Friday Film: "Amphibious Warfare" (1944) Boat Handlling

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 16 October - 13 November 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - "The Drowned Girl Case" The Man from Homicide

Friday Films: Reloading Missiles Launchers at Sea

Vertical systems are harder.

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 9 October - 6 November 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day: The Lone Ranger "Toll Booth st Eagle Pass"

Friday Film: "Frigate" from the Royal Navy (1973)

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 2 - 30 October 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - "Look Out Duck" Exploring Tomorrow (1957)

Friday Film -"The Ultimate Weapon" Korean War North Korean/Chinese Treatment of POWs (1959?)

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 25 September - 23 October 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day: "Three Skeleton Key" Escape for Halloween with Vincent Price

Friday Film: Drones and Guided Missiles a 1950's history

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 18 September - 16 October 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day: "The Crossed Eyed Bear" Suspense (1943)

Friday Film: ASROC!

Friday Film - "Law and Social Controls" (1949)

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 4 September - 2 October 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - "The War of the Worlds" (1938)

Friday Films: Military Survival Films

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 28 August - 25 September 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - "Investigate UFOs in Ecuador" (1950) from Dangerous Assignment

Friday Film: "Portrait of Antarctica" (1961)

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 21 August - 18 September 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day: "Wake Island" from Lux Theater (1942)

Weekend Film: Ship Fundamentals, Lines and Sections (1943)

Saturday Is Old Radio Day: "The Sea" Lights Out (1936)

Friday Film - "Naval Customs and Courtesies. Good Manners in Uniform" (1957)

Have you forgotten?

Saturday Is Old Radio Day: "The Cook on the PT Boat Writes Home" (1943)

Weekend Film: US Navy "Using the Standard Deep Sea Diving Outfit" (1950's)

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 7 August - 4 September 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - X minus 1 "Inside Story" (1957)

Friday Film- "Film Tactics" (1945)

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 31 July - 28 August 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day: "Scrubbing the Back Porch" Fibber McGee and Molly (1935)

Friday Film: "The Seven Sailors" (1968)

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 24 July - 21 August 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - "The People of Sissora" CBS Radio Mystery Theater (1977)

Friday Films: "How to Judge Authorities" (1948) and "Critical Thinking: Making Sure of Facts" (1971)

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 17 July - 14 August 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day- Our Miss Brooks "Cat Burglars" (1955)

Something on the lighter side.

Friday Film: "Submarine Salvage" - Some Russians might want to see this.

U.S. Navy operates two rescue and salvage ship through the Military Seaflift Command - see here, capable of doing 14 knots which means going somewhere across the Pacific takes a few days. One ARS is based in Pearl Harbor, the other on the East Coast. Both ships are nearly 40 years old.

Saturday Is Old Radio Day: Dragnet "Auto Burglaries - Myra, the Redhead" (1949)

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 10 July - 7 August 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 3 - 31 July 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Friday Film: "Greyhounds of the Sea" Navy Destroyer History (1966)

Saturday Is Old Radio Day: Burns and Allen "Gracie Runs for President" (repeat from 2016)

From the more or less innocent days of 1940, when some candidates were more fun than others, here are a couple of hours of comedy genius which I think I have in the right order:

As noted here:

During the election year of 1940, Gracie represented the fictitious Surprise Party and advocated nonsense as part of her platform. The "campaign" was successful enough for Gracie to actually receive write-in votes on election day.

"Advocating nonsense" as part of a political party platform?

I guess things haven't really changed all that much in 76 84 years.

Friday Film: "Day 957" War Loan Movie

Remember the USS Forrestal Disaster 57 Years Ago

USS Forrestal Disaster

On 29 July 1967, Forrestal (CVA-59) experienced a severe fire while operating on Yankee

Station off Vietnam that killed 134 Sailors and aviators, injured 161, and destroyed 21 aircraft. This was (and remains) the second worst loss of life on a U.S. Navy ship since World War II. The disaster resulted in a very long list of lessons learned (many of which were “lessons forgotten” from carrier conflagrations during World War II), which transformed the U.S. Navy’s approach to firefighting, damage control, and ordnance handling in the decades since. In recent years, articles have appeared on the internet that are extremely inaccurate and generally intend to unfairly tarnish the reputation of Senator John S. McCain III, who survived the fire.

