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Warning: Some links may no longer work properly.
March 27, 2008
1968 - Outstanding new video clip of the F-111B trials on Coral Sea. Full 20 minute DVD available throught the Ships Store.March 30, 2008
1978 - F-4J mishap on the flightdeck.
1966 - Shot-up A-4 makes it back aboard.
1966-67 - Great photo collection - 37 pictures added.April 1, 2008
1968-69 - Great photo collection - 30 pictures added.April 3, 2008
1972 - An amazing account of a MiG engagement and kill.
1971-72 - Great photo collection - 42 pictures added.
1962 - Update to mishap on sponson.April 12, 2008
1990 - A few new pictures from the decommissioning.
A couple new memorabilia items.
1967 - Update to Zuni Rocket mishap.September 30, 2007
Great Ship Pictures collection from 66-68 - 16 pictures
Flight Deck pictures from 66-88 - 11 pictures
Damaged A-4 barricade landing
Arresting wire body count
A couple of memorabilia items
Great Ship Pictures collection from 1973 - 15 pictures
Flight Deck pictures from 1973 - 15 pictures
Tied up at Ford Island
AD-4 launching 1957
King & Queen of Greece aboard 1957
Follow to Ensign O'Toole mishap
A few corrections and follow-ups to some mishaps
Two new Coral Sea Videos
Welcome Home
July 8, 2007
Christmas Overboard 1970
Launch & Recovery 1970's - 56 new pictures
Pictures of the ship in Philly 1993 - 10 new pictures
New pictures of COD crash 1973 - 5 new pictures
COD almost goes in the water 1970 - 2 new pictures
Fantastic picture of CV-43 & BB-62
Tragic End to the 69-70 cruise - 2 new accounts
Added a few memorabilia items
A Piece of Cake - 1970
Two color pictures of the ship from 1949
Flight Ops pics from 1949 - 4 new pictures
Another Napo Collision account
New F-111B pictures
Pics from the CAT crew - 8 new pictures
A few planes from 85-86 - 3 new pictures
August 7, 2007
Zuni Rocket Mishap Picture - 1967
F4U Corsair on its Nose - 1949
Heavily damaged A-4 makes it back - 1967
A-4 takes the Barricade - 1967 - 7 new pictures
Departing for Westpac - 1966-67 - 4 new pictures
Returning from Westpac - 1966-67 - 2 new pictures
Launch & Recovery 1960's - 60 new pictures
RA-5C Vigilanti Aboard Coral Sea
AD-4 in the water 1952
Flight Deck Scenes- 1962 - 19 new pictures
Captains Gig- 1952 - 2 new pictures
Ship Picture - 1952 - 1 new picture
Ship Picture - 1953 - 2 new pictures
Flight Deck - 1952 - 7 new pictures
Carrier Trials F7U-3 Cutlass - 1952 - 5 new pictures
Carrier Trials FJ-2 Fury - 1952 - 1 new picture
Carrier Trials A6 Skyray - 1953 - 8 new pictures
A4 Approach and Trap - 1982 - 12 new pictures
Two new videos, Libya & G1 - 1985-86
March 1, 2007
The USS Coral Sea Wall - I'm redoing the USS Coral Sea Wall. The names will be arranged by year with summary details and other information if available. I have some names but no information or information but no names. Please take a minute and visit this section and help remember shipmates from your cruise that were lost. Take a look at your cruise books, usually in the back, and see if those names are on the wall. Drop me an email if you have any names, details or other information. This section is for anyone that was KIA, MIA, POW or died while aboard Coral Sea. Let's honor our shipmates!
March 3, 2007
New Discussion Board - Just installed a new discussion board. The old one had some security issues and lacked features. ALL the messages and logins were imported to the new board. There is also a nice little chat board built into the page. If anyone has problems or needs help drop me a line. Enjoy!
February 12, 2007
Launch & Recovery 1960's - 5 new pictures
Launch & Recovery 1970's - 56 new pictures
Launch & Recovery 1980's - 1 new picture
Misc. articles, media, etc... - 1 new item
Memorabilia Page 8 - 8 new items
Ship Picture 1979 - 1 new picture
Ship Picture 1973 - 1 new picture
Bad Guys - 2 new pictures
Sea Stories - 2 new stories, 1 updated story
Actions - 1 updated article
Mishaps - 1 new story, 1 updated story
The USS Coral Sea Wall - Added 4 names to the wall
Videos - Added 3 new videos (more to add soon)
February 25, 2007
The USS Coral Sea Wall - 33 new names added
Ship Pictures 1954 - 3 new pictures
Ship Picture 1948 - 1 new picture
Publications 60's - Special Sea Breeze edition (Vietnam Start) and 60-61 cruise end.
Shellback - Redoing this section. Please send scans of cards, certificates and pictures of your Shellback ceremony.
Operations - 1952, Tito visits the Coral Sea.
Sea Stories - 1 new story from 1973
September 5, 2006
Underway:Mishaps:Added more names to the Coral Sea "Wall"
September 3 , 2006Update to the 1961 A-4 rampstrike mishap.
Special:New videos added to the ships store! A great new video shot on 8mm film from USS Coral Sea's first Vietnam deployment in 1965. Lots of great flight ops footage, UNREPS, etc... Also some other great videos from our sister ships!
June 25, 2006
Special:Ships Pictures:- Just passed 200,000 visitors to the site. Thanks to everyone for your support!!
- Just hit 500 Shipmates in the Crew Roster!!Memorabilia:1964 - Nice overhead shot.
1980 - UNREP.
1982 - Tall Ship alongside.
1948 - Great overhead shot.
Ships Publications, News Aritcles, etc...:1991 - Beautiful poster produced after her decommisioning.
1991 - Coral Sea Barbie.
1965 - Coral Sea Post Card.
1979 - Coral Sea Post Card.
Launch & Recovery:Many new entries, browse these pages.
Underway:1967-68 - Nice set of flight ops pics.
