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Recently Received Narrative - 01/16/2011

Collision as seen from the USS Waddell

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Recently Received Photos - 12/27/2010

Origin/Photographer Unknown

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Bass - Bent/Broken Bow - February 5, 1966

Bass Forecastle - February 5, 1966

Waddell - Damaged/Collision - February 5, 1966

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Does Anyone Remember Shore Patrol ?

In the P.I. ?????

This arm band is the real thing !!!!

Contributed by - Jerry Kiser - BM2

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    The Dark Days of February 1966

Collision at Midnight - Yankee Station    

From:

William E. Stover – USS Brinkley Bass DD 887 – 12/1964 to 2/1968 – FTG2

To:

Anyone who may remember the darkest days in February 1966.

My name is Bill Stover.  I served the USA for 8 years during the ‘Cold War’ in the USAF and during the Viet Nam War aboard the Destroyer, USS Brinkley Bass DD 887.  I served the last 15 months of my AF duty on a ‘Spy’ base at Trabzon in eastern Turkey near the Soviet Georgian border.  I spent the last 3 years of my USN duty aboard Brinkley Bass of which 13 months were spent in the War Zone in the South China Sea, near the coasts of  South and North Viet Nam and the Southern border of Red China.

The 15 months in Turkey was Isolated and Remote and the entire tour of duty was served during the most dangerous of times in the history of the world community.  I was ‘there’ during the ‘Cuban Missile Crisis’.  I could talk about the Nuclear Threat and the real dangers we faced but that’s another story.

Service on any ‘Fighting Ship’ of the U.S. Naval Fleet is given while living aboard the worlds best ‘Prisons’.  We stood watch at ‘Port and Starboard (6 hours on watch and six hours on other duties)(24 x7) while at sea and at ‘GQ’, at ‘Battle Stations’.  All personnel in the Weapons Division were involved in handling explosives and firing big guns during all kinds of confrontations and Incidents of War.  We can only speculate as to how many other human beings we killed with the ‘Big Guns’ of Brinkley Bass.  Most of our first West Pac Cruise, my duty station was Pointer and ‘Trigger Man’.  For 12 hours a day, months at a time, I pulled the Trigger which fired salvos of our four, 5inch/38caliber guns.  Again, there is no way to calculate the thousands of rounds of explosives which were delivered to the enemy from the squeeze of my finger on the ‘Trigger’.

Although I haven’t heard from or about him for 38 years, I remember Jerry.  He was about my age, mid 20s, during the Viet Nam experience.  Jerry was BM2 and Lead Petty Officer in the Weapons Gang and Deck Crew while I was FTG2 and Lead Petty Officer in the Fire Control Gang.  Because of War, many young men were promoted quickly.  Those with intelligence and ability were quickly elevated to Lead Responsibilities.  It was unheard of for a Boatswains Mate to make BM2 in just one enlistment.  Jerry was young and cocky, sharp and responsible and he was promoted quickly to BM2 (Petty Officer 2^nd Class).  If I remember correctly, Jerry spent many hours as Weapons Lead in a Gun Mount Gunnery/Loader Crew.  As Deck Crew Lead, He also spent many hours in Refueling and Replenishment Operations where he was responsible for dangerous and tricky operations, all of which were carried out under ‘Red Light’ usually between midnight and 2 o’clock in the morning.  All ‘At Sea Operations’ in the War Zone were conducted under ‘Red Light’ and darkness in order to cut down on the vulnerability of attack during daylight hours.

Toward the end the first cruise the Bass was assigned ‘SAR’ Duties off the coast of North Viet Nam.  SAR is an acronym for ‘Search and Rescue’.  Congress had just enacted the Tonkin Gulf Resolution in response to North Viet Nam Swift Boat attacks on the USS Maddox and USS Turner Joy of the US Fleet in the South China Sea.  President Johnson had escalated the War to a ‘Fever Pitch’.  We were engaged in heavy bombing of Hanoi and Hiphong Harbor.  Pilots from the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps were flying hundreds of sorties each day.  They were flying low altitude bombing runs from Carriers on ‘Yankee Station’, and Bases in Thailand and South Viet Nam.  They flew A1s, A6s, and F4s and other ‘Fighter/Bombers’.  B52s were flying ‘High Flight’, Saturation bombing runs from Guam.  Many years later it was the B52 crews who paid the price for coming up against the improving Soviet SAM Missiles.  These young Pilots and Navigators of the Fighter/Bombers of the mid 1960s who were bombing Hanoi and Hiphong were in harms way each time they were catapulted from the Carrier’s Flight Decks and every time they were wheels up from air fields in Thailand and South Viet Nam.  Too many of these aircraft were shot down by SAM Missiles and Anti-Aircraft Guns.  Too many of these aircraft fell from the skies because of mechanical fatigue.  Some were lost to human error and personnel fatigue.  Others were lost to malfunctions on Carriers and miscalculations by support personnel on the bases throughout the region.  The Brinkley Bass together with USS Waddell DDG 24 spent the last few months of their first Wes Pac Cruise of 1965 and early 1966 in ‘SAR’, Search and Rescue of these ‘Downed’ Pilots and Flight Crews.