At 1050, Forrestal commenced early launch of two KA-3B tankers, an EA-1, and an E-2A in preparation for an 1100 launch of a 24-plane Alpha Strike, the second of the day. At that time, a VF-11 F-4B (No. 110,) was spotted on the extreme starboard quarter of the flight deck. As the pilot of F-4B 110 shifted from external to internal power, multiple electrical malfunctions ignited one of the four 5-inch Mk-32 Zuni unguided rockets in a pod on external stores station 2 (port inboard station), which fired across the flight deck and struck VF-46 A-4E No. 405, piloted by LCDR Fred White, rupturing its fuel tank, igniting the fuel, and initiating the fire. Although the board of investigation reached the opinion that the Zuni rocket hit 405, there is some ambiguity in eyewitness accounts as to whether the rocket hit 405 or the plane next to it, 416, piloted by Lieutenant Commander John McCain. The rocket itself actually impacted the ocean beyond both aircraft. Regardless, shrapnel ripped into both aircraft, and both were immediately sprayed by fuel; a pool of fuel ignited between and under the two aircraft. Both pilots initially escaped from the flames around their aircraft.

The impact of the Zuni rocket dislodged at least one, probably two, 1,000-pound AN-M65A1 bombs, which fell into the flames. The outdated AN-M65s were being used because of an acute shortage of Mark 83 general-purpose 1,000-pound bombs resulting from the intense Navy bombing campaign in North Vietnam, which expended bombs faster than they could be produced. The AN-M65 bombs had been brought aboard the day before, were over a decade old, in very poor condition, considered an extreme safety hazard by the commanding officer of Forrestal, Captain John Beling, and, according to the ship’s ordnance officer, were an imminent danger to the ship and should be jettisoned overboard. Doing so, however, would have necessitated scrubbing that day’s combat mission over North Vietnam, so Captain Beling reluctantly accepted the risk.

While those old bombs did not cause the initiating event, they certainly exacerbated what followed. Of the many lessons learned from this horrendous fire, one point needs to be repeated: Old munitions can be very dangerous. Firefighting training and skill are vital for every sailor to master.

An excellent book on the fire is Sailors to the End.

And, in case you don't understand what the truth has always been, none of what happened was John McCain's responsibility.

 

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 26 June - 24 July 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - "The Man Sized in Marbles" (1947) from Hall of Fantasy

Friday Films: "The American Navy in Vietnam" (1967), U.S. Coast Guard in Vietnam (1967), and "The U.S. Navy in the Vietnam War: The Ten Thousand Day War at Sea"

A reminder that the US Navy in and off Vietnam went on for about 6 years after this first film was made.

The second film, also from 1967, is about the U.S. Coast Guard serving in Vietnamese waters.

Finally, a later film "The U.S. Navy in the Vietnam War: The Ten Thousand Day War at Sea"

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 19 June - 17 July 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - Adventures of Wild Bill Hickok "Unlucky Seven" (1951)

Friday/Saturday Film: 1940's American Cruise Ship "Departure"

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 12 June - 10 July 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday IS Old Radio Day "Pebble in the Sky" by Isaac Asimov (1951) Dimension X

Friday/Saturday Film: "Replenishment at Sea" (1965)

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 5 June - 3 July 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - Inner Sanctum "The Voice on the Wire" (1944)

Friday Film (on Saturday) - "The SIgnaliing Mirror"

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 29 May - 26 June 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 29 May - 26 June 2024 by lawofsea on Scribd

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - "Pride of Marines" (1946) Academy Award

Friday Film: "Life Aboard a Navy Destroyer" (2020)

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 22 May - 19 June 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - "The Fourth Man" Escape (1949)

Friday Film: "Abandon Ship" (1943) - Words you don't want to hear

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 15 May - 12 June 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Father's Day

When I was in 4th grade we moved. We moved a bunch that year and I ended up attending 4 very different schools.

