Greek Service
Last Updated: 11/13/06
...SHE HAS SERVED US WELL!
From: GreekNavAttAlfa@aol.com
To: Mcoughlinsr@hotmail.com
Subject: KOS L-116
Date: Wed, 18 Sep 2002 12:37:53 EDT
Dear Sir:
I regret to inform you that the TERRE BONNE PARISH class LST, HS KOS L-116 (ex WHITFIELD COUNTY LST-1169), has decommissioned some months ago after a long
duration, fruitful and successful service in the HELLENIC NAVY.
As far as I know she will stay in "back-up" condition to support her "sister" the HS INOUSE L-104 (ex Terrell County LST-1157) who is still in service and
after all these many years she is still going proudly! Most of us, who had been aboard on those ships in the
past even for only one trip or a single mission, recognize its endurance.
Although the HELLENIC NAVY builds in Greece its new generation of LST's, insist to keep the L-104 in duty as a classic unforgotten value, still teaching and training the Cadets of the HELLENIC NAVAL ACADEMY.
I am trying to find some colleague who has been stationed on L-116 to introduce you.
My Best Regards,
Cdr. John S. Vlachos H.N.
EMBASSY OF GREECE
NAVAL ATTACHÉ OFFICE |
 |
The following is copies of
e-mails between Ilias Tomaras (crewman aboard HS KOS L-116) and Mike Coughlin in
chronological order. Mr. Tomaras served aboard the L-116 in a signalman-type
role on the bridge from September of 1999 to June of 2001. Mr. Tomaras is
dedicated to preserving the history of the USS Whitfield County as she transitioned
into her role in the Hellanic Navy as HS KOS L-116.
Mr. Tomaras and colleagues are
busy putting together a website that chronicles the service of the L-116. We
look forward to viewing the fruits of their labor. We also hope to add content
to this page over time as information is passed along during the website
construction process.
Thanks to Mr. Tomaras for the
pictures and stories shared to this point.
January 9th 2003
Thiw is the third time I try to send u an e-mail and I hope this one reach u.
I served in KOS from september 1999 till June 2001 when the greeck navy desided to put it out of action. I took part in the last big general repair in Creta island where we met some Americans. They had time to take SIROS with them. I have many fotos from exesises ane trasnportations with KOS. Here in Greece L-116 haw a rather peculiar story I ll tell u in an other mail of mine.
The least i can say to u is that from 1977 that passed to uw from US four
people were killed there and five were injuried.
(Sorry for my grammar)
Hope hearing from u soon
March 5th 2003
I ve tried unsuccesfully to contact a couple of
times. Hope this time reach u.
As I told u I was a member of the last crew of AG KOS. I could say that we had the oposite job in the ship as u were in the enginees and I in the bridge.
I dont know the exact name of my seat in English but I had the responsibility of signals, flags, whistles and all this.
Kos had a bad reputation because since 1974 that passed to us many things happened. The myth says that when greecks took it the americans had written on the walls "U'll see". Adittionaly
it was said that Kos job in Vietnam was to carry the corpses from Asia to America.
From what I raed later this was not truth. During the 28 years that it was in duty and under our commands five people were killed there and nine were
seriously wounded.
The problem was that in the last years Kos had bacame a place for punisment. The navy send there people who had done something or there were
not good in their jobs.During my two years there we ve lost two anchours, one man lost his foot, and three were wounded.
Untill june 2000 Kos was in full action with more than 150 days on sea in a year. The last days of june (2000) we went to Creta island for general repairs. It was first estimated that we will
stay there for three months. Finally we left Octomber and we return a month later to stay untill January.
This was the begining of the end for L-116. A couple of transportations and exersises followed and one day in Febrouary it came the order that we should prepare because in June 2001 the ship will go to
Creta and stay there forever.
This is in brief the Kos story. I ll write u some sotry with more details.
*Under the tank-spase (in the middle) and where was the stairs started to go to the rooms it was a space we called the 80 beds. It was said that it was a
refrigarator for the dead members of the crew, u know something abou it. The same space in AG INUSES it is closed and does not exist.
*KOS-INOUSES-SYROS are all names of greek island. Alla our Landing ships are named after them (SAMOS-LESBOS-IKARIA...)
*Sorry for my grammar...
March 26th, 2003
Within the next days I ‘ll try to send you some photos from KOS in exercises and transportation. If they don’t reach you I ‘ll send them in a letter. I ‘d like to inform you
that we trying to create a site too about L-116 with photos and stories from the time that it was in Greece. Additionally we are in contact with the Greek navy in order to take the permission and visit KOS in Souda where it is now. When the
site is ready I will send you all the details.
Watching photos of KOS in Vietnam I saw many little boats on the deck.
We had only four (two in the left and two in the right side).
As you were in the machines I believe that you would like to know that the main reason that Kos was put out of action was the high oil consumption.
Another basic problem we faced was with the way the moves were done. When KOS passed to all as the moves were given from
the machines and not from the bridge. In the general repair in Creta we fixed the bridge control in order to make moves from bridge. But the test-trip was o
disaster. We made a couple of miles to test the bridge control and we anchored. As we were anchored suddenly the ship start moving full-back by itself (it was
the first time I saw Kos moving so fast). With this movement the helices cut the anchor steel-rope and were damaged.
The cause of this accident, officially, was some problem with the air inside the device.
Some people said that Americans had given orders not to make moves from the bridge because was very
possible to happen this problem.
June 27th, 2003
Only yesterday I managed to find some time and scan those photos from our ship. The first is the bridge as it was 5 or 6 days before the ship goes forever out of action. Notice that the clock is missing because all such things were removed.
The second is from a transportation in Rhodes island, the last that KOS done. Last night ten people from the last crew we were gathered and talked about the site
we are going to create.
I send u those two photos and I ‘ll send u more, hopefully, in one or two days.
We have managed to collect more than 100 photos from the period KOS served Greece. In the first days of July we intend to go to Crete and take some photos from her
as she is now. Of course this something difficult and we try to take the permission to enter that place. I will send you all the information about our site and I ll try within few days to send a copy of KOS story.
