Truckee (AO 147) - Naval Cruise Book

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A graduate of the University of Denver in 1955, Commander Gilfry began his Naval career when he was commissioned an Ensign in 1956 at Pensacola, Florida. Completing his flight training, he was desig- nated a Naval Aviator in May 1957. Commander GiIfry's first operational tour was with VPF-63, Naval Air Station, Miramar. His next assignment was with VCP-61 at Guam. Commander Gilfry was then ordered to Naval Air Station Beeville, Texas serving as an instructor pilot for three years. In 1964 he reported aboard USS INTREPID KCVS-111 as Assistant Navigator. Upon completion of his tour aboard USS INTREPID, Commander Gilfry reported to the Naval War College for a year of study at Command and Staff School. In 1967, he was assigned to' Attack Squadron TWENTY- SEVEN as the Administrative and Operations Officer. His next tour was aboard USS CONSTELLATION as the Operations Officer for CVW-14. Following that deployment he became Training and Readiness Officer on the Staff of Commander Fleet Air Lemoore. In 1972 Commander Gilfry commanded VA-195 DAMBUSTERS de- S ployed aboard USS KITTY HAWK CCVA-631. During this tour he completed his 400th combat mission. In 1973 Commander Gilfry was ordered to transition to the 'Super A4F Sky Hawk and F8.I Crusader before com- manding CVW-21. During this tour aboard USS HANCOCK KCVA-195, Commander Gilfry returned to the Indian Ocean during the October 1973 Middle East Crisis. Commander Gilfry took command of USS TRUCKEE KAO-1471 on 4 October 1974. Commander Gilfry has been awarded the Silver Star, five Dis- tinguished Flying Crosses, ei-ht Individual Air Medals, four commen- dations and thirty-eight ,Strike7FIight Air Medals, as well as the Navy Unit Commendation and the Meritorious Unit Commendation Ribbon and various campaign and service medals. Commander Gilfry is married to the former Kelly Gustafson of St. Peters, Minnesota. They reside in Lemoore, California with their two sons, Daniel and Mark. LCDR LYNN H. SMITH FORMER EXECUTIVE OFFICER LCDR THOMAS T. TRIPLETT PRESENT EXECUTIVE OFFICER COMMANDER MASON C. GILFRY COMMANDING OFFICER LCDR Lynn H. Smith is a graduate of the University of Pennsyl- vania. He was commissioned through the Naval ROTC Program in August 1961. After an initial tour aboard USS STRONG KDD-7581, he served aboard USS SPRINGFIELD CCLG-71 homeported in Villefranche, France. ,He then served as Head, Military Personnel Planning and Requirements Branch, Commander Naval Telecommunications Head- quarters, followed by an in-country RVN tour with CTF-115. LCDR Smith first came to the Service Force in June 1969 as Operations Officer of USS DENEBOLA, and then spent three years as Executive Officer, Naval Communications Station Asmara, prior to reporting to USS TRUCKEE. Commander Smith was detached in October of 1975 and is currently assigned to Naval Telecommunications Center, Crystal Plaza, Arlington, Virginia as Officer in Charge. i I-CDR. Thomas T. Triplett, a graduate of Miami University, received his commission through the Officer Candidate Program in March 1961. Previous shore duty includes tours with the Staff, SEVENTEENTH Navel DISWICTI K0diak, Alaska, Fleet Mail Center, Naples, Italy, and Offwe of CNG iOP'631, W0'Shington, D.C. Previous shipboard duty has been a-board USS ALTAIR CAKS-321 and USS WILHOITE fDER-3971 as Operations Officer, and USS MAC DONOUGH KDLG-81 and USS PONCE il-PD-151 as Engineer Officer. He served as Operations Officer wifh Commander Coastal Squadron ONE in Cam Rahn Bay, Vietnam, and is a graduate of the U.S. Navy Destroyer School qnd fl-,e A,-med Forces Staff College. 0 LCDR Triplett and his wife Claudia reside in Virginia Beach Virginia with their two sons. '

