USS WASP CVS-18
Pictures from the USS Wasp flight deck
If I wasn't working or sleeping, I was taking pictures of life aboard an Essex-class aircraft carrier, the USS Wasp. As a Navy Airman, I performed both Blue & Red Shirt duties from September 1969 through July 1971. Be sure to check out my USS Wasp CVS-18 image galleries which include over 700 personal photos from my time aboard the Wasp. Please feel free to reach out to me here.
Jim Haas, Airman V1 Division. Active 1969-1971
USS Wasp CVS-18 Picture Galleries 1969 - 1971
USS WASP CVS-18
USS Wasp, A Ship With A Proud History...
The US Navy aircraft carrier Wasp, bears a name that has been part of naval tradition since 1775. From an eight-gun schooner to the present (1970) 41,000-ton carrier, ships named Wasp have fought in practically every American battle from the American Revolution to World War II.
The present USS Wasp was commissioned at the height of the Pacific action of World War II. Wasting no time getting into combat, she fought in the battles of Wake, Tinian, Guam, Iwo Jima, Mindanao, Luzon, Okinawa, and the final victory in the Pacific.
Decommissioned in 1947, she was soon converted to handle jet aircraft and re-commissioned a year later. It was an overhaul period in 1955, however, that converted Wasp into the lady she is today--complete with hurricane bow and angled flight deck.
It was also in 1955 that she operated in the Far East where she participated in the re-grouping of the Chinese Nationalist forces in the Tachen Islands.
Wasp CVS-18 made the first of her five Gemini recoveries in January 1962 when John Glenn splashed down after orbiting the Earth. She continued as a recovery ship for the next three years, picking up astronauts McDivitt, White, Schirra, Stafford, Borman, Lovell, Cernan, and Aldrin.
During a 1964 yard period the aircraft carrier was again given a major overhaul and modernized to increase her lifetime and anti-submarine potential.
Since that time, Wasp's primary mission has been protection of the world's vital sea lanes. Pledged to counter the threat of enemy submarines, she has sailed to Europe, the Arctic Circle, and the Caribbean. Employing the latest in electronic detection equipment, she stands ready to track and destroy hostile forces.
The CVS-18 was awarded the coveted Meritorious Unit Commendation for superlative performance during the 1969 North European deployment, and the Battle Efficiency "E" and Anti-submarine Warfare "A" for readiness during an 18-month cycle ending last December (1969).
Reference - USS WASP CVS 18 Cruise Book: https://www.navysite.de/cruisebooks/cv18-70/006.htm
Featured Galleries 1969 - 1971
USS Wasp CVS-18 Flight Deck Operations
Crash landing on USS Wasp CVS-18
Jet trainers practicing on the USS Wasp CVS 18
Aerial images of the USS Wasp CVS 18
Russian Bear flyover while operating in the Altlantic
Berlin Wall, Germany. USS Wasp Eastlant Cruise.
My last image of the USS Wasp in 1973. I found the CVS18 at the Boston Naval shipyard being prepped for her final resting place, a scrapyard in New Jersey.
