Bunker Hill (CV 17) - Naval Cruise Book

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included Lieutenants R. G. Buchner and H- J. Chedester. More than thirty-five years of Navy Cfillef' ience was embodied in the two station oflicers: Chief Machinist L. M. Carl, a former sub- mariner whose intimate knowledge of aux- iliary machinery was largely responsible for the smooth functioning of the diesels, all' compressors, elevators, and steering eng111CS5 and Chief Machinist H. C. Barr, whose duties have taken him from the sealing islands of Pribilof to recruiting duty in Chillicothe, Missouri, and who was the principal factor in the steady operation of the turbo-gener- ators, refrigerating and air-conditioning equip- ment, supervising and allocating work in the machine and metalsmith shops. Backbone of any division, however, is the men of which it is constituted, and the A division is no exception. With a small nucleus of experienced personnel at the time of commissioning, the new men took hold rapidly. A few of the original trained nucleii about which the division has been built: Chief Machinists Mates A. L. Alford, Charlie Howard, D. Miller, R. K. Nebus, J. M. Zellersg Chief Yeoman H. W. Johnstone, Chief Motor Machinist Mate W. C. Petsch, and G. N. Haga, L. Horvath, L. L. Jones and M. Ingrum, Motor Machinist Mates First Class. A Those men are a cross-section of the divi- sion, and no less measure of praise is due the men whose names do not appear above, Steam is the life blood of a carrier, her striking and defensive force, both propulgive and electrical. The productionof that vital substance is the duty of the B or Boiler division, as is the distillation of sea water to procure the fresh water used in the boilers for Steam production, as well as throughout the ship for drinking, washing and cooking por- poses. l Production of fresh water from sea water 1S an exacting procedure. A few grains of salt per gallon make water unfit for ' the boilers while a few I ' use In I l i . more grains render it unfit to drink. For this reason, a close control is kept on all water distilled and gh, fact that we had no curtailrnent of ingm- consumption due to lou production by we evaporators is a fine urlllltllfnfafy fm done by the evaporator gang. Cruising for extended periods and at Speedswus we did niost ol that first year- requires quantities ol steam. And to prodqgg the steam requires huge quantities of fuel Oil- Control over the millions of gallons of fuel oil carried, and shifting it constantly to maintain the correct lialance of the ship, is the job of the Oil Kings. Upon visiting the firerooms to see how the other half lives, Air or Gunnery De- partment personnel invariably remark that it can't be this hot all the time. Never- theless, it is. Teinpcratures range from 110 F. to 130 F. in the lireroonis as a general rule. Too much credit cannot be given the men who stand their four on and eight off, day in and day out, in those spaces. Ast mentioned earlier, the B division 3:55, ilsfi A M I 5- . ay- ., If . I M I V L J gift-f.if3t fi iii, QQ Y if t i if it i Stl: Q tilt ' 3 i . V officer from before commissioning until mid- December, 1943, was Lieutenant Commander ffl1Cn.Lieutenantl Carmichael, University of VY?-Shlnngffm graduate and now Assistant En- glllCCI'lhg Oliicer. His organizational ability knit together, in large part, the B division- He was succeeded hy Lieutenant Cjgi R- E- Staff, 1943 Naval Academv graduate, who held the post until March, 1944, when 139 transferred to the l-lull Department, sl10WlY thevfeflfter receiving orders for submlrflm training. UPON Lieutenant Staffs departure from W

