USS Ranger (CV 61)
Oklahoma Joe
- decommissioned -
USS RANGER was the third ship in the FORRESTAL - class and the second
carrier of the Navy to bear this name. USS RANGER was last homeported in
San Diego, Calif. Currently, the RANGER is laid-up at the Naval Inactive
Ship Maintenance Facility at Bremerton, Wash., awaiting future use as a
museum ship at Portland, Oregon.
General Characteristics: Keel Laid: August 2, 1954
Launched: September 29, 1956
Commissioned: August 10, 1957
Decommissioned: July 10, 1993
Builder: Newport News Shipbuilding Co., Newport News, Va.
Propulsion system: eight boilers
Rudders: two
Propellers: four
Blades on each Propeller: five
Aircraft elevators: four
Catapults: four
Arresting gear cables: four
Length, overall: 1,063 feet (324 meters)
Flight Deck Width: 250,3 feet (76.3 meters)
Beam: 129 feet (39.3 meters)
Draft: 37,7 feet (11.3 meters)
Displacement: approx. 78,200 tons full load
Speed: 30+ knots
Planes: approx. 85
Crew: Ship: approx. 2,700 Air Wing: 2,480
Armament: three Mk 29 NATO Sea Sparrow launchers, three 20mm Phalanx
CIWS Mk 15
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Crew List:
This section contains the names of sailors who served aboard USS RANGER.
It is no official listing but contains the names of sailors who
submitted their information.
* Click here to view the list.
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* Click here to see which USS RANGER memorabilia are currently for
sale on ebay.
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Accidents aboard USS RANGER:
Date Where Events
November 10, 1958 Off San Francisco, Calif. USS RANGER suffers an
explosion in the magazine area seven decks below the waterline while off
San Francisco, Calif., killing two. A careless act by two crewmen trying
to obtain gunpowder from the magazine to fuel a miniature jet engine
they had built caused the explosion. The Navy said the two men were
known rocket enthusiasts and were not authorized to be in the magazine
area at the time of the explosion. The "relatively minor" damage takes
about a month to repair due to the location of the accident.
April 1959 Pacific Because of a short circuit there was a fire aboard
the carrier. During this fire an explosion of fuel gases occurred.
Two crewmen died and 15 were injured.
July 1, 1962 Off California An F8U Crusader aircraft crashed into the
USS RANGER, injuring two.
April 5, 1963 Off Japan Boiler uptake explosion while going between
Japanese ports.
September 1964 Off Vietnam Boiler explosion on Yankee Station. 51 days
repair.
April 13, 1965 Off Vietnam During a fire in the main machinery room, one
crewman died. During the incident the carrier was on station off
Vietnam.
March 6, 1971 Off Vietnam While on Yankee Station a member of the
carrier's flight deck force was blown over the side during launching
operations. USS TOWERS (DDG 9), providing plane-guard service for
RANGER, quickly sped to the scene, rescued the sailor, and returned him
to his ship.
July 18, 1972 Pacific Ocean Sabotage of engine during routine sea duty.
December 13, 1972 Off Vietnam USS RANGER suffers a fire in the main
machinery room while the ship operates off Vietnam. The fire takes two
hours to control.
1976 Subic Bay, Philippines USS RANGER suffered a serious fire (class
delta, aircraft flare) in the O3 level while in port at Subic Bay, no
fatalities.
Information by Alan Bedard, former USS RANGER crewmember who helped
fighting the fire.
July/August 1976 Indian Ocean While responding to the Entebbe/Uganda
incident USS RANGER suffered a class Bravo fire in one of her shaft
allies that disabled her port outboard shaft for 4 days until
replacement parts could be flown in and installed. Sabotage was
suspected.
Information by Alan Bedard, former USS RANGER crewmember.
February 20, 1977 Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Wash. USS RANGER
experiences a Class Alpha fire in the anchor machinery room while
drydocked at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Wash.
December 6, 1978 Off Baja, Calif. USS RANGER experiences an explosion
and flash fire during fleet exercises which result in minor burns to
nine crewmen.
March 29, 1979 Subic Bay Area, Philippines USS RANGER suffers a main
engine turbine casualty requiring extensive repair while training in the
Subic Bay operations area.