1979-6880 - Two nice B&W pics.
1947- A few more pictures of the very first takeoff & landing.
Mishaps:1979-80 - Recon photos.
June 16, 20061979-80 - Two pictures of barricade landings.
Special:June 12, 20061964 - Great new video of our sister ship, USS Franklin D. Roosevelt CV-42. Original Navy film.
Special:2006 - Great new video of our sister ship, USS Midway CV-41. Complete history, great footage.
May 31, 2006
Ship Pictures:Memorabilia:1974 - Three great carriers in a row.
1979 - Nice stern shot with CVW aboard.
1986 - A few ship pictures from 85-86 cruise.
1970's - Great picture of CV-43 passing Arizona Memorial.
1974 - Bow on shot tied up at Alameda.
Underway:1974 - Cool engine room patch.
Launch & Recovery:1944 - Cool picture of boiler ID plate.
1985 - Two great videos of Libya, Coral Sea & bombs.
1974 - No. 1 Engine Room.
1972 - Mining of Haiphong Harbor.
Sea Stories:1979-80 - Beautiful shot of Marine F-4 trapping.
1985-86 - Series of flight deck pictures from the cruise.
1979-80 - Flight deck scenes of the Grey Ghosts.
Mishaps:1983 - A few good ones from the World Cruise.
1961 - Bombed the wrong ship.
1951 - Midnight Chow.
1952 - G'TMO fun.
1960 - Canada fun.
1951 - Best day- worst day.
1964 - Fate is the Hunter.
1961 - Fender Bender.
December 30, 2005
Ship Pictures:Memorabilia:1985 - Great picture of plane approaching ship.
1983 - Overhead of ship pulling in to Portsmouth.
1960 - Ship visits Vancouver, Canada.
1954 - Passing by the Statue of Liberty.
1956 - Entering New York.
Underway:1948 - Post Card.
1976 - OZ Patch.
2005 - Great model of the ship.
Launch & Recovery:1967 - Updated. Amazing story of two F-4B's in a MiG fight/shootdown.
1967 - Updated. After the shootdown.
1968 - Added Marvin Joel Naschek to the USS Coral Sea Wall.
1969 - New video of the ship underway.
Sea Stories:1989 - HS-17 Helicopter on the deck.
1980's - COD coming aboard.
1950's - Great photo collection.
Mishaps:1977 - Clowning Around.
1956 - AJ Crash pictures updated. New pictures of wreckage.
Many stories with follow-on comments or corrections.
November 24, 2005
Special:Added a new Crew Roster Database. Ships Company and Air Wing personnel are encouraged to enter their name and information into the roster.
Click Here
November 12, 2005
Special:Video:Installed new Chat Room. No registration required. Just enter a chat name and Go! Click HereLaunch & Recovery:1960's - Short PLAT video of a VFP-63 Photo Crusader losing control on launch.
1969 - Short PLAT video of a VF-151 F-4 catapult mishap.
Memorabilia:1971-72 - Photo Collection.
1950 - Banshee Flyover.
1948 - Empty flight deck.
Sea Stories:1971-72 - Great V-2 Patch.
1968-69 - MPC military money.
1968-69 - Vietnam Lighter.
1980's - Map Drawing.
1966 - Vietnam Lighter.
19?? - Aircrew .
1947 - Shipyard ashtray from commissioning.
19?? - GMT Weapons Division patch.
1989 - Post Card.
1967-68 - HATRON2 Patch.
Underway:1951-52 - The Phantom Sh****.
Mishaps:1987- The Today Show visits the Coral Sea
Ship Pictures:1953- Two mishap stories.
1973- F-4 + no pilot = not good.
1972 - C-2 Nose gear collapse.
1988 - Foul weather incident.
1988 - Two new accounts on the death of AN Cornell.
1988 - F/A-18A hot trap.
1969 - Phantom mishap on CAT 3.
1988 - New account of F/A-18A Mishap.
1948 - Norfolk
1957 - Bremerton
1986 - Nice overhead of the ship in the MED.
What's New:
October 26, 2005
Moved site to new server. Still working out a few bugs. New features coming soon.
What's New:
July 21, 2005
Ship's Papers, Pamphlet's, etc..:Underway:This is a brand new section specifically for printed material - old ship's newspapers, welcome aboard pamphlets, articles and all sorts of other ephemera related to the Coral Sea. I have a ton more material to go up, but there's enough there to keep you busy for now.
Look near the bottom of the slide-out menu for this new section.Video:Renamed the POW/MIA/KIA page to the USS Coral Sea Wall. I want to expand this "wall" to include anyone that was killed or went missing while on board the ship. Please supply with me full name and a few sentences in the style of other bios in this section. USS Coral Sea Wall.
- KIA. Added Cdr. William "Billy" Stoddard to the Coral Sea Wall.
- Follow up explanation on the propeller configuration.
Mishaps:1966 - Short PLAT video of an A-3 cold cat shot.
Launch & Recovery:1966 - Detailed mishap story that goes with the above video of the A-3 cold cat shot.
1974 - Fires in port.
1988 - Death on #1 sponson.
Ship Pictures:1979 - Some nice pics of Marine F-4's of VMFA-323.
Memorabilia:1986 - Nice collection of B&W ship photos at anchor.
Nice model of the Coral Sea.
What's New:
April 18, 2005
Site improvements; Menu updated. Split flight deck pictures into seperate sections by decade. Other coding changes to improve page loads, navigation, etc...
What's New:
March 22, 2005
Ship Pictures:Underway:1949 - At anchor in dress.
1952 - Great bow on shot in color.
1952 - Carrier suitability trials.
1954 - Flank speed.
1954 - Unusual flight deck scene with only AJ's.
1955 - Turning in to the wind.
1958 - SCB-110A Modernization at Puget Sound. Hi-Rez Photo.
1958 - SCB-110A Modernization at Puget Sound.
1959 - SCB-110A Modernization at Puget Sound.
1961 - All Attack Air-Wing.
