VP-5 Squadron Shipmates
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VPNAVY Address

ShipmateUSS Valcour (AVP-55) ShipmatesShipmate

BLACKBURN, Hebert R. herbert.blackburn@comcast.net "...I served aboard the USS Valcour (AVP-55) from September 1952 to November 1955. Those were good days..." [13MAY2011]


FAAS, ARM3 Dan c/o Mr. Frank Holmes Shipmate PixCirca 1944 fholmes101@aol.com "...I retired from the Navy in Nov '68 & lived in Oak Harbor right outside NAS & they have had many FAW-4 Reunion at the CPO club & golf tournaments & I know some people in passing. I never went to the Reunions, but I would ask people who had attended. If they mentioned the "SCOUTS" NADA. I said that's how they treated us, so why would it be any different now. In fact. I just attended a reunion for Heavy Attack Squadron Ten, VAH-10. I was in it on the USS Constellation CVA-64 when the Viet Nam fiasco started in 1964. I also belong to the Fleet Reserve Association and (VP-45) Patron Forty Five Assn, an outfit I was in for 4 yrs. During the Korean affair NAS Norfolk, Virginia & NAS Coco Solo, Panama, Canal Zone flying PBM-5s. I guess I've been in every sort of outfit imaginable. I started in PBYs, went to a VJ-3 outfit utility squadron, then to VS-48, to instructor duty in NAS Corpus Christi, Texas to NAS Memphis, Tennessee to VF-61 NAS Oceana, Va. We had F8F's made a North Atlantic Cruise on FDR straight deck. Came back and got F9Fs. They didn't rate any Aviation Radiomen & I got transferred to USS USS Valcour (AVP-55) as an RM TX to VP-45 PBM - shore duty NAS Boca Chica, Florida & flew in F3D's radar operator. Then to "B" school in Memphis - to Hawaii 56-59 VW-12 Early Warning Squadron, flew many 16 hour flights WV-2 (Constellations). Changed rate from AL1 to AT1 and got transferred to next hangar VP-6 and deployed to Japan for 7 months flying off Kaua & USSR measuring their radar & locating them & getting chased by MIG's. Every hop was 14-16 hours. Used the jets and the recips for take off, carried 4000 gallons of fuel. Shore duty again, a RAG outfit VAH-123. I was electronic shop chief, we had 30 A/C and lots of maintenance. I did fly for a while as a radioman in a P2V-3 till they got A3D2T's & A3D2Q's & A3D2P's (thats trainer/transport) "q" countermeasure & "P" photo plus basic A3D2. They called it shore duty - we had three shifts around the clock plus I was making carrier quals every month or so. Lets see Coral Sea CVA-43, Bon Homme Richard CVA-31, Ticonderoga CVA-14, Independence CVA-62, Lexington CV-16. More sea duty VAH-10 A3D2, could have flown as a crewman. By that time I had in 20 & declined -- let the young studs do that. Med 9 month cruise in '63 and 1 yr in '64 (Viet Nam) I was gone 30 mos out of a 3 year tour. When we came back from Viet Nam in 3 mos they sent our squadron to Air Group 1 on the FDR for a Med cruise. About that time my children were young teenagers & I figured I had enough of that BS so I got shore duty at NAS Whidbey Island, Washington in VAH-123 again. Formed VA-128 Light Attack with A-6s and the RAG outfit. I was Electronics shop Chief again & some BS. Going on carrier qual for pilots. They had beach dets and ship dets. Seemed like I always got the ship det. While on the FDR I was CAG Maintenance Chief. The ship was out of Mayport, Fla. When we went on carrier quals on the Independence, we flew to NAS Norfolk, Virginia to get aboard & the Lexington out of NAS Pensacola, Florida all the other carrier quals were out of NAS Alameda, California or NAS North Island, San Diego, California & Fleet Logistic A/C junk. Now they have nice jet transports. That's all behind now. I worked for the Navy for about 9 years as a electronic tech then the FAA and my wife and I went to Alaska over the Arctic Circle as a electronic tech. It was like living in the 20's and 30's, no TV and not much radio. We were at a place called Bettles Field a lot of local flying in small planes. I maintained equipment VHF for over the poles flights, they talked to Anchorage but was all keyed through our equipment. Also had TACAN & OMNI also had glide slope equipment. I had to maintain teletype equipment as an electronic tech. But the money was in the wage grade positions so when an opening came, I Tx to Juneau where I had the teletype shop. I took care of all the teletype in SE Alaska for the FAA & Weather Service. There were 8 people in Anchorage that took care of the rest of Alaska. So when I had 40 years service I quit. For a number of years we had a 5th wheel trailer and did the snow bird bit to Arizona & California, even went to Key West and Corpus Christi played a lot of golf. Had 2 children,daughter Sidney & Mark. Sid born in Panama, Mark in Memphis. Sid worked around the world in banking London, Jobere, Melbourne, Vienna, NYC. Then she decided to work out of Seattle. We sold our house out of Oak Harbor, Whidbey Is and we live with her. Mark lives in Reston, he is a heavy truck mechanic and has our two grand persons. Lets see who have I run into. There was a fellow named Bass in Dutch and he made Ens there. That was in 44-45. In '45 I went aboard the FDR and who should be the JOOD but Ens Bass. In the early 50s flew from NAS Coco Solo, Panama, Canal Zone to NAS Norfolk, Virginia to go to a FAETU School & Fleet exercises & ran into "Scratch", we called him that, his name Gene Foreman AOM3/c, I know 3 incidents involving ordnance he had a hand in -- two in Dutch Harbor. I ran into Mr Mathwick in Memphis in 1955. He was a Commander and the Legal Officer. Also Burt Johnson - he was another radioman at Dutch. He got married while we were back to Seattle to train for the SBW4Es. I was his best man and I got married a week or so later and he was my best man. They came up and visited us a few years back. Also Bill Pietz, we visited them in Calif when we went there several times. I also ran into Pena AOM3/c in Corpus in 1946. Also ran into Ortega AM1/c , I'm sure he stayed in & retired. I have a lot of pictures (snapshots). I'm looking at a 8x10 of Det 3 Dutch Harbor. It was taken while Johnson, Peitz and I were back in Seattle. 14 EMs and 4 Officers and I have all the names on the back. I have a nice picture I think of an SBD Taxiing in blowing snow. I also have some of the new birds SBW4Es and the USS Teal AVP-5. In case you are wondering I didn't get to fly back with the planes, came back on the Teal - 65 normal complement, 250 VS48 people. Sleep where you can find a place. 19 days from Dutch Harbor. I slept in the main whale boat. I had a sleeping bag. Most people slept on army cots on the fan tail except we hit the tail end of a typhoon and everybody had to sleep inside. For a few days we only made 1 knot, a real rough ride. After we hit the inside passage they dropped the hook every night, didn't seem like they were in any gig hurry to get back. Say, I'm running out of spit. Maybe you can make some sense out of all this rambling..." [20JUN2005]


