US Navy Small Arms 1970s

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BlindJustice

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Bear with me I'll get to the Small Arms on a USN Destroyer '70s flavor.

NPR had part of it's morning show on/about the
USS ENterprize CVN 65 coming home for the last
time completing it's 22nd Major Deployment Over
50 years of service.

I served on a Destroyer Escort in '75 when we deployed
with ENterprize, USS Long Beach CGN 9, and USS Cochrane
DDG 23 for 2 months from the phillipines across the Inian
Ocean and back. It was the height of the Oil Crisis and
the US Navy put it's "A" Team at the mouth of the Persian
Gulf for a 'practice' run just in case.

It made me freflect on thsoe days and standing watch in port
carrying a 1911A1 also made me feel just a little older <sigh>


Small Arms Inventory on my DE

( 4 ) M-60 LMG

( 12 ) M-14 with syn. stock, and the selector lever was
set on semi-auto only - lever was removed.

( 12 ) Mossberg? 12 Ga. Riot Shotguns with SYn stock
and the shells were full length brass for the sea
borne environment - I have an empty I save from a
fan fire. Chief Gunners "Scotty" Mate gave it to
me sometimes we'd talk weapons, and he respeccted
my knowledge of wepons as I did his.

24 1911s - I always checked my weapon and only handled
or that's what we had, Ithaca & Remington Rand manfacturered.

and there were flare pistols, and the single shot .410? that fired
the lines for hooking up for refueling & replenshment of stores.

On a capital Ship like the Enterprize, they have a number ( 80? )
of Marines for security - probably had other small arms of some
sort.

R- USN '72-'78

R-
 
I remember seeing a lone, very young, Navy guard armed with an M14 in front of the Bunker Hill. The rifle was near as big as he was.

These Cold War era ships seem to be all about missiles. Not many deck guns or pom-poms to deal with little ships skirting nearby. With the pirate issues the possibility of getting swarmed by howling hordes isn't entirely theoretical. Esp. if one were to run aground in the wrong place heaven forbid. So I HOPE there are a few closets full of small arms still being maintained. Or maybe a few rooms full of Marines in cold storage.
 
On the fast attacks prior to the LA class, we had four of the poly stocked M-14s, four short battered 870 12 ga. with poly pistol grips and under-older (these were a hoot), and twelve 1911s (ours were really old and in pretty bad shape.

I only saw the M-14s issued twice (for other than quals)... Once for a shark watch during a swim call of St. Croix, and again for a polar bear watch when we punched through the ice.

Starting with the LA class they switched to M9s and M16s.

Nuke boats only make port calls in VERY secure ports.
 
SSN Vet said:
On the fast attacks prior to the LA class, we had four of the poly stocked M-14s, four short battered 870 12 ga. with poly pistol grips and under-older (these were a hoot), and twelve 1911s (ours were really old and in pretty bad shape.

I only saw the M-14s issued twice (for other than quals)... Once for a shark watch during a swim call of St. Croix, and again for a polar bear watch when we punched through the ice.

Starting with the LA class they switched to M9s and M16s.

Nuke boats only make port calls in VERY secure ports.
Click to expand...
You should PM RetiredUSNChief. He served on pre-LA Class fast attack subs. And he absolutely loves to talk about it.
 
The line throwing guns were made by Harrington Richardson and used a .45/70 blank cartridge.
 
When my Uncle served in subs (USS Dogfish for one, in the late 60's & early 70's) you could still have a beard (I have pics from that time period) and he said they had a Thompson and Carbines. 1911A1's were standard. They shot a lot of floating trash off the deck for fun. I know he served on fast attacks and boomers, the Dogfish was a bit of a relic from the end of WW2, and the armory was from the same tiime frame.

A little more recently: 1991

While my brother was on USS Ranger CV-61 I saw M-14's used as line throwing guns. MARDET did all shipboard security. The Marine OD carried a cocked and locked 1911 on the trip back from the Gulf War, I sat across from him having lunch on a Tiger Cruise. Marines also had M-16's with the 3 round burst, Mossberg shotguns, M-249's (which they used for mine watch, which my brother drew duty with a marine for that.. the sailor on the binos, the marine on the gun). I saw an M-60 during fan fire, can't say which model it was.

The Navy boys manned the Ma-Duce positions and the sea-whiz. All Navy pilots were issued M-9 Berettas. Don't think I met a single pilot (and I met a bunch) who knew much about shooting a pistol.
 
