Smalley (DD 565) - Naval Cruise Book

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argl l wtf X NW xg mms K .. ans. S ' 5 V A T ' S X S S S Q Q Q Q .S V A tense feeling of excitement penetrated the damp, grey dawn on the morning of 30 Iune as Destroyer Division 302 steamed briskly into the Japanese Sea to join Fast Carrier Task Force 77 off Korea. Trme out for 1 drrnk gvx swoon Passing through Shimoneseki Strait, between the Iapanese home islands of Honshu and Kyushu, the ship took a last glimpse of the mountainous, once hostile terrain. As We neared the large Task Force and received our screen station the entrre crew was appre hensrvely alert at lrst we would make effective use of our combat preparation Task Force 77 demanded precision mfrneu verrng at high speeds w hrch fused into 1 con trnuously changing pattern The huge aircraft carriers which We protected lrunched strrke after strike of hervrlx armed planes which attacked strategic enemy posrtrorrs rn North Korea Squrw king r rdros Ind clfrngrng Gllgllle order bells were handled with else after a few uncertrrn drvs and soon We found our selves carrying out shrpboud duties w rth more assur rnce Consequently when our first rescue mission Urrne we w are more th ur crgcr for rt An emergency srgnrl rndrcrted thrt 1 ret prlot hrd gorrr dow n oil North Korer D11 rn rtrc rlly tht Smczllrrf sur Utd rhr rd ot the for rn rtron w hrch wffrs plunging rlonff rt '75 knots Another crn w hrth h rd strrttd out w rth us

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l 'fagqggji Tokyo Railroad Station Buddhist temples of Kamakura before reaching Tokyo. For most of us, this was the first large city of the Orient that we had seen. The Tokyo abayousv which once served the city as canals, the modern streets and tall buildings, the rush of trucks and cars on the same thoroughfares as rickshaws and hand carts, kimonos and European Dress, the modern department stores and the portable stalls of small merchants made Tokyo a city of contrasts-truly a place where VVest had met East. Here again the occidental influence was rapidly sweeping into the oriental traditions. Of the twenty-two major parks, most of us visited at least one. The Shinto Shrines were run down but provided enough faded color to entice the shutter bugsv to unlimber their cameras. Uleno Park, situated in the north central part of the city, was perhaps the most popular of the parks. lt was certainly the most popular as far as the post card manufacturers were concerned. We found a good system of public buses and elevated trains but they were not much use to Smalley sailors who were incapable of deciphering the Japanese characters on the various signs. Many of us went jolting down the Ginza in one of those toy-like taxi cabs, dodging trucks, buses and three-wheeled rickshaws only to learn that Tokyo's traffic control is still geared to the rickshaw and oxcart. The Imperial Palace with its weathered gray walls rising out of a brackish moat attracted 17 all hands, though none of us were able to gain entrance to the palace grounds. Another place of interest was the Akasaka Detached Palace, also known as the Old lmperial Palace, and now a library. This sprawling piece of transplated Versailles style architecture was open to the curious. Those who ventured within the walls wandered many miles of dark red carpeted corridors in semi- darkness. Sometime during our visit to Tokyo we stopped at the lmperial Hotel, the pre-war rendezvous of diplomats and statesmen. The setting was good, the food excellent, and the tab amazingly low. There was much to be seen in this capital city of japan, the largest city in the Orient, but one or two days was not nearly enough to do it in. We only scratched the surface, but we had been to Tokyo. Back in uYokuska,', the bars, hotels and cabarets with which we became familiar early in our Hve day visit were of all shapes and sizes. They ranged from tiny old-fashioned japanese tea rooms to flashy night clubs which would put some of the gaudy stateside gin millsn to shame. The P.O. and E.M. Clubs with their various bars, restaurants, barber shops and ballrooms also saw a great many Smalley men. Even though we were burdened with gifts and void of money there was more than one wistful eye turned and one longing glance cast when the Smalley drew out of the bay on June 29th. Korea, Task Force 77 and perhaps real adventure now lay directly ahead. Fujiyama in the Spring I nm.

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MAIL AND SUPPLIES . . rs' N, V X Q ' va 4- J 2' . EQ? . 'glz.8 .4 or u, i mm , S' N sl :lla : , 6 I I o,.. 3 I ' 9 0-nan Q 3 l I xg. ai fl '9',1 '1 0' 0 NO - 4 puffed through the water at 27 knots and slipped astern. The race was on. The tempo quickened and hearts beat faster all over the ship. The sense of routine and boredom van- ished as we hastened towards the distressed aviator. ' The boilers roared, the forced draft blowers hummed as the throttle valves cranked the steam-hungry mouths of the main turbines Afternoon lull . . 77 STYLE open wider and wider. The vibrating stern sank down to ocean level as the smooth blades of the two propellers bit into the water and sent it writhing in white foam fifteen feet into the air. As the fantail dug deeper into the sea, Smalleyis proud bow lifted its chin high, slic- ing into the dark waves and splitting an occa- sional swell into heavy spray which dashed over the bridge. Soon we were streaking toward the pilot at almost 40 miles an hour and the Task Force had long since disappeared behind us on the cold horizon. A weather plane was orbiting over the survivor's tiny raft and our radars kept a constant fix on his position. In an hour and fifteen minutes, we saw the red puffs from his emergency smoke bombs, as we drew closer we could see the solitary figure in the little rub- ber raft surrounded by deep green dye marker with the assist plane circling faithfully over- head. Five minutes after we spotted the pilot he was safely on board. His total time in the water was only eighty minutes. At the moment of rescue the starboard side of the ship looked like a circus grandstand overloaded with zeal- ous camera fans. We were happy to know that our mission, however slight, had saved a life and therefore had been successful. Airficlds afioat