Wednesday, June 17, 2020

ever hear of the WW2 Navy aviator gallon of ice cream tradition?




On 06 Sept 1962, as the USS Seadragon (SSN-584) was returning from her historical rendezvous at the North Pole with the USS Skate (SSN-578), her CO Dan Summitt was at the periscope when he witnessed a light quickly moving across the water surface, much too fast for a ship or submarine. He marked the bearing and quickly ordered the Seadragon to the surface. In a few minutes the sub came across the life raft of the crew of a downed Navy P5M Martin plane on a training run. All 12 crewmen were rescued and returned to Port Angeles safely.

Following a Navy aviator tradition, the rescue ship was awarded a gallon of ice cream for each man saved. In the photo, we see CO Summitt on the right accepting the ice cream (in either 3- or 5-gallon tubs; based on size I'd guess 5-gallon tubs). We see the hull number of the Seadragon behind the men, and we see "VP-47" for Patrol Squadron 47 from which the plane originated.



In September 1962 a PBM experienced a prop overspeed and they had to ditch.

One crewman reported that the sub had them “out of the water, in dry clothes, and drinking hot coffee in the crew’s mess within an hour.”


https://www.facebook.com/2hoodssubbook/posts/952161215222988
https://www.facebook.com/2hoodssubbook/photos/a.397659090673206/948250655614044
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Seadragon_(SSN-584)?fbclid=IwAR2kmKeXqRCA5qNm3A7yFWvynh2ZmSkzQ5BJItYFj_8RisZG-qBSiZkHRk0

3 comments:

  1. Wonder how this got started, other than back the day carriers probably had ice cream and submarines didn't.

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    1. I have no doubt some wonderful goofball bubbleheads (as I am one) figured out that they could ransom the wet flyboys fished out of the great blue sea back to the skimmer puke community, around WW2. And no doubt they made their ransom demand with a pirates flag sent direct to the air craft carrier admiral through the 3" launcher and landed it right on the door to the carrier tower, for effect. That's what I would do... you'll get your flyboys back when you pry a full ice cream container out of your private stash in exchange. One for one. Try any tricks and we'll see if these flyboys can swim again and if you want some man overboard drills pronto

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    2. LoL, that's what I picture in my mind's eye as well.

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