1972-Contin ued

30 June The Naval Air Rework Facility and the

Naval Air Station at North Island, Calif., submitted to

the Naval Civil Engineering Laboratory an interim

report on pollution studies. A follow-on final report

was published in August with the title "Environmental

Collection Data Base." It contained methodological

information on effective means of measuring the

extent of various types of environmental pollution,

related some pollutants to particular industrial or oper-

ational activity, and contained quantitative data on the

extent of pollution found to be present. Thus, it pro-

vided an important first step in devising plans to

lessen the environmental impact of pollution produced

by naval operational and industrial air activities.

1 July A reorganization of the Naval Air Training

system occurred when the Naval Air Advanced

Training Command was disestablished and the Chief

of Naval Air Training was relocated to Corpus Christi,

Tex. This action was part of the Navy's effort to con-

solidate training under a concept called "single base

training." When pilots completed their primary training

they were assigned to a specific program involving

training in either jets, props or helos. This training

would be completed at one specific training base

where the pilots would finish their instruction before

receiving their wings. The new structure/organization

came under the control of the Chief, Naval Air

Training Command.

1 July Tactical Electronic Warfare Wing 13 (TACEL-

WING-13) was disestablished at NAS Whidbey Island,

Wash. It had been established to introduce the complex

electronic warfare EA-6B Prowler into fleet service.

15 July A three-day test demonstration of the ability

of the UH-2C Seasprite to fire Sparrow III missiles

against surface targets was completed at the Pacific

Missile Range, Sea Test Range, Calif. The helicopter,

modified to carry a single missile mounted on a rail

launcher, fired four missiles during the course of the

demonstration.

22 July Tripoli arrived in Subic Bay, R.P., with HMM-

165 on board to provide relief support after record

rains caused disastrous flooding in the central Luzon

valley between Manila and Lingayen Gulf. Tens of

thousands of people were affected and additional ships

were tasked for Philippine flood relief operations.

31 July The Navy began night operations regularly

on 24 May and during June and July night sorties con-

stituted 30 percent of the total Navy attack effort in

UNITED STATES NAVAL AVIATION 1910-1995

297

NVN, relying primarily on the A-7 and A-6. About 45

percent of the Navy armed reconnaissance effort was

at night during June and July. The A-7 flew about as

many night sorties as it did day sorties. The A-6 flew

more night than day armed reconnaissance sorties

during the summer months. The total number of Navy

night sorties during June and July were 1,243 and

1,332 respectively. Three to four carriers were main-

tained on Yankee Station during the summer months.

The carriers involved were Constellation, Coral Sea,

Hancock, Kitty Hawk, Midway, Saratoga, Oriskany

and America.

31 July There was a dramatic change in NVN's air

defense effort during the summer months. During the

earlier periods of April and May, the Navy air effort in

NVN involved intensive air-to-air combat and a large

number of surface-to-air missile (SAM) firings. In con-

trast, during June and July there was an increase in

Linebacker I Navy attack sorties, but there was a

decrease in the number of air-to-air combat incidents

and SAM firings. MiG kills decreased to three in June

by Navy aircraft and zero in July compared to 16 MiG

kills by Navy aircraft in May. After mid-June, almost all

North Vietnamese aircraft sighted or engaged were

MiG-21s. Navy/MiG encounters were primarily against

MiG-21s, representing a considerable change from

May, when 11 of 16 Navy kills were MiG-17s.

5 August New Orleans relieved Tripoli in Philippine

flood relief operations. HMM-165 transferred to New

Orleans to continue support due to their knowledge

of terrain and problems inherent in the flood relief

operations.

5 August A Naval Air Test Center pilot made the

first fully automated landing aboard Ranger in an F-4J

Phantom II. The test landing device linked the plane's

controls with a computer aboard ship and enabled the

aircraft to land with the pilot's hands off the controls.

The system was developed to make safer landings at

night and in low visibility conditions.

7 August An HC- 7 Det 110 helicopter, aided by

planes from Saratoga and Midway, conducted a search

and rescue mission for a downed aviator in NVN. The

pilot of an A-7 aircraft from Saratoga had been

downed by a surface-to-air missile about 20 miles

inland, northwest of Vinh, on 6 August. The HC-7 heli-

copter flew inland over mountainous terrain to rescue

the pilot. The rescue helicopter used its search light to

assist in locating the downed pilot and, despite receiv-

ing heavy ground fire, was successful in retrieving the

pilot and returning to an LPD off the coast of NVN.

This was the deepest penetration of a rescue heli-