April 5, 1979 Near the eastern approaches to the Straits of Malacca USS
RANGER collided with the Liberian tanker FORTUNE suffering substantial
damage but no injuries while the tanker is holed in the port side from
the main deck to the waterline.
Following the collision USS RANGER's CO was relieved by Capt. Roger E.
Box, USN.
August 6, 1981 San Diego, Calif. Fire in Pri-Fly area while at San Diego
dock.
July 18, 1983 100 miles off San Diego, Calif. RANGER collides with USS
WICHITA (AOR 1) during refueling. RANGER's flight deck elevator is
damaged, but no injuries are reported. USS WICHITA damages its refueling
capability. The port fueling riggins are put out of commission,
including the loss of all fuel hoses. Also part of WICHITA's aft
superstructure is crushed on the starboard side.
August 18, 1983 Off Nicaragua Crewman blown overboard by jet exhaust.
November 1, 1983 Arabian Gulf A fire breaks out aboard USS RANGER while
deployed in the Arabian Gulf, killing 6 and injuring 35. The fire is in
one of the four main machinery spaces and reportedly is extinguished
within an hour although there is one reflash which is extinguished. USS
RANGER continues operations in the area.
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USS RANGER Patch Gallery:
Click here for more USS RANGER Patches.
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History of USS RANGER:
USS RANGER was laid down 2 August 1954 by Newport News Shipbuilding and
Drydock Co., Newport News, Va.; launched 29 September 1956; sponsored by
Mrs. Arthur Radford, wife of Admiral Radford, Chairman of the Joint
Chiefs of Staff; and commissioned at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard 10
August 1957, Capt. Charles T. Booth II, in command.
RANGER joined the Atlantic Fleet 3 October 1957. Just prior to sailing 4
October for Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, for shakedown, she received the men
and planes of Attack Squadron 85. She conducted air operations,
individual ship exercises, and final acceptance trials along the eastern
seaboard and in the Caribbean Sea until 20 June 1958. She then departed
Norfolk, Va., with 200 Naval Reserve officer candidates for a two-month
cruise that took the carrier around Cape Horn. She arrived at her new
homeport, Alameda, Calif., on 20 August and joined the Pacific Fleet.
The carrier spent the remainder of 1958 in pilot qualification training
for Air Group 14 and fleet exercises along the California coast.
Departing 3 January 1959 for final training in Hawaiian waters until 17
February, she next sailed as the flagship of Rear Adm. H. H. Caldwell,
ComCarDiv 2, to join the Seventh Fleet. Air operations off Okinawa were
followed by maneuvers with SEATO naval units out of Subic Bay. A special
weapons warfare exercise and a patrol along the southern seaboard of
Japan followed. During this first WestPac deployment, RANGER launched
more than 7,000 sorties in support of Seventh Fleet operations. She
returned to San Francisco Bay 27 July.
During the next six months, RANGER kept herself in a high state of
readiness through participation in exercises and coastal fleet
operations. With Carrier Air Group 9 embarked, she departed Alameda 6
February 1960 for a second WestPac deployment and returned to Alameda 30
August. From 11 August 1961 through 8 March 1962, RANGER deployed to the
Far East a third time.
The next seven months were filled with intensive training along the
western seaboard in preparation for operations in the troubled waters of
Southeast Asia. RANGER departed Alameda on 9 November 1962 for brief
operations off Hawaii, and then proceeded, via Okinawa, to the
Philippines. She steamed to the South China Sea 1 May 1963 to support
possible Laotian operations. When the political situation in Laos
relaxed 4 May, she resumed her operations schedule with the Seventh
Fleet.
Arriving at Alameda from the Far East 14 June 1963, she underwent
overhaul in the San Francisco Naval Shipyard 7 August 1963 through 10
February 1964. Refresher training out of Alameda commenced 25 March,
interrupted by an operational cruise to Hawaii from 19 June to 10 July.
