Going down

[JackLuis]

The fear of every seaman and a lot of High School girls.

 

[jomar]

Pilots either.

But that's pretty impressive footage. I recall seeing a video of an aircraft carrier in a storm...seas raging all around and that sucker appeared to be very stable.

 

[JAMESBJOHNSON]

I dont know but I'm told OLD SEAMEN is the official aftershave of the AH.

 

[trysail]

Pilots either.

But that's pretty impressive footage. I recall seeing a video of an aircraft carrier in a storm...seas raging all around and that sucker appeared to be very stable.

Even carriers aren't immune. I've a pal and sailing buddy who was a flyer on the Ticonderoga— in 1969 they got caught in a typhoon in the South China Sea. To this day he confesses how spooky it was to see the flight deck twist and flex. Below decks was even worse; in a corridor that ran the length of the ship, he said the twisting and flexing of all that steel was plainly obvious and not particularly confidence-inspiring. He adds that the scuppers were full of partially digested breakfast, lunch AND dinner.

 

[jomar]

Even carriers aren't immune. I've a pal and sailing buddy who was a flyer on the Ticonderoga— in 1969 they got caught in a typhoon in the South China Sea. To this day he confesses how spooky it was to see the flight deck twist and flex. Below decks was even worse; in a corridor that ran the length of the ship, he said the twisting and flexing of all that steel was plainly obvious and not particularly confidence-inspiring. He adds that the scuppers were full of partially digested breakfast, lunch AND dinner.

I'm sure, and I can see how your friend's experience would be spooky. In the video I mentioned you can tell there is some movement, but compared to the seas, a piece of cake.

 

[trysail]

I'm sure, and I can see how your friend's experience would be spooky. In the video I mentioned you can tell there is some movement, but compared to the seas, a piece of cake.

No question— it's all relative. I do not ever— EVER— want to see anything over Beaufort Force 9 seas in person. Period. Full stop.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b5/Beaufort_scale_12_notext.jpg/300px-Beaufort_scale_12_notext.jpg​

 

[TE999]

The 'Victory At Sea' documentary series has footage of Adm.'Bull' Halsey's fleet caught in a typhoon in 1945. Carriers and Battleships are tossed around like toys in a bathtub and smaller ships practically disappear under the waves. Three Destroyers were sunk and many other ships were severely damaged. Halsey's stubbornness caused the debacle, but the truth didn't come out until many years later.

 

[trysail]

The 'Victory At Sea' documentary series has footage of Adm.'Bull' Halsey's fleet caught in a typhoon in 1945. Carriers and Battleships are tossed around like toys in a bathtub and smaller ships practically disappear under the waves. Three Destroyers were sunk and many other ships were severely damaged. Halsey's stubbornness caused the debacle, but the truth didn't come out until many years later.

That is a little known story which was the subject of a book I recently read called Halsey's Typhoon. It's a good read. Those damn destroyers weren't called "tin cans" without reason. Very few people are aware of that little disaster.

See: http://forum.literotica.com/showpost.php?p=33067006&postcount=301

 

[voluptuary_manque]

Some guys thought that if you were about to be drafted the smart thing was join the Navy or Coast Guard because you aren't as likely to get shot at. What they don't realize is that the very environment the swabbies operate in is out to get them.

 

[Dragonlipz]

The fear of every seaman and a lot of High School girls.

I'm a Navy veteran with two WESPAC tours.....on the USS Kitty Hawk............(that old tub is still in service...)

 

[TE999]

That is a little known story which was the subject of a book I recently read called Halsey's Typhoon. It's a good read. Those damn destroyers weren't called "tin cans" without reason. Very few people are aware of that little disaster.

See: http://forum.literotica.com/showpost.php?p=33067006&postcount=301

Thanks, trysail. I'll have to check that one out.

 

[voluptuary_manque]

And then we have the 47' surf rescue boats that go out in that sort of stuff on purpose. "You have to go out but no one says you have to come back."

 

[Handley_Page]

And then we have the 47' surf rescue boats that go out in that sort of stuff on purpose.
"You have to go out but no one says you have to come back."

That's what I call Guts.

 

[squarejohn]

I was on a destroyer during a typhoon. If you have your "sea legs," it isn't as bad as it looks; you can even enjoy some of the ride. They let me on the bridge to film the action outside with my brand new 8mm camera. Two other destroyers were in our group and I got footage of them completely out of the water, both bronze propellers--we called 'em screws--turning slowly in opposite directions. Using the painted bottom of the underside of the ships, from the water line to the keel as a rough gauge, the ships were 20 to 25 feet in the air. When they crashed back into the sea, they were completely submerged in green water, except for the tops of their smokestack and the bridge, before they'd pop up again. That explained the the very loud "Kaboom" we were hearing periodically on our ship. Some light fixtures broke loose and even paint flaked off the bulkheads in places. The word "awesome" describes it.

No one, including the cooks, was allowed to do any kind of work except for what was vital to keeping the ship operating.

It was impossible to sleep because we were rolling 30 to 45 degrees. Once in your bunk you had to strap yourself in with safety-belt-like belts that were attached to each bunk for those weather conditions.

It really isn't as dangerous as it looks, as long good seamanship is practiced. It's possible to ride it out by "riding in the trough." The danger is when the ship is making too much speed and plows into a wave and gets swept into a vertical position. This is called pitchpoling, and when that happens, the ship just keeps going down, down, down, to the bottom.

 

[amicus]

In the Gulf of Alaska, in winter, the LST I was aboard came up over a huge wave and the steel in the deck cracked all the way across. Welders were out in the Storm, while I was 50 feet above the deck on the Mast, reconnecting coaxial cables...when the ship went into a trough, the tops of the waves were still above me.

Most exciting thing I ever did. But not something I ever wished to do again...

Then again, many years later, my 36' gaff rigged cutter in a storm off the Bahama's came closer to taking my life...the Sea is not a gentle mistress...

ami