Fightin' Navy #76

Chick Herbert, a second-class boatswain's mate aboard a Navy cruiser on a Mediterranean goodwill cruise, stumbles into a North African bar and overhears a plot by communist insurgents to dynamite the American consulate. After a narrow escape, Herbert races to warn the consul and joins the defense of the compound against the underground's attack. Though Herbert's heroics help thwart the raid, his unauthorized absence from ship lands him in hot water with his captain—but not quite as much as the sailor had feared.

Simp the Sailor stakes out what he thinks is the perfect secluded spot aboard ship, confident his fellow sailors lack his refined technique—but his scheme quickly goes sideways when his antics inadvertently send a signal to another vessel. This one-page romp captures the kind of slapstick mishap that made Simp a standout in Fightin' Navy's humor pages.

The USS Harding, a worn-out destroyer crewed by seasoned professionals, receives orders to become a decoy off the Korean coast—deliberately drawing enemy fire to reveal shore gun positions while friendly planes wait to strike. Commander Roebling and his exhausted men sail into a deadly gauntlet, enduring merciless bombardment and enemy aircraft as they hold their battered ship together and keep firing, knowing their sacrifice will protect a troop convoy heading for the islands. A crippled but defiant crew fights to survive one of the toughest assignments of the war.

Third Mate John Rivers signs on to the aging Eleanor S., a freighter loaded with a valuable cargo bound north from Santiago—but he quickly discovers the captain and a corrupt crew have something far more sinister in mind than an honest voyage. When sabotage and deception threaten to doom the ship and everyone aboard, Rivers must decide whether to go down with the vessel or trust in an unexpected rescue as a hurricane bears down on the helpless hulk.