Med. deployment, on the road to the Battle B

Shortly after taking command, Ken Weinherg and crew deployed from June until December 1986 to the Mediterranean as part of the USS Forrestal battle group. The early part of 1987 was spent in training exercises followed by a four month cruise to the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean for anti-drug operations. The ship had a three month overhaul in late 1987 and was involved in special anti-submarine operations in the Atlantic during the first part of 1988.

The USS Connole tradition of excellence continued during Ken's command. Roy Twaddle took the ship through a major overhaul and then built a solid foundation of a crew. Roy "passed the ball" to Ken and the ship earned numerous achievement awards. These included the squadron Battle B (the best ship in the group) in 1987, eight out of nine departmental awards for 1986 and 1987.

From his many letters to the USS Connole families, selected below is Ken's letter of October 11, 1986, a summary of events that occurred during their Med cruise:

"As you read this we shall be soon departing the Mediterranean. We are about to conduct our last port visit in Ibiza, Spain. This eight day visit will be focused on making the final preparations for what I am sure will be a most memorable return to Newport.

As CONNOLE is in the final throes of deployment, it would be a good time to summarize our accomplishments over the past several months:

• Arriving in the Med in late June, the ship briefly stopped in Augusta Bay, Sicily to conduct a brief turnover with USS Bagley, a West Coast frigate. Naples was the next port of call and it really appeared that we might never leave.

• Naples did loosen its grip long enough for us to conduct some interesting ASW operations in the central Med. Unfortunately the time was far too short and we headed back into Taormina, Sicily. Taormina proved to be one of those great liberty ports that virtually everyone enjoyed. Lots of sun, beautiful beaches and wonderful shopping opportunities were an irresistible combination.

• Upon leaving Taormina we were detoured to Augusta Bay, Sicily for a maintenance availability with USS Yosemite. Augusta Bay is the type of area about which it's difficult to say something nice. A great deal of good maintenance was accomplished and we headed for our first non Italian port, Toulon, France

• Toulon which is the major French Naval port in the Mediterranean welcomed us with open arms. The beaches of the French Riviera beckoned and we worked on our suntans daily. Prices were high but there were a few complaints. It didn't look as though anything could top Toulon, but we were wrong.

• After leaving Toulon we transited across most of the Med and reached Antalya, Turkey Antalya became a high point of the deployment. The diplomatic 'reception, great shopping and beautiful beaches combined to make our four day stay memorable. Antalya spoiled us for the rest of the deployment. In fact with Gaeta and Naples ahead, it was easy to feel that way.

• We arrived back in Italy and spent tow weeks in Gaeta. Essentially a port visit dedicated to maintenance, a group of thirty-five Connole men did visit the American battlefield cemetery at Anzio. We placed a wreath there in memory of our fallen American heroes. It was an emotional experience for all. After Gaeta it was off to Naples for a brief visit and then to sea.

• The last part of the deployment has been the most interesting. The ship has operated from one end of the Med to the other and back twice. We have conducted highly successful operations during this time. Each member of the crew has done his part in a most professional and expert manner. It has seemed strange to operate for 30 continuous days after all the inport home, but we have handled it smoothly.

You can be proud of our ship. We have been in the Mediterranean during a potentially perilous time. We have helped to prove that the US Navy is the best, most mobile, most versatile, and most flexible fighting force ever to sail the oceans. The part that your Connole sailor has played in this intricate chain of events has been important and has helped to ensure stability in an area of the world where instability has been and continues to be a fact of life.

As the final days slowly tick off and our thoughts go to our loved ones and homes, all of us aboard this fine ship will no doubt pause to reflect on our accomplishments, accomplishments for which we have always needed and received the support of our families. I wish I could single out each man and describe his special contribution. Unfortunately space and time do not permit this. Instead I have chosen to place the names of your men on the enclosed Connole Honor Roll.

It has been a distinct pleasure for me to have been able to sail with such distinguished and dedicated professionals." In a June 28, 1992 letter to the author, Ken selected a significant event that typified the crew's outstanding work:

"In regard to my command tour aboard Connole, I think that if there were one achievement I would single out it was the unexpected notice from COMNAVSURFLANT to proceed to Gitmo for a mid-term training evaluation. This event occurred in July, 1987 during Caribbean anti-drug ops.

We left Newport knowing that drug op could be pretty boring. Our only charge was to do whatever the Coast Guard wanted and to conduct as much training as possible. In this regard, we were very successful. We ran all over the Caribbean while doing a grunch of training, everything from weapons firings to damage control and engineering casualty control drills. We were down there for about three weeks when we got the message to proceed to Gitmo upon detachment by the Coast Guard.

The mid-term training evaluation was exactly the same one given to ships which had been undergoing the extensive six week refresher training. As you know, just about all the ships flunk the first battle problem, about 70% flunk the second, and just about everyone passes the third.

We arrived in Gitmo, got a quick briefing on the scope of the evaluation and then the inspectors went to work. During the first day they checked all our training records and safety programs. The second day they held graded inport damage control exercises and the third day we spent underway with navigation exercises and of course the major battle problem, including the mass conflagration exercise.

To make a long story short, our training records were adjudged to be in tip-top condition. We flew through the inport drills, passing everyone with 90's, and the battle problem was a cinch. We passed that too, and managed to save the ship during the mass conflagration. We did that in less than 45 minutes, if my memory serves me correctly.

We left Gitmo with a clean report card and a pat on the back from COMNAVSURFLANT himself. That experience, coupled with an unblemished record in the various inspections, set the stage for the ship's first "E" award in quite some time.