I am writing this narrative on the 40^th anniversary of the beginning of the worst 6 days of my 8 year military career.  February 2^nd is my mothers birthday.  It is also Ground Hog’s Day.  It is hard to forget these days.  I remember these incidents as if they happened yesterday because I have, as many others who were ‘there’ have, replayed and revisited this experience many times over the last 40 years. The chronology of the six days is entirely from my memory.  Although others may have seen it from other vantage points or from other perspectives, all who were there will never forget those few days in February 1966.

The USS Brinkley Bass DD 887 was ordered from R&R in the Port of Hong Kong back to ‘SAR’ duties, arriving on station February 2, 1966, and on February 3, 1966, together with USS Waddell DDG 24 was on duty off the coast of North Viet Nam.  As on previous SAR duty we operated with a number of Helicopters from carriers and land bases.  The choppers on this day were from the carrier Ranger.  We had been warned previously that big shore batteries in North Viet Nam were very active, that we should be ready to engage if ever called upon to get close to the shoreline.  At about mid-day the two destroyers received the call that a pilot was down very close to the borders of China and North Viet Nam.  We were south of this area when the call came in.  Choppers were called and we proceeded at ‘Full Speed’ toward the downed pilot.  We pulled in close to the harbor.  This harbor was very close to Red China.  I was Trainer in the Gun Fire Control Director.  I had a small radar monitor to my right.  The Train Control Wheels were between my knees.  My fingers were tightly fixed to the left and right triggers and my eyes were glued to the eye pieces which provided the best view of  any target from the range finder’s powerful binoculars of the director system.  We had pointed and trained the director system toward the harbor and the downed pilot.  Pilots normally approached the Northern Targets at a high altitude from the south.  They descended quickly from the east, dropped their armament, quickly ascended toward the South China Sea and evasively maneuvered to avoid SAM Missiles and Anti-Aircraft.  They were trained to ascend ASAP so that in the event they were hit, they could eject over water.  Most pilots who made it out over water were successfully rescued by “SAR’ destroyers or Helicopters assigned to ‘SAR’ duties.  This downed pilot had apparently been hit at a low altitude because he had, of necessity, bailed early and had come down in the very center of the harbor.  I could see that the pilot was alive and staying afloat.  He was only about 800 yards from the shore, and he was in very dangerous waters.  The assigned helicopter was delayed some minutes in arriving.  The Bass was pointing in from the north and the Waddell was pointing in from the south.  The very big guns from gun emplacements above and behind the harbor and inland on the mountain side, began to fire at Bass and Waddell.  Two large Chinese Junks began to approach the pilot, one from the north and one from the south.  Bass and Waddell began to return fire and fire upon the junks which were moving slowly toward the downed pilot.  The chopper arrived and we thought we would recover the pilot, but as the cable was lowered toward the pilot, the chopper took a direct hit in the middle of the fuselage.  The pilot of the chopper reported that his technician was hit and that he must retreat because his ride was falling apart.  He quickly pulled back and headed to sea.  We heard that the chopper fell about 5 miles to the west and eventually heard that the pilot and co-pilot were rescued by our second ‘SAR’ chopper.  We cut our gun mounts loose to take different targets.  The forward gun mount was firing at gun emplacements while the rear gun mount was firing at the junk which was approaching from the north.  The Waddell was firing at the second junk which was approaching from the south.  The ‘Big Eyes’ of the Gun Fire Director were trained on the downed pilot.  I watched the entire operation, up close and personal.  I watched as a huge hole and ball off flames appeared in the fuselage of the chopper.  Our rear gun mount placed some very impressive rounds upon the junk.  That junk flamed out and a few minutes later it sank.  The second chopper became involved in the rescue of the crew of the downed chopper and they could not respond immediately to our operation.  As both ships were dealing with shore batteries and self defense from those big guns, we witnessed the junk coming from the south pull the downed pilot aboard.  He was captured, alive.  After about 15 minutes of trading fire with shore batteries, commanders decided it was time to retreat to safer waters.  As we fell into column with the Waddell, and commenced zig-zag maneuvers, we could see that the big guns were becoming more accurate as we came into their best range.  They were most effective as we reached 11 miles at sea, and then we began to move out of their effective range.  We called for air support and before we lost sight of the harbor, I counted 80 aircraft dropping bombs on the gun emplacements and on the back side of the harbor.

