DO YOU KNOW OR REMEMBER? People and Events in the History of Naval Surface Warfare Center, Port Hueneme Gerald L. Roberts NEMESIS Alumni Association Port Hueneme, California Do You Know or Remember People and Events in the History of Naval Surface Warfare Center, Port Hueneme Gerald L. Roberts October 2020 NEMESIS Alumni Association www.nemesisalumni.org P.O. Box 604 Port Hueneme, CA 93044-0604 II Keep the Ships Shooting! - GLR III IV Contents Contents V Forward VII Introduction IX 1: NEMESIS Established 1 2: First AEGIS Ship 3 3: USS NORTON SOUND (Part 1) 5 4: USS NORTON SOUND (Part 2) 7 5: HARPOON IN THE FLEET 9 6: Change of Command 11 7: USS NORTON SOUND (Part 3) 13 8: 3T Reorganization 15 9: USS NORTON SOUND (Part 4) 17 10: TERRIER in Aircraft Carriers 19 11: Captain Robert Walters 21 12: Captain Wayne E. Meyer 23 13: Captain John D. Beecher 25 14: Destroyer Named After Wayne E. Meyer 27 15: USS STARK (FFG-31) 29 16: USS VALLEY FORGE and USS BUNKER HILL 31 17: Highlights of 1974 33 18: Origins: The Early History (Part 1) 35 19: Origins: The Early History (Part 2) 37 20: The Ninth Birthday (1974) 39 21: The Founding Documents 43 22: Underway Replenishment 45 23: Vice Admiral Eli T. Reich 47 24: Wayne E. Meyer 49 25: USS FOX; Harpoon 51 26: Commander Don Pette 53 27: Early History 55 28: Early History (continued) 57 V 29: Early History (continued) 59 30: Vice Admiral Reich’s Speech, 1975 61 31: Vice Admiral Reich’s Speech (continued) 63 32: Message for the Fleet Sailors 65 33: USS OKLAHOMA CITY 67 34: Praise 71 35: Captain David M. Altwegg 73 36: Commanders Selected for Captain 75 37: Vice Admiral Eli T. Reich 77 38: The 50th Anniversary 79 39: TERRIER’s Motto: Keep the Ships Shooting 81 40: Veteran’s Day; Harpoon 85 41: CNO Admiral James Holloway 87 42: CNO Admiral James Holloway (continued) 91 43: Navy Birthday; USS Valley Forge 95 44: Good Old Days 97 45: USS Sterett; Captain Kanakanui 99 46: Naval Force Essential to U.S. Security 101 47: The Eli T. Reich Award 103 48: AEGIS 105 49: AEGIS Ballistic Missile Defense 107 50: Captain Wayne E. Meyer 109 51: The Mission 111 For Further Reading 113 About the Author: Gerald L. Roberts 115 VI Forward My route to the U.S. Naval Ship Missile Engineering Station in Port Hueneme (abbreviated NEMESIS but later evolving to the Port Hueneme Division, Naval Surface Warfare Center) oddly began with undergraduate work at LTV Aerospace in Warren, Michigan. During mostly alternating quarters I was assigned to a group working guidance and control on Lance Missile, the vehicle for the better known “Neutron Bomb.” The work was certainly interesting since the missile guidance and control testing I was involved with took place under Detroit on bedrock 1100 feet in a salt mine. Lance was conceptually simple: Launch then maintain zero acceleration for a ballistic flight. That required liquid fuel for a variable thrust rocket motor but the guidance and control system, under the control of an accelerometer tested in that lab under Detroit, could do that task. Then the idea emerged to create a Navy version called Sea Lance (not to be confused a different later program using the same name). The conceptually simple Army version then added complexity of ship motion. More accelerometers, a stable platform to be tested followed by program cancellation since at that time Lance had a propensity (later resolved) to blow up on the launcher. The lesson might be Army: Simple. Navy: Complex. The design, testing and evaluation for Lance was phasing out so I started looking for post-graduation employment. Another lesson is that contractor’s jobs can fade away. NEMESIS offered interesting work, substituting ships for short-wheelbase Land Rover drives through a very dark salt mine. A family contact endorsed employment at NEMESIS about the time a job offer appeared before a graduating senior. An uncle contacted his relative Jimmie Daniels who at that time was Chief of Staff, Commander Fleet Air, Hawaii. A letter went from an office on North Wacker Drive, Chicago, to Edgewater Drive, Ewa Beach, Oahu. CAPT James Daniels wrote back from Honolulu: Your letter was very complete, except it said “I realize you would not want to influence his decision.” To the contrary - I would very much like to influence his decision. The Ship Missile Systems Engineering Station is one of the outstanding engineering organizations in the world. And, I mean, this includes all civilian engineering companies. It has a group of specialists and has built into it unlimited advancement opportunities…contracts for new equipment can be canceled with civilian firms and cutbacks would be required. However NEMESIS must see to it that all our systems remain operable and also provide the research