Belle Grove (LSD 2) - Naval Cruise Book

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OKINAWA CAN BE BEAUTIFUL

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OME REMAIN ABOARD... TO STAND WATCHES, REPAIR ENGINES, SAVE MONEY AND RECOVER V j X N ll MANY HANDS MAKE LIGHT WORK

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OPERATION BLUESTAR ll T his operation will l)e re- membered more as a battle against the elements than as a war agamst any ag- gressive force real or simulated. Rain, high winds and choppy seas caused delays, anchor dragging, hairy night steaming and anchorage approaches, and an expanding square search for five UDT personnel adrift if k in a rubber raft. The operation required a great amount of ballasting and deballasting, loading and unloading from both the superdeck and welldeck by the First and Second Divisions, and a full measure of coopera- tion with the 130 Marines embarked for the two week period. Operation Bluestar began at 1300 on the 17th of March as the E.G. sortied out of Buckner Bay with Task Unit 74.1.3 composed primarily of Transron 7. Except for two crewmembers who suffered injuries during recreation fighting on the beach and had to be left behind in casts, the ship was fully prepared for an operation that proved to be one of the largest and most successful amphibious invasions in recent years. While steaming in forma- tion enroute to the operating area off the southwest ti[) of Taiwan we were constantly harrassed by enemy submarines and [)lanes and all hands frequently found tiiemselves hustling to their general quar- ters stations, while the B. G. zig-zagged and made emergency turns.