We spent February 4^th at sea on ‘SAR’ duty.  It was a tense and nervous time because commanders were trying to decide whether or not we would return to that harbor and go in close for a recon run.  We operated with choppers in a number of ‘SAR’ missions during the day of February 4, 1966.

We started a normal refueling and replenishment operation about 10 o’clock on the evening of February 4^th.  These operations had become tricky in the recent past.  Many operations were being disrupted by Russian Trawlers (Spy Ships) who were operating in the South China Sea.  On more than one occasion we had called for Sea Going Tugs to engage these Trawlers and physically bump them out of the way of our sea operations.  Our Fleet had kept an eye on two of these Russian vessels for many days.  We knew that they were too far away to interfere so we started our ‘Normal’ Operation.  We had accomplished these operations about every 3 days for the passed number of months.  We expected problems because each refueling and replenishment operation presented it’s own unique problems.  All operations at sea are dangerous, especially in a War Zone.  That is the nature of Naval Service.  This particular operation was rather uneventful.  As in all operations, the two destroyers pulled alongside the replenishment ship.  They each refueled and took on stores.  The Bass finished first and as usual, remained alongside until the Waddell finished operations.  The Flotilla Commodore was resident on Waddell and therefore the Bass always traveled in column behind Waddell.  As in all previous operations, the Bass and Waddell pulled away from the replenishment ship at full speed in anticipation of a command to column up before heading for assigned duty station.  It was midnight and all of the Brinkley Bass Crew was in motion, moving about the ship in relieving watch and assuming the mid-watch.  We don’t really know why disaster struck at this moment.  We do know that lives were lost because of a series of events which were far from normal.

I was on watch in the gun fire director, just to be relieved for the mid-watch by another Fire Control Technician.  I had on a headset which allowed communications with the bridge.  I heard the commands to cut speed to 2/3^rd  and to bring the ship to the left to start a column maneuver.  Apparently the Officer of the Deck thought he had heard the column command.  We were far too close to Waddell and these commands put the Bass on a Collision Course with the Waddell.  The captain was apparently in his sea cabin just behind the bridge.  A lookout (Seaman) yelled that we were on a collision course.  Others were screaming.  The Captain heard the noise and came running onto the bridge.  He ran to the wing hatch and immediately began to take action.  He screamed very loudly a series of commands.  He yelled, ’This is the Captain,  I have the Con, Right Full Rudder, All Emergency Back, sound the Collision Alarm, and brace for shock.  At this same time, my watch relief had just climbed upon the top of the director.  The hatches on the top of the director were open.  He put his head inside and calmly told us that we were going to collide with the Waddell.  I stood and looked out of my hatch and then braced for shock.  I watched in amazement as the Bass collided with Waddell.  We hit at mid-ships.  The Bass rode up and down as the collision was in progress.  A rooster tail of sparks 100 feet high emanated from between the Bass and Waddell.  As the Bass pulled away from Waddell, I could see light coming from the holes just ripped into the hull of Waddell.  The Bass drifted to a stop and then began to sink in the bow area.

The ship’s crew was quick to respond.  Within a few minutes we heard that there was no  loss of life.  Everyone brought mattresses, wood and tools including pumps.  Within a few minutes the decision was made to ask for assistance because we were loosing the battle with inflow of water.  We had completely destroyed 40 feet of the bow.  The gash was about 20 feet high.  Although most of the damage which provided holes and allowed inflow of water was above the water line, water was coming in from the ship’s bobbing in a heavy sea state.  The USS Navasota responded to our call.  They put a big boat in the water with timbers, pumps, tools, other materials and a Damage Control Team of  16 Seamen.  The helpers were Ship Fitters(Welders and Pipe Fitters) and Damage Controlmen who were Builders and Welders.  Together with our crew this Damage Control Team fought water inflow through the night.  By morning they had saved the ship.  The Bass was afloat.

It was February 5, 1966.  The sea state was a 5 (very high waves) by morning.  It was decided that the Damage Control Team should be returned to Navasota by chopper.  The chopper arrived about 9 o’clock or so.  The Ship Fitters gathered on the deck of the fantail because ammo and stores were removed from the lower decks and all decks except the fantail were burdened with materials from below.  I believe that Jerry, the BM2 was the Lead Petty Officer in the Deck Handling part of that airlift operation.

