NHA Historical Society

SH-60F Update

By CAPT Bill Personius, USN (Ret.), President, NHAHS (LTM #46 / RW#16213)

It is finally happening! We have a confirmed date for the CDR Clyde E. Lassen, USN (Ret.) SH-60F Medal of Honor Memorial Dedication! The ceremony will take place on Saturday, January 25, 2025 at the NBC/NASNI Front Gate.

Wednesday, June 19, 2024 was the 66th Anniversary of the heroic 1968 Lassen Rescue, during which Clyde and his crew recovered two downed aviators while under hostile fire in North Vietnam. There is still time to make a donation to the project and push the effort across the finish line, while leaving an enduring message on a brick at the base of the monument. Donations can be made HERE or by going to the NHAHS Website and clicking on SH-60F Donations. Don’t delay… the time is now if you want to secure a personalized brick. The ordering deadline is September 27, 2024 to place your brick at the base of the monument prior to the Dedication Ceremony.

By way of an update on the status of the SH-60F Display Aircraft, the restoration process was completed before the winter holidays last year. Clementine Two is currently in the FRCSW Hangar 325 having the mounting plate attached to her belly, along with the supporting infrastructure fabricated by the civilian artisans who do all the reworking of our MH60R/S aircraft. We expect this work will completed by the end of July.

The construction of the stanchion at the front gate will start after the Labor Day Weekend on Tuesday, September 3, 2024. A footing will be dug and a re-bar framework erected that looks exactly like the stanchion supporting the VADM Stockdale A-4 Skyhawk by the same company that built the A-4 stanchion. The work to complete the stanchion will take about two months, and then the concrete needs to cure for 30 days prior to mounting the aircraft on top of the pedestal on the proposed date of January 16, 2025 - the anniversary of Clyde’s Medal of Honor Award from then President Lyndon Johnson.

There is also a finished coating that needs to go on the concrete before the aircraft can be craned into position the week before the Dedication Ceremony. The aircraft will have a MK-46 torpedo on the starboard pylon, and there will be a rock monument like VADM Stockdale’s with Clyde’s Medal of Honor Citation located beneath the aircraft that will be visible from the road.

We just completed what I think was one of the best NHA Symposiums since I have been around. Now, that is saying a lot, as I was the Executive Director for six of them during my tenure from 2014-2019. The Midway Members' Reunion and Red Bull Helicopter Demonstration sticks out in my mind, and the year we had the helicopters land in the Town and Country Parking lot to be displayed inside the exhibit hall was another good year. However, this year’s Aircrew Competition was outstanding, the Members' Reunion by the pool was a really great event, and the Harrah’s I-Bar Annex was certainly a hit, not to mention the Soft Patch Pep Rally. NHAHS and the Scholarship Fund hosted another great Golf Tournament at Admiral Baker, and everyone had a good time while making some money for the two non-profits. Thank you very much for your support.

Thank you to all those personnel who participated in the Opportunity Gift Basket Auction by purchasing tickets for what was a banner year of baskets. A big thank you goes out to Katherine Gillcrist, who led the event that raised close to $6.5K. Again…the proceeds were shared by NHAHS and NHASF. Thank you for your efforts and continued support of both organizations.

Have a safe summer and keep your turns up!

Regards, CAPTAIN P

Naval Helicopter Association Historical Society (NHAHS) https://www.nhahistoricalsociety.org/ PO Box 180578, Coronado, CA 92178-0578