Robert H McCard (DD 822) - Naval Cruise Book

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night everyone had a hard time sleeping as the ship made 28 knots into the wind to rejoin the task group for the entrance into Augusta Bay. No one was really impressed by Augusta Bay although various tours gave us a chance to see other parts of Sicily. A program of inter- divisional softball games was started and helped to make up for the almost non-existent liberty. Our run down to Malta took only eight hours on February 7th and we moored to buoys in Sliema Creek. Everyone felt as if we were on a light cruiser when we compared the size of the McCard with the British destroyers and frigates in the harbor. Twelve days of liberty wasn't too hard to take and nearly all of us went on one of the tours which explored var- ious sights on the famous island. All the New Englanders in the crew felt good about seeing a part of the world that was even rockier than their home states and all the officers felt good after the parties in the wardrooms of the various British ships in the harbor. The ship was host to about a hundred Limev sailors who came aboard for chow and the movies and assured everyone that the Royal Navy never had it so good. The ofiicers never got it so good as when the first class PO's challenged them to a soft- ball game and made up for disapproved chits by slaughtering the Brass 22 to 8. Towards the end of our Malta visit we moved over to a drydock where our sonar dome, somehow damaged on the trip across, was re- placed and all hands treated to the delightful experience of having to hike over to heads on the pier. Finally, on the afternoon of February lflth, the work was done and we were underway for the Riviera! None of us can forget our stay in the tiny Principality of Monaco. Since we were the only ship in the harbor liberty was just like a big ship's party with the Ali-Baba, Cassanova, Cafe f ,I I, tl

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Hey, Chief! I i A grim note was struck when we were sent to tr to pick up a pilot whose plane had Y landed on the Midway and then skidded over the side. All we could find was a green dye marker and a couple of wing tanks which we finally sank with gunfire. The beautiful weather which had followed us out from Oran pulled a quick change on the afternoon of February and the seas got heavier by the hour. About 2000 a large wave hit us -if Th Aj.. . '2,.L'v-4-,g 'F' , V. 7 ss. lin: H4-' . .- W .li turned the Deck Force to and alter Eve difl of furious work the First Lieutenant was util- hed that the ship was again the belt lookin! destroyer in DesLant. Fleet exercises were coming up and the McCard sorued Ollt of Oran on january 27th to 'oin a task group for a week of ASW, forma- J tion maneuvers, and drone Bring-during which the McCard shot better than anyone else, naturally. Stand by to receive Guard Mail Looking for a downed pilot. ,-f ig., .0 I on the starboard side and receded after having pwrted the forward guy of the whaleboal. ri med off a ventilator. torn up stanchions on Pl the boat deck, knocked off a torpedo ready locker welded to the main deck and left thc ship covered with potatoes ripped loose from the 0l level. The Mctiard was given permission to leave the screen and steam downwind while the Deck Force, Torpedomen. and Shipfitters did their best to straighten things out. That

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MONACO de Paris, and various other spots as the prin- cipal hangouts. The officers lost their money in the Monte Carlo Casino, the crew lost theirs in the nightspots and everybody had a wonder- ful time. Cannes was our next stop and in six days we managed to spend any money we had left over from Monaco. Reynolds and Brintle showed the other snipes how to make one of their regu- lation Navy liberties and all hands agreed that this Riviera duty was really living. March 4th found us again underway and taking part in fleet exercises with cruisers, carriers, and other destroyers. In between days of ISE we often acted as plane guard destroyer and one night we really got to show our stuff when a Corsair from the Midway splashed 500 yards off our starboard beam. We picked up the pilot and were repaid for our trouble with ten gallons of ice cream. 1 ff- The ,I f' Riviera 1l