USS Independence CV62

I usually read through the military posts, I see a naval one below here today. My dad was in the Canadian Navy during the war on a corvette escort vessel on the North Atlantic convoys so I've always had a bit of interest in that. I have a US Navy "ball cap" here that my dad found in Vancouver when he lived there, it is a navy blue seaman's "ball cap" with USS INDEPENDENCE CV62 embroidered on the front in yellow.

Searching the internet and Googling, I see where the big carrier was in Vancouver in 1974 on one of it's tours of duty (or whatever they called those). My dad always went down to the docks there when naval ships were in the harbour. I suspect one of the sailors lost it during a fun evening on the town, they did that I believe ..... ha !! I still have the hat here, it has the sailor's name inside with a felt marker, it says "PFC Chase" .... maybe he's still alive and wondering where his hat is?

Reading this link below tells me there was a small town that made their home on that ship, I can't imagine that many sailors on one vessel. Right now, it sounds like the carrier is in Texas being scrapped, that must be a sad event for anyone that served on it.

Any possibility that someone here on the YT site was on the ship or maybe knows somebody that was?
USS Independence CV62 information

Actually, the designation inside the cap reads "PH3 Chase" ..... which (after more Googling) says that our friend Mr. Chase was a Photographer's Mate 3rd Class.

Intersting. My father in law was a PH3 during his last 2 years in the Navy, and 74 would have been his last year. Wish he was still around, I could ask him. Next time Im at my mother in laws, I look back at some of his personal photos of the time and see if I can find anything. I doubt Ill find anything on Mr Chase, but I may find something on the Independence.

I keep forgetting about this site. Its lists some of the crew, and has email to contact the members, but you have to sign up. Maybe one of them could help.
Click here.

To bad that page does not have a link so you can go to navy buddies home page so one could then find other ships. I lost all that info when my old computer crashed and I at one time was on navy Buddies for the CVA67 JFK

I have one of the horns off her sister ship, the Ranger.

Does this help you any, Rich? If not, just type in navysite.de and it will take you to the main page and youcan find the list from there on I think the one for Navy ships.
Click here.

Direct link to homepage.
Here

I have a first cousin who flew A4s off of the Ranger and, IIRC, the Constellation, in the early Viet Nam era.

Dean

Thanks a lot now if I can just remember my pass word LOL. But at least I am now going to be able to find the crew list for the JFK again and I have them sending me a new pass word. The JFK has a crew list that I should be on but the other boat I was on last I looked did not have a crew list. I was also on the SSBN633 for 2 or so years but I have not found a crew list for that one

I was on the USS Saratoga CV 60.Sister to the Forrestal. Both are here in Texas being broken up. Total crew was around 5500. Air Wing and ships crew.

I've mentioned this before on this site.

I was in a Marine fighter squadron aboard the Saratoga for carrier quals in the fall of 1956 when the Sara herself was brand new and still in shakedown. I can't believe she's served her useful life and is being recycled.

My squadron was stationed on the Independence VA-87, was a good ship untill they sent her in for SLEP. service life extension. messed up the whole ship she was supposed to get her oil burners pulled and get a nuke propulsion system. now she is on the scrap pile sorry to see her go. now they have a new Independence its a Littoral ship made out of aluminium its a piece of junk.

Old, another good site with lots of activity is togetherweserved. I was able to find a buddy from my first ship on there.

Yes hard to believe she is gone. Being broken up about 150 miles south of me. I was going down with some others. Three of us decided not to go. Couldn't stand to see her go that way. Been better to sink her at sea. 1968-1972

Can you post a direct link to it. Being on dial up and trying to find web sites is the pits to say the least