All of those being taken aboard the chopper were outfitted with kapok life jackets and were lifted by cable to the chopper.  I was positioned on the ECM Deck which was physically located above the location of the chopper.  I was not involved in this operation, so I had gone up to the ECM Deck to get a good view of the transfers. The last of the personnel to be lifted onto the apron of the chopper was the SFC, Chief Petty Officer.  It is military protocol for the Ranking Person to Lead into any Operation and to follow on the way out to be sure that the path is good going in and that all personnel exit OK.

Disaster struck again, just when the Chief was being brought on board the chopper.  The chopper lost stability, turned at least 180 degrees and flipped upside down.  In the process, I stood in amazement as I helplessly watched while the Chief fell from the chopper as it flipped.  The chopper hit the water, exactly on the Chief, about 10 feet from the fantail of the Bass.  I slide down the ladder to the deck below and again fixed my sight on the chopper.  Personnel on the fantail and the main deck and our own dash flight deck were throwing life jackets and life rings into the water.  I found life rings where I was, and heaved them into the water.  The sea state was high and the Bass was basically dead in the water.  As the chopper crew and those of the Damage Control Team began to surface, they looked like corks or fishing bobs, popping up from the water.  The Bass and these men began to drift apart.  They were grabbing life jackets and life rings which would support then if they remained in the water for a prolonged period.

Three Seamen were lost at sea that day.  The Chief and an SF1 and an SF2 were lost.  They went down with the chopper.  Another chopper came to rescue the survivors.  Other tragedies which occurred that day will be told about on another day.

The Bass pulled into Da Nang, South Viet Nam the next day.  Navy UDT guys went down and checked out damage below the water line.  They welded chain in strategic places and advised the Captain to proceed to the Philippine Islands at 5 knots.  We proceeded to Subic Bay, Philippine Islands arriving sometime on February 7, 1966.

What a STORY – You think !!!!  It happened pretty much that way – February 2,3,4,5,6,7, 1966.

I tracked those lost during those days.  I watched every POW return from captivity in 1973.  They came off the planes in Manila and again in Hawaii.  They were repatriated in order of capture.  Those captured first were repatriated first.  I remember at least 1 returning POW who had been captured on that day.  When the Internet matured, I found the names and home towns of those 3 Ship Fitters who went down with the chopper.  Their names are registered in two different logs of the USS Navasota.  

 Although some of the second cruise was spent on ‘SAR’ duties most of the Bass’s involvement was in  Night Shore Bombardment which was usually Harassment of the Viet Cong, we did get out a few times for ‘Plane Guard’ with various Carriers on ‘Yankee Station’,  just off the coast of  Viet Nam.  During this cruise we encountered ‘North Vietnamese Swift Boats’ and “North Vietnamese Piloted Migs’.  We responded with deadly force in every situation.  We were at War and as a Patriotic Crew, we took care of duty as ‘Duty Called’.  I will record some of the incidents encountered by the Bass on the second cruise at another time and in another venue.

This is the story from my point of view and from my unique perspective,

William E. Stover – USS Brinkley Bass DD 887 – 12/1964 to 2/1968 – FTG2

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Document Fragment

February 4, 1966

On 4 February, Ticonderoga moved north to relieve Kitty Hawk at Yankee station; and Enterprise, after 21 days "off the line" moved to Dixie to commence in-country operations in the South. During the next eight days, before going up to Yankee, Enterprise flew nearly 1400 sorties, of which almost 1100 were in combat. She was credited with the destruction of 510 structures, 24 bunkers, 23 sampans, four gun-emplacements, and one bridge. Also, 569 other structures were damaged, numerous tunnels and trenches collapsed, other sampans and bunkers impaired, plus accompanying secondary fires and explosions. Kitty Hawk, reluctant to give way to the advantages of nuclear power, had a 170 sortie-day just before departing for rest and recreation at Subic. For one of her RA-SC's lost to AAA over North Vietnam, the guns of Waddell (DDG-24) and Brinkley Bass (DD-887) were brought to bear on shore targets interfering with the search and rescue of the downed crew. This marked the first time that shore bombardment by U.S. Navy ships had taken place in North Vietnam. The SAR mission, however, was unsuccessful, and the crew of two declared missing.

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From Public Domain

Viet Nam Era

The last of those peacetime cruises ended at Long Beach in June 1963. That was followed by 27 months of duty along the California coast that also included a four-month regular overhaul at the Hunters Point Naval Shipyard between April and August of 1964. Just as she was preparing to leave the yard, an event--the Gulf of Tonkin incident--occurred off the coast of Vietnam. It helped to bring the United States into the Vietnamese civil war as a full belligerent. Though Brinkley Bass spent another year in peaceful operations along the west coast, that incident meant that her remaining Far East deployments would be of a combat nature.

