posted 11-14-2011 10:03 PM               

Space Cover #135: USS Observation Island

Military launches played a huge role in early rocket development. Missiles from submerged vehicles and/or launch pads would be no exception. The USS Observation Island would play a role in this development from 1959 to its decommission in 1972. The crew of the USS Observation Island was 65 civilian and 20 US Navy personnel.

In June 1959 the USS Observation Island, after being fitted with additional equipment, including the Ships Inertial Navigation System (SINS), steamed for her new homeport, Port Canaveral, Florida., and made preparations for the first at-sea launch of a Polaris missile. Designated UGM-27, the missile was successfully launched from the USS Observation Island on August 27.

Following this milestone, the USS Observation Island steamed to the Norfolk Naval Shipyard for installation of a fire control system to enable her to launch more sophisticated guided versions of new generation Polaris missiles. She also received a new launcher, the developmental prototype of those installed in the Fleet Ballistic Missile (FBM) submarines.

This work was completed in January 1960 and the USS Observation Island returned to Port Canaveral to continue Polaris test launch operations. After a total of six launchings, the ship commenced support of Polaris launchings from FBM submarines. She provided optical and electronic data gathering services, and acted as communications relay station between submerged submarines and the supervisor of range operations at the Cape. The first successful fully guided Polaris missile launching from a submerged submarine took place July 20, 1960 from the USS George Washington (SSBN-598). Through October the USS Observation Island also supported launches from the USS Patrick Henry (SSBN-599).

Following further modifications at Norfolk Naval Shipyard in the fall of 1960, Observation Island returned to Port Canaveral in December to continue FBM support work and systems test and evaluation. She received the Navy Unit Commendation December 15, 1960; launched the new A-2 Polaris March 1, 1961; and supported the first submerged A-2 launch from the USS Ethan Allen (SSBN-608) on October 23, 1961.

In late 1961 the USS Observation Island served as a survey ship on the Atlantic Missile Range, and in January 1962 she again put in at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, this time for modifications preparatory to launching the new A 3 Polaris. Returning to Port Canaveral in March, she supported FBM submarines through the following autumn, when she steamed for two months of operations on the Pacific Missile Range.

The USS Observation Island was back at Port Canaveral by Christmas, and until June 1963 she expanded her role of oceanographic survey in the Atlantic Range. She conducted the first successful at-sea launches of the A-3 Polaris on June 17 and 21st. President John F. Kennedy came on board November 16, 1963 to observe a Polaris launch.

She then continued to operate essentially as a sea-going platform from which missile launches can closely approximate conditions encountered in FBM submarine launches. Her equipment was constantly being modified, allowing prototypes to be tested thoroughly before missiles and associated components become operational with the US Navy Fleet. As a mobile platform, she conducted tests on instrumented ranges.

The USS Observation Island was redesignated AG-154 on April 1, 1968. She commenced an extensive ten month conversion June 24, 1968 at Norfolk Naval Shipyard in preparation for support of the Poseidon C-3 missile program. The summer of 1969 found her once again at Port Canaveral, ready to resume experimental missile launchings, to assist in the training of FBM submarine crews, to assist in FBM submarine shakedown operations at Cape Kennedy, and to support other important phases of the development and deployment of FBM Weapons System. She continues this significant work until decommissioning on January 1, 1972.

Covers from the USS Observation Island are collected by both space and naval collectors but are very reasonably priced. Shown below is a cover sent to the “Prospective Commanding Officer of the USS Observation Island with an invitation to the commissioning ceremony.

Interestingly, the cover below was cancelled for the commissioning and then turned into a “possible” space cover by the addition of the data of the flight of a Terrier 1 rocket from Wallops Island that day. In all actuality this is only a commissioning cover. The USS Observation Island did create two different RSC to be applied to covers sent in by collectors with covers mailed for both launches from the ship itself and while observing launches from the FBM submarines. The one depicted was created for the Polaris program, a later cachet was a more generic cachet to the ship. Covers with USS Observation Island cancels are also found with Goldcraft cachets and many of the covers in the mid-1960s have naval servicer cachets.

