S. Wise's family after learning of the tragic death of Jeremy in a training accident on the Fallon Ranges.  He was identified Sunday by the Navy as the F/A-18 pilot killed in a midair collision with a VFC-13 F-5F this past weekend.

We at The Tailhook Association offer a heart felt prayer of condolence and support to all of Jeremy's family, his fiends, and his Valion Squadron mates... We know and share your pain of losing a son, friend and comrade.

Please know that no words can begin to assuage the grief of losing one so young and full of life, but we in the Tailhook Community are here for you.

From Navy Times (and the AP): 

FALLON, Nev. — A Navy pilot killed when two fighter jets collided over Nevada has been identified.

Lt. Jeremy S. Wise of Virginia Beach, Va., died following the collision during a routine training mission Friday between his F/A-18C Hornet and an F-5 Tiger aircraft, the Navy said.

The 28-year-old Wise, a four-year veteran of the Navy, was based at Naval Air Station Oceana in Virginia Beach.

Two pilots in the other jet parachuted to safety and were rescued about 50 miles east of Fallon Naval Air Station, where both jets had taken off.

Those pilots, whose names were not released, were released Friday after treatment for minor injuries at a Fallon hospital.

The cause of the crash was under investigation by a Navy team.

 

“We take comfort in knowing that Jeremy was living his life’s dream flying with VFA-15, the Valions,” Jeremy's family wrote. “Everyone Jeremy came into contact with loved and respected him as an outstanding naval aviator and loyal friend.”

Fair winds and following seas Jeremy... you will be missed.