During the Vietnam era, five new attack carriers
joined the fleet, including the world’s first
nuclear-powered carrier, USS Enterprise (CVN 65).
Vietnam was a different kind of war, a war in which
the Navy’s role was ever changing. The Navy used both
new and old aircraft—OV-10 Broncos, propeller-driven
Skyraiders, attack planes like A-4 Skyhawks and A-7
Corsairs, and fighter planes like F-8 Crusaders. It used
various support aircraft for ASW, early warning, and
advance communications links.
OTHER DEVELOPMENTS
Even during the Vietnam Police Action, the Navy
was involved in exploration and development. Former
Navy pilot Neil Armstrong became the first man to set
foot on the moon on July 20, 1969. On November 14,
1969, the all-Navy Apollo 12 crew lifted off from the
Kennedy Space Center on the second lunar expedition.
The crew consisted of Commanders Charles Conrad
and Richard Gordon and Lieutenant Commander Alan
Bean. Another all-Navy crew (Captain Charles Conrad,
Jr., and Commanders Joseph P. Kerwin and Paul J. Wietz)
splashed down on the first Skylab mission on June 22,
1973. The crew set numerous records and accomplished
virtually all of its objectives.
Space. The Navy stands tall in the first 10 years of
manned space exploration. Records show that five of the
six men to walk on the surface of the moon during that
time had formerly been trained as naval aviators.
Research. In the 1960s, Navy scientific undersea
research resulted in the USS Alvin. The USS Alvin was
the Navy’s first deep diving vehicle. It was successfully
tested at 6,000-foot depths on July 20, 1965. The next
month, 10 aquanauts, including astronaut Commander
M. Scott Carpenter, entered the Sealab II capsule, 205
feet below the surface of the sea off the coast of La Jolla,
California. Carpenter remained underwater for 30 days
in a successful experiment of submerged living and
working conditions. On January 25, 1969, the first
nuclear-powered, deep-submergence research and
ocean-engineering vehicle, NR-1, was launched. That
five-man vessel can operate for weeks at a time at great
depths.
Weapons. In early 1965 came the announcement of
the proposal to develop a new missile for the fleet
ballistic missile system—the Poseidon. The growth
potential of the ballistic missile submarine launching
system has enabled the Poseidon to fit into the same
16-missile tubes that carried the Polaris. Like the
Polaris A-3, it is able to reach any spot on earth from its
nuclear-powered hiding place. Its increased accuracy,
greater payload, and improved ability to penetrate
enemy defenses make the Poseidon more effective than
the Polaris.
On July 19, 1974, construction of the new Trident
undersea nuclear weapons system commenced. The
Trident system consists of three principal elements: a
nuclear-powered fleet ballistic missile submarine
(SSBN), a strategic weapons system (the missile), and
an integrated logistics support system. The first Trident
submarine was the USS Ohio (SSBN-726), a nuclear
powered fleet ballistic missile submarine. The USS
Ohio was delivered to the Navy in 1981. Since then, the
Navy has accepted delivery of 10 more Trident
submarines.
THE PERSIAN GULF
As with other wars, conflicts, or areas of military
aggression, U.S. naval forces operate in the hostile area
of the Persian Gulf. U.S. naval forces have been present
in this vital oil-rich region for many years.
The events leading to an increased number of U.S.
naval units in the Persian Gulf (fig. 5-20) began in the
mid 1980s. Iran and Iraq were at war. Iraq had begun
attacking Iranian oil facilities and tankers; in response,
Iran began attacks against ships flying flags of countries
sympathetic to Iraq. U.S. Navy ships quickly began
escort and protection operations for U.S.-flagged
tankers.
5-24
Student Notes:
Figure 5-20.—Persian Gulf award.
