The Spirit of Saratoga

By Vice Admiral Robert F. Dunn, U.S. Navy (Retired)
December 1997
On the 70th anniversary of the first aircraft carrier Saratoga, a former skipper of the second carrier by that name pays tribute to all the Saras in U.S. naval history.

Sea Combat by Numbers

By Owen P. Hall, Jr., Ph.D.
December 1997
The purpose of the following exercise is to examine possible factors that help explain the outcomes of 18 major surface engagements that occurred during the first half of the 20th ...

Ship Model Master

By Commander Tyrone G. Martin, U. S. Navy (Retired)
December 1997
The builder of this accurate portrayal of the USS Constitution is an immigrant from Norway, Olof Eriksen.

A Submariner’s Choices

By Paul Stillwell
December 1997
At any given moment, all of us are the products of our genes, the things we have learned, the experiences we have had, and the thousands of choices we have ...

In Contact

December 1997
“From Tarawa to Hooterville” (See J. E. Wise, Jr., and A. C. Rehill, pp. 57-59, July/August 1997 Naval History) Edward R. Emanual The article was very interesting, however, as an ...

Book Reviews

Reviewed by Captain Kendall J. King, U. S. Navy (Retired), Lieutenant Colonel Richard Seamon, U.S. Marine Corps Reserve (Retired), Commander Glenn Curran, Royal Australian Navy
December 1997
Ironclad Captain: Seth Ledyard Phelps and the U.S. Navy 1841-1864 Jay Slagle. Kent, OH: The Kent State University Press, 1997. 449 pp. Notes. Photos. Maps. Gloss. Bib. $35.00 ($31.50). Reviewed ...

The Flying Pirate

By Norman Polmar, Author, Ships and Aircraft of the U.S. Fleet
December 1997
A highly successful patrol aircraft, the PB4Y-2 Privateer was derived from the famed B-24 Liberator. The four-engine B-24 heavy bomber—produced in larger numbers than any other U.S. combat aircraft—was flown ...

Historic Fleets

By A. D. Baker III, Editor, Combat Fleets of the World
December 1997
The U.S. Navy built only a few warships in the gunboat (PG) category prior to World War II, and (discounting PG-43 through 48, which were river gunboats later redesignated PR) ...

Naval History News

December 1997
Rescued Kamikaze Pilot to Spearhead Exchange Program In a 24 September ceremony at the U.S. Navy Memorial in Washington, D.C., Kaoru Hasegawa, President and CEO of the Rengo Company, Ltd ...

Salty Talk

By Commander Tyrone Martin, U.S. Navy (Retired)
December 1997
We all have become familiar with the term “hijacking.” Far too many political activist groups—terrorists, to some—have used an airplane or ship “hijacking” to gain notice, make a point, or ...

Navy Yarns

By Captain Roy C. Smith III, U.S. Navy (Retired)
December 1997
A brand new destroyer with a first-command captain came to Alexandria, Egypt, to a berth right near the flag ship. Knowing the admiral demanded excellent shiphandling from his captains, our ...