Ranger again sailed for the Far East 6 August 1964. This deployment came
on the heels of the unprovoked assault against USS MADDOX (DD 731) on
the night of 2 August and, two nights later, against both MADDOX and USS
TURNER JOY (DD 951), by North Vietnamese motor torpedo boats. In
retaliation for this aggression on the high seas by North Vietnam,
President Lyndon B. Johnson, on 5 August, directed the Navy to strike
bases used by the North Vietnamese naval craft. As RANGER steamed from
the western seaboard, some 60 attack sorties rose from the decks of USS
TICONDEROGA (CVA 14) and USS CONSTELLATION (CVA 64).
RANGER made only an eight-hour stop in Pearl Harbor 10 August 1964, then
hurried on to Subic Bay, and then to Yokosuka, Japan. In the latter port
on 17 October 1964, she became flagship of Rear Adm. Miller who
commanded Fast Carrier Task Force 77. In the following months, she
helped the Seventh Fleet continue its role of steady watchfulness to
keep open the sealanes for the Allies and stop Communist infiltration by
sea.
On 7 February 1965, in retaliation for a damaging Viet Cong attack on
installations around Pleiku, a fighter bomber strike, launched from
RANGER, USS CORAL SEA (CV 43), and USS HANCOCK (CV 19), blasted the
military barracks and staging areas near Dong Hoi in the southern sector
of North Vietnam.
Gen. William Westmoreland, commanding the Military Advisory Command in
Vietnam, visited RANGER on 9 March 1965 to confer with Rear Adm. Miller.
RANGER continued air strikes on enemy inland targets until 13 April when
a fuel line broke, ignited and engulfed her No. 1 main machinery room in
flames. The fire was extinguished in little over an hour. There was one
fatality. RANGER put into Subic Bay 15 April and sailed on the 20th for
Alameda, arriving home on 6 May. She entered the San Francisco Naval
Shipyard 13 May 1965 and remained there under overhaul until 30
September.
Following refresher training, RANGER departed Alameda on 10 December
1965 to rejoin the Seventh Fleet. She and her embarked Carrier Air Wing
14 received the Navy Unit Commendation for exceptionally meritorious
service during combat operations in Southeast Asia from 10 January to 6
August 1966.
RANGER departed the Gulf of Tonkin 6 August for Subic Bay, and steamed
via Yokosuka for Alameda, arriving on the 25th. She stood out of San
Francisco Bay 28 September and entered Puget Sound Naval Shipyard two
days later for overhaul. The carrier departed Puget Sound 30 May 1967
for training out of San Diego and Alameda. On 21 July 1967, she logged
her 88,000th carrier landing.
From June until November, RANGER underwent a long and intensive period
of training designed to make her fully combat ready. Attack Carrier Air
Wing 2 (CVW-2) embarked on 15 September 1967, with the new A-7 Corsair
II jet attack plane and the UH-2C Seasprite turboprop rescue helicopter,
making RANGER the first carrier to deploy with these powerful new
aircraft. From carrier refresher training for CVW-2, RANGER proceeded to
fleet exercise Moon Festival. From 9 to 16 October 1967, the carrier and
her air wing participated in every aspect of a major fleet combat
operation.
Her efficiency honed to a fine edge, RANGER departed Alameda 4 November
1967 for WestPac. Arriving Yokosuka 21 November, she relieved USS
CONSTELLATION and sailed for the Philippines on the 24th. After arriving
at Subic Bay on 29 November, she made final preparations for combat
operations in the Tonkin Gulf. Commander, Carrier Division 3, embarked
on 30 November as Commander, TG 77.7; and RANGER departed Subic Bay on 1
December for Yankee Station.
Arriving on station 3 December 1967, RANGER commenced another period of
sustained combat operations against North Vietnam. During the next 5
months, her planes hit a wide variety of targets, including ferries,
bridges, airfields and military installations. Truck parks, rail
facilities, antiaircraft guns and SAM sites were also treated to doses
of Air Wing 2's firepower. Bob Hope's "Christmas Show" came to RANGER in
Tonkin Gulf on 21 December. Another welcome break in the intense pace of
operations came with a call at Yokosuka during the first week of April
1968. Returning to Yankee Station on 11 April 1968, RANGER again struck
objectives in North Vietnam.
