USS-Arikara ATF-98

USS-Arikara ATF-98

Our founder Vic served on the USS Arikara (ATF 98) from 1966 to 1968

to Vic sailing on the Eenhoorn - to sailing - to San Francisco Bay

Vics fellow Navy guys on USS Arikarra

USS Arikarra ATF 98

Vic on a garbage run for his boat

Vic on patrol

picture of USS Arikara ATF-98 in February 1968

The Arikara was an ocean-going tug boat powerful enough to tow any ship afloat in 1966 - 1968. The USS Arikara home port was in Hawaii (Pearl Harbor). She was a diesel-electric driven ship (four diesel engines of 900 h.p. each), with a single electric 3,000 h.p. motor turning her shaft. She displaced over 1,600 tons (at full load) and measured 205 feet over all and was 38 feet wide.

Vic, our Founder served on board the U.S. Arikara from Oct. 1966 to Aug. 1968

picture is of Vic in 1967 on the USS Arikara ATF98

During Vic's tour on the USS Arikara traveled to many places including:

Vietnam - Da Nang & Hue
Alaska
Hawaii (home port)
Guam
Japan - Sasebo & Iwakuni
Midway
Seattle, Washington

patch of the Arikara ATF-98

On August 5, 1968 the following crew members signed Vic's farewell card:

Bondy (548 days left)
Buhman (640 days left)
Caldwell (653 days left)
Clark (352 days left)
Donley, Tom (1188 days left)
Flowers (499 days left)
Hedrie (104 days left)
Hilsdale (609 days left)
Jackson (320 days left)
Jensen (642 days left)
Jones (456 days left)
Lanier (466 days left)
Lebrun (131 days left)
Lindsey (325 days left)
Marsell (640 days left)
Neely (159 days left)
Neihaus (228 days left)
Pinnella (90 days left)
Podany (175 days left)
Roberts (800 days left)
Rogers (312 days left)
Schloss (219 days left)
Schmoll (132 days left)
Sledge (546 days left)
Sundholm (640 days left)
Vinegas (1826 days left)
Wolf (320 days left)

If you know anyone else who served during that time please let Vic know by emailing him at: USSArikara (leave no spaces here) @ Plbgweb.com.

To date, Leonard Lanier, Gary Bailey, Jack Frazier, Robert Ouellette, Tom Donley, David D. Stanton, Raymond Robert Campbell (Bob), Dan Robbins, Clay Sanders ("Sandy"), Steve Ussery, Michael Todd, Kenneth Walper, Mike Williams, Bob Dahl, and Richard Enniss have contacted Vic.

Our founder on the USS Arikara 1966
Vic 1966

Vic was a Radarman and the following were authorized to work in Arikara's Radio Central (in July 1968):

R. Chady
C. Clark
C. Daniels
W. Frazier
L. Hellerman
J. Henry III
F. Hicks
H. Kahikina
V. Makau
D. Sledge
G. Wittreich

In February 1968 the following were crew members on the USS Arikara ATF-98:

Operations:
Lassiter SM1
Hicks RM1
Foster KM1
Bailey ETN2
Eneboe YN2
Dinella QM2
Miles QM3
Daniels RM3
Kahikina RM3
Makau RD3
Kreus PN3
Frazier RMSN
Lanier QMSN
Knod YNSN

Engineers:
Schmitt ENCS
Grover EM1
Dahl EN1
Neely SF1
McKibben 1C1
Akiu EN2
Wagoner EM2
Jackson EM2
Schmoll EN3
Malone EN3
Riddle EN3
Arndt SF3 (see PoorPapas.com)
Schloss SF3
Wolf ENFN
Caldwell FN
Donley FA
Craig FA

Supply
Phillips SK1
Retier CS1
Buhman CS3
Vinegas ST2
Wolf SK3
Quintua TN
Sundholm SN

Deck
Ikerd BM1
Espinoza BM3
Lindsey BM3
Jensen BM3
Marsell SN
Niehaus SN
Clark SN
Lebrun SN
Hecky SN
Oliver SN
Costakes SN
Jones SA
Anderson SN
Bondy SN

Officers:
Commanding Officer: C.E. Stith LCDR
Executive Officer: G.E. Witttreich LTJG
Operations Officer: L.W. Hellerman LTJG
Engineering Officer: G. Sickler WO-1
Deck and Supply Officer: J.E. Henry III WO-1

These crew members were also on board sometime during the time Vic was on the Arikara:

Alumbaugh FN
Barton ENFN
Blaisdell QM2
Campbell, Bob EM2 (Sep. '63 - Jan. '67)
Carruthers WO-4
Chambers ETN2
Krieg, Melvin L. ENC (aka: "Unchil" passed away 1975)
Enniss, Richard EN3 (1967 and 1968)
Eubanks RD3
Firestone RM3
Fogel FN
Geyen SA
Gordon CS2
Hackney SA
Hardy EN2
Haugen CS1
Hollingsworth SA
Johnson FN
Jones RD1
Jones FN
Kaster RM3
Katnich EM3
Lauer PN3
Littel LTJG
McCullough GMG1
McCullough QM2
Mitchell WO-4
Mullins SN
Nielsen BM1
Oberhaus YNSN
Oloughlin EN1
Ommulane EN1
Ouellette, Robert EM3 (Aug 1965 - Aug 1967) aka: "Frenchy"
Packard ETR2
Pastrovich SFFN
Payton SN
Portee BTFN
Priessman, Thomas SF1
Roper LT
Schrader FN
Schuller SN
Seifert SM1
Smith SK3
Summers FN
Swanson SN
Taylor BM3
Todd ETR2
Walker WO-1
Wallace EN3
Walper EM2
Wilson HMC
Woods RD1
Wooten EN3
Van Winkle FN

