I took 46 photos today at the Yorktown, which is too many to attach here. But this is a special place that many of my friends would really love. The Yorktown was decommissioned in 1970 after service in World War II, Vietnam, and was also one of the ships to receive the Apollo spacecrafts after landing in the Pacific. In fact the Yorktown was the ship that pulled Apollo 8 from the sea, after the first successful trip to the moon over Christmas 1968.
Sitting on her deck on down in her hold, the Yorktown has every plane and helicopter that flew from her decks, from Hellcats, Corsairs, to F4's, and F14 Tomcats (of Top Gun fame). My friend John Wurth flew these planes in his Navy career, and I was overwhelmed by how huge this carriers are, and how small they would be to land a plane on. The Yorktown almost 900 ft. long, which felt huge. But compare it to the USN Reagan which is one of the Super Carrier's today, is three times as big.
Along with the Yorktown, there is a World War II diesel class submarine that you can tour. I cannot believe Casey Fox served on a nuclear submarine that was under water for 6 months. I was claustrophobic after 5 minutes. On land they recreated a base camp from Vietnam, with Huey helicopters and the a big gun ship called "Puff the Magic Dragon". Jay Carey flew these helicopters in Vietnam.
All in all, its a fabulous way to spend the day and see this carrier, planes, helicopters, and submarine. My hat is off to those that served. Also inside the Yorktown is a section devoted to Medal of Honor recipients. Very humbling.
Our time in Charleston has been filled with Civil War history, seeing a city that has played a significant role in our country's history, and remains today a vibrant port city. It is a wonderful place to visit. And have I mentioned the food??? Um mm. Good.
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