I am opening up this Memorial Day Edition of Hooniverse asks to all vehicles, be they on land, in the air, or out to sea.
My vote is biased today…my father served in the Navy for 16 years. He spent time on five different ships during that time but one still stands out quite clearly in my head…
The USS Long Beach.
The USS Long Beach (CGN-9) was my fathers last ship before he retired from the Navy. The Long Beach was the first “new” ship built after World War II. It was the only ship in its class; the Nuclear-powered Guided Missile Cruiser. The ship blasted around the globe thanks to a pair of props, each powered by its own nuclear reactor. The Long Beach was 721 ft long and had a 30 ft draft, yet thanks to the Mr. Burns specials in the engine room it was capable 30 knots.
30 knots might not sound like much to some of you… but it is quite an experience when you feel it for yourself. I had the pleasure of joining my father on one of the dependants cruises. Basically, the ship is filled with crew and family members and we go for a long ride out to sea for a day. The highlight was standing on the outside of the bridge as a voice came on over the radio system. “Prepare for a high-speed banked turn” was hat I remember hearing. The Long Beach went up to speed and did just that. I was eight stories above the deck but as the ship began to lean I felt like I would soon be drinking salt water. I grabbed the nearest rail and clenched (my hands and something else) and waited out the turn. On deck, two naval gents were acting like this was another day at the office with their hands relaxed behind their backs. Family and friends around them were scrambling for something to hold on to. It was frighteningly awesome.
The USS Long Beach was commissioned in 1961 and served 34 years before being decommissioned in 1995. It served proudly during that time, and the former crew members still keep in touch via Facebook of all places.
One final story which I remember about CGN-9… she was docked in Hawaii with another ship, and both were getting ready to leave for San Diego. The other ship left a day before the Long beach…and the Long Beach arrived a day ahead of the other ship. If that isn’t Hooniverse-worthy, then I don’t what is…
Happy Memorial Day!
Share your favorite military vehicle in the comments.
[For more information on the Long Beach, check out its Wikipedia page]
What is the Best Military Vehicle of All Time?
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47 responses to “What is the Best Military Vehicle of All Time?”
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Pretty good choice… but I have to stick with my nuclear powered awesome-O boat. 😉
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B-52 bomber. Because it's older than any pilot allowed to fly it, can start pyrotechnically scrambling airborne in a matter of minutes and at one time carried a weapons load equivalent to 4.2 million pounds of TNT (20x SRAM missles with tritium booster switched on). Tell me that wouldn't make a mess.
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My uncle owned a Blackbird, and took it to top speed on a few occasions. 184 indicated…
FFFFUUUUUUU
(also, you can add width="500" after the URL in your img tag… this will make sure the image fits properly on the page)-
I'm not sure how to post a picture instead of a link, any tips?
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I've done the dependent cruise, but on this: CVN 69 "IKE"
[img ]http://img248.imageshack.us/img248/9987/300pxussdwightdeisenhow.jpg[/img] -
Being one for the airborne side of the military, I could go with an easy choice and say the P-51 Mustang. But this my friends is the HOONIVERSE, so I say the F-82 Twin Mustang! Which is, as the name suggests, two P-51's bolted together.
[youtube qAd6t_On4rQ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAd6t_On4rQ youtube]
I also think the Jeep is pretty high up there. Did you know that Nazi forces would repaint usable Jeeps they happened to find, and use them for their themselves?-
They have 2 F-82s at the National United States Air force Museum in Dayton Ohio now. Definalty want to go and see them this summer some time
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Happy Memorial Day to all our veterans and service men and women. God bless you for putting your lives on the line for us. Now have a hamburger and a beer and kick back for a while.
The best military vehicle of all time? It's kind of a tossup for me; The SR-71 Blackbird is right at the top, but the USS New Jersey is a close second.-
Good call on the Blackbird… that really is one of the most amazing vehicles in history.
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If you go to the Pima Air and Space Museum in Tucson, you can walk right up and touch a Blackbird. They're amazing.
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Does it have the engines? The one I saw the Evergreen Museum a year or so ago with empty nacelles. http://www.sprucegoose.org/
SR-71 get's my vote
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Nice story, but just one question, does "All-Time" include the future as well? (Or, alternatively, 150000 years ago, on the planet Caprica?)
Back on topic, though, I am completely enamoured with the U-2. The Dragon Lady's edge of space flights are inspirational.-
Hmm, good question… I guess then you go could way back in time and picking something from the Rebel Alliance.
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My favorite would have to be my first ship, the USS Midway (CV-41) now a museum in San Diego. It had a magic about it I've never experienced before or since.
However the best ever would have to be any of the Liberty and Victory ships for their part in bringing the numbers and equipment needed to the front line, and more importantly bringing the troops home.
