From Guam and Beyond

The stories in this book were supplied by squadron mates who served with the U.S. Navy's Airborne Early Warning Squadron One or VW-1, a squadron that supported the Seventh Fleet and also engaged in typhoon tracking. The squadron's existence spanned a nearly 20 year period that began with the Korean War and ended with the Vietnam War. This collection is titled “From Guam and Beyond” because the squadron was stationed on Guam but it also includes the authors’ experiences as they were stationed at or came in contact with populations at other sites in the Western Pacific, ranging from Yap in the Caroline Islands to Japan, Okinawa, the Philippines and Vietnam.


About the Authors


All of the authors were members of Airborne Early Warning Squadron One or VW-1.


Richard (Dick) Leighton was the flight surgeon with VW-1 when the squadron moved from Hawaii to Guam. Subsequently he became Chief of Cardiology and later Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of the School of Medicine at the Medical College of Ohio in Toledo. Currently he is a Professor of Internal Medicine at Mercer University School of Medicine and he chairs the Institutional Review Board at Memorial Health University Medical Center in Savannah GA. He is the author of more than 90 publications in the field of cardiovascular medicine.


Dan Ragan was a radioman with VW-1 when the squadron was based in Hawaii. He was awarded the China Service Medal and Combat Aircrew Wings for his service. After he left the Navy he graduated from Oklahoma State University with a bachelors degree in Electrical Engineering. He worked as a design engineer and as a Military Communications Products Manager for Collins Radio Company. He then obtained an MBA degree from Southern Methodist University and spent most of his professional career in Foreign Military Sales.


Floyd (Bud) Horn, Jr. was a weatherman and a Limited Duty Officer with VW-1. The remainder of his Naval career included assignments on the East Coast and at the Naval Air Systems Command in Washington D.C. On his retirement after 24 years service he received certificates of appreciation and a letter of commendation for the Director of Naval Weapons Engineering Support Activity. In civilian life he created a custom framing business in Orange Park FL from which he ran for 14 years.


David (Dave) Seibert was an Air Navigations Officer with VW-1. After leaving the Navy he got a masters degree in communication studies at San Francisco State University where he taught for 3 years. After completing a Ph.D. degree at the University of Denver he returned to the San Francisco State faculty but soon moved on to the University of Nevada where he spent 25 years, serving as department chair of a combined speech communication and theatre department. He retired in 2008.


Antonio (Tony) Apap was a pilot with VW-1. Subsequently he had a series of training assignments at Pensacola and Corpus Christi where he became commanding officer of the VT-29 squadron. After obtaining an MS degree at the Naval Postgraduate School he served aboard the USS Kitty Hawk super carrier. He retired after 24 years service and earned a Doctorate in Business Administration from International University in San Diego. He worked in real estate development and finance, then was appointed Professor of Finance at the University of West Florida. He is the author of 51 scientific papers and two books.


Norman (Norm) Bull was a pilot and the last commanding officer of VW-1. He subsequently enrolled in a Masters Program in Operations Research at the University of Rochester Business School. He was assigned roles in the offices of the Secretary of the Navy and the Chief of Naval Operations. He became Assistant Chief of Staff and Comptroller for the Naval Air Training Command at Corpus Christi TX. He retired from the Navy after 30 years service and worked another 20 years in a Department of Defense Military Study firm. He remains an intermittent employee of the Defense Acquisition University at Fort Belvoir VA.