Thanks to hullnumber.com for detailing the history of the USS Observation Island used in this post.

posted 11-28-2011 08:51 AM               

Shortly after completing her shakedown cruise, the USS Benjamin Franklin’s Gold Crew received their first opportunity to test fire a Polaris A-3 missile off the Florida coast. The USS Observation Island supported this launch. The launch took place on December 6, 1965, in conjunction with the flight of NASA’s Gemini 7 mission. The missile was fired as the Gemini capsule, piloted by astronauts Frank Borman and Jim Lovell, passed overhead.

This image (NASA Photo ID: S65-63797) taken from Gemini 7 in the upper right shows the missile and trail.

The cover has the USS Benjamin Franklin's ship crest RSC applied by the USS Benjamin Franklin cancelled aboard the USS Observation Island on launch day. Submarines do not have ship cancels for postmarks.

posted 11-30-2011 07:50 PM               

This cover looks like a "normal" Orbit cover for the Gemini 7 mission but it doesn't have the frequently seen launch or recovery dates but the date of the Polaris A-3 launch from the USS Benjamin Franklin with the USS Observation Island tracking the launch.

Flipping the cover over it has the ship crest RSC applied by the USS Benjamin Franklin on the back.

posted 12-19-2023 08:01 AM               

Where was the USS Observation Island docked when at Port Canaveral (and can anybody locate this on a map for me)? Do Observation Island cancelled covers reach the necessary qualifications to be considered launch covers by competitive Astrophilatelists? And was the Observation Island when in port actually closer to any rocket launch than Port Canaveral, Patrick AFB, or KSC POs?

...and because it is always good to have illustrations I would like to showcase a number of USS Observation Island related covers I have, some of them significant milestones in the history of the ship:

• USS Observation Island launched the first at-sea firing of a Polaris missile on 27 August 1959. I have a Goldcraft cover with USS Observation Island referenced in the text.
  

• In 1960 USS Observation Island commenced support of Polaris submarine launchings. The first successful fully guided Polaris missile launching from a submerged submarine took place 20 July 1960 from USS George Washington. I have a cover with a generic cachet that references USS Observation Island in the additional text (EAG-154 - the ship's classification identifier).
  

• USS Observation Island launched the new A-2 Polaris. I don't have a cover for the initial 1 March 1961 firing, but this is a very nice cachet and cancel cover for a 25 May 1961 Polaris A-2 at-sea-launch from the ship's deck, which took place on the same day that President Kennedy committed the US to a moon landing within the decade.
  

• On 6 December 1965 the crew of Gemini 7 witnessed from space the launch of a Polaris missile by the USS Benjamin Franklin. The Polaris launch was monitored and relayed by USS Observation Island and I have a very nice onboard cancellation, on what I believe is a Goldcraft cacheted envelope - although I've not been able to confirm that.
  

• Additionally I have some other covers including a launch cover for a sub fired Polaris, and a cover for the fifteenth overall (and second from the USS Observation Island) firing of a Poseidon missile...
  

  

posted 12-20-2023 12:04 PM               

The autographed photo-portrait of William "Red" F. Rayborn (1905-1990) I almost had forgotten about in my US Navy folders and files of the Polaris, Poseidon, and Trident sub-launched ballistic missile programs. Vice Admiral Rayborn, also known as "Mr (Admiral) Polaris," under direction of the USN, developed and headed-up since 1955 the Polaris missile program and under his leadership designed the first nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine, the USS George Washington. There are two other photos of the first ship-fired Polaris' from the USS Observation Island itself in 1961 signed by the Commanding Officer at the time, Navy Captain Joe Williams, Jr.

Forgive me Alan for showing the same airmail cover of the first test sub-fired Polaris missile on July 20, 1960, which has a rather simplistic Finney/Nickel servicers rubber stamp cachet. But it was this crucial missile sea- test flight that Admiral Rayborn had the enormous task of overseeing for the first time in U.S. Naval history. He had delivered Polaris three years ahead of schedule and during that same year received the Collier Trophy for his pioneering work on Polaris.