Memorial Picture "...PENDELL, CDR Carl R. Shipmate Pix...Sept. 21, 1928 Santa Barbara, CA – Sept. 14, 2009 Escondido, CA. Son of Alva S. and Hazel Pendell, raised in Whittier, California, Commander PENDELL attended the University of California at Los Angeles under the NROTC program and was graduated and commissioned in 1951. His first assignment was aboard the USS Hopewell (DD681), making two deployments to Korea. In December 1952 Commander PENDELL was assigned to flight training and was designated a Naval Aviator on December 22, 1953. His first squadron assignment was VP-22 home ported in Hawaii. His next squadron was VP-4 home ported at NAF Naha, Okinawa, Japan flying P2V-5F Neptunes 1957-1959. Commander PENDELL participated in Taiwan Straits patrols. Commander PENDELL served as a flight instructor and head of ground school for multi-engine training group at NAF Milton, Florida from 1959 to 1962 until his transfer to USS Valcour (AVP-55). As Navigator and Air Officer, he participated in two deployments to the Persian Gulf involving three transits of the Suez Canal. In July 1964 until May 1966 he was assigned to Commander in Chief Atlantic Fleet Staff where he held down the airdesk in Current Operations until transferred to NS Sangley Point, Philippines. While on this assignment, he flew logistic flights in support of Navy units in Vietnam. In June 1968 he was transferred to Staff of Commander Fleet Air Mediterranean at NAF Naples, Italy and served as Operations Officer until July 1971 when he reported to Naval Aerospace Recovery Facility, El Centro, California, as Executive Officer. Commander PENDELL reported to Fleet Aviation Specialized Operational Training Group, Pacific Fleet on 19 August 1974 and served as the Executive Officer. Commander PENDELL retired July 1, 1977. Commander Carl R. PENDELL has been awarded the Meritorious Service Medal, Navy Unit Commendation, Vietnam Service Medal, United Nations Service Medal, Vietnam Campaign Medal with Device (1960), Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, National Defense Service Medal, China Service Medal, Korean Service Medal, and the Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citation. Following his Naval Service, Commander PENDELL attended Southwestern Law School and became an Attorney in San Diego, California. He was a member of Theta Xi Fraternity, a Lt. Colonel in the US Air Force Civil Air Patrol and a member of the Stoneridge Country Club. His favorite pastimes were flying, sailing, boating, golfing and hunting. Commander PENDELL is survived by his dear friend Shirley Goff, also survived by his ex-wife Gail Pendell, .  brother Alva Pendell, Jr of Klamath Falls, OR; sister, Virginia Henderson and husband Mike of Largo, FL; sons, Carl Pendell, Jr. and wife Paula of San Marcos,CA; Mark Pendell of San Diego, CA; daughter, Pamela McLean and husband Joel of Amarillo, TX; six grandchildren, Katie, Sean, Scott, Kimberly, Erin and Kyle; and four great-grandchildren Stephanie, Christopher, Cali and Ethan who will treasure his memory in their hearts always. A memorial celebration was held at 2 p.m., Saturday, September 26, at the Rancho Bernardo Inn. An on line Guest Book available until 10/23/2010 can be accessed at: Guest Book for Carl Robert Pendell – Online Guest Book by North County Times and Legacy.com. http://www.legacy.com/gb2/default.aspx?bookid=8933665350475&cid=full..." Contributed by Steve/Andy Andruszkewicz sgpa2zfmly@aol.com [21OCT2009]


SAYLOR, Bill billsaylor1@msn.com "...I served on the USS Valcour (AVP-55) from 1946 to 1948. West coast shakedown, East Coast duty, then stationed in canal zone, with visits to Venezuela, Cuba, Jamaica and other spots..." [04FEB2009]

SILVA, BTFN Joaquin A Jr. jasfms@msn.com "...I served aboard the USS Valcour (AVP-55) 01/1961-03/1963). I worked in Maintenance Control..." [27AUG2013]


VALHOS, LCDR Nick NYNM navycod@aol.com "...I served aboard the USS Valcour (AVP-55) Seaplane Tender from 1962 to 1964..." [BIO Updated 15JUN2009 | 17NOV2003]


WEATHERS, RM3 Robert D. weathers6831@bellsouth.net "...I served aboard the USS Valcour (AVP-55) from 1955 to 1956..." [05MAY2009]


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