Salem (CA 139) - Naval Cruise Book

Page 80 text:

COMMANDER SIXTH FLEET Vice Admiral Ofstie, a battle-tested Naval aviator for thirty-three years, is a modest man. To learn something about him, we took a look at his official record. As a result of his service in World War II and in the Korean war, he has been publicly cited for 'cconspicuous gallantry and intrepidityff as ucourageous and aggressive, for usuperb skill, uextra- ordinary heroism, leadership,H 'fforesightn and Hexcep- tionally meritorious servicefi To Turkish newsmen who queried him about his Navy Cross, he explained with em- barrassment, I just happened to be there at the timefj Upon graduation from the U. S. Naval Academy, his standing tenth in a class of 199 portended his brilliant fu- ture. lnitially serving in the Whipple during World War l E he was a destroyer ofhcer for three years before he earned his uwingsn of gold. ln 1925 he was a member of the Ameri- can team in the famous Schneider Cup Race, piloting an R3C-1, a Navy racing seaplane. Early in his career, he headed a flight test division, com- manded Fight-Squadron Six aboard the Saratoga, served Naval Attache duties in Tokyo and London and became aviation officer on the staff of Commander-in-Chief, U, S. Pacific Fleet, six months after Pearl Harbor. Under his command, the Essex took part in aerial attacks on Rabaul in 1943, scoring one of the great Naval Air vic- tories of the war. On the heels of this assault, Japanese in the Gilberts, Kwajalein, Truk, Tinian, Sipan, Guam, the Marsh- alls and in the first battle of the Philippine Sea, felt the wrath of his courageous aviators. Command of Carrier Division Twenty-Six, Anguar, Peleliu Command of Carrier Division Twenty-Two and the battle for Leyte Gulf followed in quick succession. After Hiroshima he became Senior Naval Member, U. S. Strategic Bombing Sur- vey and Navy Member on the Joint Chiefs of Staff Evalua- tion Board for the Atomic Bomb Test. Completing duty as Naval Member. Military Liaison Committee to the Atomic Energy Committee in 1950, he returned to sea as Command- er Carrier Division Five and Commander Task Force Seventy- Seven in the Korean Wfar. Before becoming COMSIXTHFLT he was Commander First Fleet and Deputy Chief of Naval Operations tAIRJ . Admiral Ofstie is married to the former Captain Joy Bright Hancock, USN lBet,l, formerly director of the VVAVES. . ,, , . . 'A . , x 0- W s im' ,' ,pri - ,,f,f1. it

Page 79 text:

WELCUIVIE ABOARD SIXTH FLEET , Qs- xx ,. X wx ti N QQ -'T 55 H, s 5 . Q A . -ur A m X K wx xx xi A ix fglkw X jx X 'X 'xi fr, X?,fQ1 xx m v J,gK3ZlQixxX A f X Q.. - V! 1' 5 'lr P , f A ,Q QM lv ' V -Q gif? ,ui4v6f '4l3 .K-V wwf 13:31 W 'MHS uv 4:3 A A-'NES1 ADIC y annul Z quam: . must - -Q' Nur AI A41 ,QD ...,,,, ,, , .,.,,...,.,..,-,..-,.-,,.w. y, W df A .. f .., A...-4-n-,fvm..M ,, ,. f, f 1 ,. , .....nm,,.v,.,.M.,.,, ,,,,f . ,,.,.,. . , .,,,

Page 81 text:

Captain Freeman was born in Newton, Massachusetts, on 18 August 1905. He attended Walthaiii, Mass., high school before entering the U. S. Naval Academy in 1923. Graduated and commissioned Ensign on 2 June 1927, he subsequently advanced to the rank of Captain, to date from 20 March 1945. Following graduation from the Naval Academy in June 1927, he served in the light cruiser Marblehead. After in- struction at the submarine school in New London, Connecti- cut, he qualified as a submariner and served as the Engineer- ing Officer of the Submarine S-30. Prior to World War II CHIEF UF STAFF he served in the Pecos, Portland, R-11, S-31, and commanded the S-34. During the war he commanded the Submarine Skipjack, was Flag Secretary to Commander, Submarine Force, Seventh Fleet, and Commander Submarine Force, U. S. Atlantic Fleet, after which duty he became Executive Officer of the Cruiser Augusta. Following the war, he commanded the Drew, Williamsburg and Reina Mercedes. For the past five years he served successively on the staff of SHAPE, as Assistant Naval At- tache in Paris, as Commander Service Force, Sixth Fleet, and as head of the Foreign Military Aid Branch of the 1nter- national Affairs Division in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations. ln addition to a Commendation Ribbon with Star and the Army Distinguished Unit Badge, Captain Freeman has the Yangtze, National Defense, Atlantic, Pacific, Philippine De- fense, World War I1 Victory, and Occupation medals. Captain Freeman is married to the former Phyllis Yates of Coronado, California. 77