Chilton (APA 38) - Naval Cruise Book

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CUMMANDING is OFFICER W STUART NELSON APTAIN, USN Captain W. S. Nelson is a native of Salem, Oregon. 'In 1941, after two years at the University of Oregon, he entered the' Naval Academy with the class of 1945. Following graduation in June 1944, he served on USS CABOT QCVLe28J after which he entered flight training and 'was' designated a Naval Aviator in March 1947. Following a tour in VA-+155 aboard USS VALLEY FORGE and USS ANTIETAM, he served a year in ONI, and two years on the staff, Commander Sixth Fleet as Air Intelligence Officer. From 1955 to 1957 Captain Nelson was Flight Test Inspection Officer at NAS, Alameda, and served during 1958 and 1959 in Light Photo Squadron '62 aboard USS SARATOGA QCVA-607. In 1960 he was Aide and Flag Lieutenant to Commander in Chief Pacific, following which he served as Executive Officer and Commanding Officer of VA-106 operating from USS SHANGRI- LA QCVA-385. I C 9 For the past four years, Captain Nelson has beenclosely connected with the Navy's A6A Intruder aircraft program, first as Commanding Officer of VA-42 at Oceana, Virginia and more recently as AGA Program Coordinator in OPNAV. N Captain Nelson is married to the former Barbara Johnson of Portland, Oregon, who was on hand to greet CHILTON in each port' during MED 2-67. The Nelsons have two daughters, Genevieve and Lauren. ' '

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uss cannon gm say two foldmission first to transport, land, and initially support her embarked Marine Force and second to provide accommoda tions and support for Commander Amphibious Squadron Two and his embarked staff. To land her Marines, CHILTON carries twenty boats including four OMIKE boats QLCM-65 , eleven PAPA boats KLCVPD A, and five LCPL's. Her cargo space vis ca-e pable of holding over 140 quarterf-tontruoks . Amphlbwus FQTCQ U S Atlantic Fleet upon arrival in Norfolk on 10 Deeember 1949 ln the Suez Canal Qrlsls Called CHILTON to Alexandria, Egypt to evacuate American' Nationals. In two days, deepite intense 'Anglo-French bombing raids on nearby Egyptian airfields and heavy anti- aircraft fire, the ship embarked 1 1 0 5 evacuees, mostly women and children.1Af- 'HI 'S ST RY CHILTON, an attack transport, has a country. The ship became part of the Extensive communication facilities, keep the Squadron Commander in constantjtouchgwith forces afloat and 'withgshore iqbasecsr, of no r,,t',,,e jj 3 4 ' f CHI LTON7ihas acocbmmcodcaticnsvfey for t 689 officers, l',, 30 chiefcpetty officers',QandJ422cj other 'ratings of ship 'sf company plus, 103 officers and 1342 enlisted Marines. Launched. in December .1942 atSan Francisco as the S.S. SEAONEEDLE, the ship was taken over by the 'Navy five months later, converted intoan attack trans- port, and renamed the U,SSfeCHILTONfin honor of Chilton County, rAlabaI1f1a.i og y 4 y CHILTON first tasted 'ibloodjinianvope-c' posed amphibious landing e liiyo n fqjlviarche 1945 Keramo Retto, fa small group of is-6 lands off Okinawa. fFO1fvf59nqC18ySrShG 're-5 mainedin the OkinawanyTheater'spendingA 152 hours at general quarters. On 2QApri1 1945, CHILTON endured her most savage enemy attack during which eight Kamikaxes hit her squadron. The ship narrowly escaped serious damage when a suicide plane sheared off a signal halyard before crash- ing off the port quarter, showering her deck with plane fragments and burning gasoline. Following WorldWar II, CHILTON took part in the Korean War, landing the first American force, an element of the 7th Army The ship also helped land the First Marines at Tienstsin, China and transported Chinese Nationalist troops from Hong Kong to North China As a unit of Operation MAGIC C ARPE T homeward bound GI's were ferried from Japan to Saipan In June of 1946 CHILTON Joined Task Force One for the historic atomic bomb test at Bikini In 1949 CHILTON loaded the 3rd Marines in Shanghai for evacuation from China and was the last U S ship to leave before the Communist takeover of that mong the evacuees was Mrs. Robert Vonvorhis, who gave' birth to a son aboard ,CHILTON.' The ,baby was namedafter the ship that had ferryied-fhis parents avyr to safety. The menof ,CHILTON gave the parents of. the I child a plaque which read:. C ommemorating the Launching, 28 February1957, CHILTON VONVORHIS, y with the fond wish that his journey 'through life may be accompanied by fair winds and following seas. Presented by the Officers and Men of the USS CHILTON CKAPA-38J. . I e On 16 July1958, CHILTON landed the 3rd,Battalion, Sixth,Marines in a flawless assault qWit1'lf,i1GSS than 48, y hours niggtgieetq at Be irut, Lebanoni,-and supported these ashore fm' fhenefft tWoH10Ht11S 'L since .1958 oH1LToN nasparncipatas in ,numerous , Mar ine ,1 and Midshipmen amphibious I exercises in both the Atlantic andthe iPacific. Ports. of .call in recent years in the European theater have included C cpe nh age , Edinburgh, Geno a , Naples, Valetta, Lisbon, Malaga,,Barcelona, Izmir, and Palma. Since joining the Atlantic Fleet, CHILTON has completed five deployments to the Mediterranean, eight to the Caribbean, and in 1964 participated in STEEL PIKF I the largest peace time amphibious exercise in history In the spring of 1964 CHILTON got underway on a few hours notice for the revolution torn shores of the Dominican Republic For over a month the officers and crew worked long hard hours landing supplies and vehicles on the ceaches of this island in support of Marines and Para troopers Since that time, CHILTON has been deploying reg1 1 arly to the Mediterranean and C bbean as the flag ship of Amphibious S Jadron Two , Q a Q - Q e . -4 , . - Q 0 Q - n - l I O l I W , 0 n Q o I ' 9 o o o L ' . ' , . 5 a 1 0 I , u , O u ' ' 9 9 . . ' ' 3 ' 5 C O . 8 . 2 I I O I . 0 I 0 , 1 v - - - : ' 9 ' 4. . 0 u I 0 o ,' La f.. 0 U '- I ' . O . . .

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EXECUTIVE HOMER C. RAGSDALE, IR. COMMANDER, USN OFFICER . ,...,0 I Commander Homer C. Ragsdale, Jr., anaval aviator since 1944, reported to CHILTON in March of 1967, following a tour of combat duty in Vietnam. As Commanding Officer, Patrol Squadron Two, Commander Ragsdale flew numerous missions along the coast of the embattled Southeast Asian nation, maintaining an alert watch for submarine activity and enemy infiltration by sea. Born in Wichita, Kansas, the Commander attended Mercer University and Alabama Polytechnic Institute prior to donning the Navy wings. His long and colorful flying career includes service with the famed Black Cats of World War ll. He holds an airline transport pilot rating, and is certified as an Air Traffic Control Specialist by the' Civil Aeronautics Administration. Commander Ragsdale wears the Air Medal with Gold Star, earned in the Pacific during World War ll. Commander Ragsdale is married to the former Kathleen Thom as of Newlyn, West Virginia. The Ragsdales have four sons and four daughters, and make their home in Virginia Beach, Virginia. y A- K -f , f Y V . wi . ..,. rs... E