May 2015 Meeting Reminder

The next Seattle Base meeting is this coming Wednesday, May 20. We will meet at VFW Post #2995 (4330 148th Ave N.E., Redmond WA 98052). Social hour starts at 6 PM with business meeting at 7PM.

Our guest speaker this month will be Paul Harvey, a former Naval Aviator who flew the Lockheed P-2 Neptune. Paul is a dynamic speaker, a docent at the Museum of Flight, and you will not want to miss this presentation!

A P-2 Neptune ASW Patrol plane

Prior to the introduction of the P-3 Orion in the mid-1960s, the Neptune was the primary U.S. land-based anti-submarine patrol aircraft, intended to be operated as the hunter of a '"Hunter-Killer" group, with destroyers employed as killers. Several features aided the P-2 in its hunter role:

Sonobuoys could be launched from a station in the aft portion of the fuselage and monitored by radio. The AN/ASQ-8 Magnetic Anomaly Detector was fitted in an extended tail, producing a paper chart. A belly-mounted AN/APS-20 surface-search radar enabled detection of surfaced and snorkeling submarines at considerable distances.

Paul also spent some familiarization time sailing aboard USS Cutlass (SS-478). He will talk about his experiences in ASW Patrol Squadron VP-17 (White Lightnings), the ASW Air community in general, Magnetic Anomaly Detection (MAD) operations, and flying ASW Patrols.

VP-17 patch

All area Submarine Veterans, current members or not, are invited to join with us for this informative and interesting talk. Also feel free to bring along your friends and family.

We hope to see you there.