Page 8. MAINE COASTAL NEWS July 2016 U. S. N N Aboard the ship that night was Seaman
Fredrick Conrad “Dick” Messier, the only Sailor to die that morning from the Ocean State.
“It would have been just after 4 p.m.,
June 2, 1967 here in Rhode Island when this struggle for life was taking place 14 hours away on the other side of the world,” said former Frank E. Evans crew member John Coff ey.
Coff ey, one of the event organizers,
came up from Georgia for the reunion and memorial stone unveiling. He told those assembled what serving on the Evans was like.
“Movement and noise -- if anything else
BATH, Maine (June 18, 2016) Sally Monsoor christens the future USS Michael Monsoor (DDG 1001), which is named in honor of her son, Medal of Honor recipient Navy Petty
Offi cer 2nd Class (SEAL) Michael A. Monsoor. DDG-1001 includes new technologies and will serve as a multi-mission platform capable of operating as an integral part of naval, joint or combined maritime forces. (U.S. Navy photo courtesy of Bath Iron Works/Released)
Navy Christens Michael Monsoor From Department of Defense
WASHINGTON (NNS) -- The Navy will christen the newest destroyer, USS Michael Monsoor (DDG 1001), Saturday, June 18, during a 10 a.m. EDT ceremony at the Gen- eral Dynamics-Bath Iron Works shipyard in Bath, Maine. The second ship in the Zumwalt-class of
destroyers, DDG 1001 is named in honor of Medal of Honor recipient Navy Petty Offi cer 2nd Class (SEAL) Michael A. Monsoor. Sal- ly Monsoor, petty offi cer Monsoor’s mother, will serve as the ship’s sponsor. Retired Navy Vice Adm. Joseph Ma-
guire will serve as the principal speaker. Highlighting the event will be Mrs. Monsoor breaking a bottle of sparkling wine across the bow to formally christen the ship-a time-honored Navy tradition. “I’m tremendously honored to be a part
of this christening, the next step in getting DDG 1001 to the fl eet in order to conduct prompt and sustained maritime operations,” said the Honorable Janine Davidson, under secretary of the Navy. “DDG 1001 is an extremely capable and versatile ship with an incredible namesake. I have every confi - dence that the ship and crew will both live up to and honor Petty Offi cer Monsoor’s leg- acy as the ship’s motto implies-You Never Quit.”
On Sept. 29, 2006 in Ar Ramadi, Iraq,
Monsoor was part of a sniper overwatch security position with two other SEALs and several Iraqi Army soldiers when an insur- gent closed in and threw a fragmentation grenade into the position. The grenade hit Monsoor in the chest before falling to the ground. Positioned next to the single exit, Monsoor was the only one who could have
escaped harm. Instead he dropped onto the grenade, smothering it to protect his team- mates. The grenade detonated as he came down on top of it, infl icting a mortal wound. Monsoor’s actions that day saved the lives of his two teammates and the accompanying Iraqi soldiers. His Medal of Honor citation reads, “By his undaunted courage, fi ghting spirit and unwavering devotion to duty in the face of certain death, Petty Offi cer Mon- soor gallantly gave his life for his country, thereby refl ecting great credit upon himself and upholding the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.” The future USS Michael Monsoor in-
cludes new technologies and will serve as a multi-mission platform capable of operating as an integral part of naval, joint or combined maritime forces. The ship features two advanced gun systems fi ring long-range, land-attack projectiles that reach up to 63 nautical miles. These guns will provide precision, high volume and persistent fi re support to forces ashore with an approxi- mate fi ve-fold improvement in naval surface fi re range. In addition, DDG 1001 will be the second Navy surface combatant to employ an innovative and highly fl exible Integrated Power System, providing potentially sig- nifi cant energy savings that are well-suited to enable future high energy weapons and sensors.
Construction on the future USS Mi-
chael Monsoor commenced in March 2010, with the keel laying ceremony held in May 2013. The Michael Monsoor is 610 feet long, with a displacement of approximately 15,000 tons when fully loaded.
