Wilhouite (DER 397) - Naval Cruise Book

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WESTPAC 29 May, 1967--8 January, 1967 WILHOITE departed her home port, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on May 29, 1967, for an ex- tended deployment to the Western Pacific. Following an uneventful two week voyage broken only by an eight hour fuel stop in Guam, we arrived at Subic Bay, Republic of the Philippines, for four days of final pre- paration for our first patrol in the combat zone. We departed Subic Bay on 17 June and set a course for Vietnam, arriving a short two days later of the South Vietnamese coast near Chu Lai, where we relieved the USS KRETCHMER and assumed duties as a unit of Operation Market Time. Our mis- sion: to prevent the infiltration of ammuni- tion and supplies to the Viet Cong by sea. The days went quickly on Market Time, as we kept busy with watches, Replenish- ment-at-sea evolutions, a nd rendezvous with other Market Time units. We acted as mother ship for two navy swift boats, berthing extra crews on board and supply- ing them with food, fuel, and water. During our patrol we picked up a suspi- cious steel hull trawler which we suspected of making an infiltration attempt. WILHOITE requested that the trawler submit to a search of its cargo, but rather than com- plying, it began a run toward the coast. We were joined by three other Market Time units to intercept. The trawler was taken under fire and ran aground in flames, just before reaching the sanctuary of a river mouth. The following morning the trawler was boarded and a huge cargo of guns and ammunition was discovered - the largest single arms shipment captured during the Vietnam War. ,.,, f , l ,, ,f .,,,,, -. ,.