After five months of intensive operations, RANGER called at Hong Kong 5
May 1968 and then steamed for home. There followed a shipyard
availability at Puget Sound that ended with RANGER's departure 29 July
for San Francisco. Three months of leave, upkeep and training culminated
in another WestPac deployment 26 October 1968 through 17 May 1969. She
departed Alameda on yet another WestPac deployment in December 1969 and
remained so employed until 18 May 1970 at which time she returned to
Alameda, arriving 1 June 1970.
RANGER spent the rest of the summer engaged in operations off the west
coast, departing for her sixth WestPac cruise 27 September 1970. On 10
March 1971, RANGER, along with USS KITTY HAWK (CV 63), set a record of
233 strike sorties for one day in action against North Vietnam. During
April, the three carriers assigned to Task Force 77 - RANGER, KITTY
HAWK, and HANCOCK - provided a constant two-carrier posture on Yankee
Station. Hours of employment remained unchanged with one carrier on
daylight hours and one on the noon to midnight schedule. Strike emphasis
was placed on the interdiction of major Laotian entry corridors to South
Vietnam. She returned to Alameda 7 June 1971 and remained in port for
the rest of 1971 and the first five months of 1972 undergoing regular
overhaul.
On 27 May 1972 she returned to west coast operation until 16 November,
when she embarked upon her seventh WestPac deployment. On 18 December
1972 Linebacker II operations were initiated when negotiations in the
Paris peace talks stalemated. Participating carriers were RANGER, USS
ENTERPRISE (CVN 65), USS SARATOGA (CV 60), USS ORISKANY (CV 34), and USS
AMERICA (CV 66).
The Linebacker II operations ended on 29 December when the North
Vietnamese returned to the peace table. These operations involved the
resumed bombing of North Vietnam above the 20th parallel and was an
intensified version of Linebacker I. The reseeding of the mine fields
was resumed and concentrated strikes were carried out against
surface-to-air missile and antiaircraft artillery sites, enemy army
barracks, petroleum storage areas, Haiphong naval and shipyard areas,
and railroad and truck stations. Navy tactical air attack sorties under
Linebacker II were centered in the coastal areas around Hanoi and
Haiphong. There were 505 Navy sorties in this area during Linebacker II.
Between 18 and 22 December the Navy conducted 119 Linebacker II strikes
in North Vietnam. Bad weather was the main limiting factor on the number
of tactical air strikes flown during Linebacker II.
On 27 January 1973, the Vietnam cease-fire, announced four days earlier,
came into effect and ORISKANY, AMERICA, ENTERPRISE and RANGER, on Yankee
Station, cancelled all combat sorties into North and South Vietnam.
During the U.S. involvement in the Vietnam conflict (starting in 1961
and ending on 2 January 1973) the Navy lost 726 fixed-wing aircraft and
13 helicopters to hostile action. The Marine Corps lost 193 fixed-wing
aircraft and 270 helicopters to enemy action during the same period.
Operation Homecoming, the repatriation of U.S. POWs between 27 January
and 1 April 1973, began and North Vietnam and the Viet Cong released 591
POWs. Of the 591 POWs released during Operation Homecoming, 145 were
Navy personnel, all but one of whom were Naval Aviation personnel.
RANGER returned to Alameda in August 1973 and remained in that area
through 7 May 1974 when she deployed again to the western Pacific,
returning to homeport on 18 October. On 28 May 1976, while on
deployment, helicopters crews from HS-4 aboard RANGER, detachments from
HC-3 on USS CAMDEN (AOE 2), USS MARS (AFS 1) and USS WHITE PLAINS (AFS
4), and helicopters from NAS Cubi Point, Republic of the Philippines,
assisted in Philippine disaster relief efforts in the flood ravaged
areas of central Luzon. Over 1,900 people were evacuated; more than
370,000 pounds of relief supplies and 9,340 gallons of fuel were
provided by Navy and Air Force helicopters. As a side note, before the
relief operations the RANGER was trapped in port Subic Bay, Philippines,
by the typhoon and 3 days were spent trying to keep the carrier off the
docks. That happened because the storm made a sudden course change and
the RANGER was not able to get enough boilers on line in time to leave
port. The typhoon eventually damaged the docks and one of the 3 tugs
that were trying to keep the RANGER off suffered a failure and explosion
in the tug's engine room that RANGER's damage control team responded to.
