RM3 David Mortlock
U.S. Navy – Radioman
U.S.S. Kearsarge, U.S.S. Hornet, U.S.S. Essex
Norwegian Sea, Long Beach, California, Quanset Point, Rhode Island, Japan
October 31, 1963 – October 30, 1972
U.S. Navy – Radioman
U.S.S. Kearsarge, U.S.S. Hornet, U.S.S. Essex
Norwegian Sea, Long Beach, California, Quanset Point, Rhode Island, Japan
October 31, 1963 – October 30, 1972
David Mortlock was born in Hartford, CT on August 23, 1941. David had two brothers and four sisters. “A good Italian family. Happy and a variety of interests”. David’s dad was a country western singer, and his mother was an opera singer, a ballroom dancer and a pianist. “Music came in from both sides of the family” including competition dancing. His father had a 30-minute radio program on WLBZ. David’s mother graduated from Bryn Mawr College with Katherine Hepburn and later in life David was invited to attend a Hepburn family party.
David went to grammar school in Bolton, Connecticut and throughout his childhood, he developed an interest in morse coding. David attended Manchester High School during the day, and he attended morse coding class in the evenings. He bought a home short wave radio setup including a transmitter, a receiver and a 138’ dipole wire. David found his hobby really challenging. He devoted a lot of time to morse coding, earned his amateur radio license and he met a lot of interesting people. “I spent hours every day with it.” Using morse code David would carry on conversations with other amateur radio hobbyists’ from around the world. He recalled driving to Brainard Airport in Connecticut to meet Harry Weinberg from Freehold, New Jersey who owned his own plane with an amateur radio set up.
During high school David studied drafting and that helped him land a job after graduation with the Precision Parachute Company in Manchester, CT. David later attend a four-month course at Kaman Aircraft where he learned to assemble the HU2K Husky helicopter. David worked at Kaman on the assembly line for 18 months but later left to teach Driver Education and English at a private school in Connecticut.
By 1963 the Vietnam War was gearing up and the military needed bodies. The selective service draft was in effect at that time and David thought, “I didn’t want to go into the Army and dig foxholes.” So, David went to see the Air Force recruiter but was told it there would be a long wait before David could enlist. He was concerned he could be drafted before he was able to enlist and went to see the Navy recruiter. When the Navy recruiter learned David had an amateur radio license and a commercial radio license from WIMF (1230 AM), he quickly offered David a spot in the Navy Reserves at one grade higher in rank then was typical for a newly enlisted sailor. “I just wanted to help out.”
David attended training one day each week and during the summer he participated in a cruise on the U.S.S. America for two weeks. In July of 1964 David attended bootcamp at the Great Lakes Naval Training Center. David had two radio licenses and the Navy decided he didn’t require Advance Individual Training in communications and radio operations.
In early 1967 the Navy called him for active duty, and he received orders to U.S.S. Kearsarge that was home ported in Long Beach, California.
David’s time on the Kearsarge was spent mostly in Long Beach. This was during the buildup for the Vietnam War, and the crew was instructed never to go too far from the ship. David recalled that it required 10 tugboats, five in the front and five in the back to get the Kearsarge into its berth. There was a YMCA at the end of the pier where the Kearsarge was docked, and it had an amateur radio station. David would go to the YMCA and use their radio station to help the sailors call home and speak to their families by using a phone patch provided by an amateur radio operator in the sailors’ hometown. There was no charge for the phone call, and the sailors were always very appreciative.
David recalled the Kearsarge being involved in a recovery mission for NASA in the Pacific Ocean but with the passage of time he was very unclear of the details.
After about 15 months in Long Beach the Kearsarge headed for Vietnam. The first stop was Hawaii and then on to Yokosuka, Japan. When the Kearsarge docked in Yokosuka, David received orders to report to the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Essex, home ported in Quonset Point, Rhode Island. The Essex needed a radioman and would be heading to the Mediterranean. For David to link up with the Essex he would have to board the U.S.S. Hornet which was due into Yokosuka the next day and scheduled to head for Rhode Island. David boarded the Hornet and headed east.
When he arrived in Rhode Island, David boarded the Essex and headed out on a Mediterranean cruise. He recalled visiting Rome, France and then up to Holland on the way to the Norwegian Sea. When the U.S.S. Essex entered the Norwegian Sea, the Soviet Union took on a heightened defensive posture because the Norwegian Sea was the gateway to the main base of the Soviet northern fleet. The Soviets dispatched their destroyer the Soznatelnyy, along with several aviation assets to monitor the activities of Essex battle group. In late May during their reconnaissance the Soviets lost contact with the Essex battle group.
