Long Beach (CGN 9) - Naval Cruise Book

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After participating in two large fleet exercises and improving her equipment during two yard periods, LONG BEACH left for her second West- Pac deployment on April 15, 1968. On June 15, Captain William A. Spencer relieved Captain Wallace. During this deployment, the ship served as PIRAZ and Strike Support ship, assisting aircraft from Seventh Fleet carriers to reach targets in Vietnam and return safely. With operational commitments and port 'visits at Hong Kong, Perth, Australia, Subic Bay, Republic of the Philippines, and Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, completed, the ship arrived in Long Beach on November 16. On August 11, 1969, LONG BEACH left on her third WestPac deployment, during which she proved her worth as a Search and Rescue Ship on the second of three line periods in Tonkin Gulf. On November 15, the helicopter assigned to LONG BEACH rescued a pilot who bailed out after his aircraft had lost oil pressure. The pilot was in the water less than a minute before pick-up. The ship visited Singapore, Manila, and Sattahip, Thailand, between line periods and returned to Long Beach on February 12. LONG BEACH changed her homeport March 1, 1970, to Vallejo, California, where she began an ex- tensive maintenance and upkeep period in the Mare Island-Vallejo Shipyard. On March 28, 1972, homeported again in Long Beach, the ship left for its fourth WestPac deploy- ment. She joined Task Force 77 in Tonkin Gulf on April 13. During this 816 month deployment, the Combat Team achieved several MIG fRussian-built fighter jetl kills. The Search and Rescue Team, not to be out- done, rescued 17 downed pilots. Captain Frank R. Fahland relieved Captain Spencer on September 25, 1972, and two months later LONG BEACH left the Gulf for home. The New Year found the ship moored at Long Beach Naval Shipyard. Besides the maintenance and repair of ship's machinery and equipment, a closed circuit TV system was installed during upkeep there. Over 50 hours of color TV shows, feature films, and video tapes are air- ed each week underway.

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USS LONG BEAC On July 5, 1961, the USS LONG BEACH got underway on nuclear power for the first time. On September 9, the Honorable John Connally, Secretary of the Navy, keynoted the ceremony com- missioning LONG BEACH into the fleet with Cap- tain E. P. Wilkinson as Commanding Officer. LONG BEACH arrived at its homeport of Nor- folk, Virginia,Lon October 2, 1961. The ship began 1962 with a six-week cruise to Bremerhaven, Germany, La Havre, France, and the Bermuda Islands. Captain Frank H. Price, Jr., relieved Captain Wilkinson on September 11, 1963, to mark LONG BEACH's first command change. CGN 9 Under her new skipper, LONG BEACH par- ticipated in several fleet and NATO exercises. She visited Naples, Genoa and Taranto, Italy, Palermo, Sicily, Istanbul, Turkey, Tripoli and Barcelona, Spain, Golfe Juan, France, and Palma, Mallorca. On July 31, 1964, LONG BEACH joined the nuclear carrier USS ENTERPRISE and nuclear frigate flarge destroyeri USS BAINBRIDGE in aworld cruise, demonstrating the strategic ,mobility of U.S. Naval nuclear-powered surface forces independent of normal fleet logistics support. After 58 steaming days of more than 30,000 miles and ports calls in Karachi, West Pakistan, Melbourne, Australia, Wellington, New Zealand, and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, LONG BEACH returned to Norfolk. LONG BEACH operated out of the East Coast the rest of 1964. In August 1965, LONG BEACH went to New- port News, Virginia, for upkeep. With repairs com- pleted, she got underway on February 28, 1966, for her new homeport of Long Beach, California. She ar- rived there on March 15, and in her firstsix months on the West Coast, hosted more than 50,000 visitors. Captain Kenneth C. Wallace relieved Captain Price on August 23, 1966, and on November 7, took LONG BEACH on her first Western Pacific iWest- Paci tour. The ship spent the majority of her first deploy- ment in Tonkin Gulf off Vietnam, serving as Positive Identification Radar Advisory Zone QPIRAZQ ship. As PIRAZ the ship was responsible for identification and advisory control of all air traffic for the next 10 months. Relieved as PIRAZ June 3, the ship returned to Long Beach July 4, 1967, where she operated for the next 10 months. Q

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This upkeep period combined shipyard maintenance with important at-sea exercises. The workload was broken by a midshipmen cruise to Seattle Washington where crewmembers enjoyed the city s outstanding hospitality from June 29 to July I On August 22 LONG BEACH completed a large fleet exercise which tested her combative re- sponse to submarine surface and air attack that warfare vulnerability planes representing enemy aircraft kept the ship at a defensive sharpness that challenged the talent and experience of her weapons and operations personnel. In September 13 days were spent alongside the tender USS GOMPERS at North island San Diego for important repairs. After final readiness measures were taken in Long Beach the ship got underway for its sixth WestPac deployment on November 7 1974. 5 were sometimes simultaneous. During the anti-air 1 After a brief five month readiness period, LONG BEACH's fifth WestPac deployment began on May 1, 1973. Enroute to Pearl Harbor, the crew enjoyed the attentions of the Navy Recruiting Command working with Columbia Pictures to film recruiting commercials using LONG BEACH crewmembers in the cast. Upon leaving Hawaii, LONG BEACH entered Japanese waters for the first time on May 20, enroute to Yokosuka Naval Station for a port call. Because it was one of the few times a nuclear powered ship of such size had entered Yokosuka, members of the Japanese press, as well as important community and military officials, visited the ship. LONG BEACH also stopped at Hong Kong, Kaohsiung Taiwan Manila and Subic Bay during the 416 month cruise the first in the post Vietnam War environment Upon completing three line periods the ship steamed for leave and upkeep in Long Beach where she arrived September 22 1973 .U . lllll ll l lllllllllllllll Illllllllll llllllll g 9 1 1 J 1 9 1IlllllIllllllIlllllllllllllllll yy i llllllliilillillllllillillllllil1