4 July was spent in port Singapore and the RANGER had just departed the
harbor by a few hours when the carrier got the call to proceed to Kenya
in response to a threat of military action in Kenya by Ugandan forces.
The battle group proceeded at best speed out running the Soviet shadow
and even her own supply group. That brought along that the carrier
conducted an UNREP from a US Merchant Marine super tanker while heading
for the coast of Kenya. On 12 July 1976, RANGER and her escort ships of
Task Force 77.7 entered the Indian Ocean and were assigned to operate
off the coast of Kenya.
RANGER entered the history books on 21 March 1983 when an an all-woman
flight crew flying a C-1A Trader from VRC-40 "Truckin' Traders" landed
aboard the carrier. The aircraft was commanded by Lt. Elizabeth M. Toedt
and the crew included Lt.(j.g.) Cheryl A. Martin, Aviation Machinist's
Mate 3rd Class Gina Greterman and Aviation Machinist's Mate Airman Robin
Banks.
On 24 July 1987, Tactical Electronics Warfare Squadron 131 (VAQ 131)
began the first Pacific Fleet deployment of the EA-6B Prowler equipped
with HARM missiles, deployed in RANGER. On 3 August 1989, RANGER rescued
39 Vietnamese refugees, adrift for 10 days on a barge in heavy seas and
monsoon rains in the South China Sea, about 80 miles from NAS Cubi
Point, R.P. SH-3s Sea Kings from HS-14 assisted. An A-6 Intruder from
VA-145 spotted the barge, which had apparently broken loose from its
mooring near a small island off the coast of Vietnam with 10 men on
board. Twenty-nine other refugees from a sinking refugee boat climbed
aboard the barge when it drifted out to sea. After examination by
medical personnel, all were flown to NAS Cubi Point for further
processing.
President George H.W. Bush addressed the nation on 16 January 1991 at 9
p.m. EST and announced that the libration of Kuwait from Iraq, Operation
Desert Storm, had begun. The Navy launched 228 sorties from Ranger and
USS MIDWAY (CV 41) in the Persian Gulf, from USS THEODORE ROOSEVELT (CVN
71) enroute to the Gulf, and from USS JOHN F. KENNEDY (CV 67), USS
SARATOGA (CV 60), and USS AMERICA (CV 66) in the Red Sea. In addition,
the Navy launched more than 100 Tomahawk missiles from nine ships in the
Mediterranean Sea, the Red Sea, and the Persian Gulf.
On 6 February 1991, an F-14A Tomcat from VF-1, off RANGER, piloted by
Lt. Stuart Broce, with Cmdr. Ron McElraft as Radar Intercept Officer,
downed an Iraqi MI-8 Hip helicopter with an AIM-9M Sidewinder missile.
At 9 p.m. EST on 27 February, President Bush declared Kuwait had been
liberated and Operation Desert Storm would end at midnight.
On 21 April 1992, in harmony with other World War II 50th Anniversary
festivities, RANGER participated in the commemorative re-enactment of
the Doolittle Raid on Tokyo, Japan. Two World War lI-era B-25 bombers
were craned on board and over 1,500 guests (including national, local
and military media) were embarked to witness the two vintage warbirds
thunder down RANGER's flight deck and take off. In June, RANGER made an
historic port visit to Vancouver, British Columbia in conjunction with
her final phase of pre-deployment workups.
Fully combat ready, RANGER began her 21st and final western Pacific and
Indian Ocean deployment on 1 August 1992. On August 18, she entered
Yokosuka, Japan, for a six-day port visit and upkeep. RANGER entered the
Arabian Gulf on 14 September by transiting the Straits of Hormuz. The
next day, RANGER relieved USS INDEPENDENCE (CV 62) in an unusual close
aboard ceremony and along with her embarked Air Wing, Carrier Air Wing
TWO, immediately began flying patrol missions in support of the United
Nations' declared "No Fly" zone in southern Iraq: Operation Southern
Watch.
While in the Arabian Gulf, former Cold War adversaries became at-sea
partners as RANGER, British and French naval forces joined with the
Russian guided missile destroyer ADMIRAL VINOGRADOV for an exercise
involving communication, maneuvering and signaling drills. During joint
operations, a Russian KA-27 Helix helicopter landed aboard RANGER. It
was the first such landing on a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier.
