Reply #5: Seriously.

[TomInTib]

Heads rolled.

In '72 I was on a DE called the USS Rathburne (since converted to something else) DE1057 (I think), escorting the USS Enterprise in WestPac and pulling the same duty as my friends were. I was on covalescent leave and that is how the Navy let me spend it, instead of going home to patch up.

The Commander was a total asshole named Chang, the first Chinese-born Commander of a US Naval warship.

Same fucking thing happened except it was not a joint exercise.

And the boat I was on had just come out of drydock in Pearl and had a state-of-the-art rubber sonar dome - the first one ever installed. The boat was the designated pinger of the Carrier Group and totally missed it.

They could've sunk the fucking Enterprise.

Chang lost his command over that one.

I want to send you a hilarious Chang story tomorrow. PM me a reminder, if you will.