Tulare (AKA 112) - Naval Cruise Book

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XP' it V .MMM .,,' J l C 3 1 fi AKA-II2 HI TOR OF L LARE The inception of USS TULARE CAKA-1125 goes back to the period immediately followingthe outbreak of hostilities in Korea. On 26 July 1951, the characteristics of a new AKA, known as Project No. 77, were approved by the Chief of Naval Operations. These characteristics were based on the conversion of a Maritime Com- mission single cargo vessel. The Evergreen Mariner hull No. 32, built by the Bethlehem Pacific Coast Steel Corp. at San Francisco, was chosen, She had never sailed in her civilian capacity before being commissioned in the Navy. In June of 1954 she was taken back to her building yard for Navy uniform. The conversion period lasted from June 1954 to 12 January, 1956 on which date she was commissioned as the USS TULARE CAKA-1121, our first and, to date, our only postwar AKA. She reported to the Com- mander Amphibious Force, U. S. Pacific Fleet for duty, and went on her shakedown cruise in 1957 to the South Pacific to serve as a unit of the SEVENTH Fleet. She is presently serving as a unit of Amphibious Squadron THREE, Amphibious Force, U. S. Pacific Fleet. TULARE, as a Mariner-class ship, is one of the fastest single screw ships in the world, capable of sustained sea speeds in excess of twenty knots for a distance of over 10,000 miles. TULARE can circle the globe at twelve knots without refueling. She has six holds with quick- opening roller type hatch covers. She has three sixty ton booms, one forty ton boom along with many lighter booms to service these hatches. TULARE has a cargo capacity of 310,000 cubic bale feet, and accomodations for eighteen officers and 301 enlisted personnel in troop spaces. Her assault boats provide the magic bridge to transport supplies from sea to shore. But, in addition, TULARE has a helicopter platform, a feature unique among AKA's. This flight deck of over 4,000 square feet allows expeditious trans- fer of cargo and personnel to and from the beaches.

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WW- - LY, ,gli A native of Bridgeport, Pennsylvania, Captain Streeper graduated from The College of Wooster, Wooster, Ohio in March of 1942, and immediately enlisted in the Navy as a Seaman. Shortly thereafter, he was appointed an Aviation Cadet, and following completion of flight training, was com- missioned an Ensign and designated a Naval Aviator on 1 January 1943. During World War II, Captain Streeper participated in combat as a torpedo and dive bomber pilot with both the Atlantic and Pacific fleets. During Korean hostilities, he participated in action with both Navy and Marine units. In 1954 he commanded a night jet all-weather detachment of Composite Squadron 3. In 1955 he assumed command of night all-weather FighterfAttack Squadron 194 and in 1961 commanded Attack Carrier Air Group 15. During these years he was deployed aboard USS ESSEX, USS ORISKANY, USS HANCOCK, and USS CORAL SEA. Prior to coming to TULARE, Captain Streeper served as Operations Officer of Carrier Division' 1 and Task Force 77, and deployed once again in USS CORAL SEA, engaged in air strike operations in Viet Nam. Shore duty billits include tours as a flight instructor at Pensacola, participation in the Berlin Airlift, Assistant Operations Officer on the staff of Commander Naval Forces Far East, Naval Attache to the Republic of Korea, two tours of duty on the staff of the Chief of Naval Operations, and Force Training Officer for Commander Naval Air Force Pacific. He is a 1952 graduate of the General Line School at Monterey, and a 1959 graduate of the Industrial College of the Armed Forces in Washington. Captain Streeper has been awarded the Legion of Merit, Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal with three gold stars and Oak Leaf Cluster, Presidential Unit Citation, Navy Unit Commendation, Medal for Humane Action for the Berlin Airlift, Military Order Ulchi fKorean Legion of Merity, and numerous campaign and foreign medals. He is married to the former Cora Boyd Reddit of Greenville, North Carolina. The Streepers reside in San Diego. Capt H P Streeper and a group of recently advanced TULARE men.