RANGER left the Gulf on 4 December 1992 and steamed at high speed to the
coast of Somalia. RANGER played a significant role in the massive relief
effort for starving Somalis in Operation Restore Hope. The RANGER/CVW-2
team provided photo and visual reconnaissance, airborne air traffic
control, logistics support and on-call close air support for Navy and
Marine amphibious forces. Throughout Operations Southern Watch and
Restore Hope, RANGER took 63 digital photographs which were sent by
International Marine Satellite to the Navy Office of Information within
hours of being taken. This was the first time digital pictures were
successfully transmitted from a ship at sea.
On 19 December 1992, RANGER was relieved on station by USS KITTY HAWK
(CV 63) and began her last long journey homeward to San Diego.
RANGER was decommissioned on 10 July 1993, and is at the Naval Inactive
Ship Maintenance Facility, Bremerton, Wash.
RANGER earned 13 battle stars for service in Vietnam.
Click here to get a view of the deployments of USS RANGER
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USS RANGER's Commanding Officers:
Period Name
August 10, 1957 - March 5, 1958 Captain Charles T. Booth III, USN
March 5, 1958 - May 23, 1959 Captain Paul E. Buie, USN
May 23, 1959 - June 4, 1960 Captain Noel A. Gaylor, USN
June 4, 1960 - May 5, 1961 Captain Donald Gay, Jr., USN
May 5, 1961 - May 7, 1962 Captain William N. Leonard, USN
May 7, 1962 - May 20, 1963 Captain George C. Duncan, USN
May 20, 1963 - May 28, 1964 Captain William E. Lemos, USN
May 28, 1964 - May 10, 1965 Captain Alton B. Grimes, USN
May 10, 1965 - June 7, 1966 Captain Leo B. McCuddin, USN
June 7, 1966 - October 20, 1966 Captain William M. Harnish, USN
October 20, 1966 - March 27, 1968 Captain William T. Donnelly, Jr., USN
March 27, 1968 - June 28, 1969 Captain William H. Livingston, USN
June 28, 1969 - June 20, 1969 Captain John P. Moorer, USN
June 20, 1969 - September 3, 1971 Captain Joseph L. Coleman, USN
September 3, 1971 - May 21, 1973 Captain Harry P. Glindeman, USN
May 21, 1973 - November 22, 1974 Captain Arthur E. Hill, USN
November 22, 1974 - September 17, 1976 Captain John L. Nicholson, Jr.,
USN
September 17, 1976 - June 17, 1978 Captain Douglas R. McCrimmon, USN
June 17, 1978 - May 28, 1979 Captain Thomas G. Moore, USN
May 28, 1979 - October 20, 1980 Captain Roger E. Box, USN
October 20, 1980 - June 11, 1982 Captain Daniel A. Pederson, USN
June 11, 1982 - July 8, 1983 Captain Anhtony A. Less, USN
July 8, 1983 - June 26, 1985 Captain Arthur H. Fredrickson, USN
June 26, 1985 - March 8, 1987 Captain William J. Davis, Jr., USN
March 8, 1987 - July 8, 1988 Captain Donald W. Baird, USN
July 8, 1988 - February 13, 1990 Captain Robert P. Hickey, USN
February 13, 1990 - August 21, 1991 Captain Ernest E. Christensen, Jr.,
USN
August 21, 1991 - July 10, 1993 Captain Dennis V. McGinn, USN
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USS RANGER Image Gallery:
--
"In consciousness dwells the wondrous,
with it man attains the realm beyond the material,
and the Peyote tells us,
where to find it."
torresD
i2p6 west
June 1972, U.S. sailor sabotage caused $1 million damage and delayed deployment
to Vietnam by 3 months. The sailor charged was acquitted. His attorneys "documented
over two dozen instances of willful destruction during May and June alone".
(Soldiers In Revolt, p124)
Hooray for U.S. sailors with a conscience!
Oklahoma Joe
Oklahoma Joe
the engine, the ranger had to stay in japan for repairs for a long whhile. Memory fails
me for all details, maybe to many drugs.
Used to get some great LSD while on board ,and great opium while in Homg Kong. 8-)