Naval Base Subic Bay was a major ship-repair, supply, and rest and recreation facility of the Spanish Navy, United States Navy located in Olongapo, Zambales, Philippines. The Navy Exchange had the largest volume of sales of any exchange in the world, and the Naval Supply Depot handled the largest volume of fuel oil of any navy facility in the world.[1] The naval base was the largest overseas military installation of the United States Armed Forces after Clark Air Base in Angeles City was closed in 1991. Following its closure in 1992, it was transformed into the Subic Bay Freeport Zone by the Philippine government.

The Vietnam War was the period of peak activity as Subic Bay became the U.S. Seventh Fleet forward base for repair and replenishment after the Gulf of Tonkin incident in 1964. The average number of ships visiting the base per month rose from 98 in 1964 to 215 by 1967. The base, with 6 wharves, 2 piers, and 160 mooring points and anchorages, had about 30 ships in port on any given day. [4] [5] Alava pier was extended by 600 feet (183 m) in 1967. The record of 47 ships in port was set in October 1968. About one-third of these were Military Sea Transportation Service ships bringing 45,000 tons of food, ammunition, and supplies and 2 million barrels of fuel oil, aviation gasoline, and JP-4 jet fuel each month including fuels transferred to Clark Air Base via a 41-mile (66 km) pipeline. The Naval Supply Depot maintained an inventory of 200,000 parts. The 4,224,503 sailors visiting Subic Bay in 1967 purchased more than $25 million in duty-free goods from the Navy Exchange.[6]

      More than $63 million of construction projects contracted between 1964 and 1968 did not prepare the Ship Repair Facility (SRF) for the increasing workload and emergency peaks generated by the war. American military and civilian population totaled about 4,300; and more than 15,000 Filipino SRF workers worked 12-hour shifts for an average of over 60 hours per week. The physical plant consisted of quonset huts put up after World War II; and workers used obsolete tools and equipment supplemented by machine tools made available by decommissioning the New York Navy Yard. Additional floating drydocks and a third repair ship were assigned from the United States to increase the capabilities of the repair facility.[6]

      NAS Cubi Point served as the primary maintenance, repair and supply center for the 400 carrier based aircraft of the Seventh Fleet's carrier force. The jet engine shop turned out two jet engines a day to keep pace with the demands of the air war in Vietnam.[7]

      Following the fall of Saigon in the summer of 1975 hundreds of thousands of refugees fled Vietnam. Thousands of these refugees were rescued at sea by U.S. Navy ships and taken to Subic Bay. A temporary processing center that handled thousands of refugees was set up on Grande Island in 1975. They were later taken to the Philippine Refugee Processing Center in Morong, Bataan. The Military Bases Agreement of 1947 was amended in 1979, changing the role of the Americans at Subic Bay from landlord to guest. The amendment confirmed Philippine sovereignty over the base and reduced the area set aside for U.S. use from 244 to 63 square kilometres. Philippine troops assumed responsibility for the perimeter security of the base to reduce incidents between U.S. military and Philippine civilians. The unhampered operation of U.S. forces was assured. The U.S. granted the Philippines $500 million in military sales credits and supporting assistance.

Closure

      On June 15, 1991, Mount Pinatubo, just 20 miles (32 km) from Subic Bay, exploded with a force 8 times greater than the Mount St. Helens eruption. Day turned to night as volcanic ash blotted out the sun. Volcanic earthquakes and heavy rain, lightning and thunder from Typhoon Yunya passing over northern Luzon made Black Saturday a 36-hour nightmare.[8]

By the morning of June 16, when the volcano's fury subsided, Subic Bay lay buried under 1 foot (0.30 m) of rain-soaked, sandy ash.

Buildings everywhere collapsed under the weight of the coarse gray ash. Two girls, one a nine-year-old American and the other a Filipino citizen, died when trapped under a falling roof at George Dewey High School. In the city of Olongapo, more than 60 volcano-related deaths were reported, including eight who were crushed when part of Olongapo General Hospital collapsed.

        Clark Air Base, much closer to Mount Pinatubo, was declared a total loss and plans for a complete closure were started.

On December 27, 1991, President Corazon Aquino, who had previously fought to delay the U.S. pullout to cushion the country's battered economy, issued a formal notice for the U.S. to leave by the end of 1992. Naval Station Subic Bay was the U.S.'s largest overseas defense facility after Clark Air Base was closed.

These pictures are the first of three parts of our trip:

A view of the bay

The beginning of our adventure

Sassy girl - according to Edward

The Map

I've got this one eating out of my hand haha!

Monkey who?

Sister Lacanienta and parakeets.  No way would I do
this.  I remember Clint having parakeets....

Hanging upside down.

Lots of snakes - this was my favorite

You want me to get in this Jeepney and do what
with this piece of chicken?

Yep, here comes the big boy to eat the chicken.

Yeow!

Yikes!

We made it out alive.  This is in the Tiger cages.  Do
they really need to warn people of this????

FYI

FYI

This is creepy!  Bats in the middle of the day.  They
are fruit bats and are active when it is light.

You people look like my next meal!

See ya later alligator.  After while crocodile!  It was
spooky to walk over the top of these crocodiles.

At the Hotel - rub a dub dub.  I finally found a tub!  It was wonderful.

The maids have way too much time on their hands.  The
towels were folded into swan-hearts.  Cute - but ...

Subic Bay

The Bay from our hotel.

Pool

Our place was not this posh.