A Light Touch - My Touch with Bengladesh and Pakistan

This is going to be a mix between the Bengladesh war poiint of history and a set of pictures of an A3 refurbished out of the graveyard, for the Admiral at that period of time. The story tells why it's a mix - I hope it's clear.

The VA-3B, 142672, at Alameda after arriving from storage.

In my 20 years of service with the Navy, I saw lots of scrambling around about international events - "shows of force" by the US Navy and by contrary governments. We got the Stars and Stripes which showed a certain perspective on many events, but not this one. I now observe a couple facebook groups associated with things I have strong associative memories about:  The USS Kitty Hawk alumni, and the A3 Skywarrior aircraft. The latter is rife with people who knew a whole lot more than I did and do about some global events. I had worked with the A3 attack bomber, and had light association with that aircraft pretty much through my 20 years 1958 to 1978. The following started with my comment on an A3 Facebook stream.

The VIP's seat in VQ-1 PR-00,

The picture  above is apparently of the Admiral's plane which delivered mail to the big E in the Indian Ocean in December 1971 during the Bengladesh-Pakistan conflict I was peacefully in the guts of the Big E while most of you were in closer touch with the broader scene (VQ, etc.). My touch is several layers: 

(1) Big E was departing Yankee Station for PI then home to the states, 12/71. You know what happens with supplies, mail, ordinance, aircraft parts, etc in ;that situation. They dwindle down, and ordinance is going to get transferred to another carrier or offloaded at Pearl Harbor.  So the Big E got diverted into the Indian Ocean in that condition, instead of moving homeward bound. 

(The mideast participation for years now has surely been much harder on the sailors.). 

(2) The ship hadn't had mail and replenishment due to the plans and redirection. After a few days, I felt a bit of contact when a USN P3 aircraft came from somewhere flying over. So happy guys when the admiral's plane brought mail out. 

(3) Later, in Singapore, I was visiting with an old alcoholic frieghter captain, he told of porting in Bengladesh, driving inland, and spoke of the stench of rotting bodies. As hinted, I hadn't really known what it was all about. 

(4) During the Persian Gulf war, my daughter began emailing a sailor on the Kitty (Kitty was my last ship). It was in the gulf at that time. He worked in the personnel office. I chopped a few emails with him, and found out that he had been a child in Bengladesh when I was on the Big E somewhere offshore. 


(5) I spent a few years employed within T-Mobile engineering, have a few Pakistani friends, one from the peaceful sect of Muslims (yes there is one; persecuted and hated by all the others because this one doesn't think it stopped with the big M, and does preach peace.).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1971_Bangladesh_genocide 

http://en.wikipedia.org/.../Rape_during_the_Bangladesh...





This link is to Bengladesh pictures - Google Search: bengladesh war.
https://www.google.com/search?q=bangladesh+war&espv=2&biw=1455&bih=903&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=Ium6VIz9M4K3yQSgpoKADQ&ved=0CEcQsAQ

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/the-war-bangladesh-can-never-forget-8501636.html

http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/141530/harold-h-saunders/what-really-happened-in-bangladesh