August 31, 2019
By Jack Reagan
As published in The Thistle newsletter
I am a Navy veteran having served in the Navy Air Corps for about 3 years.
A year following my discharge, I was recalled into the Korean conflict to serve in the Navy Air Corps once again. I was eventually sent to San Francisco, California and assigned to a Navy ship, a seaplane tender, the USS Pine Island. The ship de parted and was headed to Lwikuni, Japan, where our squadron would be based. Our mission was flying reconnaissance hops, operating in conjunction with a squadron of British Sunderlands. We would fly alternate routes, to the Russian border, across South Korea to Manchuria and return to our home base in lwikuni.
In route to Japan, I was standing at the rail of the ship, just enjoying the beautiful color of the ocean, which was a greenish blue, when I noticed what I to be white objects floating past and close to the side of the ship. The objects seemed very similar to a fish, I thought.
There just happened to be an old-time sailor standing not far from me, so I approached him and asked if he noticed the white objects floating past and close to the side of the ship. “Oh yes,” he said, “they are only found in the Pacific Ocean.” “What are they,” I asked. He said, “They are called “Flashlight Fish.” I told him I had never heard of the species before. He said, “They are only found way out here.” So, I said thanks, and he left.
Following the completion of my tour of duty in Japan, I returned to the states aboard the same ship to be discharged in California. While aboard the ship, again standing along the railing, I again noticed those white things floating past and close to the side of the ship. I guess they were the “Flashlight Fish.” There just happened to be another sailor standing close by and I asked him if he noticed the “Flashlight Fish” floating by. He said, “What did you say.” I told him again, and he said, “Where did you get that?” So, I told him that I was told they were “Flashlight Fish” by a sailor on the way to Japan. He said, “He must have been kidding you. You know what those are?” I said, “What?” He then said that it was nothing but toilet paper being discharged from the forward piping outlet. I thanked him, he left laughing.
Peak Update – Last Laugh
The Peak thanks Jack Reagan for his great story and frequent contributor Al DeVito for sending it to us. We want Mr. Reagan to know that he has the last laugh. There really are “flashlight” fish that live in the ocean and not the bathroom. Below are images from Encyclopedia Brittanica.
The Peak Welcomes Your Comment
GPPA Membership Make a Donation to GPPA Peak Advertisements & Advertorials
Recent Comments