Man and the FBM Movie

Unclassified movie clip of the early days of the Polaris Program. This was certainly used as a recruiting tool to man the ships that would serve in the Cold War. USS George Washington SSBN 598 – First and Finest (December 30, 1959) https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/76/5235/4523576/content/mopix/330/dvic/330-dvic-24673.mp4

The Day the World Changed – Launching Polaris Submerged

I watched the news recently when the Air Force successfully landed their bunker buster bombs on the Iranian Target. 65 years ago, the Navy had its own dramatic moment that forever changed the world. USS George Washington (SSBN 598) left Groton on 28 June 1960 for Cape Canaveral, Florida, where she loaded two Polaris missiles. […]

The Best Hat Ever; THE Kap(SS) 4 Kid(SS) FUND

“Hi, my name is Mister Mac, and I am a hat-oholic.” “Hi Mister Mac…” I’ve been a hat-oholic since I was a kid and discovered the power of hats. My very first hat was a blue and gold short, billed cap that I got as a Cub Scout in Pack 99 in my home community. […]

Part time sailors? There is no such thing

I’m still going through boxes of old paperwork and stuff I have saved over the years. Some of the items include pictures and mementoes from my years in the navy. One item that was in an old album was a faded copy of a Welcome Aboard letter from Charleston’s FBMSTC (Fleet Ballistic Missile Training Center). […]

Home 2024

Home We attended the highland Games in Charleston SC yesterday. It was a pretty nice affair held down on the waterfront in North Charleston. I hadn’t been to a gathering for a few years so hearing the pipes and drums was a special treat. I have to give the bands credit though. They played well […]

April 11 2024 – Holland Club

I was honored to have my wife and my Submariner Brothers present last night at the USSVI Charleston Base to see my induction into the Holland Club. I actually wasn’t sure I would ever make it. A special thanks to RADM Mike Sharp and the men from the USS San Francisco SSN 711 that were […]

The First Time You Dive

You never forget your first There are few moments in any submariner’s life that equal the first time you submerge below the surface of the sea. For each generation or type of boat, the lead up to that dive is different. It might come at the end of a lengthy transit on the surface in […]

Agent Orange and Guam… Fifty Years of Consequences

UPDATED INFORMATION AT END OF POST (FEBRUARY 2025) A little over fifty years ago, I came to the island of Guam for the very first time. The crew flight from Hawaii was one of the longest I had ever been on. Frankly, it was THE longest in my young life. Along with the officers and […]

Voyage to the Bottom of the Seas – The Nuclear Navy of 1964

In 1964, I was ten years old. The movie, Voyage to the Bottom of the Seas had come out in 1961 but I only remember it from later showings on television when I was much older. The TV series that was born from that movie ran from 1964 to 1968 and I am pretty sure […]

Alert 1, Alert 1… This is not a drill

Sleeping soundly in our beds Last night, before I went to bed, I checked the doors to make sure they were locked. I also turned on our security system and listened for that familiar female voice to say “Simply Safe on. Home”. That means that we are snug in our house and if for any […]