1963 - Leaving Pearl Harbor.
1966 - Launching aircraft.
1970 - In the Tonkin Gulf.
1971 - Nice overhead shot.
1973 - Nice overhead stern shot.
1982 - High Speed in the Pacific.
Flight Ops - Straight Deck:Added page for Air-to-Air Comabt Victories.
Added several articles from magazines.
Added many aircraft photos to the deployment list.
Mishap - Corsair flips on landing.
Schematic of the USS Coral Sea.
One Last Look.
Flight Ops - Angled Deck:1949 - HU-2 Chopper setting down on the deck.
1950 - First carrier landings of the big AJ's.
1951 - AD Skyraider on takeoff roll.
1952 - Banshee's await launch cycle.
1952 - Corsair catches the wire.
1954 - Rough seas for launch.
1955 - Marine Corps Fury's.
Memorabilia:1962 - Whale launches in port.
1965 - Phantom trapping.
1967 - Photo Gator cat shot.
1968 - A-4 trapping.
1968 - F-4 on Cat 3.
1968 - Spad taxing through the pack.
1968 - RF-8G Crusader launching off the waist cat.
1969 - A-6A trapping.
1977 - EA-6A of the Playboys trapping.
1977 - VA-22 A-7E Fighting Redcock trapping.
1977 - VA-94 A-7E Mighty Shrikes trapping.
1977 - VAW-114 E-2B recovers.
1977 - F-8 Gator launching.
1977 - SH-3G Helicopter.
1979 - VA-97 CAG launching.
1979 - Marine F-4 Phantom II launching.
1980 - Visiting TA-3B Whale in the Indian Ocean.
1980 - CAG A-6E of the Main Battery.
1980 - E-2 Hawkeye.
1980 - Cool shot of F-4's after recovery.
1980 - Gator launching.
1980 - Planguard.
1981 - A-6 Tanker catapulting.
1981 - E-2 Hawkeye coming to a stop.
1981 - S-3 Viking making a visit.
1982 - Cool shot of F-4's after recovery.
1982 - VF-21 Phantom launching.
1982 - VF-154 Phanatom launching & trapping.
1982 - VFP-63 DET 2 RF-8G launching.
1982 - HC-1 Angel hovering next to ship.
1988 - Harrier on the Coral Sea.
1983 - Shellback Card.
Collection of Coral Sea lighters.
1983 - Tape measure.
What's New:
March 1, 2005
Underway:Ship Pictures:1982 - New video from Fleet Week 1982.
1982 - New video clips from a motion picture.
Re-encoded all the audio files. Much easier to download.
Added a lot of milestone traps to the list.
1989 - Article of final homecoming.
1950's - Sketch of ship.
1990 - Added several pictures from the decommisioning ceremony.
Naval Aviation News - Added new page with 227 articles.
Flight Ops:A collection of pictures from the 82 WestPac.
New series of scrapping pictures.
1948 - Beautiful ship picture.
1947 - Two new pictures of the ship on her way to commissioning.
A collection of pictures from the 82 WestPac.
1955 - Banshee's packed on the deck.
1952 - Flight deck scenes.
January 26, 2005
Announcemnt:I now have a slide scanner. If you'd like to contribute your Coral Sea slides to the site, I'd be happy to scan for you. Please restrict the slides to ship and/or aircraft pictures. All slides will be returned.
January 14, 2005
Aircraft:Ship Pictures:1963 - VF-154 F-8 Crusader.Underway:1985 - Anchored in Istanbul.
1985 - Visiting Halifax.
1973 - Anchored off Hong Kong.
1953 - Cool picture taken from USS Iowa.
1957 - On the way to Puget Sound for angle deck overhaul.
1973 - CVW-15 Airwing flyover.
1963 - Pearl Harbor.
1989 - Anchored near the Virgin Islands.
1970's - Returning to San Francisco.
1954 - Ship's Company on deck.
1950's - Holiday greetings on the flight deck.
1970's - UNREP.
1960's - Drydock.
1982 - Crew on the bow.
1950's - At anchor.
Flight Ops - Angled:1992 - USS Coral Sea Anchor on display.
Milestone traps aboard the USS Coral Sea.
Updates to POW/MIA/KIA list.
1985 - One of our Russian friends.
1972 - First MIG Kill markings from 43 bird.
1972 - A-6 on Alpha Strike in to Nam.
1972 - Tons of audio clips recorded from 1MC announcements.
1957 - A few pictures from the only equator crossing as a straight deck carrier.
Memorabilia:1972 - Great collection of photos from the 72 Westpac.
1985 - Great collection of photos from the 85 MED Cruise.
1960-62 - Great collection of photos from the 60-62 WestPac's.
Mishaps:Pictures of one of the ships clocks.
A couple of items from 1983 World Cruise.
Artwork:1953 - Foggy flight ops.
1985 - Three new accounts of the Napo collision.
1952 - Banshee in the drink.
1970's - CV-43 painting.
1989 - A-6 over the Coral Sea.
September 20, 2004
Announcemnt: The Bulletin Board, and most recently the Guestbook, have been inundated with spam. I have made some changes to the Guestbook that hopefully will curtail the spam attacks there. The old Bulletin Board is a lost cause. Apologies to those who posted in that board, but it's too ugly to try to clean and save the legitimate posts.
The good news is, I have added a brand new Bulletin Board! This board has some very nice features and is a lot more spam proof. Take a minute to register (or you will only be able to read posts) and start your own topic or reply to others. I am open to suggestions for different discussion rooms being added.
I hope this becomes a great place to discuss all things Coral Sea.
*** NOTE: I've added a Chat Room to the new Bulletin Board.
Discussion Board
Announcemnt: Apologies to everyone who has sent me site submissions in recent months. I have been out of the country for 6-8 weeks at a stretch and have fallen way behind. I hope to have a major update on the site very soon. Lots of great material to go up! Thanks for being patient.
June 22, 2004
Special:1964 - Streaming video of Flight Ops and more.
