Hamner (DD 718) - Naval Cruise Book

Page 25 text:

RADIOMEN- Back Row: LAKE, BENNETT, WERNER, MCBRIDE, ENS WILLIAMS: Front Row: LOUVIER, HARBERT, BOSS, HELMS, L. I. RADIOMEN To be able to convert the buzz of dots and dashes thumping into our ears onto a neat printed message in the typewriter before us is one of the many tricks of the radioman's trade. Of course, trying to accomplish this trick successfully while the second man of the watch, the messenger, is out routing the message board and the bridge is hollering over the squawk box for adjustments to their voice radio circuits is another story, generally of frustration and anguish. lt is on our shoulders that the maintenance of radio communications with the ships in company and the naval communications stations ashore rests, and it is within the crowded radio central, containing sixteen receivers, four transmitters, two teletypes, typewriter tables and work desk areas, patch and antenna coupler panels, status boards, drawers for spares, tools and the various communica- tion publications, bins for current messages and boxes upon boxes upon boxes of back message files, that the communication activity of the HAMNER is centered. ln fact, radio central is so crowded that we've overflowed in to the adjacent radar transmitterlroom, and we are eyeing temptingly the fire control radar room across the passagewey. Except for inport periods, all voice communications are administered from the remote control units of either the bridge or CIC. Our headaches arise from maintaining these voice circuits at peak performance on the proper frequen- cles despite the fact that we aren't using them, from keying out by Morse code our administrative messages over the CW circuits, and from watching the ship-shore teletype Fox-skeds for all mes- sages concerning the HAMNER whether they be operational immediate encrypted schedules changes or routine telegrams from families at home rendering to any one of our crew news of good fortune, complicated domestic problems or distressing sorrow. Every message coming to or leaving the HAMNER must be written up in a smooth multicopy form for dogged routing to the various concerned officers, sometimes the most difficult of people to locate. Though reduced in strength during the latter part of the cruise from eight men to five by two schools and Boss' broken leg, we were never found lacking in endurance to satisfactorily maintain our important communica- tions guard at all times! ,E if 55.- Q7

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RADARMEN-Back Row: ACKERMAN HENDRICKS POE CLARK JENNINGS PURDY, Front Row. RUDE, GODWIN, MACDOUGALL, GONZALES, Missing. GLUCK. RADARMEN Interrogative flash brown is the call in quest of hot fresh coffee by the sleepy back sore radarman sitting before his PPI searching for traces of a contact that will inject some life into his watch. Hot coffee seems to be the universal Navy stimulant to long, repetitious, ever occurring watches, and the veteran radarman knows well that the effectiveness of the stimulant is directly proportional to the flash brown .fre- quency. In our CIC CCombat information Centerj, the home of the radar gang, it is always dark, as we find it necessary to turn off all lighting, the clear plastic status boards and maneuvering tables excepted, to facilitate continuous search on the green fluorescent PPI scopes of the air and surface search radars. With the lights dim we ask, How can anybody keep from becoming sleepy g so bring on the coffee! I! Combat's mission is to provide the Captain, through the Officer of the Deck, with the necessary information of all tactical events external to but directlyconcerning the HAMNER. Steaming in formation with other ships, we must be alert to pick off tactical signals in the air whether coming in by flag hoist, signal light or voice radio, break the meaning of the signal, rapidly work out the maneuvering board problem and send course and speed solutions to the OOD on the bridge FAST before he starts bellowing down the voice tube. As the HAMNER maneuvers combat must send up timely infor- mation concerning course adjustments, the guide's range and bearing when on station, the exact time for returning to base course and speed to avoid overshooting station, etc. As the OOD is keenly concerned with collision possibilities, he demands to be informed of the ranges and bearings to and the courses, speeds and CPA's of every surface contact and will send back a terse rebuttal for every wrong piece of data submitted. Surveillance of aircraft is done around the clock, and while at General Quarters it is we who distinguish friendly from unfriendly aircraft, advise the OOD and Gunnery Officer of firing sectors and gun warning conditions and provide the gun directors with initial range, bearing and elevation from which to begin their target acquisition. Whenever continuous navigation must be done, whether entering or leaving port, steer- ing in restricted waters or patrolling an assigned offshore station, combat plots radar fixes on charts over the same DRT table used for plotting ASW, ECM and SAR tracks. While doing all this we also bear with and contribute to the squealing intermittent dialogue of the various Cl voice radio circuits which we use to pass contact and raid reports, secondary tactical information and administrative traffic between the CIC's of the accompanying ships to eliminate undue traffic on bridge tactical radio circuits. N-Qt. Iwi f my ii L fini: 'rl7i'iY' xvl I fN gy lv vi 'E

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SIGNALMEN AND QUARTERMASTERS-Front Row: DOUGLAS, HOUSTON, CHAPMAN, DAY: Second Row: THOMPSON, HIGH- STREET, CAGLE, FULLMER, V. C., JACKSON, Missing: CHALLINOR. SIGNALMEN AND QUARTERMASTERS Knowing well the multi-colored signal flags flapping tauntingly in the breeze, the flashing of red, white, amber or violet signal lights, the casual interchange of semaphore during alongside replenishments, the violent cursing evolving from vain efforts to train optical telescopes or nancy gear adequately with the HAMNER pitching and swinging radically, the beautiful golden tans resulting from shirtless days under a warm sun, the coarse faces hardened from cutting winds, slashing rains and sting- ing salt spray, the tense and strained eyes alert to detect the minute differences in dot and dash and the stiff, unresponding hands or nearly frozen feet in the bitter cold winter nights, we signalmen lay hearty claim to being the most colorful gang aboard the HAMNER. From swab down at the first light of dawn until the darkest hour of the following morn, we of the signal gang are always ready to respond to the sighting of visual signals and try to head off the peace shattering roar, Signals! ! or On your light! ! from a disturbed OOD. Underway we're always under the close scrutiny of the Captain and the OOD, but in port the bridge becomes our sole territory, high above the bustling activity of the rest of the ship, where we can pipe relaxing music into the tactical radio speakers, bring the coffee pot, books, and magazines and spare mat- tresses out and relax in an almost civilian atmosphere while carrying out our bridge maintenance and normal comm guard duties. Don't overlook the four of us here in the Quartermaster gang who, in addition to our normal underway duty of maintaining an accurate log of the ship's movements and activities, supplement the signalmen during shorthanded night watches or during inport duty days with our additional knowledge of visual signaling techniques. lt is we who assist the navigator with his visual fixes or celestial sightings, and the hundreds of navigation charts required for the HAMNER's travels are kept up to date by diligent and meticulous entries of every correction, addition or deletion as promulgated by the various Notice to Mariners, Monthly information Bulletin and other hydrographic publications. F ,i tix N f- Mffjm UJW4 vis ' My fi,XW l 2