RECOLLECTION

Jack Sloan 1988

“Torpedo on the starboard bow!”

I believe we were enroute from Boston, Massachusetts to Sidney, Nova Scotia in early 1942 escorting a convoy. There was one ship named either Orbitor or Orizaba and after almost a half of a century I am not sure of the exact name.

The sea was calm, but we were passing in and out of fog banks and when in a fog bank we lost sight of the other ships completely. I was a Signalman on watch on the bridge when we passed out of a fog bank and into a clear area, and there on our starboard bow was the Orbitor.

The OOD told our messenger Jasick to report to the Captain in his quarters that: “We have the Orbitor on the starboard bow.” Now Jasick was a cheerful conscientious young seaman, who had a little difficulty pronouncing some words correctly.

Within a minute or two, Captain came running up the ladder onto the bridge and shouting: “Where is the torpedo?” with a bewildered looking Jasick trailing behind. I took Jasick aside to ask what happened and basically he told me that when he knocked upon the Captain’s door, the Captain called out:”Enter”. Upon entering Jasick realized that the Captain was in his “Head”, so he reported: “Orbitor on the starboard bow.” With that the Captain came rushing out of the Head, pulling up his pants, and pushing past Jasick as he hastened to the bridge.

The OOD was sitting in the Captain’s chair with a puzzled look upon his face trying to figure out what Captain was talking about. It finally dawned upon everyone, what had happened. Needless to say that afterwards, certain orders went out to clarify reporting procedures but Jasick still had difficulty with some words.

Later Jasick was chosen by Kitchell CQM as a striker on the Bridge Force. By the end of the war he had advanced to QM1c and was one of the three Plank Owners who put the Swanson into commission, who was on board when the ship was decommissioned.

The above incident was the source of much amusement for the crew during the voyage. It was told and re-told, and embellished upon, until it became hilariously funny. Even today it brings smiles to the faces of those who recall the incident.