Looking for more videos of the ship and flight ops. I can convert for web streaming.
Flight Deck:Mishaps:1954 - Various pictures of planes.
1968-69 - Photo Collection of flight ops.
1965 - Pre-launch activity, Whale launch, F-8 trap.
1960-61 - Photo Collection of flight ops.
1977 - Photo Collection of flight ops.
1967 - Skyhawk launching.
1957 - S2F Tracker takeoff.
Around the Ship:June 17, 1953 - Added obituary of Pilot from 1953 Banshee crash.
January, 1960 - Skyhawk lost over bow.
1963 - Sailor lost during UNREP.
1973 - Two WESTPAC mishaps.
1985 - Napo Collision story.
1987 - Follow up to the curse of Triple Sticks.
1960 - F-3 Deamon launch and trap ordeal.
1967 - Two additional witness accounts of the Zuni rocket mishap.
Memorabilia:1976 - Boilers being lit after overhaul.
1977 - Nice photo collection from 1977.
Aircraft:2004 - CV-43 Flight Sim pictures and download for Comabt Flight Sim 2.
1969 - Beer "chit" for Grande Island.
1983 - Two unique items from the World Cruise.
1960 - Photo Lab patch.
1970's - Sationary.
1970's - Patch collection.
Sea Stories:1965 - Great picture of the RF-8A Photo Crusader.
Underway:1960 - Minor collision & loading ordinance.
1969 - Three stories from that cruise.
1964 - Walking on water.
Ship Pictures:Added many new slang terms.
New cruise book covers from 1960 shakedown and 1963.
Golden Anchor news clipping.
1964-1972 - Many updates to POW/MIA/KIA section.
CV-43 Welcome Aboard pamphlet.
1958 - CVA-43 Illustration of island.
1968 - CVA-43 Follow-up story on F-111 trials.
1977 - Great picture of Russian Bear intercept.
1956 - Picture taken from liberty launch.
1968 - Great shot starboard side.
1988 - Nice picture of Plane Guard with ship in background.
1965 - Three from the longest carrier cruise ever.
1960 - Two pictures spelling out CANADA.
1960 - Three beautiful pictures of the ship during Sea Trials.
1960 - Great bow-on picture entering SF.
1960 - Starboard view underway.
1999 - A few more scrapping pictures.
1952 - Another UNREP shot.
1958 - Major conversion underway at Puget Sound.
1977 - Sequence of pictures pulling into Pearl Harbor.
1977 - Two shots of the island.
February 20, 2004
Special:Mishaps:See our sister ship, the USS Midway CV-41, live at her pier in San Diego, CA.Aircraft:Oct 25 1967 - Zuni Rocket Mishap. Three new witness accounts.
Apr 11 1985 - Two GREAT pictures of the Napo collision aftermath.
1965 - Four mishaps from the 65 WestPac.
1982 - Hero.
1967 - Collision with the USS Mount Katmai.
1982 - Another account of the tragic death of Chief Chivaria.
1982 - Hosed.
1956 - Update on 1956 AJ crash.
Memorabilia:1953 - F2H-3 of the VC-4 Night Cappers.
1953 - HUP-1 of the HU-2 Fleet Angels.
1962 - F3H-2 Demon of the VF-151 Vigilanties.
1962 - HUP-3 of the HU-1 Fleet Angels.
Ship Pictures:1979 - Brig Plaque.
1965 - Solemns Warning.
1998 - Unusual Pin.
1989 - Last MEDCruise bumper sticker.
1989 - Port-O-Call Books.
Sea Stories:1953 - Three pictures of the ship as seen from the USS Harold J. Ellison DD-864.
1962 - Ship at anchor in Hong Kong.
1960-63 - UFO's Identified.
Flight Deck:1991 - Mistaken Identity.
1969 - Friendly Fire.
1969 - This thing has reverse.
1954 - High Diving.
Underway:1962 - A-4's spotted forward.
1962 - HUP-3 SAR helicopter on the deck.
Artwork:Added new section for MARDET.
Group of MARDET pictures.
Awesome picture of the three Midway Class carriers.
Added new section for ships awards - need a lot of help completeing this.
1996 - Sketch of CV-43.
December 16, 2003
100,000th "Touch & Go"!!! - I never imagined that many visitors ever! It is a reflection as to just how great a ship the USS Coral Sea was, as well as a testament to how proud the crewmen and supporters of the ship are! Many thanks to everyone who has helped this site grow. Your contributions, encouragement and support are truly appreciated. I'm looking forward to the next 100,000 visitors and a lot more material to go up on the site.
November 3, 2003
Special:Aircraft:2003 - See our sister ship, the USS Midway CV-41, live at the pier in Oakland, CA. as she undergoes painting before moving to San Diego.Artwork:1968-69 - A-6A of the VA-52 Knightriders.
1968-69 - F-4B of the VF-151 Vigilantes.
1969-70 - UH-2C of the HC-1 DET 9 Pacific Fleet Angels
1981-82 - F-4N of the VF-154 Black Knights
1983- F-4N of the VF-21 Freelancers
1985-86 - F/A-18A of the VMFA-314 Black Knights
1952- F4U-4 of the VF-43 Challengers
1953 - F9F-5 of the VF-83 Rampagers
Underway:1971-72 - Nice painting of RF-8G on final to the ship.
Memorabilia:Added new cruise book covers to mosaic - 1952, 1955, 1961-62.
1968 - Added a picture of the F-111 sitting on the flight deck.
1989 - Added a color picture of the Phalanx mount on the island.
1992- Added two new Line drawings of the ship in her final configuration.
Ship Pictures:1970's - CVA-43 Charm.
1967 - CVA-43 20th Anniversary postcard.
1972 - CVA-43 25th Anniversary postcard.
1990 - CV-43 Decommissioning Cover.
1945 - Cover celebrating launch of Coral Sea in Brooklyn, NY.
1990 - CV-43 Key ring.
