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Only in Print: Veterans - A Pearl Harbor reminder and a look at a special aircraft carrier
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Veterans Page Editor Greg Andruskevich shares memories of the attack on Pearl Harbor.
WEDNESDAY, DEC. 7 is Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, the 70th anniversary of the sneak attack by the Japanese on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, at 8:06 a.m.
There were about 70,000 servicemen and women on duty at Pearl on that fateful day that propelled the United States into World War II. That morning, 2,341 Navy, Marine and Army personnel were killed.
The survivors, who proudly call themselves and their organization Pearl Harbor Survivors, numbered about 1,000 when the year 2011 kicked off. Think about that: many of the attack’s survivors — as well as those who didn’t survive — were in their 20s or late teens at the time, and most of the survivors are in their 90s now. A special salute to them.
New Hampshire has an official Pearl Harbor memorial: the Pearl Harbor Memorial Bridge, which leads to the Manchester Boston Regional Airport. Thanks to Bill Boynton of the New Hampshire Department of Transportation, I was able to take part in the dedication of the bridge, along with several of New Hampshire’s Pearl Harbor survivors. And thanks to the New Hampshire Legislature for finally getting the bridge named to honor the survivors and their fallen comrades.
Richard and ‘Rosie’
When the annual Army-Navy football game rolls around in December, it’s always a challenge for Richard Lafontaine to choose who to root for, as he served in both branches of the service.
The 82-year-old Nashua resident, originally from Virginia, entered the U.S. Navy first, in 1946, and served aboard the USS Franklin D. Roosevelt (CVB/CVA/CV-42). He was in the engineering section which, as he explained, meant most of his time was spent below decks covered in the grease and oil of the Roosevelt.
The Roosevelt was the second of three Midway-class aircraft carriers. Her nicknames included “Swanky Franky,” “Foo-De-Roo” and “Rosie.”
For most of her career, “Rosie” was part of the U.S. 6th Fleet, operating in the Mediterranean Sea.
“We set all kinds of world records when we shipped to Antarctica,” said Lafontaine. Not only that, but Lafontaine was a member of the crew during the period when Gen. Douglas MacArthur and Fleet Adm. Chester Nimitz had luncheon sessions aboard the ship.
Lafontaine has outlasted the Roosevelt, which was decommissioned in 1977 and was scrapped shortly afterward. But long before it was scrapped, the Roosevelt was launched on April 29, 1845, by New York Naval Shipyard. It was originally known as the Coral Sea, but was renamed for Franklin D. Roosevelt on May 8, 1945, following his death.
The ship was commissioned on Oct. 27, 1945, with Captain A. Soucek as its first offiecer. She was reclassified CVA-42 on Oct. 1, 1952.
The ship’s “shakedown cruise” took place in February of 1946, when the ship represented the United States at the inauguration of Brazilian president Eurico G. Dutra.
According to Wikipedia’s entry on the USS Franklin D. Roosevelt, “Fleet maneuvers and other training operations in the Caribbean preceded Roosevelt’s first deployment to the Mediterranean, which lasted from August to October, 1946. Roosevelt was part of a U.S. Navy force that visited Athens in a show of support for the pro-Western government of Greece, which was locked in a civil war with Communist insurgents. The ship received thousands of visitors during her calls to many Mediterranean ports.”
The site ussfranklindroosevelt.com goes on to explain that the Roosevelt hosted the first U.S. test of the adaptability of jet aircraft to shipboard operations. This test took place on July 21, 1946, when a lieutenant commander named James Davidson made a series of successful landings and take-offs from aboard the ship.
More of the history of the USS Roosevelt — and Lafontaine’s own experiences — will be covered next week; to be continued!
Until the next time, I salute you!
Retired Veterans Page editor Greg Andruskevich writes about veterans affairs. His email is gandrusk@comcast.net.
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WEDNESDAY, DEC. 7 is Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day, the 70th anniversary of the sneak attack by the Japanese on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, at 8:06 a.m.
There were about 70,000 servicemen and women on duty at Pearl on that fateful day that propelled the United States into World War II. That morning, 2,341 Navy, Marine and Army personnel were killed.
The survivors, who proudly call themselves and their organization Pearl Harbor Survivors, numbered about 1,000 when the year 2011 kicked off. Think about that: many of the attack’s survivors — as well as those who didn’t survive — were in their 20s or late teens at the time, and most of the survivors are in their 90s now. A special salute to them.
New Hampshire has an official Pearl Harbor memorial: the Pearl Harbor Memorial Bridge, which leads to the Manchester Boston Regional Airport. Thanks to Bill Boynton of the New Hampshire Department of Transportation, I was able to take part in the dedication of the bridge, along with several of New Hampshire’s Pearl Harbor survivors. And thanks to the New Hampshire Legislature for finally getting the bridge named to honor the survivors and their fallen comrades.
Richard and ‘Rosie’
When the annual Army-Navy football game rolls around in December, it’s always a challenge for Richard Lafontaine to choose who to root for, as he served in both branches of the service.
The 82-year-old Nashua resident, originally from Virginia, entered the U.S. Navy first, in 1946, and served aboard the USS Franklin D. Roosevelt (CVB/CVA/CV-42). He was in the engineering section which, as he explained, meant most of his time was spent below decks covered in the grease and oil of the Roosevelt.
The Roosevelt was the second of three Midway-class aircraft carriers. Her nicknames included “Swanky Franky,” “Foo-De-Roo” and “Rosie.”
For most of her career, “Rosie” was part of the U.S. 6th Fleet, operating in the Mediterranean Sea.
“We set all kinds of world records when we shipped to Antarctica,” said Lafontaine. Not only that, but Lafontaine was a member of the crew during the period when Gen. Douglas MacArthur and Fleet Adm. Chester Nimitz had luncheon sessions aboard the ship.
Lafontaine has outlasted the Roosevelt, which was decommissioned in 1977 and was scrapped shortly afterward. But long before it was scrapped, the Roosevelt was launched on April 29, 1845, by New York Naval Shipyard. It was originally known as the Coral Sea, but was renamed for Franklin D. Roosevelt on May 8, 1945, following his death.
The ship was commissioned on Oct. 27, 1945, with Captain A. Soucek as its first offiecer. She was reclassified CVA-42 on Oct. 1, 1952.
The ship’s “shakedown cruise” took place in February of 1946, when the ship represented the United States at the inauguration of Brazilian president Eurico G. Dutra.
According to Wikipedia’s entry on the USS Franklin D. Roosevelt, “Fleet maneuvers and other training operations in the Caribbean preceded Roosevelt’s first deployment to the Mediterranean, which lasted from August to October, 1946. Roosevelt was part of a U.S. Navy force that visited Athens in a show of support for the pro-Western government of Greece, which was locked in a civil war with Communist insurgents. The ship received thousands of visitors during her calls to many Mediterranean ports.”
The site ussfranklindroosevelt.com goes on to explain that the Roosevelt hosted the first U.S. test of the adaptability of jet aircraft to shipboard operations. This test took place on July 21, 1946, when a lieutenant commander named James Davidson made a series of successful landings and take-offs from aboard the ship.
More of the history of the USS Roosevelt — and Lafontaine’s own experiences — will be covered next week; to be continued!
Until the next time, I salute you!
Retired Veterans Page editor Greg Andruskevich writes about veterans affairs. His email is gandrusk@comcast.net.
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