LOUIS J. CATTERA Norfolk to Abadan and the Long Way Home

Annotation

Norfolkto Abadanand the Long Way Home: A Story of USS Soley (DD-707)1956-1957, is the narrative of a destroyer during the Cold War Era.Detached from the Sixth Fleet andsent to the Middle East for a tour of duty with COMIDEASTFOR prior to the 1956joint British/French invasion of Egypt, USS Soley incompany with USS Barton made the transit of the Suez Canal and suddenly foundtheir selves stranded east of Suez due to its war related closing. Thisunforeseen incident resulted in an unprecedented 15,000 mile voyage home whichbegan in Abadan, Iran,and ended in their home port of Norfolk,Virginia, fifty-five days afterbeing detached from the Middle East. Based on the personal journalsand observations of the author, with excerpts provided by Captain Charles H. Witten USN, (Retired), Commanding Officer, USS Soley (DD-707), 1955-1957, from his UnpublishedAutobiography, this is the story of life aboard a destroyer as experienced by ayoung seaman serving his enlistment who found himself in a rare position to seea large part of the world before its present day drastic changes took place.