1975 - Mayaguez Zippo lighters.
1960's - CVA-43 Matchbook.
1950's - CVB-43 Matchbook.
1960's - CVA-43 Matchbooks.
1960's - Task Force 77 patch.
1965 - Far East Cruise patch.
1980 - CV-43 "Gonzo" Station patch.
1969-70 - CVA-43 "Home Brew" patch.
1979-80 - CV-43 "Stroker" patch.
1985-86 - CV-43 Lybian Campaign patch.
1980's - CV-43 MAA patch.
1970's - CVA-43 Centurion patch.
1960's - CVA-43 CVA-43 Coral Sea shoulder tab patch.
1988-89 - VAW-127 SeaBats patch.
1990 - 1947 to 1990 Pin.
1950's - Old pin/charm.
1960's - CVA-43 "Atta Boy" plaques.
1982 - CV-43 Belt Buckle.
1982 - CV-43 Bumper sticker.
1982 - CV-43 "San Francisco's Own" pin.
1983 - CV-43 World Cruise pin.
1983 - CV-43 NEY 83 pin.
1983 - CV-43 Copper plaque.
1983 - CV-43 CPO Mess T-Shirt.
1983 - CV-43 Indian Ocean T-Shirt.
1983 - CV-43 Letter opener.
1980 - Odd lighter found in the bilge around 1980.
1983 - CV-43 Master-At-Arms Badge.
1983 - CV-43 Two coffee cups from the era.
1983 - CV-43 Paperweight.
1983 - CV-43 PHALANX dummy and spent shells.
1983 - CV-43 Plaque from ward room.
1972 - CVA-43 Brass Plaque.
1973 - CVA-43 Cruise Jacket.
1983 - CV-43 "We did the ditch" patch.
1983 - CV-43 "World Cruise" patches. Is it a fake?
1983 - CV-43 Several examples of the "Strokers" patch from 1979-80 cruise.
Actions:1982 - Ship underway near Subic Bay, Phillipines.
1989 - Good picture ot the Battle Group led by the USS Iowa.
1956 - Anchored off Greece.
1971-72 - Large Black & White of ship underway.
1960's - Great UNREP picture.
1990's - Some more scrapping pictures; #12a, #12b, #12c, #15a, #15b.
1986 - Great overhead picture.
1953 - Port quarter view.
1952 - Tied up in Taranto, Italy.
1952 - UNREP.
1948 - Two nice pictures of the ship being resupplied by a barge.
Sea Stories:1972/2002 - Famous F-4 involved in MIG fight. Added cool graphic of the F-4.
1986 - Two F/A-18's ready on the cats to strike Libya.
Flight Ops - Straight Deck:1989 - Fallen shipmate / camaraderie.
1956 - Marine in the Captain's Gig.
1973 - Whoops, wrong bird farm!.
1966 - Topless Welcome.
1966 - Feet Up.
1985 - Oldsmobile...Departing.
1952 - Two Banshee's ready for launch.
1952 - F4 Corsair waveoff.
1952 - Launch cycle. Note center line elevator in use.
1953 - Panther trapping.
1953 - Panther launching.
1953 - Launch Ops.
1953 - F9 taxiing to catapult.
1954 - LSO guiding a plane in.
1954 - Banshee's waiting to launch.
October 27, 2003
Actions:Media:1965 - Added story - start of Vietnam.
1965 - Navy Unit Commendation letter.
Underway:1952 - Article from Fortune Magazine.
Memorabilia:Another Coral Sea First - A-J1 Heavy launched.
New page dedicated to the commissioning of the Coral Sea.
Awesome article on the history of the ship!
1960's - Cool Zippo lighter.
1960's - CVW-15 patch.
1964-65 - VAW-11 patch.
1965 - Cruise patch.
1964-65 - CVW-15 & CVA-43 Patch.
1964-65 - Another VAW-11 patch.
October 13, 2003 - Added two new sections, Memorabilia 6 & Flight Deck 2. I have a lot more to go up, so if you don't see your submission this week, I will get to it in the coming weeks.
Underway:Sea Stories:First Atomic Bomb launched from a carrier.
Ship Pictures:1963 - Mystery Cruise?
Memorabilia:1970 - Awesome shot pulling in to Sydney.
1973 - "43".
1973 - High altitude over the ship.
1975 - San Franciscos Own.
1992 - Sitting in Philly.
Squadron Aircraft:2002 - Awesome model of the ship built by hand.
1947 - Nice example of the original Plank Owner certificate.Launch & Recovery:1973 - VF-51 F-4
1948 - VF-5B F6F-5P
Actions:1973 - F-4B Trapping.
1948 - F6F-5P Hellcat on takeoff roll.
1972/2002 - Famous F-4 involved in MIG fight, dedicated.
1965 - A-6 Rescue.
July 28, 2003
Note:Enough guys have asked about when will I do the next site update. I have a ton of material to go up on the site. I appreciate all the material that has been sent in thus far. It will get it all on the site. Can't say when. Please be patient for a while longer.
March 16, 2003
Upkeep:New menu. You can get to any page from any other page in one click. Added detailed links to Underway section. Other coding fixes and improvements.
March 8, 2003
New Site Feature:Added a discussion board for the site. Click here.
February 23, 2003
New Site Features:Added a simple search engine for the site. Click here.Added a chat room for the site. Click here.
February 1, 2003
Special:Former USS Coral Sea Pilot, Cdr. William C. McCool lost in Shuttle tragedy.
September 29, 2002
Ship's Company:Media:1965 - VFP-63.
1950s - Miscellaneous pictures.
1969 - VF-151 pictures from 1969.
Artwork:1965 - Articles of ship returning from first Vietnam cruise.
1990 - AP story of ship being retired.
1983 - Ship leaving San Francisco for good.
Mishaps:1965 - Sketch of ship.
1964 - Notecard painting.
1980s - Laser Plaque.
Sea Stories:1985 - Two more photo's of tanker collision.
