Wasp (CV 18) - Naval Cruise Book

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NVE SAILED OUT OF GREENOCK and into Mainbrace. But wait! As a matter ol lact we were still in Greenock when we sailed into Mainbrace, lor sent us scurrying before the lament ol' the local lassies was even out of ear- shot. Instead ol announcing over the PA system that Opera- tion Mainbrace had commenced, the oflicer in tactical com- mand decided to sound GQ, YVe got the point. The GQ shortly dissolved into condition watches-and this most elab- f,, f f W 'zrzftngf orate and, it was hoped, spectacular demonstration ol naval power by the NATO nations quickly became nothing more nor less than an effort on the part ol the gunnery control officer to keep the pointer on Blount 58 awake. lt was the orange against the blue with Norway and Denmark the spoils and King Neptune the spoiler. The luckier pilots managed to accrue twenty-five minutes llying time during the twelve-day exercise while the luckier gun- nery people managed to get in twenty-hve minutes sleep during the same period. Any hour ol the day or night that did not produce at least six torpedo defenses was considered unforgivably dull indeed. The seas were something less than placid. but. ol' course. the mighty XVASP wasn't a bit impressed by lourteen-loot waves and lilty-live mile an hour gales. And il' some ol' her crew was, well . . . war is hell. Like all good things though, Klainbrace came to an end. and il' it produced little more than upset stomachs, lillOlCll ears, and some fascinating Picasso-like pictures ol night- llight operation. still a lot ol' iiournalists lound that ward- room food is not quite up to the standards ol' ll Horn and Hardart autoinat. .swdltfqb t 'N'-it . 1 Kt.- Lf K X XJ X XC 1 1415,

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