by JOC Michael Foutch, USN
“Big
Submarine Force Says Goodbye to
Al,
the Sailor’s Pal”
F
or 38 years, there was the voice. Sometimes booming, sometimes almost whispering, cajoling the person on the other end of the conversation to see things his way. The voice was a unique, passionate advocate for submarine programs, and the Sailors that took submarines to sea. In a submarine community characterized by modulated, flattened accents and even-tempered tone, the voice cut though like a foghorn, redolent of 1950s Tony Curtis movies, cigar smoke, and his native Queens, where there were Noo Yawkizz rooting for the lamented Dodgizz. The voice was the biggest weapon of “Big Al, the Sailor’s Pal.” And if you were up against that voice, arguing with VADM Al Konetzni – well, in the end you might feel like the mug, leaving the table with empty pockets, but with a little smile and a pat on the back, defeated by the best. But if you were a beaten-down Sailor thinking about giving up on the Navy, this admiral spared no personal effort, including breaking some Navy traditions, to help you stay in the service. Because that was what he believed was right.
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F A L L 2 0 0 4 U N D E R S E A WA R F A R E