1973 - Various incidents.
Launch & Recovery:1955 - First day on the Coral Sea.
1955 - Orders are orders.
1955 - The Indian Chief.
1963 - Recollections from the Admiral.
1976 - The big wave.
1978 - Snowball fight.
Memorabilia:1969 - VF-161 F-4 Launching.
1986 - VMFA-314 F-18's manning planes.
1969 - VF-151 F-4 trapping.
1965 - Getting CAT ready for F-8 launch.
Actions:1950s - Celluloid mirror.
1970 - Shellback Card.
1983 - VA-196 Patch.
Underway:1956 - MARDET account of Suez Crisis.
Ship Pictures:Two more pictures of the ribbons from the ship. Please help identify these awards.
New high quality stereo recording of the 60-61 WestPac "Now Hear This".
Decommisioning ceremoney and memorabilia.
Squadron Aircraft:1988 - Anchored off Benidorm, Spain.
1989 - Final sunset.
1989 - Task force off Lebanon.
1970s - Approaching Oakland Bay Bridge.
1969 - Shot of ship blowing stack gas.
1969 - Docked at Subic Bay.
1969 - Flowers dropped on ship as it passes under GG Bridge.
1981 - F-4 VF-21.
1977 - F-4 VF-191.
1977 - F-4 VF-194.
1971 - F-4 VF-51.
August 10, 2002
Ship's Company:Misc:1983 - Fam Fire.
1983 - MARDET Pictures.
Mishaps:1981 - Subpoena.
Underway:1979 - RF-8 lost.
Actions:1968 - F-111B Carrier Trials.
New Section. The "Bad Guys"
New pictures of Phalanx mounts.
Ship Pictures:1980 - Iran Hostage Rescue Attempt.
Squadron Aircraft:1967 - Departing San Francisco.
1979 - Sequence of photos of the ship approaching the Golden Gate Bridge.
1955 - HUP-2 HU-2.
May 25, 2002
Corrections:Mishaps:Many guys have sent me corrections for dates, captions, places, etc. Too many to put links to each one of them here. But I have put all of them in throughout the site. Thank you for the help, I really appreciate it!Underway:1969 - Follow up to F-4 mishap.
1982 - Two memories of the tragic death of Chief Chivaria.
1979 - A-7 Crash landing.
1949 - A detailed account of a plane captain death.
1956-57 - Several mishap stories.
Actions:1965 - Finally, a picture of the actual ship seal/plaque.
Ship Pictures:1986 - Additional accounts from the strikes against Libya.
Sea Stories:1965 - Task Force 77 show of force.
Memorabilia:1961 - Stray Sidewinder.
1949 - The Admiral is all wet.
1968 - F-111 fighters .
1952 - Lost on day one.
1980 - Red Dog, Shellbacks and Russians.
1977 - Bad Chinese Food.
1972 - Going home the hard way.
1977 - Riot in Japan.
1949 - Welcome aboard.
Launch & Recovery:1960's - CAG 15 Patch
1971 - Protestant Men of Coral Sea patch
1980's - San Francisco's Own Banner
1965 - VFP-63 patch
1947 - First day postal service postcard
1947 - Another, First day postal service postcard
1990 - Last day postal service postcard
1980's - Centurion patches.
1980's - CV-43 Plaque
1950's - Recruiting Placard
Squadron Aircraft:1983 - Snowing on the flight deck.
1965 - F-4 trapping.
1965 - A-4 scooter getting hooked up and launching.
1965 - Two different types of F-8's launching.
1965 - Manning planes.
1965 - A-1 launching for a strike over Vietnam.
1950 - Marine F4U-5 launching.
1988 - F/A-18A Hornet rolling up to the cat.
1988 - F/A-18A launching.
1981 - A-7E trapping.
1989 - E-2C launching.
1965 - F-4 VF-151.
1965 - A-4 VA-153.
1965 - F-8 VFP-63 DET Delta.
1950 - F4 VF-174.
1989 - E-2C VAW-127.
1965 - UH-2A HU-1 DET Delta.
May 19, 2002
Ship Pictures:1948-49 - Anchored in Gittmo?
1965 - WestPac, Not sure where?
1965 - Operating off the coast of Vietnam
1965 - Nice bow on shot in very calm water.
1954 - Loaded with a full airwing.
1981 - CV-43 & CV-41 operating in the Pacific.
1987 - CV-43 & CV-60 operating in the MED.
1987 - CV-43 operating in the MED.
1989 - CV-43 UNREP in the Carribean Sea.
1963 - CVA-43 Launching F3 Demon's.
1963 - CVA-43 UNREP with AO-51 Ashtabula.
1963 - Another CVA-43 UNREP.
1963 - Arriving in Sydney Australia.
1963 - Two F3 Demons over the ship.
1962 - Nice overhead shot of an UNREP.
1989 - CV-43 making 30+ Knots.
1989 - CV-43 Beautiful sunset picture!
1963 - CVA-43 departing Hawaii.
1948 - CVB-43 Color picture from shakedown cruise.
1987 - CV-43 Cruising with battle group.
1980s - CV-43 docked with USS Iowa BB-61.
1965 - CVA-43 as seen from the USS Ranger CVA-61.
March 5, 2002Almost two years to the day since this site began, it has been visited 43000 times. Many thanks to everyone for all your contributions, help and good wishes!
February 10, 2002All Time List of Commanding Officers
1975 - Operation Eagle Pull
1951 - MARDET pictures
1960 - First trap on the Coral Maru after her angle deck conversion.
Sea Stories:Mishaps:Sea Stories from the 1977 WestPac
Bob Hope 1967 USO Show
Ship Pictures:1966 - Phantom in the catwalk - update.
1985 - Tanker Collision - more pictures.
1977 - Man Overboard. Crash landings.
Memorabilia:1951 - Port of Call, Istanbul, Turkey.
1981 - Headed for Pearl Harbor.
1947 - Colorized port side shot.
1986 - Line of Death Patch.