I've ridden the SS Jeremiah O'Brien around the SF bay, and it's Awesome. Awesome, and humbling when you feel the history behind it. -
That is blindingly fast… you were close to that wonderful realm above 200 mph. I hope to see those numbers someday… but with four wheels.
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Somehow I feel more comfortable on two wheels. I've done 135 MPH in a car and I was scary as hell, on the other hand if the bike had more power I could have gone over 200.
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I have heard other people say that before.
I did 165 in a car once and it was pretty fucking awesome, even though it was a straight shot. Early early morning, lots of road and no other cars out… and a car that had more left and felt quite comfortable at that speed. I gave up before the car did.
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Ooh…hard choice. Comes between the Haflinger and the M715, but I think the M715 takes it. The volunteer fire department I'm in has a 1968 model, canvas top and a chevy 402 dropped in in place of the "tornado" six that was once there. The thing that awesome about it is the drive-train though. The transmission has a 6.39 first gear with a 1.96 low-range transfer case then through 5.89 axle gears. With that low of ratios and that much torque I put wheel chocks around the tires to run the water pump, but I'm well aware that if it somehow fell into gear it will jump the chock and drive wherever it pleases. That being said, with 36×14 tires it will run in soft sand no problem in 2 wheel drive even lugging 400gallons of water and hundred of pounds of fire fighting equipment. It's really a blast to drive.
It's similar to this one but with 36s and instead of that horrid green(our competitor department is that color) it's clean and white. http://www.film.queensu.ca/cj3b/Photos/Fire/M715/… -
Almost forgot. I live in the UK, so I am contractually obliged to nominate the Supermarine Spitfire.
So how do you embed images?-
use the regular HTML code for an image with open and close tags.
http://www.w3schools.com/htmL/html_images.asp
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TY
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My pleasure
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Hell yeah, the Warthog is a tough little bastard, and hard to argue against.
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EXCELLENT choice…
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The Warthog and Blackbird are taken, so I'm going with a much older plane–the Fokker D VII. No, not the DR-1 Dreidecker of Red Baron fame*, but one of its successors. It wasn't produced in great numbers, but helped the Germans reacquire air superiority over the Western Front near the end of WWI. It was specifically listed in the Armistice treaty that Germany was to hand over "all DVII's," due to its superiority over any aircraft the Allies had to put up against it. Of course, aircraft technology advanced at an incredible pace in the subsequent years, and by the time hostilities broke out again, the D VII was a relic. But, for its time, the it was really something.
Here's one in Germany's "lozenge" camouflage. http://www.military-aircraft.org.uk/ww1-fighter-p…
* About him….Richthofen test flew the D VII, and was enamored with it. His review of the plane was one of the reasons it was produced, but he was killed before they reached service. -
They are a hoot. I used to fool around with them when I was in the National Guard. They have a two cylinder boxer motor, like a BMW bike. We called them Mules. They'll climb over almost anything.
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The good old Deuce and a Half. It was produced by several different manufacturers by the thousands from WW2 until recently, underwent several different redesigns, and is the ultimate pickup. You could argue that the humble Deuce is a major reason that the Allies won World War Two, it kept the front line troops resupplied with beans and bullets. Logistics wins wars, and being able to deliver whatever is needed at the front is essential. That was what Deuces did, in all conditions. I've driven them, worked on them, taught other people to do the same and can personally attest that they're legendary trucks.
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I'll see the Long Beach's 30 knots and raise you another 10 to 14. The SS United States may never have gone to war, but she was a naval vessel thinly disguised as a passenger liner. At the government's insistence, almost every aspect of her design was affected by military specifications. She could be converted to a troopship (capacity 15,000) or hospital ship in as little as 48 hours. Interior materials were chosen for fire resistance. Her engines were built to naval specifications and were capable of then-unprecedented speed. She could sprint at 43-44 knots and cruise at 38-40. She set the transatlantic speed record averaging 34.5 knots. The engines were designed for redundancy so that even if a torpedo knocked out one engine bank, the ship could still move and steer using the other bank. And she could sail 10,000 miles without refueling. Some of the details of her design and capabilities were classified military secrets for a long time. This might have hastened the end of her active service, because when she was mothballed by United States Lines in 1969, some other shipping lines expressed an interest, but she could not be sold to a non-US flag carrier as long as her engineering remained classified.
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That is pretty bad ass… but the Long Beach's refueling lenght was measure in YEARS not miles.
Still mid 40 knots is crazy…
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The USS Long Beach was rated at 40+ knots http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/photo.php?pid…
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Excellent, thank you for the clarification.
