USS Liberty survivor gives thanks to Goodfellow

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Scott Jackson
  • 17th Training Wing Public Affairs
GOODFELLOW AIR FORCE BASE, Texas --  On Oct. 17, 2003, Goodfellow Air Force Base Navy Center for Information Dominance Detachment received an original brass plaque from the USS Liberty in honor of the ships memory. The Liberty came under attack during the Six-Day War, which resulted in 200 Purple Heart recipients served, including Ronald G. Kukal and Medal of Honor recipient Capt. William L. McGonagle. Kukal gave a speech at Goodfellow on Oct. 23, 2003, sharing his story. Now, 11 years after his speech, Kukal reached out with a personal letter thanking Goodfellow for allowing him to tell his story.

"It was a tough decision, as a USS Liberty survivor and a former student at Goodfellow, to make the 800 mile trip down there to do a speech that I certainly wasn't very good at," said Kukal. "I will never forget the welcome I received, never forget the treatment that myself, my wife and one granddaughter received from some very gracious people. Thank you to the U.S. Air Force from the very bottom of this old sailor's heart."

On June 8, 1967, the USS Liberty was on maneuvers 13 miles off the Gaza Strip during the Six-Day War, between Israel and its foes Egypt, Jordan and Syria.

The Six-Day war began June 5 due to unresolved conflicts stemming from the 1948 Arab-Israel War. Expecting an attack from Egypt, Israel decided to strike first. Attacking Egypt, then Jordan and finally Syria, destroy each nation's air power in a matter of hours, giving Israel complete air superiority.

By June 8, the tensions had heightened and Israel was on a full offensive. The USS Liberty, maneuvering through the Mediterranean Sea and experiencing numerous radio and communication glitches, had immense trouble contacting Israel and Egypt to communicate their exact location and identification. With the communications so bad, the USS Liberty failed to receive orders from the U.S. to move back a few hundred miles, an order that would have altered their fate, and Kukal's.

Israeli jets flew overhead and performed flybys for most of the morning. The jets flew low, but, other than that, gave no indication of the impending attack that began at 1:58 p.m.

In his 2003 speech, Kukal told his story of what befell to himself and the USS Liberty.

"The strafing above me on the main deck was like no sound I'd ever heard of, and it seemed like the aircraft came around about every five minutes to conduct another run," said Kukal. "I don't know how many runs they made - I just didn't know what was going on, and neither did anybody else."

To add to the confusion a torpedo, launched from an Israeli motor torpedo boat, that joined the fight, struck the starboard side, 30 feet from where Kukal was standing. The blast left a hole allowing water to flow into his level.

With the ship listing at a 10-degrees and the passageways filling with muddy water, Kukal and his fellow crewmembers struggled to get on to the main deck where they met machinegun fire from the boats.

"We were so glad to get out of the watery grave below that most of us completely ignored what was going on around us," said Kukal. "I remember shaking hands and hugging everybody I could find."

The attacks subsided at 3:30 p.m., unannounced, leaving Kukal and the crewmembers tending to the wounded and signaling for help. Israel would claim they realized their mistake and stopped the attack.

On Aug. 25, 1967, Two months after the attack, the Navy honorably discharged Kukal due to a back injury sustained in the attack.

"My career was interrupted, and one of my biggest dreams was shattered," said Kukal. "I loved the Navy. I really wanted to put on a chief's uniform and then go on to the Limited Duty Officer program, but that didn't happen.

"I've spent a large share of my life, along with the other survivors, trying to tell our story."