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WASHINGTON (June 3, 2016) File photo of Captain Jeff Kuss, U.S. Marine Corps. Capt. Kuss died during a practice fl ight, when the F/A-18C Hornet he was piloting crashed approximately two miles from the runway at the Smyrna, Tenn., Airport, June 2, 2016. (U.S. Navy Photo/Released)
San Diego, Calif. (NNS) -- San Diego, Calif. - An F/A-18C Hornet assigned to the Navy Flight Demonstration Squadron crashed during yesterday’s air show practice at the Smyrna, Tenn., Airport. The pilot, who did not survive, has been identifi ed. Blue Angel #6 was fl own by Capt. Jeff
Kuss, 32, of Durango, Co. He served as the opposing solo pilot. This was Kuss’ second year on the team and his fi rst year as a demonstration pilot. “The Navy and Marine Corps aviation
team is grieving the loss of one of our own,” said Vice Adm. Mike Shoemaker, Com- mander, Naval Air Forces. “Capt. Kuss was an incredible Marine, husband and father, and an inspiration to so many; his loss will be felt across the nation. Being a Naval Aviator is an inherently dangerous profession and our aviators knowingly accept that risk in service to their nation; but it still pains us greatly when we experience the untimely loss of a valued aviator and shipmate. Our heartfelt condolences go out to his family, friends, fellow Marines, and Blue Angels teammates.” At approximately 3 p.m. CDT yester-
day, Kuss was taking off to start the after- noon practice when the mishap occurred. The crash occurred approximately two miles from the runway. The other fi ve Blue Angel jets were not
involved in the incident and landed safely moments later. The cause of the accident is currently under investigation. The Navy’s Flight Demonstration team
will conduct a one-time fl ight back to Naval Air Station Pensacola at which time they will begin a stand down (operational pause) for an undetermined amount of time following this mishap. This stand down will give in- vestigation offi cials time to gather facts and ensure the continued safe operations of the squadron. The Navy is deeply saddened by the
loss of Capt. Kuss. We extend our heartfelt thoughts and prayers to his family, and those he served with.
Crewmembers of USS Frank E. Evans -- Lost but not Forgotten
By Lisa Woodbury Rama, Naval Station Newport Public Aff airs
CUMBERLAND, R.I. (NNS) -- Over 100 reunion members, veterans, family and guests gathered in Resurrection Cemetery May 20 to unveil a stone in memory of the lost 74 who went down with the bow of the USS Frank E. Evans (DD-754). Frank E. Evans collided with the Aus-
tralian carrier Melbourne around 3 a.m., June 3, 1969.
in the Navy is constant it is that when you are [aboard] a ship at sea,” said Coff ey. “Men stand watch, men are down in the boiler room working in 110-degree heat, men are up on the bridge -- port and starboard with the signalman behind them. Everybody’s doing their job. There is always some kind of danger [aboard] a Navy ship.” Coff ey went on to explain the circum- stances that led to the accident that night. At around 3 a.m. between Vietnam
and Spratly Island, Frank E. Evans was operating with the Royal Australian Navy in company with Melbourne, which was in the process of going to fl ying stations and all ships in the formation were running without lights.
Melbourne radioed Frank E. Evans,
then to the carrier’s port side, to take up the rescue destroyer position. The logical movement would be to turn to port and make a circle taking up station on the carrier’s port quarter. However, since the conning offi cer on Frank E. Evans misunderstood the formation’s base course and believed they were starboard of Melbourne, they turned to starboard and cut across the carrier’s bow twice in the process. Frank E. Evans was struck at a point
around 92 feet from her bow on her port side and was cut in two. Her bow drifted off to the port side of Melbourne and sank in less than fi ve minutes, taking 73 of the crew with it. One body was recovered from the water, making a total of 74 dead. The stern scraped along the starboard side of Melbourne and lines were able to be attached by the crew of Melbourne -- around 60 to 100 men were also rescued from the water. Frank E. Evans, an Allen M. Sumner-
class destroyer, served in late World War II and the Korean War before heading for Vietnam. She had a complement of 336 offi cers and crew. Gathered at the event were two crew
members who were aboard the ship that night -- Bill Thibeault, currently living in Connecticut; and Terry Vejr, currently living in Oregon.
Thibeault told this story: “Dick was 19,
I was 18; the war was on and we were going to Vietnam,” he said. “We boarded the ship in dry dock in April 1968. At the time of the collision, we were in the back half of the ship (referring to Vejr and himself) and we’re just lucky to be here today.” “We need to get the names of those 74
added to the Vietnam Wall. We will always remember and lest we forget,” he said with tears in his eyes. He has not forgotten it. He said he thinks about that night every day of his life. Former crew members of the ship have
been appealing to their respective law mak- ers for decades in an eff ort to have the crew members names who lost their lives that night added to the Vietnam Wall in Wash- ington.
They have also been going around Continued on Page 25.
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