Constellation (CV 64) - Naval Cruise Book

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Important dates in Connie ' s history Oct. 27, 1961 . . . Commissioned at New York Naval Shipyard. July 12, 1962 ... Departs New York to sail around Cape Horn to San Diego. Aug. 4, 1964 . . . Launches strikes in response to Gulf of Tonkin incident. Nov. 1, 1968 . . . Flew the last missions against North Vietnam before a bombing halt is de- clared. May 10, 1972 . . . Lt. Cunningham and Lt.j.g. Driscoll, flying off USS Constellation, become the first aces of the war by downing three MiGs in one day and five in four months. July 1, 1973 . . . Awarded Presidential Unit Ci- tation by President Nixon for Extraordinary heroism and outstanding performance of duty. Nov. 23, 1974 . . . Enters Persian Gulf while par- ticipating in MIDLINK 74, the first time an American carrier had been in those waters in 26 years. Jan. 31, 1975 . . . Departs San Diego for Bremer- ton to undergo extensive overhaul. July 1, 1975 . . . Redesignated CV from CVA, becoming a multi-use carrier with ASW capabilities. Oct. 15, 1980 ... Returns from 12th WEST- PAC. During that deployment, Connie set a rec- ord by spending 1 10 consecutive days on station in the Indian Ocean. Aug. 20, 1981 . . . President Reagan declares Constellation America ' s Flagship. Dec. 6, 1982 . . . Begins overhaul in Bremerton, Washington. Jan. 23, 1984 . . . Completes 14-month overhaul two weeks early and under budget, Feb. 21, 1985 . . . Departs San Diego for WEST- PAC, marking the first deployment with the FA- 18 Hornet. Sept. 24, 1986 . . . Becomes the first aircraft carrier to visit Anchorage, Alaska. Aug. 3, 1987 . . . Begins flying cover for escort of U.S.-flagged tankers through Persian Gulf. Constellation ' s irsr Commanding Officer Cap- tain T.J. Walker (center) cuts Connie ' s first birthday cake on Oct. 17, 1962. USS Constellation operates in the Gulf of Tonkin with her embarked Airwing in March 1973. 6 HISTORY

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lLATION CvA-64 NEW YORK NAVAL SHIPYARD IIKIYN NY. •s? - T ' 4. v . r ■- VrJ f 7 ' - t Si 1 ,- L J LmSI F 1 i • t U; 1 r 4 r-t-i k Mrs. Christian Herder, ship ' s sponsor, prepares to christen USS Constellation during ceremo- nies held at New York Naval Shipyard in Brooklyn, N.Y. A stellar record Like her famous namesake, the current USS Constellation (CV-64) has a long and proud record of service. Built at the New York Naval Shipyard as the sec- ond ship in the Kitty Hawk class of air- craft carriers, Connie has nearly 30 years of service which has seen her sail into harms way from Yankee Station off the coast of Vietnam to the Gulf of Oman in the Indian Ocean. Commissioned Oct. 27, 1961, Constella- tion sailed west to her only homeport of San Diego in July of 1962. In Aug. 4, 1964, the American destroy- ers Maddox and Turner Joy were attacked by North Vietnamese patrol boats in the international waters of the Gulf of Tonkin. Constellation, visiting Hong Kong on a reg- ularly-scheduled port visit, set sail immedi- ately and began launching strikes against North Vietnamese vessels and bases. For the next eight years. Constellation would return to the South China Sea for a total of seven combat cruises, conducting air strikes against heavily-fortified North Vietnamese positions, engaging naval tar- gets and shooting down enemy aircraft. The first American aces of the Vietnam War, Lt. Randall Cunningham and Lt.j.g. Willie Driscoll of VF-96, flew off Constel- lation ' s flight deck. Their success came during the ship ' s seventh WESTPAC, and her sixth combat cruise. For her action in Southeast Asia, Con- stellation was awarded the coveted Presi- dential Unit Citation. In 1975, Connie was designated CV from CVA with the addition of the S-3A Viking and F-14A Tomcat. In 1982, Constellation celebrated her 21st birthday. Naval aviation had under- gone vast changes since 1961, and to keep up with those changes, Connie once again went into the yards for modernization. When she came out of Bremerton, Wash- ington in 1984, two weeks early and under budget, she had been modified to carry the Navy ' s new strike fighter, the FA- 18 Hor- net. From her birthplace at the New York Na- val Shipyard to her homeport of San Diego, from the troubled waters of the Gulf of Tonkin to the North Arabian Sea, Constel- lation has written an impressive record for the world to see. And it has been a stellar record! Connie under construction in the New York Naval Shipyard. HISTORY 5

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Newly commissioned USS Con- stellation sails under the Brooklyn Bridge in New York Harbor en- route to San Diego in 1961. An F-4J goes to full throttle prior to catapult ojf Constellation while steaming on Yankee Station in Nov. 1971. HISTORY 7