Aryeh Wetherhorn is a graduate of the University of Michigan. He served as a Naval Reserve officer in the Vietnam War, earning a Naval Achievement Medal for his performance of duty in USS Okinawa. His biography appears in the Marquis edition of “Who’s Who in the World” in 1998, 2002, and 2003 editions. He has written several full length articles on naval history that appeared in the Polish magazine “Okrety Wojenne” (Warships).
I left the ES Navy in 1972. We already planned to move to Israel. I considered the possibility of sailing in the Israeli Merchant Marine nd got a couple of letters of recommendation before we left. I also arranged for a US Merchant Marine document, but that’s a separate story. We made the move and … More A Remarkable Eye Test
The Hamas government in Gaza has been gloating over how the last round of hostilities has resulted in the resignation of Israeli defense minister Avigdor Lieberman. They claim they were responsible for his resignation. Well, that’s partly true. He wanted a stiffer response to th firing of over 450 rockets at Israeli civilians. The Prime … More And the Minister Resigned
September 20th was the Muslim Holiday of Ashura. It commemorates the death of the last members of the prophet Mohammed’s family. Historically they were killed in the battle of Karabala. But the Shiites have been waiting for their return (a second coming?) for some 300 years, There are some interesting aspects to the holiday according … More The Ashura Muslim holiday
About 50 years ago I discovered Hansa models. I bought quite a few. That included several copies of the British ASW frigate Whitby. The Whitby was a very successful design. It formed the basis for the follow up Rothesay class, and modified versions of the Whitby were sold to several other countries, mostly Commonwealth nations. … More Older model pictures – conversions
I have several carrier models in my collection. Those that survived until later in the war did receive camouflage. Several ships were converted into carriers , especially after the loss of the main carrier force at the battle of Midway. The conversions included remodeling passenger liners (Hiyo and Junyo) and converting former submarine or seaplane … More Japanese Aircraft Carrier models.
Japan, more than most other naval powers of WW2, made extensive use of seaplanes. Many of them were conversions from other types of vessels. Kamoi was converted from an oiler to be a seaplane tender. Kimikawa Maru was altered from a cargo ship. The cruiser Mogami was mentioned in an earlier blog post as having … More Japanese WW2 seaplane carrier models.
Israeli MTB Action off Port Said, July 1967 Israel emerged from the six day war of 1967 with a much longer coastline to protect. The land borders were shorter, but the sea now included the entire Sinai coast. The actual fighting was over, but the state of war was not ended. Egypt sent intelligence operatives … More Israeli MTB Action off Port Said
I have only a few models of Japanese battleships from WW2, but I think they are very interesting. The four ships were originally all identical sisters. But one was demilitarized (partially disarmed) and used as a training ship. Before the war started she was rearmed, and all 4 received modifications that left them with differences … More Japanese WW2 Battleship models.
This post is also about the continuing war between Hamas and Israel. The latest spasm of violence has, apparently, ended with yet another cease-fire agreement. To me, this means Hamas has achieved at least part of the objectives of going back to open combat again. All Israel has to show for this round, so far, … More Is it Over? Who won?
Last month I wrote about the situation between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. I fully expected it might turn into something more extensive. But I also am aware that the Israeli government has no interest in occupying /Gaza, and that is no one else willing to do so. This gives Hamas a much greater range … More A War by Any Other Name is Still a War
Wetherhorn 