268

UNITED STATES NAVAL AVIATION 1910-1995

1969-Contin ued

3 February The Naval Air Systems Command issued

a contract to Grumman for development of the F-14A

fighter and manufacture of six experimental aircraft.

The F-14, intended as a high performance replacement

for the F-4 and abortive F-llIB, will feature a variable-

sweep wing and carry the Phoenix missile.

13 February Randolph was decommissioned, and

placed in the Reserve Fleet. This was followed on 30

June by the decommissioning of Essex, which was

placed in reserve, and on 1 December by the decom-

missioning of Boxer which was sold for scrap.

13 March Apollo 9 Astronauts James A. McDivitt,

USAF, David R. Scott, USAF, and Russell 1. Schweickart

were recovered by a helicopter from HS-3 off

Guadalcanal after completing a 10-day orbit of the earth.

14 April North Korean aircraft shot down an

unarmed EC-121 propeller-driven Constellation which

was on a routine reconnaissance patrol over the Sea of

Japan from its base at Atsugi, Japan. The entire 31-

man crew was killed. U.S. response was to activate

Task Force 71 to protect such flights over those inter-

national waters in the future. Initially, the TF consisted

of the carriers Enterprise, Ticonderoga, Ranger, and

Hornet with cruiser and destroyer screens.

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26 May Apollo 10 Astronauts Thomas P. Stafford,

USAF, John W. Young, USN, and Eugene A. Cernan,

USN, were recovered by HS-4 off Princeton after mak-

ing an 8-day orbit of the earth.

26 May A new, major development in carrier fire

prevention occurred when Franklin D. Roosevelt put to

sea from Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Va., after an ll-month

overhaul which included installation of a deck edge,

spray system using the new seawater compatible, fire-

fighting chemical, Light Water.

1 June On a flight from Stephenville, Newfoundland,

to Mildenhall, England, Lieutenant Colonel R. Lewis,

USMC, and Major C. 1. Phillips, USMC, piloted an OV-

10 Bronco to a world record of 2,539.78 miles for point

to point distance for light turbo-prop aircraft.

24 June The first operational "hands off' arrested

landing using the AN/SPN-42, Automatic Carrier

Landing System, on a carrier was performed by

Lieutenant Dean Smith and Lieutenant Ug) James

Sherlock of VF-103 when their Phantom II landed

aboard Saratoga. AN/SPN-42 was an outgrowth of

SPN-lO which was first tested in 1957 but was found

not to meet all fleet requirements.

30 June Personnel on duty in the naval aeronautical

organization at the end of the fiscal year, in round

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OV-10A, light armed reconnaissance aircraft 1143446