On May 25th, 1968, two Soviet Air Force TU-16 Badgers were launched to locate the Essex and guide the Soznatelnyy toward it. One of the pilots was very skilled at low altitude flying to avoid radar detection which was especially useful for reconnaissance purposes. The TU-16’s were twin engine strategic heavy bombers with a wingspan of roughly 108 feet that were also used for reconnaissance missions. David recalled the Soviets jammed the radio frequencies of the aircraft carrier. Then he heard a huge rumbling outside the radio shack causing the radio equipment to vibrate. One of the TU-16s had located the ship and made several close fly-bys of the Essex at a very low altitude. The Russians continued jamming the ships radio transmissions and the captain ordered David to keep changing frequencies so he could remain in contact with the pilot of the HU2K Husky helicopter staged for takeoff on the Essex flight deck. The rest of the flight deck as clear and “there was no one in the gun tubs because the captain didn’t want to show any threat” toward the Soviet aircraft.
On what turned out to be the final Soviet fly-by, the U.S. helicopter took off. As the bomber passed by the Essex, David estimated it was no more than 20 to 30 meters above sea level which is the height of the flight deck. “It was almost hitting our ariels. It blocked out the sky.” The TU-16 passed the Essex and attempted to make a left hand turn, possibly to move away from the helicopter that had been launched, but it was too close to the ocean and its long wing caught the top of the ocean water and crashed 14,000 yards off the bow of the Essex. It was a violent crash breaking the plane into pieces, igniting it into flames and killing entire crew.
David photographed the entire sequence from the catwalk. The captain saw David taking photos and said, “Sailor, your film is now the property of the U.S. government. Immediately turn it into the chief. Do not open the camera and turn the whole camera into the chief.” David followed orders and immediately reported to the chief and turned over the camera. David recalled the chief saying, “this could keep us out of World War III.” David is unsure what happened to the film.
The Essex sailed to the site of the crash to look for survivors but there were none. American divers brought the bodies of the crew members back to the Essex. The wreckage was at a depth that prevented retrieving the planes black box. The Americans prepared the bodies for transfer to the Soviets along with a written report of what happened.
In 1968 the U.S. and the Soviets were locked in a Cold War, and tensions were high between the two adversaries. The U.S. analysis of the incident concluded the U.S. had taken no actions that would have caused the plane to crash. The Soviets thought that the U.S. may have shot down the aircraft but there was no black box, only the U.S report, for an account of the incident. In the end the Soviets elected to believe the crash was caused by pilot error avoiding a superpower crisis. No one will ever know if David’s photographs were secretly used to diffuse a Cold War showdown.
David passed the test for Radioman 2nd Class but did not receive the rank because it would have required an extension to his enlistment and David wanted to attend college. David was discharged, returned to Connecticut to attend college and take teaching courses. David taught Drivers Education with a private company and taught English to people that did not speak English as a first language.
David, you served your country with distinction and witnessed a world shaping event while you were on the U.S.S. Essex. When you were young and spending so much time with your hobby, no one knew you would play a part in a Cold War incident or if your photographs saved the world from war. Thank you for your service.
David went to grammar school in Bolton, Connecticut and throughout his childhood, he developed an interest in morse coding. David attended Manchester High School during the day, and he attended morse coding class in the evenings. He bought a home short wave radio setup including a transmitter, a receiver and a 138’ dipole wire. David found his hobby really challenging. He devoted a lot of time to morse coding, earned his amateur radio license and he met a lot of interesting people. “I spent hours every day with it.” Using morse code David would carry on conversations with other amateur radio hobbyists’ from around the world. He recalled driving to Brainard Airport in Connecticut to meet Harry Weinberg from Freehold, New Jersey who owned his own plane with an amateur radio set up.
During high school David studied drafting and that helped him land a job after graduation with the Precision Parachute Company in Manchester, CT. David later attend a four-month course at Kaman Aircraft where he learned to assemble the HU2K Husky helicopter. David worked at Kaman on the assembly line for 18 months but later left to teach Driver Education and English at a private school in Connecticut.
By 1963 the Vietnam War was gearing up and the military needed bodies. The selective service draft was in effect at that time and David thought, “I didn’t want to go into the Army and dig foxholes.” So, David went to see the Air Force recruiter but was told it there would be a long wait before David could enlist. He was concerned he could be drafted before he was able to enlist and went to see the Navy recruiter. When the Navy recruiter learned David had an amateur radio license and a commercial radio license from WIMF (1230 AM), he quickly offered David a spot in the Navy Reserves at one grade higher in rank then was typical for a newly enlisted sailor. “I just wanted to help out.”
David attended training one day each week and during the summer he participated in a cruise on the U.S.S. America for two weeks. In July of 1964 David attended bootcamp at the Great Lakes Naval Training Center. David had two radio licenses and the Navy decided he didn’t require Advance Individual Training in communications and radio operations.
In early 1967 the Navy called him for active duty, and he received orders to U.S.S. Kearsarge that was home ported in Long Beach, California.
