A view of the USS Bon Homme Richard carrier from the cockpit of one of our Kaman SH-2 helicopters.

I performed maintenance duties on the avionics systems for our helicopters but I wasn’t part of the flight crew. I did get a few chances to fly around and take some photos. I’m still impressed with amount of skill it takes to pilot one of these things.

Our pilots were all commissioned officers and generally they did not fraternize with enlisted men. This was more of a tradition than a rule and in my mind I never saw much difference in our roles or status. I made friends with a pilot who played guitar and we would jam in the hallway of the officer’s quarters. At one point his superior officer reprimanded him for inviting me to such a hallowed location.

Still we had fun playing music and I even recorded him singing a song that he must have learned in flight school. I’m sure every pilot had a song about the perils of flight.

One of my regrets about my Navy service was not keeping   a journal to record names and events.  Looking back 50 years is a bit daunting. My apologies to Lieutenant Jameson for not remembering your first name. I sincerely hope all is going well for you.