Say what you want Mr Spola Henry, but It looks like the TRUTH is
overwhelming....even in the PDF I posted it alludes to a mishap....
They stated it was because of a faulty connection at a warhead.
I say the TRUTH is right there, the "Wet Start " caused the discharge
and the accident.
Johnny Wet-Start, We Hardly Knew Ye: Part I: the Forrestal Incident
October 17, 2017
Forgive the allusion to JFK. It was written by admirers after his untimely death and in a positive light. My use of it is in contradistinction to Sen John S McCain (R-AZ). In other words, we’re sorry we didn’t get to know Kennedy better but we were never really given the chance to know McCain. And for a reason.
Long a “conservative” stalwart, McCain –like Kennedy–had an impressive pedigree. Both served in the United States Navy. Both were involved in military catastrophes and both nearly lost their lives. But there, the similarities end.
Lt John F Kennedy was the skipper of a PT boat as is well known. Lt Cmdr John S McCain III, the son and grandson (and namesake) of illustrious admirals was known as a daredevil –by his own admission. He graduated near the bottom of his class at Annapolis and –like Kennedy–was known as a slacker and playboy but (this time unlike Kennedy), he needlessly endangered the lives of his fellow crewmen.
He did so by engaging in a take-off procedure called a “wet start”. Basically, Navy pilots who did this would unnecessarily flood their engines, dumping fuel into the afterburner before starting their engines. This had the dramatic effect of shooting out a large flame from the tail of the aircraft. It was an unnecessary procedure which was often deadly to the ground crews and/or the next pilot in line. According to many of his detractors, McCain was known to regularly engage in this dangerous procedure and thus became known pejoratively as “Johnny Wet-Start”.*
During the spring and summer of 1967, McCain was stationed on the USS Forrestal (CVA-59). During this time, his father (Admiral John S McCain II) was promoted to Chief of Naval Operations in the European Theater (CINCUSNAVEUR) where he played a major role in getting the crew of the USS Liberty to stand down while they were being strafed by Israeli aircraft during the Six Day War (more on this in Part III).
His self-described “daredevil clowning” had already caused a minor international incident while he was stationed in Spain, where he cut down several power lines and caused thousands of people to be without electricity. By the time of the Forrestal incident, McCain had already ditched two Skyhawks. He ascribed both incidents to “engine failure” but the Navy found that the first incident was due to “pilot error”. In all, he would lose four aircraft: the third aircraft was destroyed by the fire on the Forrestal and the fourth when he was shot down over North Vietnam.
According to Capt John K Beling (the commanding officer of the Forrestal), on July 29, 1967 at approximately 1050, “…a thick tongue of flame lashed backward from the parked jet, igniting a [Zuni] missile on one of the dozen or so planes parked near the fantail, their engines turning over in readiness for a strike launching scheduled for 11:00am. ‘The rocket shot across the deck’ Capt Beling said, ‘and by a quirk of fate smashed into a fuel tank under a plane on the port side’.” Beling blamed the fiasco on a “wet-start…from one of the planes near the island”.**
The conflagration was horrific. In all 134 crewmen were killed and 161 injured. Total damages were $72 million. The ship was crippled and nearby hospital ships were overwhelmed by the carnage. It was the worst air-craft carrier disaster in history, worse than the disaster which engulfed the USS Rupertus (DD-8511) in World War II.
The question was: which pilot performed this wet-start that caused the catastrophe? The plane struck by the missile was McCain’s A-4 Skyhawk. According to to R W “Johnny” Appel, writing for The New York Times (July 31, 1967), it was somehow McCain who set this process in motion, triggering the flame which caused the jet piloted by Lt Cmdr Fred D White to accidentally fire the Zuni missile.
Although this was Appel’s assessment (as well as Capt Beling’s who was an eyewitness) subsequent evidence turned up that apparently showed that McCain’s Skyhawk had its tail pointed to the side of the Forrestal and thus could not have been responsible for flame-out which struck White’s plane. This matter is unfortunately is still unsettled. All we do know for sure is that after an official inquiry, McCain was hurriedly transferred off the Forrestal and assigned elsewhere. This may have been done because of credible threats to his life from the crew.
Beling for his part was relieved of his command during the inquiry and given a desk position under Admiral Thomas Moorer. The official inquiry absolved Beling of any responsibility in the matter but he was never given a sea command again.
Next: Part II –Songbird Johnny.
*According to official sources, the A-4E Skyhawk that McCain regularly flew was not capable of undergoing a wet-start. This however has been disproven by others who said that the Pratt & Whitney engines of the Skyhawks were indeed capable of performing this fete.
