Mustang: From Mess Deck to Wardroom

Leave safe haven and stand out to sea with an adventurer who lived thirty-two years of naval service to the fullest. From a boyhood desire to go to sea, spawned in landlocked Arkansas, coupled with determination and undying love for the Navy, this career Navy man “came up through the hawse pipe”—known as the path of a Mustang. As he navigates the sometimes-treacherous waters of ship life and shore leave, his exploits and escapades land him in hot water, while teaching him lessons that help him throughout his career. Life at sea, which can be hard and spare, offered late night interludes ashore. His colorful adventures in ports around the world will keep you wondering what happens next. Assignment to twelve ships meant deployment to waters off “hot spots” and war zones—the Caribbean, Cuba, and Vietnam in the 1960s, and the Middle East in the late 1980s. We’re along for the cruise, as he masters amphibious landings, aircraft carrier operations, salvage operations, duty on the gunline off Vietnam, and support of a deep-diving submersible on a Top Secret-mission. Each serve to mature a headstrong young man through his rise from seaman recruit to Navy commander, and captain of a ship at sea. One hundred, seventy-nine photographs and maps help to put you in the action.