Warship watches

Ulrich Rudofsky · Post by **Ulrich Rudofsky** » Tue Oct 31, 2006 8:28 pm

I have done the 4/4 on/off, then 2/2 on off routine for five consecutive days and it wears you down a bit. You never really sleep nor dry out, and it is interrupted by "all hands on deck now!", sort of like "battle stations". But sailboat racing is fun, war is not.

Karl Heidenreich · Post by **Karl Heidenreich** » Tue Oct 31, 2006 8:38 pm

Hi Ulrich,

that´s what I was gonna say: in a regatta you´re for enjoying, even if that wears you down. In war, well, it musn´t be fun.
Why were you doing 4/4 and 2/2? The crew size demmand it?

Ulrich Rudofsky · Post by **Ulrich Rudofsky** » Tue Oct 31, 2006 8:54 pm

Limited crew and a former USN minesweeper captain from WWII Pacific Theater.

Karl Heidenreich · Post by **Karl Heidenreich** » Tue Oct 31, 2006 9:52 pm

Ulrich:

Limited crew and a former USN minesweeper captain from WWII Pacific Theater.

Off topic: Ehm... Did you won?

Ulrich Rudofsky · Post by **Ulrich Rudofsky** » Tue Oct 31, 2006 10:03 pm

"TALISMAN I" is the smallest boat to ever win the Chicago-Mackinac Island Race (1965). "TALISMAN II" (my tour of duty as helmsman '66-69) only got close to winning

The distance is ~350 miles on the rhumb line. We better stop this before Jose shuts us down!

Karl Heidenreich · Post by **Karl Heidenreich** » Tue Oct 31, 2006 10:21 pm

Yeah. Lucky you. The closest I´ve been to be in a ship is in our gulf ferry the couple of hours of the travel when going to the beach.
Well, apart from being in USS Intrepid, the sub Growler and a destroyer that was behind them in NYC´s pier (and that had a gun called "Big Paul" which I believe was a 4 incher or such. I didn´t paid attention).
I hope to go to the USS New Jersey in 2008 if the world still exist by that time.

Bgile · Post by **Bgile** » Wed Nov 01, 2006 3:45 pm

On submarines we typically did 6/12 watches.

Karl Heidenreich · Post by **Karl Heidenreich** » Wed Nov 01, 2006 5:32 pm

Bgile:

On submarines we typically did 6/12 watches.

Are you a former sub crew member? I couldn´t stand the thought of being inside a "stell pipe" for so many time and being attacked as seen in Das Boot. My sincere respect to you.

Very best regards.

P.S. You mean 6 hours per watch, two watches per day, isn´t it?

Bgile · Post by **Bgile** » Thu Nov 02, 2006 12:57 am

Karl Heidenreich wrote:Bgile:
On submarines we typically did 6/12 watches.
Are you a former sub crew member? I couldn´t stand the thought of being inside a "stell pipe" for so many time and being attacked as seen in Das Boot. My sincere respect to you.

Very best regards.

P.S. You mean 6 hours per watch, two watches per day, isn´t it?

Yes, I am. Also yes, two watches per 24 hours.

And I've never been depth charged except once when we got too close to an exercise we got a bit shaken. Nothing like Das Boot.

Karl Heidenreich · Post by **Karl Heidenreich** » Thu Nov 02, 2006 3:57 pm

Bgile:

Yes, I am. Also yes, two watches per 24 hours.

And I've never been depth charged except once when we got too close to an exercise we got a bit shaken. Nothing like Das Boot.

Any person (men or women) that can be in a sealed steel pipe with all the water above has guts, in my opinion anyway. And thinking of a depth charge... better not...

Just a question, if you want or can answer it: SSN or SSBN?

Bgile · Post by **Bgile** » Thu Nov 02, 2006 7:20 pm

SSNs and one SS, and I was involved in spying on the USSR including but not limited to their submarines. I served in them from 1968 - 1976. I was an intelligence specialist and as such wasn't ever permanent crew but was assigned for specific patrols.

I think most of what I was involved with is pretty much public knowledge at this point and certainly technology has progressed a lot in the 30 years since I was directly involved.