1986 - Cruise Jacket.
1951 - MARDET Banquet card.
1951 - Original Ships Logo.
1945 - Post Card USS Coral Sea CV-42.
1948 - Post Card USS Coral Sea CVB-43.
1970's - Charm.
1940's - Tie Clasp.
1972 - Cruise Patch.
1967 - Ashtray.
1960's - Rare Tabletop Zippo lighter.
January 6, 20021969 Oil Painting
1966 - Update to damaged screws story.
1965 - Another account of the start of the Vietnam war.
1989 - USS Coral Sea aids stricken USS Iowa - A personal account.
Added 81-82 Cruise Book Cover.
Added 1983 Cruise Book Cover.
1963 - USS Coral Sea arriving in Sydney, Australia.
1956 VFP-62 F2H Banshee
Sea Stories:Mishaps:1949 Storm.
1960-61 Japanese planner of Pearl Harbor raid visits the USS Coral Sea.
1989 - Missile on the deck.
1950 - Bullets across the deck.
Ship's Company:1973 - Death in a 5" Gun Turret.
1969-70 - Russians steal Phantom. Air Force "trap".
1956 - Stories and photo's of the crash of an AJ on the deck.
Memorabilia:1949 - Print Shop.
1955 - S-1A Division.
1956 - Marines firing RPG.
1956 - Marines firing BAR's.
1983 - World Cruise Ashtray.
1960 - Ashtray from PSNS.
1947 - Ashtray from Newport News Shipbuilding.
November 14, 2001Small announcement. I know some of you are wondering when the next site update is going to happen. Due to some unforseen circumstances I haven't been able to keep up with adding new material. I hope to be back at it again in the coming weeks. I have a ton of new material to go up. To anybody that has sent me material, I still have it and it will get on the site. Thanks for your patience and the kind words about the site.
September 4, 2001Very rare re-commissioning program from 1960 - Click here.
Updated designation dates for "43" - Click here.
Picture of Coral Sea Life Saver - Click here.
Sea Stories:Mishaps:Divisional Doors.
Female Distraction.
New planes in aircraft section:1956-57 - Update to AD Crash.
1967 - UNREP Collision.
1963 - Blue Shirt Fatality.
1963 - F-8 Crash deck log.
1956 - F2 Banshee crash.
New Launch & Recovery pictures:VMF-122 FJ-2 1955
VF-5B F4-U4 1948
VA-65 A-6E 1989
VFA-132 F/A-18A 1989
New ship pictures:1955 - FJ-2H Fury.
1989 - Hornet over the ramp.
1989 - VFA-132 Hornet at full power on the CAT.
1989 - VMFA-451 Hornet moving on to CAT.
1956 - An F9F-8B Cougar launching.
1975 - VF-51 F-4B Launch.
1948 - F4U-4 Corsair on takeoff roll.
1985 - Cockpit view from F/A-18.
1986 - F/A-18 trapping.
1986 - F/A-18 evening trap.
1950 - Drydock in Norfolk.
1956 - Pilot's eye view of approach for landing.
1966 - Drydock in Yokuska, Japan.
1981 - ORE off California.
1981 - ORE off California.
1981 - CVW-14 deployed for work-ups.
1982 - San Francisco's Own returning from WestPac.
1986 - Manning the rail after returning from MED Cruise.
1989 - The Ageless Warrior steaming in the MED.
1989 - Last port of call.
1989 - Fly Over.
1990 - Decommisioning ceremoney.
August 5, 2001Added a new page that is collection of articles, ships papers, etc...
- Golden Gate-Nixon Resigns, Newspaper article on world famous "Big Mothers" - Click here.Updated story of USS Coral Sea operation against Libya in 1986. - Click here.
- Funny Christmas Poem from Coral Sea Breeze in 1955. - Click here.
Added several mishap stories:- 1960-61 cruise. A-4 crashes on deck. - Click here.New ship picture. Hong Kong 1966. - Click here.
- 1954 cruise. AJ crashes on launch. - Click here.
- 1963 cruise. F-8 crashes on launch. - Click here.
- 1984 workups. Collision with tanker. - Click here.
Two more cruise book cover pictures, 71-72 and 1953.
Please take a look and fill in a picture if you can, thanks! - Click here.
Several planes added to aircraft section from 1974-75. - Click here.
Sea story: The Captain and his teddy bear. - Click here.
New memorabilia items:Ship's store. New link to USS Coral Sea merchandise. Don't forget to download a copy of the FREE screen saver! - Click here.MAA Badge.
1948 Cover.
1956-57 Patch.
1979-80 Patch.
1967-68 Patch.
June 12, 2001Added several ship pictures from 1960-61 WestPac - Click here.
Added more Cruise Book Cover pictures to mosaic, still need several more. PLEASE take a digital picture of your cruise book cover and send it along, thanks! - Click here.
Added more pictures to Actions section from 1975 Saigon evacuation - Click here.
Added all 1960-61 aircraft pictures - Click here.
New Launch & Recovery pictures:Added some ship's company pictures - Click here.1961 - A-4 approaching ship.
1961 - Crowded deck.
1961 - Launch operations.
1961 - A-3 Launching.
1961 - F-8 Launching.
Picture of VF-154 patch - Click here.
New page under development. Ship's store. Links to USS Coral Sea merchandise, memorabillia, books. Make sure to download a copy of the FREE screen saver! - Click here.
May 21, 2001Added Cruise Book Cover picture to mosaic, still need several more. PLEASE take a digital picture of your cruise book cover and send it along, thanks! - Click here.
Added picture to Actions section from 1975 Saigon evacuation - Click here.
Memorabillia - 1949 Navy Day cover - Click here.
New batch of scrapping photos - Click here.
First pictures added to Ship's Company page - Click here.
New planes in aircraft section:New Launch & Recovery pictures:HC-1 SH-3G 1972
VA-94 A-7 1977
New ship pictures:1971 - Vertrep.