These crew members were on the USS Arikara close to Vic's time on board:

David D. Stanton YN2 (1968 - Dec. 1969)
Dan Robbins (1969)

Some Arikara memories
(shared by Bob Campbell Christmas 2002):
"One the fondest memories I have of Christmas was 1966. Arikara(ATF 98) was in and about Da Nang having just completed the salvage of a refrigeration barge that had been blown high and dry up on the beach by a typhoon about 20 Kilometers south of Hue. Our Christmas mail had been lowered to us by Santa Claus. The "Jolly Old Elf" was standing in the bay door of a Huey, next to the gun mount, manning the lift cable with our mail on it. I do not remember a sailor who did not stop and wave to Santa and many went below to relieve shipmates so that they, too, could see him. Bob Hope and company were in Da Nang that year. Our ship did not get ashore to see the show as we were anchored at "short stay" and had no liberty. We, the Electrical Gang, had made a Christmas tree out of a wooden dowel rod or and old broomstick (I don't remember which). We had drilled several dozen holes in the rod and passed stranded wire through the holes then fanned the strands at equally lengths on either side of the rod. The wire was cut shorter as the hole got closer to the top of the pole giving our tree a roughly Christmas Tree shape. There was a lot of good natured ribbing and cheap sarcasms when we put the "Tree" on one of the Mess Decks tables. In spite of the critics, we fashion a star for the top out of tin foil or something and invited our shipmates to make and hang ornaments on it. It was a scraggly looking thing almost 4 feet high. There were no lights on it of course and we did not have anything green on it except a couple of "ornaments" made with a sort of a shade of green ink or food coloring. By the end of the week there were more than 80 decorations on that ugly tree, which was pretty significant because we had 75 enlisted men and 5 in the cadre. If Easy Company of "A Band of Brothers" lays exclusive claim to the brotherhood designation I would like to lay claim the "Family of Shipmates " for I have never been closer to bunch of guys outside my immediate family."

Clay Sanders (Sandy) also wrote Vic:
"Reported aboard Oct. 67 in Adak, mess-cooked with Eniboe as mess Capitan. Was an EM, worked for Grover, Jackson, Wags. Were you aboard when the boiler blew back and singed off Wagoner's mustache, eyebrows & lashes? (Yes, Vic was.) Scared all of us on mess decks when it went boom! I didn't remember some of the names until I found this site, brought back some great memories! I now live in Hawaii."

Bob Dahl ENC USN/RET also wrote Vic:
"I was on the Arikara when Wagoner lit off the boiler and seared his mustache and aye brow off. He had the watch at that time and he made the mistake of running the fuel in too long and when he put the torch to it, it backfired. I let him know what he did wrong. Fortunately things turned out OK."

Michael Todd, ETC USN (RET.) also wrote Vic:
"I was aboard the Arikara from Dec1965 to Apr1967. At that time I was an ETR2. I stood Radio watches, Radar Watches, QM of the watch and at Hue even OOD while anchored. That was the time we slipped our anchor after pulling that reefer barge off the sand. We had to tie up to another ship after turning over the barge in De Nang. We even baby-sit the Russian Trawler in the Gulf that cruise. I left the ship upon return to Hawaii. The reason we had to go alongside in De Nang was because we "Slipped" our anchors right after our pull that got the barge free. With a barge closing on your ship, no doubt the CO felt that returning later a good idea. That is also the Cruise that OUR Radar was traded to another ship, because THEY (the other ship) couldn't repair theirs. As a Radarman, you remember that we had an AN/SPS-21D, and they gave us a broken 'SPS-21C. Another story that. The Ships motto "Ready" carried me through the remainder of my Naval assignments and to this day."

Mike Williams in February 2008 wrote:
"Vic, I was a shipmate of yours from January 68 thru February 69, I was an EMFN when I was aboard. I worked for EM1 Grover and EM2 Jackson. I remember most of the names you have on your web page. My name is Michael Williams. I left Arikara in Feb 69 to go to a precom in Philadelphia. I ended up doing 23 years and retiring as a Chief Warrant Officer in 1989. Arikara was my second ship and I learned a great deal while I was there. Your face on the website and those of some of the others that were there are still familiar to me. It's been a long time. The big event of my tour was when we worked on the operation to lay acoustic cable in the Pacific. It's always a pleasure to chat with old shipmates."

If you have any pictures of any of the crew or the Arikara from 1966 through 1968 that you wouldn't mind loaning (we will scan the pictures and return them to you), please mail them to:
attn: Vic
PlumbingSupply Group
994 East 20th
Chico, CA 95928

USS Arikara ATF98
Launch Date: June 22, 1943
Commission Date: January 5, 1944
Stricken Date: June 25, 1992
The USS Arikara was decommissioned in July 1971 and transferred to Chile. She became known as the Sargento Aledea (ATF 63). After over 20 years in the Chilean Navy, she was decommissioned in August 1992 and was sunk as a target. May she rest in peace.

The Arikara name comes from honoring the Indians (Native Americans) who originally lived in North Dakota alongside the Missouri River. Their original name was the Arickaree. They were descended from the Caddoan Indians and said to have been closely related to the Pawnee and the Skidi Indians.

Raymond Robert Campbell (Bob) lives in St. Petersburg, Florida
Jack Frazier lives in Valley Cente, California
Robert Ouellette lives in Taunton, Massachusetts
Richard Enniss lives in Rock Hill, South Carolina
Steve Ussery (1969 till decommissioning) lives in White Lake, North Carolina
Bob Dahl lives in Bremerton, Washington
Leonard Lanier lives in Orange Beach, Alabama

After Vic left the Arikara, he was replaced by Tommy Flowers.

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