Underway Replenishment Tonkin Gulf 1973

Underway replenishment of US Navy ships in the Tonkin Gulf during the Vietnam War (during the final combat operations before cease fire - late December 1972 or one of the first few days of January 1973). I filmed this while on board the USN Destroyer USS Leonard F. Mason (DD-852). I was hand holding a Yashica Super 8 mm movie camera and had to stop filming every few seconds to clean the UV filter, due to the spray. The film is Kodak Tri-X panchromatic. The seas are 15 to 25 feet (moderate). The Mason is taking on fuel from the oiler USS Waccamaw (AO-109). Along the port side of the Waccamaw is the USS Horne (DLG-30) - you can just see its bow. When breaking away from refueling while operating in the Tonkin Gulf, we played Country Roads by John Denver over the 1 MC (the ship's PA system - audible to nearby ships). The crew of the Waccamaw heard that song as we left.

This video is from a digital high definition frame by frame transfer from the original film. The quality is much improved from the earlier video posted here. Be sure to watch in HQ! Also, the music track is my own this time.

Category:

Travel & Events

Tags:

• Tonkin
• Gulf
• Vietnam
• USN
• Navy
• ship
• storm
• oiler
• destroyer
• sea
• DD-852
• USS
• Leonard
• F.
• Mason
• Horne
• DLG-30
• Waccamaw
• AO-109
• adventure
• events
• unrep
• westpac

[satchthemo]

Great video. On the USS Philip DD 498 and USS Fletcher DD 445 I was the aft phone line handler and had a good view from the 01 deck. It was a sweet duty station.

[cosmicship]

@satchthemo Thanks! My station was line handler on the starboard side. After we secured from pulling the line across, I had to run in, grab my camera, and climb up to the signal bridge to film this.

[hulado]

thanks for the great video.i served on the wac around 76-77 as a merchant seaman boiler room fireman.my first un-rep station was operating a gypsy winch on the port side.

i was the guy who payed-out the line controlling the fuel line with the Robb fitting on the end of it. also jerked the fitting out when we were finished transferring or for an emergency breakaway. this was all hrs day and night work. seas coming over the deck at times. we worked hard,played hard and were proud of our efforts.

[cosmicship]

@hulado My unrep station was as one of the line handlers on the starboard side, main deck. We pulled the line for the forward fueling station. The main deck is low on a Destroyer, so getting wet during an unrep is not unusual. The unrep you see here was the only time during my 3 years on board that I got away in time to grab my camera and film it.

[revjim1968]

I served on the Waccamaw from late 1968-70 as a BT. My unrep station was on the port side (don't remember which rig though) as a ship to ship phone talker.

[harryj108]

i served on the waccama 1962 1964 was boswans mate forward deck if any was there email me at harryj108@yahoo .com

[satchthemo]

You did well, very well. Those videos tell more of a story than hours of words. What a ride!

[kyroughman1]

I find it hard to see myself,,,,I would think that if true, it would be some sort of small IE short lane...anyway I have been on the mason sites and I am started to search for other people who might know my uncle, these seem to be small sites, Not like the army sites of the vietnam war those are huge and go on and on...But the tin can sites are still there just need more steam in there boilers...You should check out the mason sites,,,,might be a lot of people you know.....

[cosmicship]

@kyroughman1 Radar men, later called Operations Specialists, performed a lot of jobs. Watching the scopes, taking fixes from targets on land, tracking ships and aircraft, radio communications, etc. Extremely busy during missions and certain operations; total boredom at other times, but always the responsibility for the safety of the ship.

[cosmicship]

@kyroughman1 The amount of pictures of each area likely reflects who volunteered to take pictures for the cruise books. Sounds like they had a gunners mate and either a boiler technician or machinist mate for cameramen. The shifts were called "watches". Usually three sections (5 hours on, 10 hours off) or "port and starboard" (2 sections - 5 on, 5 off). We could smoke except when the "smoking lamp" was off - such as during refueling.