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Guided missile cruisers are all well and good, but I like my ships to have guns. Big, fat guns that will blow a hole in any country that dares to mess with us. Therefore, I must nominate the USS Iowa.
http://www.stanford.edu/~cantwell/AA210A_Course_M…-
Took a tour of the USS North Carolina a few years back. Massive. Amazing. Humbling.
Thank you to all who have served or are serving to keep America free. Your dedication to duty is greatly appreciated and not taken for granted.
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Still no one messed with the Beach: http://history.sandiego.edu/gen/20th/coldwar2.htm…
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This is what I was going to post. Makes every other plane in the sky look like they got beat with an ugly stick.
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A fine choice.
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This was my favorite Micro Machine of all time. I think i broke the wheels off to make it more sleek. Awesome choice.
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I walked through a C5-A at an air show once. It took a long time…
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Since I know nothing of this “Memorial Day” of which you speak, I’m caught a bit unprepared, but nevertheless have to throw in a Canadian nominee with an almost-automotive tie-in: the Corvette.
No, not the crappy piece of plastic with a bowtie logo. These are the REAL corvettes, the anti-submarine ships developed in the early days of WWII. Knowing the Germans’ proclivity towards U-boats, the Admiralty of the Royal Navy began searching for some anti-submarine tactics and strategies that would help neutralize the tremendous advantage of submarines when preying on supply convoys.
The solution actually was presented almost comically by a group of whalers out of Newfoundland — still a British colony at the time, but technically Canadian now. More or less. Essentially, they got in an argument with a group of British naval officers, saying that finding and killing a submarine couldn’t be all that hard. After all, it was just a big metal whale, and the principle was the same. A whale had to come to surface to breathe, a U-boat had to come to surface to recharge its batteries and run on diesel. Why, they asked, were the naval officers using those big clunky ships to try and do the job, when a whaling ship would do a much better job.
While the spirited conversation that ensued did require a little bit of cleaning up the next morning, once the bruises were healed, the Admiralty saw the wisdom, and began penning some ships based on a small and nimble single-shaft whaling vessel. Similarly, the navy began “recruiting” whalers to come and try their tricks on the metal whales instead.
The program proved an enormous success; it proved even more successful when combined with the Canadians’ “dazzle” camouflage that rendered the corvettes nearly invisible to the periscope of the defending U-boat.
Clearly, then, this is just another reason to dislike the Chevrolet Corvette. It is completely untrue to the original spirit of the name. No longer small, lithe and nimble, they might as well just rename it “Cruiser” and call it a day. -
I'm surprised nobody has mentioned the M1A1 Abrams. It has a 1500 hp gas turbine engine, depleted uranium armor, a smoke screen, and the ability to fire everything from traditional rounds to guided kinetic energy rounds to shaped charges. No new M1A1s have been produced since the early '90s. Instead, like true hoons, the Army rebuilds each one at various intervals including completely stripping the chassis and repairing it. Of course, at a few million dollars a pop you don't really buy a new one every few years.
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Wow, what a great thread to start & truly, one vehicle cannot contain this much awesome. My old man also served in the navy, in a destroyer chasing u-boats in the Atlantic. So my vote must be naval. (And my truck must be Ford.) Has anyone here been to Pearl Harbor and visited the USS Arizona memorial, thought about it, then visited the USS Missouri (the state my dad was from) anchored next door on battleship row and not felt these are the most perfect bookends to the most perfect (perfectly awful) epic story that even Joseph Campbell or George Lucas couldn't have written? You know, it's kind of about revenge, but it's also kind of about uh, …unbelievable revenge. Between the Mighty Mo & the rest of the fleet, the B-29s flying out of the Marianas and then those last two things we left there, talk about sending a message.
But I must admit the A-10 warthog is its own kind of awesome. Those are the fugliest dirtbikes that ever flew and they're beautiful for it. And they're going to retire them? Really?
Thanks to all of you that went & did what had to be done. -
Actually it's pretty easy to kill, just dangle a $150-million super-hi-tech fighter in front of the Air Force brass and tell them that they can afford the bells&whistles special or they can afford the A-10, but not both… I mean, the A-10 isn't supersonic, and it isn't "stealthy," and in an all-out fighter battle it wouldn't be "Top Gun," so why would anybody want an obsolete piece of junk like that? Never mind that while the U.S. seems to be continuously at war with somebody somewhere, we haven't fought a war that needed supersonic speed or stealth or "Top Gun" fighter coverage for the last thirty-five years.
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Do what works!
The A10 warthog worked !
So did the Long Beach !
Neither were stealthy. -
Amazing 🙂 I found your site on Google searching for something completely unrelated- and now I’m going to have to go through the archives 🙂 Good bye free time today, but this was a truly awesome find
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