David’s time on the Kearsarge was spent mostly in Long Beach. This was during the buildup for the Vietnam War, and the crew was instructed never to go too far from the ship. David recalled that it required 10 tugboats, five in the front and five in the back to get the Kearsarge into its berth. There was a YMCA at the end of the pier where the Kearsarge was docked, and it had an amateur radio station. David would go to the YMCA and use their radio station to help the sailors call home and speak to their families by using a phone patch provided by an amateur radio operator in the sailors’ hometown. There was no charge for the phone call, and the sailors were always very appreciative.
David recalled the Kearsarge being involved in a recovery mission for NASA in the Pacific Ocean but with the passage of time he was very unclear of the details.
After about 15 months in Long Beach the Kearsarge headed for Vietnam. The first stop was Hawaii and then on to Yokosuka, Japan. When the Kearsarge docked in Yokosuka, David received orders to report to the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Essex, home ported in Quonset Point, Rhode Island. The Essex needed a radioman and would be heading to the Mediterranean. For David to link up with the Essex he would have to board the U.S.S. Hornet which was due into Yokosuka the next day and scheduled to head for Rhode Island. David boarded the Hornet and headed east.
When he arrived in Rhode Island, David boarded the Essex and headed out on a Mediterranean cruise. He recalled visiting Rome, France and then up to Holland on the way to the Norwegian Sea. When the U.S.S. Essex entered the Norwegian Sea, the Soviet Union took on a heightened defensive posture because the Norwegian Sea was the gateway to the main base of the Soviet northern fleet. The Soviets dispatched their destroyer the Soznatelnyy, along with several aviation assets to monitor the activities of Essex battle group. In late May during their reconnaissance the Soviets lost contact with the Essex battle group.
On May 25th, 1968, two Soviet Air Force TU-16 Badgers were launched to locate the Essex and guide the Soznatelnyy toward it. One of the pilots was very skilled at low altitude flying to avoid radar detection which was especially useful for reconnaissance purposes. The TU-16’s were twin engine strategic heavy bombers with a wingspan of roughly 108 feet that were also used for reconnaissance missions. David recalled the Soviets jammed the radio frequencies of the aircraft carrier. Then he heard a huge rumbling outside the radio shack causing the radio equipment to vibrate. One of the TU-16s had located the ship and made several close fly-bys of the Essex at a very low altitude. The Russians continued jamming the ships radio transmissions and the captain ordered David to keep changing frequencies so he could remain in contact with the pilot of the HU2K Husky helicopter staged for takeoff on the Essex flight deck. The rest of the flight deck as clear and “there was no one in the gun tubs because the captain didn’t want to show any threat” toward the Soviet aircraft.
On what turned out to be the final Soviet fly-by, the U.S. helicopter took off. As the bomber passed by the Essex, David estimated it was no more than 20 to 30 meters above sea level which is the height of the flight deck. “It was almost hitting our ariels. It blocked out the sky.” The TU-16 passed the Essex and attempted to make a left hand turn, possibly to move away from the helicopter that had been launched, but it was too close to the ocean and its long wing caught the top of the ocean water and crashed 14,000 yards off the bow of the Essex. It was a violent crash breaking the plane into pieces, igniting it into flames and killing entire crew.
David photographed the entire sequence from the catwalk. The captain saw David taking photos and said, “Sailor, your film is now the property of the U.S. government. Immediately turn it into the chief. Do not open the camera and turn the whole camera into the chief.” David followed orders and immediately reported to the chief and turned over the camera. David recalled the chief saying, “this could keep us out of World War III.” David is unsure what happened to the film.
The Essex sailed to the site of the crash to look for survivors but there were none. American divers brought the bodies of the crew members back to the Essex. The wreckage was at a depth that prevented retrieving the planes black box. The Americans prepared the bodies for transfer to the Soviets along with a written report of what happened.
In 1968 the U.S. and the Soviets were locked in a Cold War, and tensions were high between the two adversaries. The U.S. analysis of the incident concluded the U.S. had taken no actions that would have caused the plane to crash. The Soviets thought that the U.S. may have shot down the aircraft but there was no black box, only the U.S report, for an account of the incident. In the end the Soviets elected to believe the crash was caused by pilot error avoiding a superpower crisis. No one will ever know if David’s photographs were secretly used to diffuse a Cold War showdown.
David passed the test for Radioman 2nd Class but did not receive the rank because it would have required an extension to his enlistment and David wanted to attend college. David was discharged, returned to Connecticut to attend college and take teaching courses. David taught Drivers Education with a private company and taught English to people that did not speak English as a first language.
David, you served your country with distinction and witnessed a world shaping event while you were on the U.S.S. Essex. When you were young and spending so much time with your hobby, no one knew you would play a part in a Cold War incident or if your photographs saved the world from war. Thank you for your service.