The Navy Frogmen

[Music] the story of the United States Navy's frog men is a story of Adventures of brave men against the enemy and against the sea the work they did in the Pacific in World War II and later in the waters of Korea against the Communists stamped the underwater demolition team Sailors as Giants of physical strength and towers of moral and physical courage but the average Frogman is not a giant what is it then that makes a UDT man watch we'll show you it starts like this this is so solid day just one day in the week affectionately called hell week this week is as rough as it looks and nerve-wracking as when this happens hell week is designed to see how much you are willing to take to become a frogman and we of the UDT want to know if you have have what it takes to become one of us some decided they didn't want to become frog men after all the rest of us developed the attitude that being a frog man was worth paying any price for at Chia you looked around to see who was left your buddies are there and still smiling you knew then that this was the kind of an outfit that would stick together and together you weathered basic hell week so solid day what's next on the agenda the training Tower at New London Connecticut and psychological underwater training 110 ft of water set on its end they said you were going to swim in it all of it it may not be part of the court but the first psychological reaction comes when cold hands meet a warm B first up the pressure chamber here you check out on your ability to withstand pressure they take you down and bring you up then down again before you're finished you feel like a Pneumatic yo-yo you take the elevator to the top of the tank and you get the UNG garbled word on how not to drown the instructor was telling you that if you came up too fast and didn't didn't let out enough air your lungs would burn if you let out too much air you'd sink then you were doing it and the instructor's voice haunted you okay boys back arch remember those bubbles follow those bubbles okay blow it all out you made the next one from 50 ft in the lock at 50 ft you had taken in air under eight atmospheres of pressure and you blew and blew and you stalled out you never had anything take so long in your life you thought you'd never come up but you did and one by one your buddies qualified then you are introduced to the tools of your trade first the plli lungs an oxygen closed circuit rebreather type with this outfit no Telltale bubbles to disclose your position they tell you not to go below 30 ft with this rig and they mean it some learned it the hard way he recovered but he got washed out the Aqualung and open circuit type was next with this gear you could get the key from the lock of Davey Jones's Locker it would go as deep as you could go and with it you met many the Tank Master the next few days you felt like a bar of soap in a hand laundry clean but well used you felt you really knew your stuff when you could swim to the bottom ditch your Aqualung and come back up in fact you were feeling more comfortable underwater than on top now you were ready for bigger things Advanced operational training at St Thomas in the Virgin Island this is where the weeks and months of previous training pay off for those of us who are still left here is where you become a real UDT man you make the short shallow swim first to get used to following a Compass Course underwater and sticking with your [Music] buddy [Music] one week you swim with the pelli the next week with the Aqua Lung you swim in pears and your location is always marked on the surface with a boy you get to know your buddy on these swims the two of you start to think as one every motion that is made is known by the two of you here in this world of curta of life in the silent world of dancing caral and playful fish it's a mighty good feeling to know your buddy will be there with [Music] you and you know that the vigil is maintained watching waiting expecting praying that trouble never come but if it does come help is only second [Music] [Music] away there are some mornings when they get you up before the sun comes up and you do a few simple exercises just to keep those muscles stretched out and in shape you do a couple hundred of these and a few of these and you might have to March a few miles before breakfast but you sure do eat and there's no need to worry about getting fat you may put on weight but when this training is over it won't be your middle where the uniform gets tight you [Applause] train then train the more you improve on the methods Tau before you press [Music] it then practice the more the old is worked on until it becomes letter perfect then you learn the [Music] [Applause] new a Miss now means only more practice but in combat you can't afford to miss unlike horseshoes the close ones don't count one thing about being a frog man you not only swim underwater you also get to ride under it getting into a submarine this way isn't too easy but to a UDT man the hard way comes later once we are underway we are briefed on our mission we get our Compass Course the depth of the swim the objective and most important where the submarine will be for [Music] pickup [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] violently cautiously we begin to lock out from the [Music] submarine [Music] you set the compass on course then recheck your setting again everything checks out and you're on your way you keep that hand out in front of you using it like a submarine's diving plane to keep you level or to make you go up or down your hand also helps when you swim at night or in mury water at least your head won't be the first thing to come in contact with an [Music] obstacle you swim slowly on the way back can't afford to waste too much air with too fast a pace you check your compass watch DEATH gate let's see left the beach 15 minutes ago 35 ft reading 98° on course should be sighting the submarine soon you don't salute the colors as you pass but you know below the soft undersea flutter of your flag this is home you get in as fast as you can not much air left and the men behind had the same problems and are in the same boat or should I say they want to be in the same [Music] boat a last minute check of equipment is made the place inside the submarine the time another training day perhaps night would be a better word a maximum security swim at night the swim will be made at a shallow depth so pelli lungs are in order [Music] at night nature supplies a soft glowing light to illuminate nearby objects in her Underwater World the dim light gives you some comfort yet makes objects look strange and mystifying [Music] you check your course and shove [Music] off you keep your eyes glued to your compass both going out and coming in it can be a long swim if you miss your pickup [Music] point the week progress and so does our training we know what to do in the event our equipment develops trouble we get training in handling trouble from another source also some may call it [Music] Judo [Music] you train hard you play hard even the timid become bold Liberty yes Liberty one of the events looked forward to by everyone and a UDT man is no exception here at St Thomas you stop to buy some fruit in the Market Square have a stroll down Main Street take a few pictures of an Old Fort built in 1671 you pay a visit to Blue Beard's Castle then you rest and look out over the Atlantic from Drake sea it said that Drake used to look for pirate ship from here but to a UDT man the best Liberty is spent underwater from probing the mysterious depths of the Seas he lessens the Mysteries he becomes the creature of the sea he learns skills that are not in the training course but skills that will make him a better UD DT man [Music] [Music] [Music] then it came the day of the last qualifying swim make this one your in a qualified UDT man the word is passed half of the team swims with aqualungs paries for the rest tanks are filled to capacity before this s is over you're going to need a full tank this is going to be a long one a mile and a half on Compass Course every foot of it underwater you're allowed 100 ft from dead center of the Target on the beach yet outside that Mark well you can always try it again next year the skipper and the exec drive over to watch your departure it's a good feeling to know that they take take an interest in [Music] you [Music] the course is given and you set your comp time is Drawing Near The Craft are approaching the drop off point you secure your buddy line give a last minute check and stand by you know your equipment you you know how much you can take physically yet the question is still there can I make it will I make it you're on the way aqualon and pelli 2 by two you leave the landing [Music] craft [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] e [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] yes as we said before within 100 ft of the target you're qualified a scorekeeper has kept the log to give an accurate rating to each Frogman final scores are tallied and we head for home after becoming qualified further training is afforded by assignment to one of the units operating in conjunction with a fleet here in assimilated or realistic combat conditions the Frogman becomes even more specialized as a UDT man under these conditions newer and better methods are worked out every day planting charges on the beach is but one of the Frogman specialties whether working in pairs or working as a part of the complete team the Frog men work silently swiftly to clear the way for the amphibious Landings to [Music] follow [Music] the story of the United States Navy's frog men is a story of Adventure of brave men of proud men the men of the underwater demolition team