On 28 September 1965, the destroyer departed Long Beach in a carrier task group built around Ticonderoga (CVA-14). The task group spent about two weeks engaged in exercises in the Hawaii operating area before continuing its voyage west. The warships arrived in Subic Bay in the Philippines on 30 October. Three days later, she was on her way to Vietnamese waters where she screened Independence (CVA-62) and served as her plane guard during air strikes on North Vietnam. That brief line tour ended 10 days later back at Subic Bay. On 21 November, the destroyer put to sea once again. After type training at the Tabones shore bombardment range, she headed for Danang, South Vietnam, where she trained for duty as a sea air rescue (SAR) ship in the Gulf of Tonkin. She then began a 30 day tour of duty on her SAR station.

Still engaged in SAR duties at the beginning of 1966, Brinkley Bass was not relieved of that mission until 5 February 1966. That relief occurred as a result of damage to her bow which she suffered in a collision with Waddell (DDG-24) on the night of 4 and 5 February. After a stop at Danang where the damage was inspected, the destroyer moved on to Subic Bay where she received a false bow. On 7 March, the warship departed Subic Bay on her way to the United States and permanent repairs. Following stops at Guam, Midway, and Pearl Harbor, she arrived in Long Beach on 8 April. About a month later, the destroyer began repairs at the Long Beach Naval Shipyard. She left the drydock on 21 June and, soon thereafter, began normal west coast operations. That employment carried her through most of the remainder of 1966.

On 27 December 1966, Brinkley Bass stood out of Long Beach to return to the Far East. She made the usual stopover at Pearl Harbor and arrived in Yokosuka, Japan, on 15 January 1967. Four days later, the destroyer began the transit to Subic Bay where she arrived on the 24th. Following gunfire support training at the Tabones range early in February, she shaped a course for the south SAR station in company with Richmond K. Turner (DLG-20). The two warships arrived on station on 6 February. Over the next month, Brinkley Bass participated in one gunfire support mission and four SAR incidents. Relieved by Mansfield (DD-728) on 5 March, the destroyer headed for the northern fire support area of I Corps zone where she conducted one fire support mission on 8 March. She then steamed in company with Bon Homme Richard (CVA-31) on Yankee Station before putting into Kaohsiung, Taiwan, on 19 March.

The warship remained at Kaohsiung until 27 March at which time she headed back to Vietnam. On the 29th, she relieved Waddell as gunfire support ship in the I Corps zone. She joined Bigelow (DD-942) in supporting the closing phase of Operation "Beacon Hill," a combination vertical and horizontal amphibious assault on Viet Cong and North Vietnamese forces threatening the Marine Corps artillery base at Gio Linh. That operation ended on 1 April; and, the next day, Brinkley Bass relieved McCaffery (DD-686) along the shores of the II Corps zone. She spent the next six days supporting the 9th Republic of Korea (ROK) Regiment's Operation "Pang Ma Tao." On 7 April, the destroyer joined the screen of Enterprise (CVAN-65) on Yankee Station. That assignment lasted until 13 April when she transferred to a task group built around Ticonderoga. Ten days later, the warship returned to gunfire support missions in the northern portion of the II Corps zone.

Relieved of that duty on 27 April, she joined Ticonderoga and Waddell on the 25th for the passage to Subic Bay. Stops at Subic Bay, Hong Kong, and Yokosuka occupied her during the first half of May. On 19 May, Brinkley Bass departed Yokosuka on her way back to the United States. The warship arrived back in Long Beach on the 29th. After the usual post-deployment standdown period, she began normal operations out of Long Beach. That employment lasted until 1 September when the destroyer began preparations for her overhaul. She entered the Long Beach Naval Shipyard on 17 October and remained there through the end of the year.

Brinkley Bass completed her overhaul on 13 January 1968 and resumed local operations out of Long Beach. Those operations continued until 18 July when she departed Long Beach for the Far East in company with Decatur (DDG-31), Samuel N. Moore (DD-747), and Harry E. Hubbard (DD-748). The warships arrived in Pearl Harbor on 24 July and then put to sea again on the 25th to escort Hancock (CVA-19) during the carrier's operational readiness inspection. Upon completion of that mission, the destroyer continued her voyage to the Orient in company with Hancock and arrived in Yokosuka on 8 August. The task group remained in Yokosuka until 11 August and then got underway for Subic Bay where it arrived on the 15th. Three days later, she was on her way to the Gulf of Tonkin. For almost five months, the destroyer divided her time between carrier escort duties and gunfire support missions. She completed her last line period on 8 January 1969 and headed for the Philippines. Brinkley Bass visited Subic Bay from 9 to 13 January and Yokosuka from 17 to 20 January. On the latter day, she got underway for home.

