Dan Charter (CO) 1958-59 photo collection
Dan's comments:
I am probably unique. I used the 2H0, 2H1 chain as a navigator. I was on the CGC Matagorda (WAVP 373) and we manned Ocean Station Victor. At the end of the first patrol of the double Victor we would come into Yukosuka. The chain was usable within about five hundred miles of the coast of Japan. On station we were beyond the ground wave and first hop sky wave but could pick up the second hop sky wave at night. Since there were no tables for the second hop sky wave when I could get good star sights I would check the Loran readings and was able to build my own tables. Since we stayed within a 10 mile square it was fairly easy to establish the correction factor for the second hop sky wave. The XO would not let me label it a fix but it made a great EP to backup my DR. We were sometimes unable to get a celestial fix for a week or more and the EP proved very valuable and was surprisingly accurate. That usage was one of the reasons I requested Niigata for a future tour.
LORAN Park c./2013
LORAN Park c./2013
Station Sign
I did not like the government provided sign so I designed a bilingual one so the locals
could read it. I also wanted the flavor of Japan so Fujiyama (in my view one of, if not
the most beautiful mountains in the world) was prominently displayed.
Toichiro Suzuki or as we call him, Johnnieson, our non government employee hired by the crew
The Senior ET
our Japanese cook, Mareyamasan, or as the crew called him, Papasan
The HMC
our mascot, Blackie
We invited some students from the school that adjoinerdthe property to a
Thanksgiving dinner. The teachers helped us serve.
They were fascinated by the jukebox. They easily could have skipped the meal
and spent the day watching the jukebox.
The fishman on the adjoining property haul in their catch
The policeman assigned to the beat. They came by regularly for coffee.
The XO at work
Thanks Dan!