Randolph (CVA 15) - Naval Cruise Book

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This is a somewhat objective look at a series of events and places visited dur- ing an eight month cruise with the United States Sixth Fleet. Nearly 3000 men par- ticipated in the Randolph's 1957-58 Mediterranean Cruise, so rightfully there are 3000 individual stories to be told. To achieve a certain degree of subjectivity the photographs are not captioned, for to do so would be to limit-to let one man's reactions serve for the many. The design of the book was to bring together photographs with which each crewmember could tell his own story. The photographs also were selected and pre- sented so that those readers who did not participate on the cruise can in a way share the experience and find some feeling of what it was like. Some things however cannot accurately be shown through photographs. The port cities visited can be shown, telling their varied storiesg likewise the ship's rou- tine can be pictured. Difficult to show though is the monotony and intrigue of the sea-the joy of mail call -the satisfaction of safely recovering aircraft-the last hour of a mid-watch-the first hour in a new port. These things are best told in words. We have tried to present most of everything that went on. Some of the photo- graphs are not inspired and some are not beautiful, for much that we did and saw was neither, some show grandeur some capture excitement. As such was the cruise.

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EAFARERS historically have been set apart from other men by the na- ture of their world. Constant movement, uncommon skills, and a spec- ialized language are partially responsible for the difference. A ship takes a man and isolates him from all but his shipmates. Away is his home, his family, the usual way of life. Gone is the very medium on which man has chosen to live, the earth, the land, as he embarks upon a foreign, unknown, ever-changing one: the sea. Within the individual there often comes lon- liness caused by the growing, secret, private feelings which often can be shared with no one, feelings made stronger by a shipboard life. There comes a special opening of hearts in men who have gone down to the sea, which brings an appreciation of the many faced beauty of man and his world that cannot be found elsewhere. Men of the navies must have special strength to challenge the sea and win their purpose. From ancient oar-driven triremes to modern war- ships with subtle and complex equipment, one factor has remained constant in the nautical equation-the strength and spirit of the crew-the total that determines what a ship can be, what it is. It is this common purpose, this special perspective that enables the sailor to see things in relation to himself and that about him in a way impossibe for the landsmang this togetherness, which yields the utterly unique figure of the sailor. The Mediterranean perhaps more than any other body of water has most nurtured the seaman. From Odysseus to Admiral Cat Brown, naval leaders have brought their men and ships to this cradle of history which so often has borne the seaman of the world as they fought wars and kept peace. Bonaparte fought for the prize and lost. The great Nelson, in win- ning, gave his life. These are historic waters, and as the men and the ships of the Sixth Fleet stand guard, we can be conscious of the tradition that surrounds us and mindful of our niche. Alone on a wide wide sea, all must at some time look out over the water and up at the stars and think of the hugeness of things. Each will often think of himself and of his relation to that about him, ever-changing with the happenings of each day--new individual worlds being made. But these are shadowy matters and it is here that the instrument of lan- guage begins to fail. Here though, in this photographic story, we have tried to present the world of the Randolph seaman. Scores of worlds are shown-the ballet of flight operations-the story of roaring engines- the mountains of routine-the touches of spectacular-the releases from tension-the drone of labor. Some may find the whole story in a single photograph. All of us, in some measure, participated in every one. But it is the sum of all the photographs which truly tell the story of the kinship and bondage of the Randolph seaman-the world of the seafarer.

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