The warship arrived in Long Beach on 31 January 1969. There she began a leave and upkeep period that lasted until mid-April. On 14 April, she returned to sea to begin normal operations along the California coast. Training operations--including a midshipman training cruise to Pearl Harbor in July--occupied her time through the summer and fall of 1969. At the end of the year, Brinkley Bass began preparations for another tour of duty in the Far East. The destroyer departed Long Beach on 12 January 1970. After stops at Pearl Harbor, Midway, and Guam, she arrived in Subic Bay on 2 February. Once again, the warship spent five months alternating between Vietnamese waters and various ports in the Far East. When off Vietnam, she screened aircraft carriers and provided gunfire support for the troops ashore. In addition, she served one tour of duty on the Taiwan Strait patrol and conducted surveillance on Russian trawlers snooping the American warships. Brinkley Bass departed Subic Bay and shaped a course--via Guam, Midway, and Pearl Harbor--for California. She arrived in Long Beach on 2 July.

After post-deployment leave and upkeep, the destroyer resumed training missions out of Long Beach. On 10 September, she entered the Long Beach Naval Shipyard for a three-month overhaul. The warship left the shipyard on 10 December and resumed normal operations along the California coast. That employment continued through the end of the year and well into 1971. On 14 May 1971, Brinkley Bass embarked upon her last deployment to the Orient. Steaming in company with Oriskany (CVA-34), she made a stop at Pearl Harbor before arriving in Subic Bay on 29 May. For almost four months, the warship served the familiar line periods off the coast of Vietnam screening carriers and providing gunfire support for the ground troops. She completed her last mission on 5 September and headed for Subic Bay. From there on 19 September, the warship embarked upon a circuitous voyage home. She made stops at the Australian ports of Darwin, Townsville, Sydney, and Napier before shaping a course for Long Beach on 11 October. She stopped at Pago Pago, Samoa, for fuel and at Pearl Harbor before returning to her home port on 24 October.

Brinkley Bass spent the rest of her active career in operations conducted between the west coast and Hawaii. For the most part, her duties consisted of training; and, after 1 July 1972, she became a Naval Reserve training ship. Thus, she trained reservists during their annual two weeks of active duty. At that same time, her home port was changed to Tacoma, Wash. She conducted her training missions from that port until decommissioned at San Diego on 3 December 1973. Her name was struck from the Navy list that same day and, she was simultaneously transferred to Brazil. The Brazilians commissioned her as Mariz E. Barros (D 26).

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The Following Viet Nam Era Postings Were Contributed By - Bill 'Smokey' Stover

At Home - Pier 15 - Long Beach Naval Station

Photographer Unknown - From the Internet

Pearl Harbor Naval Station - Coming Home - 1967

Photographer Unknown - From the Internet

USS BRINKLEY BASS DD 887

CLASS - GEARING As Built.
Displacement 3460 Tons (Full), Dimensions, 390' 6"(oa) x 40' 10" x 14' 4" (Max)
Armament 6 x 5"/38AA (3x2), 12 x 40mm AA, 11 x 20mm AA, 10 x 21" tt.(2x5).
Machinery, 60,000 SHP; General Electric Geared Turbines, 2 screws
Speed, 36.8 Knots, Range 4500 NM@ 20 Knots, Crew 336.
Operational and Building Data
Laid down by Consolidated Steel,Orange Texas. December 20 1944.
Launched May 26 1945 and commissioned October 1 1945.
Decommissioned December 3 1973.
Stricken December 3 1973.
To Brazil December 3 1973, renamed Mariz e Barros (D26).
Decommissioned By Brazil, September 1 1997, serving as a dock side training ship.
Fate Selected to be expended as a surface target.

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USS Brinkley Bass DD-887

Commissioned – First Cruise

Brinkley Bass

(DD-887: dp. 2425; 1. 390'6"; b. 40'10"; dr. 18'6"; s. 34.6 k.; cpl. 345; a. 6 5", 10 21" TT.; cl. Gearing)

Brinkley Bass (DD-887) was launched 26 May 1945 by Consolidated Steel Corp., Ltd., Orange, Tex.; sponsored by Mrs. Percy Bass, mother of Lieutenant Commander Bass, and commissioned 1 October 1945, Commander P. W. Winston in command.

Brinkley Bass conducted her shakedown cruise in the Caribbean and then proceeded to San Diego for duty with the Pacific Fleet, arriving February 1946. From San Diego she proceeded to Shanghai, China, via Pearl Harbor and Guam, for duty with Commander, Naval Forces, Western Pacific. Upon reporting in the spring of 1946 Brinkley Bass served as mail ship between the naval commands at Shanghai, Tsingtao, and Hong Kong.