basis for new equipment which will be eventually passed on to civilian contractors. I feel that the rather cold form letter sent to Craig does not really state the challenge, the opportunity for advancement, and the unlimited horizons available.” Finally: “I feel the location at Port Hueneme, with its smog-free weather and comfortable living, would add $1000 a year to any job. I know it would to me. The thought of living on the East coast or even in the middle-West with its rain and cold and dampness would be a motivating influence…I only wish I had had a choice of this kind I was choosing a career by then you knew I had to fly!” CAPT Daniels, to repeat the history, was one of the few U.S. pilots in the air on the day of the attack on Pearl Harbor and he was also in the air above Tokyo Harbor in the war’s final days in 1945. He was one of three pilots who survived a barrage of friendly fire several hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor. After the Japanese attack on Dec. 7, 1941, Daniels was one of six pilots who searched unsuccessfully for the withdrawing Japanese attack fleet and then was directed to land at Ford Island. His recommendation was followed. —————— VII Telling a story about technical developments is difficult to make interesting. Add to that the dimensions of personalities and conflicts which at the time were serious but years later can make an interesting tale unless the participants are still alive to take different views or have a different version of events. For current employees, most important might be the “Why” question regarding the organization willing to employ them, and the “Who” question about the pioneers who tackled the difficult issues. Then an understanding should emerge about creating the path from problem to solution where some help about finding the path can prove useful. If a reader can see that difficult challenges were met, then there’s hope for finding a way for resolving the current and emerging challenges, which never end. Pick up the book, find a chapter, then find someone who can tell the back story, the especially interesting story not in print. That might be rewarding! The brief bibliography includes well-researched books with details on technological development. The books are well worth having on a nearby bookshelf for those curious about those who moved the technology into an uncharted future. What we have today reflects their risks and rewards. Those who took the easy, safe path aren’t in the book. You want to be in the book. -Craig V. Hodson VIII Introduction Looking back from 60 years later, it is easy to see the need. From 1945 to 1960 the surface ship Navy worked on the problem of massed aircraft attack on ships. Japanese pilots flew aircraft right into U.S. Navy ships with much higher effectiveness than dropped bombs or torpedoes. Despite massive antiaircraft gunnery used in defense, losses were heavy. A guided surface-to-air weapon was obviously needed. Several parallel development projects, led by the Applied Physics Laboratory in Baltimore, were started under the moniker of “Bumble Bee.” The first recognizable fleet entity was the Terrier Guided Missile Weapon System. Talos, then Tartar followed close behind. These three constituted something of a scattershot because battle scenarios were wide open regarding numbers of targets, ranges and altitudes to engage, as well as the nature of the targets themselves. Wide open scenarios meant different types and sizes of surface-to-air missile would be needed. Different methods of guidance, different types of warhead, radars and propulsion would be needed. The technology was maturing very rapidly in all these areas and the fleet was gung-ho to deploy and employ what was just being installed. But by 1960 a subtle undercurrent was becoming evident. It then fully surfaced during a series of fleet training events deployment preparations, and demonstrations for President Kennedy as the tensions heated up with Russia over placement of their systems in Cuba. Delayed engagements, misfires, and a myriad of problems were appearing all over the fleet with no clear cause or correction. USS KING (DLG-10), a newly commissioned Destroyer Leader Guided Missile ship, made headlines in 1961 by getting an excellent engagement off Southern California. The event was the beginning of a turning point for the newly created Surface Missile System (SMS) Special Project Office at the top level of the Navy Department. The office created the focus needed on a comprehensive business plan and the need for a one stop in-service engineering station, NEMESIS (the short name for Naval Ship Missile Systems Engineering Station, now Port Hueneme Division, Naval Surface Warfare Center) at its core.