I've got a picture in my archives of one of our FTs' on Swim-Call Shark Watch with a M-14. We had 1911A1s, and pump shotguns. This was 1978-1984 on a east coast Boomer.

Guys that hand been on other boats mentioned some had Thompsons.

My "Repel Boarders" station was M-14 Pier Aft on one patrol cycle, and M-14 Top of Sail on another. I didn't personally handle all the M-14s we had, but the ones I did were non-wooden stocked.

Now, did any posters here have a "Repel Boarders" evolution for real? We did. Pulling in to Wilhelmshaven, Germany. Doing a flank bell to beat the tide, a helicopter landed on our missle deck. :eek: It was a don't-shoot situation in the end. Anyone care to guess why?

Ray
 
Thanks for posting guys. I've been paying more attention to defense news in general and have stepped up my learning curve on the Navy especially. It's cool to hear about the small arms carried on ships since Wiki only lists the heavy armaments. Thanks for you service as well.

a helicopter landed on our missle deck. It was a don't-shoot situation in the end. Anyone care to guess why?
Click to expand...

President Reagan visiting Germany?
 
Coast Guard used 30-06 Springfield03A3 bolt actions for line throwing in the 60's. The 40' Patrol boats had one 1911A1 for the coxswain, 1 30cal air cooled machine gun and one M-1 carbine.
 
Last edited:
GoWolfpack said:
You should PM RetiredUSNChief. He served on pre-LA Class fast attack subs. And he absolutely loves to talk about it.
Click to expand...

Thanks!

I don't know the specific numbers, but in my early days we had the M-14, either/both the Mosberg 500/Remington 870, and the 1911. Might have had a few other rifles, but that was all I was qualified for as part of the Reaction Forces aboard.

Later on in my career, the 1911 was replaced by the M-9, which I was also qualified on.

On the spec-op boat I was on, however, the SEAL teams would have a TON of really cool stuff!
 
My first ship was a carrier, 100 man MARDET, all the neat toys. I was an FT, we were backup for MARDET along with the GM's, we got, This is NO ----, 1903a3's and 50 rounds. Last ship crusier, FT's were security, M14's, 870 Rem's. 1911A1's, I got blessed (as an E6) with an m60. We were also the landing force, with GM's and deckapes, I still got the 60.
 
Don't forget the green guys... I was with USNMCB-5 from '74 to '78. We qual'd with the 1911 & M16. The battalion had M60s and a few M14, mortars & whatnot. Our Gunny was a fan of the M14.

Used to watch the mortar guys train with the little blue "lawn darts." :D
 
A coworker had been in the Shore Patrol in that era. His usual sidearm was a well-worn S&W Victory Model .38. He got one of the militarized Ruger Service Sixes for a short time before he was transfered or demobbed.
 
It made me freflect on thsoe days and standing watch in port
carrying a 1911A1 also made me feel just a little older <sigh>

I can relate to that serving aboard the USS Bushnell (AS15) back in the late 60's.
Always kind of felt it also made me the first target. BM3 1966 to 1969.

Still a big fan of the 1911.
 
Dr.Rob said:
When my Uncle served in subs (USS Dogfish for one, in the late 60's & early 70's) you could still have a beard (I have pics from that time period) and he said they had a Thompson and Carbines. 1911A1's were standard. They shot a lot of floating trash off the deck for fun. I know he served on fast attacks and boomers, the Dogfish was a bit of a relic from the end of WW2, and the armory was from the same tiime frame.

A little more recently: 1991

While my brother was on USS Ranger CV-61 I saw M-14's used as line throwing guns. MARDET did all shipboard security. The Marine OD carried a cocked and locked 1911 on the trip back from the Gulf War, I sat across from him having lunch on a Tiger Cruise. Marines also had M-16's with the 3 round burst, Mossberg shotguns, M-249's (which they used for mine watch, which my brother drew duty with a marine for that.. the sailor on the binos, the marine on the gun). I saw an M-60 during fan fire, can't say which model it was.

The Navy boys manned the Ma-Duce positions and the sea-whiz. All Navy pilots were issued M-9 Berettas. Don't think I met a single pilot (and I met a bunch) who knew much about shooting a pistol.
Click to expand...
To add to that. The Dogfish was a BALAO-class submarine. The last in use for the USN was decommissioned in the early '70's. One, the USS Tusk, was sold to Taiwan an is still in service to this day.
 
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