1972 - Rigging Barricade.
1972 - F4 Launch.
1972 - F4 Launch.
1971 - Firefighting training.
1967 - Launch operations.
1968 - Spad trapping.
1957 - Drydock in Bremerton.
1971 - Drydock picture.
1971/72 - Bow on shot.
1971/72 - Fly Over.
1971/72 - Port view underway.
1971/72 - Stern shot.
1971/72 - Entering Pearl Harbor.
1971/72 - Pretty shot underway.
1971/72 - UNREP.
May 13, 2001New item in Underway section:1961 - Sounds of the USS Coral Sea.
May 5, 2001Added pictures to the Launch & Recovery Page:New ship pictures:1952 - Helo over deck.
1952 - F2's being towed.
1980 - Flight deck scene.
1980 - VA-27 CAG taxiing.
New planes in aircraft section:1952 - Nice shot of the island.
1971 - Underway off of California.
1980's - Nice overhead shot.
1983 - Anchored off Cannes.
1992 - Satellite photo in Philly.
New memorabilia:HU-2 HUP-1
VF-154 F-4 1983
1947 - first day cover.
1947 - Another first day cover.
April 29, 200120,000th "Touch & Go"!!!
I never imagined that many visitors ever, let alone in just over a year. It is a reflection on just how great a ship the USS Coral Sea was as well as a testament to how proud the crewmen and supporters of the ship are! Many thanks to everyone who has helped this site grow. Your contributions, kind words and encouragement are truly appreciated. I'm looking forward to the next 20,000 visitors and a lot more material to go up on the site.
April 23, 2001Added several pictures to the Launch & Recovery Page:New planes in aircraft section:1971 - Flight deck scene.
1986 - A3 Whale on catapult.
1980's - F/A-18 approaching ship.
1968 - F111B test launch.
1962 - F3H Demon launching in port!!!
1980 - VMFA-323 Phantoms on fantail.
New memorabilia:VF-191 F-4
VQ-2 A-3
1949 addition to mishap story.1947 - first day cover.
CVW-13 Patch.
CVB-43 Lions pin.
1989 MED cruise patch.
Childhood memories.
April 8, 2001Added several pictures to the Launch & Recovery Page:New planes in aircraft section 1949/F4/VF-21&VF-22.1948 - Capt. Storrs overlooking flight deck.
1949 - Two F4's taking off.
1950 - F4 recovery.
1966 - Spad's & Scooter's.
1979 - Flight deck scene.
1980's - Flight deck scene.
1989 - Ordy's.
Revell artwork of ship from model kit.
Cruise Map from 1949.
CVW-13 Logo.
1988 - Another shot of ship tied up at Augusta Bay, Sicily.
1964/65 - Nice ship picture.
Formation spelling 40 Years of Naval Avaiation.
April 2, 2001Updated story of the ship getting stuck in the mud in 1963.
New plane in aircraft section 1973/A-6/VA-95
USS Coral Sea trading card.
Three pictures of the ship from 1963.
Flight deck scenes from 1973.
Sea story - Captain's Gig.
Sea story - fishin' for sharks.
March 24, 2001Officialy Crossdecked to the new site today. The old site, http://www.geocities.com/cv43coralsea, has been taken down.
Added a few trivia items to Underway section.
Added two mishap stories, 1976 & 1980.
March 23, 2001Coral Sea MIA identified - Lt. Michael John Allard.
A few pictures of the ship in tow and docking at Baltimore.
One new ship pic from 1949.
One new picture of an UNREP in the early 60's.
One new picture of a fly-over in 1981.
One new picture of the ship on patrol off Libya in 1986.
Added many squadron aircraft pictures.
Added cool first day cover of Coral Sea launching. Also 1963 patch.
Added ships model, another 1963 patch and a 87/88 patch.
One picture of VMFA-314 Hornet launching.
March 14, 2001Welcome to the new home of the USS Coral Sea Tribute Site! There are a few changes and additions that I hope will make the site more enjoyable. The picture and memorabilia pages have been split into smaller pages so you don't have to wait so long for page loads. I've also added a few other pages of interest that are a work in progress. Also note that the guestbook is now back to a format that can be easily searched for names, keywords, etc... None of the entries from the other guestbooks were lost! Please let me know if something isn't working right or if you have any ideas or suggestions. Enjoy!
January 29, 2001 - UNREP; Added more stories, trivia & pics.
January 20, 2001 - UNREP; Added more stories, trivia & pics.
December 20, 2000 - VERTREP; Added a few pictures.
December 11, 2000 - VERTREP; A few additions to some pages.
November 3, 2000 - 10000th "Touch & Go"!!!
October 14, 2000 - UNREP; Added more pictures.
September 18, 2000 - UNREP; Added more stories, trivia & ship pics.
September 10, 2000 - UNREP; Added more pictures.
September 4, 2000 - UNREP; Added more stories and pics.
August 11, 2000 - UNREP; Added more scrapping pictures.
July 12, 2000 - 4343rd "Touch & Go"!
June 25, 2000 - UNREP; Added over 50 ship pictures.
June 18, 2000 - UNREP; Added more stories, trivia & pics.
May 15, 2000 - UNREP; Added more stories, trivia & ship pics.
May 8, 2000 - 1000th "Touch & Go"!
May 4, 2000 - At sea. IE looks to be working now. Added more aircraft images, stories, trivia & ship pics.
May 1, 2000 - In port for repairs. Internet Explorer browser compatabilty problems.
April 21, 2000 - Shakedown
April 8, 2000 - Cyber Trials
March 7, 2000 - Web Site Launched & Commissoned
I need YOUR help to make this site great. I need any stories, photo's or ships information that you have on the Coral Sea. I can scan photo's for you if you don't have a scanner, email me for details. Please donate your memories so all Coral Sea crew members and their family's can enjoy this site to its fullest. Also let me know if anything you see here is in error. Thanks!!!
Contact me, Bob Dorais, at: cv43@usscoralsea.net