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new the pride of accomplishment when the amines were called upon to deliver , , , Ind did. His record must have impressed the Bureau, for in December he was called back to put mother carrier of this class in commission, after which he was attached to SupShips at Bethlehem Steel in Quincy, Massachusetts, where his know how will be used to full advantage. As a general rule when a key man is removed his replace- ment poses a difiicult problem. In the case of the Chief Engin- eer, however, there was no deliberation on this score. As if it were custom-made for him, Commander D. F. Kinert, USN, stepped into the spot vacated by his pred- ecessor. Having un- derstudied Commander Agens while holding down the job of Assistant Engineering Officer, Commander Kinert was thoroughly familiar with the doctrines and policies in effect, and was well qualified to take over the reins, guiding the hundred-odd thousand horsepower which drives the ship. Sufiice it to say the Engineering Department still ranks number one among the carriers of this class. The job of Assistant Engineering Ofiicer entails reams of paper work, the handling of ofiicer training, and personnel supervision in the department as well as pinch-hitting for the Chief Engineer when necessary. It is a position which we were fortunate to have had capably occupied, Hrst by Commander fthen Lieutenant Commanderl Kinert and followed by Lieutenant Commander J. R. Carmichael, jr. Small wir and when the occasion de- Y, mands, acid-tongued, Lieutenant .Commander Carmichael reported aboard with ta back- ground of Naval experience that included K W xf QNA 'FX Slf:'Xx i a harrowing tour of duty as the executive officer on a transport during the African in- vasion. Upon reporting to the Bunker Hill early in her pre-commissioning days, he was appointed B Division Gfiicer. The Engineering Department is divided in- to four divisions, each having cognizance of a separate phase of operation, and all four coordinated by the Chief Engineer to form a smoothly working team. A DIVISION: The A Division . , .-, .,........a,..............--.---.-. .. ,.,,..,-.-........-.-... has charge of main- tenance and opera- tion of all auxiliary machinery excepting those units directly concerned with boil- er or main engine operation. Prior to the com- missioning and until mid-March, 1944, k ' the A Division Of- ficer was Lieutenant James Williams, Jr. An engineer at heart and with machine shop experience, Slim Jim came to us as a survivor of the U.S.S. Laffey, the gallant destroyer which practically single- handedly sank several heavy units of the Iap Fleet before going to the bottom. When moved to the B division office, he was suc- ceeded by Lieutenant L. Sarge VValdo, a University of California product who had gone on duty with the U.S.S. Arkansas in January, 1942. He stayed with the Arlcie for a year, before joining the Bunker Hill's pre-commis- sioning detail in the Hull Department. He transferred to the Engineers in September, 1943, and was first a junior ofiicer in the division he took over from Williams. The A Division junior ofiicers included: Lieutenant Cjgj Stan R. Gabert, a one-time Appleton, Wisconsin, barrister and a plank- owner, and W. A. Sottung, who arrived from Joisey via Penn State and a YMS oper- ating out of New York. Former division j.o's who have been transferred to other duties , . -,. .... ,..-,-.................- .. , .-..-...,.............-Q I ,,:..........-i-,-TM...,...,.,--N,-qw-ww. Y, A f I

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Lieutenant Williams took it over maintained its high level of efiiciency. B Division junior oH'icers were Lieutenant W R. T. Church, fueling officer, and Ensign E. A. Merritt. As in other divisions, the oiiicers were the men directly respon- iihk for the operating maintenance of the machinery. Chief Machinists A. L. Ernest and R. Simmons, together with twenty hard- working boiler repairmen, constantly kept the division's equipment in top shape. ln a division embodying almost two hun- dred men, the spirit and industry of those men is, in the last analysis, the thing that malta the division go. Working, as they do, in the hottest spaces of the ship, it is to their everlasting credit that the will to work and the willingness to cooperate with each other and with other divisions made the B division one of the best. While it is difhcult to single out individuals, the mention of a few names of those who helped make the division an eiiicient operating unit would include: Chief Watertenders A. J. Anderson, W. H. Makin, W. M. Martin, E. D. Nico- laus, G. L. Picard and R. M. Venningg Chief Machinist Mate F. J. Eienesg H. L. Grath- wohl, CB, T. Allen, D. M. Bishop, W. Bryan, D. Girard, I. Monette, W. P. Page, J. E. Puterbaugh, A. R. Restall, R. W. Webb and S. Wenschreider, Watertenders Firstg G. W. Austin and J. C. Entringer, MMlc, and O. Nichols, Blc. Custodian of everything electrical on the ship, from foretruck to keel, stem to fantail, is the Electrical Division, plagued with a maze of installations ranging from the tiny light in the pilot house binnacle to the huge motor-generators. The division's responsi- bilities also extend to upkeep of all electric motors on the ship, from pumps to gun mounts, and maintenance of the interior com- munication network of ship's service and sound-powered telephones, the general an- nouncing system, and the various squawk boxes. Guiding force of the division from early Quincy days was Lieutenant N. Nelson, USN, quiet-voiced, current-wise former War- rant Electrician with a sixteen-year record of duty in the work. A steady, conscientious Workman, an able division officer, Nelson left the ship late in 1944 to put his vast knowl- edge to work at SupShips, Quincy. Only one of the three junior oflicers re- mained of the original team, Ensign C. I. Shaw, USN, former Warrant Electrician and holder of the dubious distinction of having two ships sink under him in three days. He was aboard the ill-fated U. S. S. Langley when the ,laps caught her taking a load of P-40s out to the Philippines and bombed her to the bottom. Picked up by the U. S. S. Whipple, he was transferred to the U. S. S. l l Pecos, which was sunk while trying to get out of the battle area. Rescued again by the Whipple, he returned to the States via Aus- tralia, helped Ht out and commission the U. S. S. Fraser, and shortly thereafter re- ported for duty for commissioning and fitting out of the Bunker Hill. Lieutenant J. E. Alford was an E Divi- sion junior ofiicer from early pre-commissiom ing days but was detached in June, 1944, and the third of Lieutenant Nelson's first assist-