USS Brinkley Bass (DD-887)

USS Brinkley Bass (DD-887), named for Lieutenant Commander Harry Brinkley Bass USN (1916-1944) killed in action when his plane crashed in combat during the invasion of southern France on 20 August 1944, was a Gearing class destroyer laid down by the Consolidated Steel Corporation at Orange, Texas on 20 December 1944, launched on 26 May 1945 by Mrs. Percy Bass, mother of Lieutenant Commander Bass and commissioned on 1 October 1945. Brinkley Bass operated with the Seventh Fleet in support of United Nations Forces during the Korean War, and served as plane guard for carriers on Yankee Station in the Tonkin Gulf, participated in Sea Dragon operations, patrolled on search and rescue duties and carried out Naval Gunfire Support missions during the conflict in Vietnam. USS Brinkley Bass was decommissioned and stricken from the Naval Vessel Register on 3 December 1973, transferred to Brazil and renamed Mariz e Barros, decommissioned on 1 September 1997 and served as a dock side training ship until expended as a surface target.

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USS Brinkley Bass DD-887 - Final Sailing

Brazilian Naval Attaché, Rear Admiral Edison Dantas, reports the fate of U.S.S. Brinkley Bass DD-887/CT Mariz e Barros D-26:

"... the ship in question was sunk on 19 December 2000, latitude 24º 30' 08 S, longitude 42º 09' 08 W. She was used as a target for the launching of MSS Exocet and Torpedo 'TigerFish' during fleet exercises."

The location is approximately 110 nautical miles SSE of Rio de Janeiro in 1000 fathoms of water. The Exocet ("Flying Fish") is an anti-ship missile of French origin with a length of 17 feet, wingspan of 39 inches, and a 364-pound warhead. The electric, wired-guided TigerFish torpedo is of British design with a length of 21 feet, 21-inch diameter, and 295-750 pound warhead.

Key dates in the history of the ship are keel laying in December 1944, launch in May 1945, commissioning in October 1945, FRAM I conversion from June 1961 to May 1962, de-commissioning from U. S. Navy and commissioning in Brazilian Navy in December 1973, de-commissioning from Brazilian Navy in September 1997, and sunk as target in December 2000. An amazing service record of 56 years: 29 years to the U. S. Navy and 27 years to the Brazilian Navy.

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Bass Service Record While I was Aboard - 1964 to 1968

Author Unknown - From the Internet

The last of those peacetime cruises ended at Long Beach in June 1963. That was followed by 27 months of duty along the California coast that also included a four-month regular overhaul at the Hunters Point Naval Shipyard between April and August of 1964. Just as she was preparing to leave the yard, an event--the Gulf of Tonkin incident--occurred off the coast of Vietnam. It helped to bring the United States into the Vietnamese civil war as a full belligerent. Though Brinkley Bass spent another year in peaceful operations along the west coast, that incident meant that her remaining Far East deployments would be of a combat nature.

On 28 September 1965, the destroyer departed Long Beach in a carrier task group built around Ticonderoga (CVA-14). The task group spent about two weeks engaged in exercises in the Hawaii operating area before continuing its voyage west. The warships arrived in Subic Bay in the Philippines on 30 October. Three days later, she was on her way to Vietnamese waters where she screened Independence (CVA-62) and served as her plane guard during air strikes on North Vietnam. That brief line tour ended 10 days later back at Subic Bay. On 21 November, the destroyer put to sea once again. After type training at the Tabones shore bombardment range, she headed for Danang, South Vietnam, where she trained for duty as a sea air rescue (SAR) ship in the Gulf of Tonkin. She then began a 30 day tour of duty on her SAR station.

Still engaged in SAR duties at the beginning of 1966, Brinkley Bass was not relieved of that mission until 5 February 1966. That relief occurred as a result of damage to her bow which she suffered in a collision with Waddell (DDG-24) on the night of 4 and 5 February. After a stop at Danang where the damage was inspected, the destroyer moved on to Subic Bay where she received a false bow. On 7 March, the warship departed Subic Bay on her way to the United States and permanent repairs. Following stops at Guam, Midway, and Pearl Harbor, she arrived in Long Beach on 8 April. About a month later, the destroyer began repairs at the Long Beach Naval Shipyard. She left the drydock on 21 June and, soon thereafter, began normal west coast operations. That employment carried her through most of the remainder of 1966.