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ln July l966 TRUCKEE received her eighth consecutive Battle Efficiency NE and commenced an extensive overhaul at the Norfolk Shipbuilding and Drydock Company in Norfolk. The overhaul was completed in January 1967, followed by a three week refresher training period at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba prior to departing on 27 March for a six month deployment with the Sixth Fleet in the Mediterranean. During that deployment, while again serving as flagship for Commander Service Force Sixth Fleet, TRUCKEE served a vital role in support of Sixth Fleet ships during the lsraeli-Arab conflict. On 8 June, during the Arab-lsraeli crisis, TRUCKEE received approximately 200 tons of fleet freight from USS SYLVANIA in a record time of in hours. On 2l September TRUCKEE returned to Norfolk, having completed a most active and intensive period of operations in the Mediterranean. A The year i968 saw TRUCKEE participating in exercises off the Virginia Capes and in the Caribbean. On i2 June, during Operation Racer Run, TRUCKEE was involved in a collision at sea with USS WASP. The collision occurred during underway replenishment and resulted in millions of dollars of damage and a three month yard period for TRUCKEE. The ship again deployed to the Mediterranean in September 1968. During TRUCKEE's IMediterranean deployment in i968-69, the ship fueled 'l58 ships, visited ten ports in seven countries, and pumped over 35,000,000 gallons of fuel in support of the U.S. Sixth Fleet. TRUCKEE returned from Europe in April 1969. She spent the fall and early winter of 1969 in Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, Virginia, undergoing her re ular overhaul g . TRUCKEE deployed to the Mediterranean for the seventh time in April 'l970. She embarked Commander Service Force Sixth Fleet at Rota, Spain and commenced her replenishment duties as the maior oiler asset of the Sixth Fleet's logistics arm. The routine of the summer was shattered by the .Jordanian crisis. TRUCKEE pumped around the clock to support the operations sustained by the naval task force standing off the coast of the Middle East. For her contributions to this operation, TRUCKEE and her crew were awarded the Meritorious Unit Citation. Upon returning to Norfolk in November l970, TRUCKEE commenced a program of conversion to Navy Distillate Fuel. Following this conversion TRUCKEE once again ioined the working fleet on the Atlantic Coast. The year l97l saw TRUCKEE participating in replenishments from as far north as Halifax, Nova Scotia to as f h 1 1 n n ar SOU? as the warm waters off St. Thomas, Virgin Islands. Both NATO and Atlantic Fleet exercises helped keep the ship and the crew operating at peak efficiency. The beginning of 1972 found TRUCKEE getting ready for her eighth Mediterranean deployment. The ship departed her homeport on l4 February and after a short sea trial period and a workup training exercise in the Caribbean, reported to the Sixth Fleet to begin seven busy months. TRUCKEE arrived in Rota, Spain, on 8 March and commenced her replenishment duties. ln the spring of l973, TRUCKEE completed a refresher training course in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and was able to v-isit Porte-au-Prince, Haiti as a liberty port. On 13 July 1973 she departed Norfolk for her ninth deployment to the Mediterranean. Highlights of'the deployment included visits to ldtanbul, Turkey, Athens and Mykonos, Greece and port visits in several different countries. TRUCKEE fueled over l50 ships and pumped over 25,000,000 gallons of fuelfduring this deployment. On 7 October TRUCKEE was underway in an emergency sortie to join the rest of the Sixth Fleet in an increased alert posture due to the Arab-Israeli U Yom Kippur War. During the following month and a half TRUCKEE provided the vital services necessary to keep the Sixth Fleet mobilized and in a high state of readiness. TRUCKEE returned to Norfolk on 21 December. Another highlight of the 1973 deployment occurred on 9 December while TRUCKEE was enroute to Rota, Spain. The ship became the temporary haven for an obviously disoriented racing pigeon. Subsequently, the TRUCKEE was awarded a HMediterranean Pigeon Protector Award by COMSERVLANT. During i974 TRUCKEE underwent a regular overhaul at Maryland Shipbuilding and Drydock Company in Balti- more, Maryland. Upon completion of the overhaul the ship operated briefly off the Virginia Capes before undergoing f h re res er training at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The ship deployed to the Mediterranean for her tenth deployment on 9 May 1975. P . .. - r

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TRUCKEE's service 'ro The Fleer has shown her capability and devotion To duty. We work long and hard fo accomplish our mission. Join us now as we cruise the waters of the Mediterranean Sea . . . 7V5fy'o May1975 . wwf-1 V r Zf'W'Zfj,,QZ71i'7?W13 QQTWWQQ . ,- viz E is It a last gaadiye. Nffks.,