Naval History Magazine - August 2022, Volume 36, Number 4

U.S. Navy LTV A-7E Corsair II off the USS Kitty Hawk (CVA-63)

On Our Scope

By Eric Mills

August 2022

Editor-in-Chief Eric Mills shares highlights from the July/August issue of Naval History.

Historic WWII Destroyer Survives Sinking Threat

By Eric Mills

August 2022

The ship-preservation community watched fearfully in April as the museum ship USS The Sullivans (DD-537) began sinking at the Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park.

The Navy’s new Arleigh Burke–class destroyer commemorates a pioneering figure.

Naval History News

August 2022

Navy Commissions Ship in Honor of Frank E. Petersen Jr.; Naval Institute Honors Authors of the Year

In Contact

August 2022

Readers respond to stories from recent issues of Naval History.

The Right Call

By J. M. Caiella

August 2022

The most mysterious and indeed mythical ship in the U.S. Navy never sailed and was never completed.

A French Connection

By Norman Polmar, Author, Ships and Aircraft of the U.S. Fleet

August 2022

The first U.S. Navy fighter to go to sea was a variant of the French-built Hanriot HD-2 floatplane.

The Great Sea’s Greatest Battle

By Eric Mills

August 2022

Two tongues, one name: “Great Sea”—the Mediterranean, nurturing mother of the cultures of antiquity.

Ordnancemen on board the USS San Jacinto (CVL-30)

Evolution of a Ship-Sinker

By Norman Friedman, Author of U.S. Navy Attack Aircraft, 1920–2020 (Naval Institute Press, 2022)

August 2022

The Mk 13 torpedo emerged as a devastating weapon responsible for sinking a Japanese superbattleship at the Battle of Leyte Gulf and another one off Okinawa.

When Lightning Followed Thunder, Dale Byhre

Operation Linebacker: The Sea-Power Factor

By Edward J. Marolda

August 2022

1972 witnessed a full-court press by the U.S. Navy and Air Force, taking the Vietnam fight north of the 20th parallel and driving the North Vietnamese to the bargaining table.

Dissecting a Carrier Disaster

By J. M. Caiella

August 2022

It was the worst U.S. carrier fire since World War II; here is an analysis of what befell the USS Forrestal (CVA-59) on Yankee Station in 1967.

Friendly Fire in the ‘Emperor’s Bathtub’

By Nathaniel Patch

August 2022

On the hunt for targets in the Sea of Japan, the submarine USS Permit (SS-178) met with the misfortune of scoring one hit too many.

Force H to Mers-el-Kébir

By Ian Sebire

August 2022

The French had the world’s fourth largest navy in 1940. Suddenly, it was a potential Nazi asset. Winston Churchill was having none of that.

massive cloud created during Operation Hardtack

Witness to Brilliant Blasts: When Night Becomes Day

By Rear Admiral Daniel W. McKinnon Jr., U.S. Navy (Ret.)

August 2022

A you-are-there account of Operation Hardtack: the Navy’s grand-scale 1958 Pacific nuclear tests that exceeded all that had come before.

When the War Against the Slave Trade Picked Up Steam

By William J. Prom

August 2022

The U.S fleet’s slave-traffic interdiction efforts had been fighting an uphill battle for years—until a new ship type came to the rescue.

Acts of Valor: William Adger Moffett

By Kelly Swann

August 2022

Book Reviews

August 2022

Experts review Victory at Sea and other new and noteworthy books.

Museum of the Ancient Ships of Pisa

By William Galvani

August 2022

The Italian city of Pisa, famous for its Leaning Tower, also offers visitors one of the largest and most interesting maritime museums in Europe.

‘Where Do We Get Such Men?’: Thomas B. Hayward

By Lieutenant Commander Thomas J. Cutler, U.S. Navy (Retired)

August 2022

It was a very dark time in our Navy’s history when Thomas B. Hayward took the helm as CNO.

Pieces of the Past

August 2022

Soviet postal authorities and their Russian Federation successors have honored numerous historic and modern warships.

Preparing for ‘Tea Fights’

August 2022

In 1961, J. Paul Reason was a U.S. Naval Academy plebe and obliged to take lessons to prepare for social mixer dances that midshipmen called “tea fights.”

Researching the History of the U.S. Navy in Asia

By Captain Bernard D. Cole, U.S. Navy (Retired), PhD

August 2022

Adventures in Facts, Fiction, and Sea Stories

First in Defense: The USS Forrestal

By James M. Caiella

August 2022

In the wake of the aircraft carrier United States’ cancellation arose an innovative supercarrier that would serve the fleet for nearly 38 years.

VADM Thomas Weschler's Recollections of ADM Arleigh Burke

By Taira Payne

August 2022

In this excerpt, VADM Weschler provides insights into ADM Arleigh A. Burke’s personality and working style.

Views from Somalia

By Jon Hoppe

August 2022

Remembering America's mission in Somalia almost thirty years ago.

Sailors Scream For Ice Cream!

By Taylor Sparks

August 2022

Ice Cream's important role in the Navy!

Building Carriers: The Navy and Newport News Create a Monopoly, 1949–1960

By David Ress

August 2022

The collaboration between the U.S. Navy and Newport News Shipbuilding led to an unexpected monopoly on aircraft carrier development from 1949 to 1960.

Lessons from the 600-Ship Navy

By Lieutenant Joseph Sims, U.S. Navy

August 2022

The 1980s proved that great-power competition requires clear naval strategy and advocacy.

From Vindictive to Dainty

By Scot Christenson

August 2022

The Extremes of Royal Navy Ship Names

The Glorie and Warrior

By Rebecca Batley

August 2022

A cool autumn day, 24 November 1859 witnessed the birth of a new type of warship at the Mourillon Arsenal, Toulon, France. Her name was the Glorie and she was ...