Seaman Fire Control Technician Charles David Hewitt

March 31, 1969

Dear Mom, Dad, and Splashy,

Aloha!

Well, I’m writing you here in my new home on Oahu. After 4 long weeks, we finally found a place. It sure is nice. We call it Freedom Haven. It’s down in Waikiki, about 2 blocks from the beach. I feel better now!! And can relax!

So wrote Seaman Charlie Hewitt to his parents from his ship’s home port at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Hewitt was a Navy sailor who, from all apparent accounts, really enjoyed his time in service to Uncle Sam.

Charles David Hewitt came into this world on May 4, 1948, in Franklin, NH. He entered the US Navy in 1967 and attended Recruit Training at Great Lakes, Illinois. On his duty ship, he was also a member of the ASROC handling team. ASROC in Navy parlance, is an Anti-Submarine Rocket, a missile system designed to detect and attack enemy submarines from a distance. With a homeport of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, the keel for the USS Carpenter DD825 was laid on December 28, 1945, in Orange, Texas. The end of WWII on September 2, 194,5 halted work on the ship, and it wasn’t completed and commissioned until December 15, 1949. On February 4, 1952, she sailed to Korea for her first war-related duty. 

During his basic training at Great Lakes, on July 8, 1967, Hewitt took part in the Mid-America Salute to the Flag ceremony at Soldier’s Field in Chicago. Over 52,000 spectators each waved small American flags and applauded and cheered so loudly that they drowned out the noise of helicopters hovering overhead, allowing cameramen to record the spectacle. 

Hewitt saw his entire Navy tour on board the destroyer USS Carpenter. He reported for duty on his ship on June 6, 1968. In a letter home, He wrote:

(When I began my sea-duty) I flew from Keene, NH, to New York, NY to San Francisco, California, and then from Traverse Air Force Base in California to Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. The flights were long but perfect. Reaching Hawaii, I had to set my watch back six hours and relive those hours I spent on the Mainland over again in Hawaii. The night air was warm and fresh. Walking to where I could catch a cab to get to the Naval Base, I knew I was going to fall in love with Hawaii. After checking in with the base, I staggered, carrying my seabag down to the pier where my ship was supposed to be tied up.

Hewitt goes on about rising the next morning, meeting some of his workmates, and receiving a tour of “my new HOUSEBOAT.”

Hewitt then wrote about his first cruise: “The morning of June 15th, we got underway for my first cruise. We spent many long hours at different cruising conditions, drill,s and work while in transit.” The ship made port in San Diego, Santa Monica, and Long Beach. At each stop, Hewitt was able to take some leave to “see the sights.” He spent July 4th at Santa Monica watching celebratory fireworks from the Santa Monica Pier. He wrote, “It was nice, but New Hampshire really, believe it or not, has the best.” 

It was about this time that Hewitt wrote to his parents saying that he had taken a test and made FTGSN, which is Seaman Fire Control Technician, probably an E3 in rank.

The official history of the USS Carpenter called for the ship to leave for West-Pac sometime in October. However, Hewitt wrote that they arrived in Japan in September. (This is likely when the ship was enroute to its assigned area.) Hewitt wrote, “We steamed following the aircraft carrier USS Coral Sea for 10 days. September 26th, we pulled into Yokosuka, Japan; my first foreign port.”

Hewitt continues, “October 9th, we journeyed across the South China Sea to the Gulf of Tonkin, where we plane-guarded the Coral Sea until Oct. 23rd.”

(Author’s Note: Plane guarding refers to the specific role of a warship or helicopter tasked with recovering crew from a ditch or crash in the water during flight operations. The USS Carpenter played this role twice, once for the USS Coral Sea and once for the USS Constellation.)

Hewitt continues, “At this point, we had been through some fairly rough seas due to the after-effects of a few typhoons. My sea legs are strong now. I never did get sea-sick, and mind you, I don’t plan on it.”

The ship then left its duty area and headed for Hong Kong, where the crew got to enjoy some R&R. Hewitt said he enjoyed the people and the food… and eating with chopsticks, which he apparently mastered.

The ship next visited the Gulf of Tonkin. At that time, then-President Johnson announced that the US would cease bombing North Vietnam. This changed priorities for the USS Carpenter. Hewitt explained, “We moved up further north, where we patrolled with the USS Horn for 13 days. This brought a little more excitement but really no serious threat. North Vietnam was quite distinct from the island of Hainan. We patrolled there under Wartime Cruising Conditions and manned our Fire Control Equipment around the clock.” Hewitt continued, “And I had the required time over in Vietnam to rate the Vietnam Defense ribbon. Pinning this ribbon next to my lonely National Defense Ribbon made me look a little more salty!”

Hewitt remembers Thanksgiving 1968: “November 16-28, we spent plane-guarding the USS Constellation. Thanksgiving came, and we had a special Thanksgiving dinner, but of course, it was far from what I’ve been used to in previous years.”

The ship next stopped in Subic Bay at Manila, the Philippines. It was mostly a working period for Hewitt, but he managed to get a two-day leave to tour Manila. The USS Carpenter then returned to the Gulf of Tonkin to plane-watch for the USS Constellation.

Apparently, someone on the ship keeps track of everything that happens on a day-to-day basis. Hewitt wrote his parents, “The following figures will give you an idea what we have been up to: We have steamed about 24,000 miles. Burned about 2,000,000 gallons of fuel. Distilled about 1,500,000 gallons of water. Spent 69 days underway and 20 days in ports. Replenished and refueled 30 times. Drank 26,500 cans of soda. Ate about 20,000 candy bars. Spent close to $160,000. And our cruise is only half over!”

Next, the Carpenter was assigned to assist in the recovery of the Apollo 10 capsule when it splashed down in the Pacific. The Apollo 10 mission was the prelude to Apollo 11, which landed two men on the moon.

While en route to the Apollo splashdown site, on May 22, 1969, the USS Carpenter crossed the equator, and Seaman Hewitt got to go through the Shellback initiation, better known as the Initiation into the Divine Mysteries of the Sacred Deep. This is a mostly ceremonial ritual where new sailors who have never crossed the equator before graduate from being “pollywog” to becoming a “Shellback.”

Then, on July 24, 1969, The Carpenter was part of Task Force 130 for the historic first moon landing recovery. The ship’s duties were two-fold:

• Presidential Rescue Role: The ship’s primary role was to serve as a rescue vessel in the event that President Nixon’s helicopter was forced down during its 200-mile flight from Johnston Island to the USS Hornet.
• Air Control: The ship’s Combat Information Center, led by Chief Radarman Curtis B. Anderson, provided positive air control for the President’s helicopter for 85 miles back to Johnston Island.

It was the aircraft carrier, USS Hornet, CV12, that actually plucked the Apollo 11 capsule out of the Pacific. The USS Carpenter was on station primarily for the President’s safety.

Rear Admiral Donald Davis presented the ship with a plaque honoring it as the “Apolloest” ship in the fleet, noting that 34 crew members had been aboard for all four of the ship’s Apollo missions.

After his Navy days, Hewitt returned to NH, settling in Bristol, where he made a name for himself as a carpenter… how fitting considering the ship that he served on! On June 30, 2020, he lost a courageous battle to cancer. After 40 years of marriage, Charlie left his devoted and loving wife, Janice. He was a Mason, a volunteer at the Day Away Program for early dementia, and was in the Pasquaney Snowshoe Club. He was laid to rest in the NH Veterans Cemetery in Boscawen, NH, on July 23, 2020.