Mount McKinley (AGC 7) - Naval Cruise Book

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COMMANDING OFFICERS OF USS MOUNT MCKINLEY fAGC.7j QOMMANDING OFFICER ASSUMED Captain Captain Captain Captain Captain Captain Captain Captain Capta1n Captain Captain Captain Captain Captain Captain Captain Captain Roy W M GRAHAM, USN Wayne N GAMET, USN Frederick L RIDDLE, USN William L WARE, USN Lee F SUGNET, USN Carter A PRINTUP, USN Lucius H CHAPPELL, USN Charleg B BEASLEY, USN Rollo N James T Scarritt Henry A Thomas M NORGAARD, USN HARDIN, USN ADAMS, USN RENKEN, USN FLECK USN Francis J BLOUIN, U N George F PITTARD, N Monroe KELLY, Jr , U N Henry C LAUERMAN, USN Ernest L SCHWAB, USN Ma May Aug Jun c Dec u Jan u Apr Apr Nov Sep Nov Dec Nov an 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1951 1952 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1960 1962 EXECUTIVE OFFICERS OF USS MOUNT MCKINLEY QAGC-71 RELIEVED May Aug Jun Ott Dec Jul Jan Jul Apr Apr Nov Sep Nov Dec Dec Nov Jan 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1951 1952 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1962 Commander Commander Commander Commander Commander Commander Commander Commander Commander Commander Commander Commander WICKENS, USN PINNEY, USN wExEL, USN GASH, USN c KEEPERS, USNR KLIPPEL, USN BETZER, USN JONES, USN WHITACRE, USN RUCKER, USN RUZIC, USN GOULET , USN o 0 1 Y v 21 - 9 - 2 . 16 O t - 17 . A 18 J 1 - 26 ' . 25 J 1 - 7 ' 1 . 25 . 28 . S 30 . US 30 Captain . S 23 Dec 1959 . 17 . 18 J J. L. E. P. F. E. R. W. ' Ko Il I R. W. E. J. F. J. A. A. J. A J. E. L. J.

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,. my ,,,....,.,..!1wfg.,.,.,,.,,,.,,- ' K' ' ' - 5 V . . V-, V3-1 L-3 ff , ,fn .:..,...,...,. ..,.,..,, ...W V 9 '1'P.ni5dl-A.-51.-1-44s-.suse-1Qaubr: ' f'--90-Le-:...ef.ou-W, ----- :id ..,, In the spring of 1960 MOUNT MCKINLEY again deployed to the Mediter- d Norfolk Naval Ship' ranean. After completion of a normal tour she entere yard, for a long awaited yard period, ln the spring of 1961. Upon completion of her facelifting MOUNT MCKINLEY entered refresher training at Guantanamo Bay,-Cuba, in the summer of 1961, in preparat10n ' hi for Co mander for her September deployment to the Mediterranean as fla9S P S d n TWO On her fifth Mediterranean cruise, MOUNT MCKINLEY Amphibious qua ro . participated in several large scale amphibious exercises, and spent Christmas 1961 in Athens, Greece. In J nuar 1962 Captain Ernest L. SCHWAB, USN, relieved as co mandihg 8 Y officer and in February brought the ship back to Norfolk for leave and upkeep. In April 1962, MOUNT MCKINLEY was again off to sea as an Amphibious Group Flagship in the Amphibious Demonstration, for the President of the United States and about,50 ambassadors, at Camp LeJeune, North Carolina. This was followed by massive amphibious exercises in the Caribbean. 1 ll.. Followlng the exercise MOUNT MCKINLEY made operational visits to Bermuda, Nassau, Puerto Rico, Curacao, and the Dominican Republic. Returning to the Norfolk area, MOUNT MCKINLEY served in a communications exercise with Commander in Chief, U. S. Atlantic Fleet, Admiral R. L. DENNISON , USN , embarkaa, During the Cuban crisis MOUNT MCKINLEY operated initially as an amphibious flagship for Commander Amphibious Force, U. S. At1ant1c p1e,t, and, later, for Commander Amphibious Group FOUR. In December 1962, after the Cuban crisis, she made a short operational cruise along the East Coast of the United States then returned to Norfolk on 9 December 1962. For the next month MOUNT MCKINLEY prepar,d for overseas movement. On 10 January 1963 she sailed for the Mediterranean for her sixth deployment with the Sixth Fleet. This story is chronicled on tha following pages.

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W K Rv . - ',,,e.. 4225.1 . 1-amner.m.aa.fu:1.wm+4a.,g-magna-A-E ns.-,W-.-Q-,v 01-.f,--e.y-m--wwvw-wv1w'-f'1 '- 'W' '4 TH NAVAL CAREER O CAPTAIN ERNEST L. SCHWAB, USN COHNANDING OFFICER, USS MOUNT MCKINLEY fAGCo7, Captain Ernest L. Schwab, U. S. Navy, assumed duty as commanding officer of USS MOUNT MCKINLEY QAGC-75 on January 18, 1962. Born in Brooklyn, New York, on January 27, 1917, Captain Schwab attended Brooklyn Technical High School and the United States Naval Academy, graduating from the latter on June 1, 1939. Captain Schwab then served as a secondary battery officer on the battleship PENNSYLVANIA, Flagship of the United States Fleet, until May, 1941. From July to October of 1941, Captain Schwab was a student at the submarine school in New London, Connecticut. During World War II he made a total of nine sub- marine war patrols during which he served in all submarine billets. Included in these patrols were the Presidential Unit Citation patrols of U35 GUARDFISH and the participation of USS DARTER in opening the famous battle of Leyte Gulf. Following the war, Captain Schwab completed the naval warfare course at the U. S. Naval Warfare College, Newport R. I., and then returned to submarines and took command of USS TORO. In 1951, he became head of the Sonar Branch of the Bureau of Ships, and later assumed duties as head of the Electronics Planning Staff of that Bureau. From 1954 to 1956, Captain Schwab served as commanding officer of the destroyer USS WEDDERBURN participating in the Tachens evacuation ln China. From 1956 to 1958, Captain Schwab attended the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts and Harvard Universities where he obtained a Master of Arts Degree, a degree as Master of Arts in Law and Diplomacy, and passed examinations for Ph. D. in international relations. Captain Schwab then served two years in the Political-Military Policy Division in OPNAV followed by fourteen months as Chief of Staff, Commander Carrier Division TWENTY, an ASW carrier group. ' In addition to appropriate area and service medals, Captain Schwab's decorations include the Silver Star, Bronze Star with Combat 'VN, Presidential Unit Citation CGUARDFISHI and Navy Unit Commendation IDARTERD, In April of 1943, Captain Schwab married Miss Betty Sandgren gf New London, Connecticut. They have a son, Donald, and two daughters Holly and Trudi. The Schwabs currently reside in Silver Spring, Margland. famlrsSS'S-