Somewhere along the way, the multiplication tables eluded me - to the extent I flunked math in my final school of that year.

My dad was an engineer and Air Force navigator and quite adept at things mathematical. He was not happy with my math status - not one bit. So over the summer he took on the challenge of tutoring me on those "times tables."

While I resisted, his quiet patience soon had me reciting the tables to his satisfaction. More than that, I got to know him in a different way. Over the years, I have come to look back on that summer as a very important part of my life. The discipline of sticking to things that seemed hard at the time, the idea that all things were possible with effort, the knowledge that he cared about me - those things I learned from my father that summer all of which carried me forward in life.

In fact, that math work helped me with learning to appreciate statistics and earning a National Science Foundation grant when I was an undergraduate. Math skills helped when I was a ship's navigator. Helped me when I got a Masters in Management. Later on, statistics helped by analyze risks in the corporate legal work I did. It also helps me appreciate the widespread misuse of statistics for exploitive purposes. Some of these things my dad knew about, and I hope that he knew how much that summer of re-direction meant in my life.

Dad during the Korean War  

For you, Dad, on this Father's Day - thanks again.

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - "Guadalcanal Diary" (1944) Lux Radio Theatre

The WWII Japanese path to Australia ran through the Solomons. Stopping them in New Guinea and the Solomons was vital.

Friday Film: D-Day +11 "The Creation of the Artificial Harbors"

A British idea, delivered to Omaha Beach under the guidance of Seabees. This harbor was later destroyed by a storm, but the British Mulberry harbor at Gold Beach in Arromanche, France, carried the load until real ports could be opened.

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 8 May - 5 June 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day: Gunsmoke "Doc Holliday" (1952)

Friday Film: "The Floating Harbors of D-Day"

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 1 to 29 May 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - Sam Spade "The Adam Figg Caper" (1947)

Friday Film: "U.S. Naval Test Pilot School" (1959)

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 24 April to 22 May 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Memorial Day Films: "Trial by Fire" (1973) and "I Relieve Your, Sir" (1975)

Two films involving accidents resulting the deaths of sailors and incredible displays of courage. A reminder that every day at sea is full of danger demanding well trained people and constant vigilence. This weekend is a time to remember all who have died in service to their country.

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 17 April to 15 May 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - "They Came to a River" Hallmark Playhouse (1950)

Friday Films- Mine Warfare

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 10 April to 8 May 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Mothers Day - Jack Benny Show 1938

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - "The Thin Man - The Adventure of the Passionate Palooka" (1948)

Friday Film: WWII Aerial Convoy Protection "RAF Coastal Command (1944)"

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 3 April to 1 May 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - Box 13 "Actor's Alibi" (1948)

Next Generation Force Protection Boats

New wave of patrol and security craft as reported at WorkBoat:

The days of creating patrol boats by outfitting general-use motorboats and fishing trawlers with machine guns and obsolete naval weapons are long gone. That was World War II.

Jump ahead 80 years, and patrol boats have evolved into platforms that have the latest navigation, communications, and propulsion systems while being designed and built with highly efficient hulls that move easily and rapidly through the water and can carry out multiple missions in locations across the globe.

Three cases in point: MetalCraft Marine is building 65 patrol boats that will mostly operate in foreign waters; a high-speed 35-footer from Moose Boats that’s outfitted with fire-fighting systems; and Inventech Marine Solutions’ 40' patrol boat for a sheriff’s department in Florida, which hits 72 mph.

Friday Films - Fighting Kamikaze Attacks "The Fleet that Came to Stay (1945)" "Death Awaits - Kamikaze in Color" (2001)

If you think people are expendable and the people involved think dying is an honor, then you get suicide planes, suicide vest wearers, and the like.

