The Russian “Trawlers” (NATO designation: AGI for Auxiliary General Intelligence) with what looked like one thousand “fishing” antennas plied the Gulf of Tonkin on a daily basis… needless to say, it was a cat-and-mouse game to see what havoc they could expend towards our two carriers operating there 24 hours a day.
John Wunche was a big man with bright red hair and a flaming red handlebar mustache. He was a frustrated fighter pilot whom fate and the Bureau of Naval Personnel had put into the cockpit of a former heavy bomber now employed as a carrier-based tanker.
CDR Wunche flew the tanker like a fighter and frequently delighted the tactical pilots by rolling the “Whale,” as we all called the KA-3B tanker, on completion of a tanker mission. Consequently, John’s nickname was “the Red Baron.”
On 21 July 1967 he proved just how appropriate that name was.
The “Bonnie Dick” had nearly completed a recovery. The Russian trawler had been steaming at full speed to try to cut across our bow, and the bridge watch had been keeping a wary eye on the intruder. For a while it looked as if the Russian would be too late and we would finish the recovery before having to give way to the trawler.But a couple of untimely bolters extended the recovery and the “Bonnie Dick” had to back down and change course to comply with the rules…
The LSO hit the wave-off lights when the “Whale” was just a few yards from the ramp. John crammed on full power and sucked up the speed brakes for the go-around. The “Bonnie Dick” began a sharp right turn to pass behind the Russian, causing the ship to list steeply, and there, dead ahead of John, was the Russian trawler.
The Russian disappeared in a heavy white cloud of jet fuel spray, then reemerged with JP-4 jet fuel glistening from her superstructure and running lip-full in the scuppers. The Russian trawler immediately lost power as the ship’s crew frantically tried to shut down anything that might generate a spark and ignite the fuel.
She was rolling dead in the water in the Bon Homme Richard’s wake, her crew breaking out fire hoses to wash down the fuel, and the “Bonnie Dick” steamed out of sight, completing the recovery of the Whale.
Needless to say, the Red Baron was an instant hero to the entire ship’s company.
Awesome. I used to hear stories like that when hanging around the older pilots (as long as they didn’t shoo me away). I love it!
What a great story!
That’s awesome. Right place, right time, and quick to react.
If only someone had been smoking on deck at the time.
LOL
I *SO* want to have a beer with you sometime.
Hah! That’s an awesome response! Bet he didn’t have to buy another beer for quite a while, after pulling that off!
We had fun with the SMLM(Soviet Military Liasion Mission) vehicles that occasionally would try to follow us into our training areas. We had fun running one into ditch. I will do a blog posting of that in a day or so. Gotta get some background and pics…..Gotta have pics. Thanks for the memories 🙂
Well Done! Give that man a medal!
Rev- Yep, lots of those ‘sea stories’ were in fact REAL! 🙂
Bob- Yep!
MM- One can only wish…LOL
WSF- 🙂
BP- We will!
Wing- According to Frito, the rest of the cruise he was covered 🙂
MrG- Yep photos affirm 🙂
Paw- I think he liked the booze better!
That’s a good one!
A good friend of mine worked on one of the big Range and Tracking ships back in the day. They constantly had “trawlers” shadowing them, and one day The Old Man got tired of it. He called the Comms guys, and told them to point their main antenna right down the throat of the “trawler”, and blast them with everything they had. Since their main antenna was in a radome, the “trawler” couldn’t see where it was pointed.
They cut loose with several thousand megawatts of ERP (Effective Radiated Power; the combination of RF output AND antenna gain), and he said they didn’t know one of those tubs could turn and run so fast.
I hope someone painted the silhouette of a trawler on the side of CDR Wunche’s whale.
What an insanely great story!
I really enjoy your stories.
Thank-You for sharing them.
I would love to be able some day to set down with you and hear these stories in person.
Very cool story.
Drjim- Yeah, there were a “lot” of little stories like that over the years 🙂
Tim- I dunno, but I’ll ask 🙂
DC- Isn’t it though!
Fuzzy- They are NOT all mine, but I’d love to sit down over a beer with ya!
Andy- 🙂
Yee-Hah!
He would never, ever have to buy another beer in his lifetime!!!
Great story!
Murph- Ya DON’T screw with the gas passers 🙂
Danny- Probably not! 🙂
Heh … just the story i needed to get my otherwise dull saturday morning jump started. Thanks !!
Yeah, got to love those kinda guys!
Please salute that tanker driver for me. If you or he ever get to south Texas look me up I’ll hoist a few glasses of Scotch with ya.
Johnny- You’re welcome!
Earl- Yep 🙂
I love to hear stories like this!
Heh … just the story i needed to get my otherwise dull saturday morning jump started. Thanks !!