Hey Ron,
Was stationed on USS Berkeley (DDG-15) from ’69– 71. Our WesPac ’70 Cruise also included NGFS (Naval Gunfire Support Unit) along the coast of Vietnam (over 7500 rounds fired!) as well as “plane guard” (escort destroyer) for the USS Constellation (CVA-64) and the USS Coral Sea (CVA-43). We provided close-in missile support for the carriers conducting air strike and support missions over Southeast Asia. We performed three search and rescue (SAR) missions for downed aviators. Unfortunately, we never found any. We did find and recover the wreckage of an AWACS aircraft.
Interesting that your rate included “turning salt water into fresh water”. Did you know that about twice as many sailors as “on the ground” troops suffer from the consequences of Agent Orange? It is believed that the runoff waters into the rivers and bays and then were desalinated are the cause. The VA has a list of “Presumptive Diseases” that cover sailors. Unfortunately, I have two of these – Diabetes II and CLL (Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia) and have been unable to work for the last two and one half years. The VA won’t pay disability claims as it has a “boots on the ground” clause, even though NGFS ships often were in inland waterways (Berkeley shelled inside Da Nang Harbor when it was very “hot”). There is a bill in Congress (HR-2254) that hopefully corrects this problem. If you or any of your shipmates are having medical problems related to this, check out the Blue Water Navy site…
http://www.bluewaternavy.org/
Ron, thanks for bringing some good (and some not so good!) memories back to me. Good to hear from a “Tin Can” sailor!
Best Regards, Don
PS After a stint in the Greek Navy, Berkeley was scrapped. A sad day!