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 27 March to 24 April 2024

Referenced MARAD advisory here

U.S.-flagged commercial vessels operating in these areas are advised to remain as far as possible from Yemen’s coastline without compromising navigational safety. Crewmembers should be especially vigilant when at anchor, operating in restricted maneuvering conditions, loitering, or proceeding at slow speeds.

U.S.-flagged commercial vessels should coordinate voyage planning with U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) Naval Cooperation and Guidance for Shipping (NCAGS) and consider their recommendations and guidance whenever possible. NAVCENT NCAGS stands a 24-hour watch and has the latest information on the current maritime security threats and the operational environment in this region.

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Friday Films: ASROC Weapon System Introduction (1963) and the "Saggy Aggy" Takes a Shot (1962)

Stand off antisubmarine system. Stand off being important in certain cases.

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 20 March to 17 April 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - Abbot & Costello "Costello the Air Hero" (1946)

Friday Films; Navy Shipboard Firefighting Training - Old School 1960 and Today's Boot Camp and Beyond

Every U.S. Navy sailor should have firefighting training. Every single one.

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 13 March to 10 April 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day - Ray Bradbury's "The Earthmen" from Escape (1951)

Friday Films -" All About Naval Boilers"

Back before gas turbines and currently in some older large deck amphibs - long ago we all got trained on the operations of the steam plant.

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 6 March to 3 April 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day: "Skeleton Bay" Inner Sanctum (1946)

Friday/Saturday Films: "Submarine Salvage" and Raising the U.S. Submarine S4 in 1928

When Does China's "Water Cannon" Weapon Use Become an Act of Armed Conflict?

China's bullying of the Philippines may trigger a defense agreement with the U.S. as set out in China’s Attacks on Philippine Resupply Missions Test 70-Year-Old Defense Pact

Six days after China Coast Guard cutters blasted out the windows of a Philippine resupply ship with a water cannon, Manila is weighing whether a 70-year-old mutual defense pact could compel the U.S. military to defend Filipino forces in the South China Sea as a result.

***

The attack, the ninth and most aggressive since Chinese cutters restarted a campaign blocking the monthly resupply runs to the World War II-era Sierra Madre, is prompting politicians, analysts and lawyers across the Pacific to weigh the U.S. obligation to come to Manila’s aid under a 1951 mutual defense pact.

Both the U.S. State and Defense departments issued statements this week pledging commitment to the treaty.

“The United States reaffirms that Article IV of the 1951 U.S.-Philippines Mutual Defense Treaty extends to armed attacks on Philippine armed forces, public vessels, or aircraft – including those of its Coast Guard – anywhere in the South China Sea,” reads the statement from Foggy Bottom.

While the worst-case scenario under the defense treaty could lead to open war with China, the agreement has options for the U.S. to support Manila diplomatically short of armed conflict. However, the 1951 treaty’s application in the 21st century raises questions about whether the Chinese use of water cannons constitutes an armed attack or if the resupply missions are categorized as civilian or military, opening up several legal interpretations.

Read the whole article.

The question of whether such use of water cannons by China constitutes an "armed" attack sufficient to trigger the defense pact has been frequently raised on our Midrats podcast. China's assertion of entitlement to vast areas of the South China Sea and its aggressive efforts to enforce those claims despite a lack of legal justification are an interesting test case in how close to a line it can walk before triggering similar counter activities or more. However, it is vital that the U.S. support, in every way possible, our allies and treaty partners in the region.

Easter - Holiday Routine

Happy Easter!

Saturday Is Old Radio Day: "Easter" Ozzie and Harriet (1949)

Friday Films: Anchoring A Large Ship and How to Anchor a Boat

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 28 February to 27 March 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 21 February to 20 March 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday (+/-) Is Old Radio Day "No Contact" X-1

Friday Film- "Submarine Warfare Instructions (1949)

U.S. Navy Office of Naval Intelligence Worldwide Threat to Shipping (WTS) Report, 14 February to 13 March 2024

U.S. Navy Office of Naval ... by lawofsea

Saturday Is Old Radio Day: "My Man Godfrey" Academy Award Theater (1946)

You can also watch the movie