On 27 December 1966, Brinkley Bass stood out of Long Beach to return to the Far East. She made the usual stopover at Pearl Harbor and arrived in Yokosuka, Japan, on 15 January 1967. Four days later, the destroyer began the transit to Subic Bay where she arrived on the 24th. Following gunfire support training at the Tabones range early in February, she shaped a course for the south SAR station in company with Richmond K. Turner (DLG-20). The two warships arrived on station on 6 February. Over the next month, Brinkley Bass participated in one gunfire support mission and four SAR incidents. Relieved by Mansfield (DD-728) on 5 March, the destroyer headed for the northern fire support area of I Corps zone where she conducted one fire support mission on 8 March. She then steamed in company with Bon Homme Richard (CVA-31) on Yankee Station before putting into Kaohsiung, Taiwan, on 19 March.

The warship remained at Kaohsiung until 27 March at which time she headed back to Vietnam. On the 29th, she relieved Waddell as gunfire support ship in the I Corps zone. She joined Bigelow (DD-942) in supporting the closing phase of Operation "Beacon Hill," a combination vertical and horizontal amphibious assault on Viet Cong and North Vietnamese forces threatening the Marine Corps artillery base at Gio Linh. That operation ended on 1 April; and, the next day, Brinkley Bass relieved McCaffery (DD-686) along the shores of the II Corps zone. She spent the next six days supporting the 9th Republic of Korea (ROK) Regiment's Operation "Pang Ma Tao." On 7 April, the destroyer joined the screen of Enterprise (CVAN-65) on Yankee Station. That assignment lasted until 13 April when she transferred to a task group built around Ticonderoga. Ten days later, the warship returned to gunfire support missions in the northern portion of the II Corps zone.

Relieved of that duty on 27 April, she joined Ticonderoga and Waddell on the 25th for the passage to Subic Bay. Stops at Subic Bay, Hong Kong, and Yokosuka occupied her during the first half of May. On 19 May, Brinkley Bass departed Yokosuka on her way back to the United States. The warship arrived back in Long Beach on the 29th. After the usual post-deployment standdown period, she began normal operations out of Long Beach. That employment lasted until 1 September when the destroyer began preparations for her overhaul. She entered the Long Beach Naval Shipyard on 17 October and remained there through the end of the year.

I was Discharged and departed the Bass - February 12, 1968

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Bill 'Smokey' Stover

USS Brinkley Bass DD-887

FTGSN  to  FTG2

12/15/1964  to  02/12/1968

West Pac Cruise 1965/66

GQ Station - Fire Control Plotting Room Computer

West Pac Cruise 1966/67

GQ Station - Gun Fire Control Director

White Hats & Dog Tags - Bill 'Smokey' Stover

On Liberty - Delano, California

On Liberty - Lake Elsinore, California

Welcome Aboard and Welcome to Mess Duty (FTGSN) !!!!!!!!!

At Sea - FTG3

In Port - Long Beach - FTG2

USS Brinkley Bass (DD-887)

February 4, 1966

USS Brinkley Bass (DD-887)
Courtesy of William Daigle, USS Laub (DD-613)

Mystery Photo which appeared in the Tin Can Sailors newspaper, July 2004--Vol. 28 No. 3. page 40.
It was identified by Bill Shea, SMC (Ret), USS Southerland (DD-743). Following is his response.

"From the call sign NJDF partially visible in the photo I was able (with the help of Google) to ID the ship as the USS Brinkley Bass (DD-887). The damage was caused by a collision with the USS Waddell (DDG-24) in the Gulf of Tonkin in 1966. The bow from the USS Tingey (DD-539) was used to repair Brinkley Bass."

Second ID – I was there and survived – Bill ‘Smokey’ Stover – FTG2 – 10/27/05

Photographer Unknown - From the Internet

Source Unknown - 'New Bow'

Photo Bellow - Damage to USS Waddell DDG-24

Photographer Unknown - From the Internet

Regular Ops with Chopper from USS Ranger

Photographer (8 photos to follow)- Bill 'Smokey' Stover

DASH Hanger Door - Good Artwork - Who Done It ??????

The Day Before Collision

The Morning After

Da Nang Harbor

Enroot - Subic Bay

Dry Dock - Subic Bay - Temporary Bow Placement

Coming Home - Long Beach - Check out the Subic Bow

Photographer Unknown - from the Internet

West Pac Cruise Book - 1966/67

Scanned Cover - Bill 'Smokey' Stover

Every Sailor on B BASS has this cup from Yokosuka

Photographer - Bill 'Smokey' Stover

Could have been FTG1 but wouldn't ship for it !!!!!!!!!

Scanned By - Bill 'Smokey' Stover

White Hats & Dog Tags - Bill 'Smokey' Stover

Bill 'Smokey' Stover

Computer Field Engineer - Information Systems Analyst - Retired