**In Navy parlance, the “island” is the tower on the deck where the bridge is located.
overwhelming....even in the PDF I posted it alludes to a mishap....
They stated it was because of a faulty connection at a warhead.
I say the TRUTH is right there, the "Wet Start " caused the discharge
and the accident.
Johnny Wet-Start, We Hardly Knew Ye: Part I: the Forrestal Incident
October 17, 2017
Forgive the allusion to JFK. It was written by admirers after his untimely death and in a positive light. My use of it is in contradistinction to Sen John S McCain (R-AZ). In other words, we’re sorry we didn’t get to know Kennedy better but we were never really given the chance to know McCain. And for a reason.
Long a “conservative” stalwart, McCain –like Kennedy–had an impressive pedigree. Both served in the United States Navy. Both were involved in military catastrophes and both nearly lost their lives. But there, the similarities end.
Lt John F Kennedy was the skipper of a PT boat as is well known. Lt Cmdr John S McCain III, the son and grandson (and namesake) of illustrious admirals was known as a daredevil –by his own admission. He graduated near the bottom of his class at Annapolis and –like Kennedy–was known as a slacker and playboy but (this time unlike Kennedy), he needlessly endangered the lives of his fellow crewmen.
He did so by engaging in a take-off procedure called a “wet start”. Basically, Navy pilots who did this would unnecessarily flood their engines, dumping fuel into the afterburner before starting their engines. This had the dramatic effect of shooting out a large flame from the tail of the aircraft. It was an unnecessary procedure which was often deadly to the ground crews and/or the next pilot in line. According to many of his detractors, McCain was known to regularly engage in this dangerous procedure and thus became known pejoratively as “Johnny Wet-Start”.*
During the spring and summer of 1967, McCain was stationed on the USS Forrestal (CVA-59). During this time, his father (Admiral John S McCain II) was promoted to Chief of Naval Operations in the European Theater (CINCUSNAVEUR) where he played a major role in getting the crew of the USS Liberty to stand down while they were being strafed by Israeli aircraft during the Six Day War (more on this in Part III).
His self-described “daredevil clowning” had already caused a minor international incident while he was stationed in Spain, where he cut down several power lines and caused thousands of people to be without electricity. By the time of the Forrestal incident, McCain had already ditched two Skyhawks. He ascribed both incidents to “engine failure” but the Navy found that the first incident was due to “pilot error”. In all, he would lose four aircraft: the third aircraft was destroyed by the fire on the Forrestal and the fourth when he was shot down over North Vietnam.
According to Capt John K Beling (the commanding officer of the Forrestal), on July 29, 1967 at approximately 1050, “…a thick tongue of flame lashed backward from the parked jet, igniting a [Zuni] missile on one of the dozen or so planes parked near the fantail, their engines turning over in readiness for a strike launching scheduled for 11:00am. ‘The rocket shot across the deck’ Capt Beling said, ‘and by a quirk of fate smashed into a fuel tank under a plane on the port side’.” Beling blamed the fiasco on a “wet-start…from one of the planes near the island”.**
The conflagration was horrific. In all 134 crewmen were killed and 161 injured. Total damages were $72 million. The ship was crippled and nearby hospital ships were overwhelmed by the carnage. It was the worst air-craft carrier disaster in history, worse than the disaster which engulfed the USS Rupertus (DD-8511) in World War II.
The question was: which pilot performed this wet-start that caused the catastrophe? The plane struck by the missile was McCain’s A-4 Skyhawk. According to to R W “Johnny” Appel, writing for The New York Times (July 31, 1967), it was somehow McCain who set this process in motion, triggering the flame which caused the jet piloted by Lt Cmdr Fred D White to accidentally fire the Zuni missile.
Although this was Appel’s assessment (as well as Capt Beling’s who was an eyewitness) subsequent evidence turned up that apparently showed that McCain’s Skyhawk had its tail pointed to the side of the Forrestal and thus could not have been responsible for flame-out which struck White’s plane. This matter is unfortunately is still unsettled. All we do know for sure is that after an official inquiry, McCain was hurriedly transferred off the Forrestal and assigned elsewhere. This may have been done because of credible threats to his life from the crew.
Beling for his part was relieved of his command during the inquiry and given a desk position under Admiral Thomas Moorer. The official inquiry absolved Beling of any responsibility in the matter but he was never given a sea command again.
Next: Part II –Songbird Johnny.
*According to official sources, the A-4E Skyhawk that McCain regularly flew was not capable of undergoing a wet-start. This however has been disproven by others who said that the Pratt & Whitney engines of the Skyhawks were indeed capable of performing this fete.
**In Navy parlance, the “island” is the tower on the deck where the bridge is located.
