Reminiscing about NAVFAC Keflavik closure with George and PeeWee
Quite coincidentally, I spent a good two hours this afternoon chatting it up with former NFK shipmates, OTCM George Widenor, USN (Ret) and CDR Kevin “PeeWee” Mattonen, USN (Ret). Oh the stories we told - several of which concerned the 1996 closure of Naval Facility Keflavik, Iceland.
I promised to post a couple of those old stories here on the message boards; and I will do so as time permits. In the meantime, I thought I would first post the official Navy closure message here.
Re: Reminiscing about NAVFAC Keflavik closure with George and PeeWee (Edited by Author)
ROUTINE
R 3009102 SEP 96 ZYB
FM NAVFAC KEFLAVIK IC//00//
TO COMUNDERSEASURV DAM NECK VA//00/01/N3//
INFO CNO WASHINGTON DC//N874//
CINCLANTFLT NORFOLK VA//00/01/N3//
COMICEDEFOR KEFLAVIK IC//00/01/J3//
NAS KEFLAVIK IC//00/01//
JMF ST MAWGAN UK//00/01/N3//
NAVOCEANPROFAC DAM NECK VA//00/01/N3//
NAVOCEANPROFAC WHIDBEY ISLAND WA//00/01/N3//
TRINITY HALIFAX//00/01/N3//
RMKS/1. AT 300900Z, ACTUATORS WERE STOPPED AND THE CABLE WAS POWERED DOWN AT THE OLDEST AND FINEST NAVAL FACILITY IN THE HISTORY OF THE SOUND SURVEILLANCE SYSTEM AND INTEGRATED UNDERSEA SURVEILLANCE SYSTEM.
2. FOR 30 YEARS, 6 MONTHS AND 29 DAYS, NAVFACKEF PROUDLY STOOD AT THE FOREFRONT OF OUR NATIONS DEFENSE, LEADING THE PACK IN ANTISUBMARINE WARFARE AND UNDERSEA ACOUSTIC INTELLIGENCE GATHERING. WITH 16 COMMANDING OFFICERS AT THE HELM, SOME 200 OFFICERS AND 3700 CREW SILENTLY PERFORMED THE NAVFACS MISSION WITH TREMENDOUS PRIDE, PROFESSIONALISM, AND "ESPRIT DE CORPS" THAT IS, PERHAPS, COMMON ONLY TO NAVFACKEF.
3. WE WILL NEVER FORGET: ENDLESS RIDES ON THE NAVFAC BUS...THE LOX PLANT... S-CURVES ON NAVFAC ROAD... WHITE OUTS...SPRING OPS... HALL PARTIES AT BARRACKS 748... THE TOP OF THE ROCK...THE BRASS NUT... THE TRULY UNIQUE EXPERIENCE OF SERVING WITH THE FINEST PROFESSIONALS, IN THE MOST DEMANDING WORK ENVIRONMENT, IN THE ASW CAPITAL OF THE WORLD.
4. THE FINAL PAPER CHANGE (OF 44,288) HAS BEEN ACCOMPLISHED, BUT NOT DOCUMENTED. WE STAND PROUD AT THE END OF THIS ERA, THE LAST OF 22 ASW WARRIORS KNOWN SIMPLY AS "NAVFACS".
LCDR J.M. DONOVAN, COMMANDING OFFICER SENDS.//
BT
