I had the honor and privilege to work with the wonderful crews of the Bowditch, Dutton, Hess (and Chauvenet and Wyman) while a NAVO rep from 1979 - 1983. I thank you so very much for bringing back some of my most wonderful memories of my youth with this website. I have compiled the dates, ship and imports I enjoyed while working for NAVO:
March - May 1980 Bowditch; Bermuda; Norfolk, VA; Richmond, VA
Nov - Dec 1980 Bowditch; Port Everglades, FL; San Juan, Puerto Rico; Port Canaveral, FL
June - Sept 1981 Dutton; Port Hueneme, CA; Seattle, WA; Port Hueneme, CA
Oct - Dec 1981 Bowditch; Rota, Spain; Lisbon, Portugal; Port Canaveral, FL
Mar - Jul 1982 Hess; Oakland, CA; Honolulu, HI; Portland, OR; Yokosuka, Japan
Dec '82 - May 1983 Bowditch; Cocoa Beach, FL; Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Canary Is, Spain.
I could not have asked for a better job out of college. I was the first female on the Chauvenet in April 1979 when I reported onboard in Subic Bay, Philippines - a LOT of firsts on that trip!!!

Great site, keep up the good work

Very nice website...

I just read your comments about my beloved god father captain Wilhelm Frederick Bondeson . He was born in Goteborg, Sweden And rests in the family plot I was notified by the U S consulate when he died. In1947 my father was first mate to uncle bill and was asked to be a god father. He was under cover OSS, officer spoke 4 languages and helped with the German infiltration to the u s.

The Captain was a good friend of my dad and family. We called him Uncle Bill. It was wonderful to see his photo and information on his ship.
Thank you. Judith

Made a lot of great friends on Hess, Bowditch, and Dutton

Enjoyed long tours on all three ships but the Dutton was my favorite

Between Jan 1984 and Aug 1989 I spent more time on the Dutton than I did at home.

Four months after the Dutton was retired I left NAVO.

I sailed on the last voyage of both the Bowditch and Dutton

Still hear from friends from all 3 ships. Feel free to share my email

Great site! It brings back many great memories. A big hello to all the people that I met on the journey! - John Livingstone

Unit yeoman. Responsible for records. Streamed magnetometer with Bill Dutcher the photographer.

I joined Oceanographic Unit 2 while Dutton was in the shipyard (in dry dock) at Wallsend England. We stayed in a hotel at Whitley Bay until the ship was out of dry dock. A couple of my navy shipmates ended up marring local girls. We surveyed mostly in the north Atlantic and visited ports in England, Spain and Portugal. I left when Sutton went into Norfolk for the next ship yard. It was a very interesting tour of duty but since I had a wife and kids back home the separation was a strain.

On Bowditch in Malta Yard 1967 to 1968 in NJ. Thanks for updating and keeping this site going