| Ship | Type | Designation | Covers |
| Atlantic | |||
| USS Chukawan | SRS - Oiler | AO-100 | Y |
| USS Guadalcanal | SRS - Carrier | LPH-7 | Y |
| USS Francis Marion | SRS - Amphibious Transport | LPA-249 | Y |
| USS Rankiniii | SRS - Amphibious Cargo Ship | AKA-103 | Y |
| USS Salinan | SRS - Fleet Ocean Tug | AFT-161 | Y |
| USS Sandoval | SRS - Amphibious Transport | LPA-194 | Y |
| USNS Vanguardi | SRS - Tracking Ship (Dual Role) | T-AGM-19 | Y |
| Pacific | |||
| USS Yorktown | PRS - Carrier | CVS-10 | Y |
| USS Arlington | SRS - Communication Relay Ship | AGMR-2 | Y (Scarce) |
| USS Chipola | SRS - Oiler | AO-63 | Y |
| USS Cochrane | SRS - Guided Missile Destroyer | DDG-21 | Y |
| USS Nicholas | SRS - Anti-Sub Destroyer | DD-449 | Y |
| On Standbyii | |||
| USS Rupertus* | SRS - Destroyer | DD-851 | Y |
| Tracking & Communication Ships | |||
| USNS Redstone | TS - Pacific | T-AGM 20 | Y |
| USNS Huntsville | TS - Pacific | T-AGM 7 | Y |
| USNS Vanguardi & The Second Type | TS - Atlantic | T-AGM 19 | Y |
| USNS Mercury | TS - Pacific | T-AGM 21 | Y |
| Recovery Control Center | |||
| Norfolk VA | Atlantic Recovery Control Center | N/A | Y |
| Kunia HI | Pacific Recovery Control Center | N/A | Y (Hard to Find) |
| Not Involved | |||
| USS Paiute3 | Fleet Ocean Tug | ATF-159 | Y |
| USNS Watertown7 | Tracking Ship | T-AGM-6 | Y |
| Ship | Description of Postmark | Scarcity |
|---|---|---|
| USS Yorktown | Machine Cancel | Common |
| USS Yorktown | Hand Cancel - see interesting News article | Scarce |
| USS Guadalcanal | 'A.M.' below year | Common |
| USS Guadalcanal | 'A.M.' above year | Less Common |
| USS Francis Marion | Ship Name at Top of Postmark | Common |
| USS Francis Marion6 | Ship Name at Bottom of Postmark - Beck 774 | Only One Seen |
| USS Arlington3 | Dec 21 1968 Postmark - Also this one7 | Scarce |
| USS Arlington | Dec 27 1968 Postmark | Scarce |
| USS Chipola7 | Dec 21 1968 Postmark | Scarce |
| USS Chipola | Dec 27 1968 Postmark | Common |
| Cachet | Description of Cachet | Colours | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Navy Recovery Force Cachet - Atlantic |
Designed by Morris Beck it shows an Apollo rocket vertical |
Maroon, Black | Rubber Stamp |
| Navy Recovery Force Cachet - Pacific |
Designed by Morris Beck it shows an Apollo rocket vertical |
Maroon, Black | Rubber Stamp |
| Beck Cachet - Atlantic | Similar to Navy Cachet | Blue-Red | Printed |
| Beck Cachet - Pacific4 | Similar to Navy Cachet | Light&DarkGreen-Black | Printed |
| Artopages | Artopages cachet with a maroon Navy cachet on top | Orange & Blue | Printed |
| Gordon Cachet | Apollo 8 lands after a trip to the moon etc | Purple, Maroon, Blue8 | Rubber Stamp |
| Unknown Cachet 1 | Splashdown & Recovery Operation - Type 1 | B&W | Printed |
| Unknown Cachet 2 | Recovery Operation | B&W | Printed |
| Unknown Cachet 3 | Splashdown & Recovery Operation - Type 2 | B&W | Printed |
| Unknown Cachet 4 | Splashdown & Recovery Operation - Type 3 | B&W | Printed |
|
Ship |
Known Cachet Colours |
Beck Numbers |
| USS Chukawan | Black | small numbers of 773 to 776 |
| USS Guadalcanal | Black | 772 |
| USS Francis Marion | Black | small numbers of 773 to 776 |
| USS Rankin | Black | small numbers of 773 to 776 |
| USS Sandoval | Black | small numbers of 773 to 776 |
| USS Yorktown | Maroon | 770, 771 |
| USS Chipola | Maroon | None |
| USS Cochrane | Maroon | None |
| USS Nicholas | Maroon | None |
| USS Rupertus | Maroon | None |
| USNS Vanguard | Black | small numbers of 773 to 776 |
| Cachet | Description of Cachet | Colours | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| USS Yorktown | Navy Cachet with Corner Card | Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Yorktown | Late Postmark with Ship's Cachet and corner card and Note | Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Yorktown2 | Similar to above cover but marked 'Return to Port' | Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Rupertusii | Unusual US Navy Recovery Force - Corner Card dated Dec 27 - Postmark Jan 17 | Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Rupertusii,iv | Navy Cachet - Even later postmark - 30 Jun 1969 | Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Rupertusii,3 | NASA Apollo 8 cachet - Postmark Dec 21 | All Red | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Chipola | Navy cachet on top of an unusual splashdown cachet | Maroon / B&W | Rubber Stamp / Printed |
| USS Chipola7 | Same cachet as for the Rupertus - different colours on an embossed envelope | Blue/Maroon/Red | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Chukawan | Late postmark - Additional ship's cachet | Black / Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Cochrane | Same cachet as for the Rupertus - different colours | Green/Blue/Red | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Cochrane3 | Unusual US Navy Recovery Force | Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Cochrane | Ship's Cachet - Usually on Back | Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Guadalcanal | Ship's Cachet - Usually on Back | Black | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Guadalcanal | Manned Spacecraft Recovery Force Atlantic cachet | Black | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Guadalcanal | Interesting Navy cachet is missing the text 'Moon Orbital Flight' | Black | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Francis Marion | Ship's Cachet - Usually on Back | Maroon | Rubber Stamp |
| USS Sandoval | Ship's Cachet - Usually on Back - although it can also be found on the front of a small number of covers. Note that these postmarked late - Jan 6 1969 | Black | Rubber Stamp |
| USNS Vanguard3 | A better example of the Navy cachet version | Black | Rubber Stamp |
| Postmark | Description of Cover | Postmark Date |
|---|---|---|
| PRS Cover signed by the ship's CO, the recovery heli pilot and one other | 27 Dec 1968 | |
| Great PRS cover signed by Borman, Lovell & 3 others. Includes the Commanding Officer's corner card and signature. | 27 Dec 1968 | |
| USS Yorktown9 | PRS Cover signed by Richard Korth, a member of the recovery team, and his wife. | 27 Dec 1968 |
| USS Guadalcanal | Pacific Carrier cover signed by crew of the main Recovery helicopter | 21 Dec 1968 |
| USS Guadalcanal5 | Beck B774 cover signed by an Admiral | 21 Dec 1968 |
Notes General:
i ) The USNS Vanguard had a dual role, firstly as a tracking ship and then it was moved to a different
position and acted as a Secondary Recovery Ship. Hence, two quite different cachets exist.
ii ) The USS Rupertus was on standby in port but was never activated
iii ) On Recovery day, the 27 December 1968, the designation of the USS Rankin was AKA-103. However, this was due to change on 1 January 1969 to LKA-103. Thus during Apollo 8 its correct designation was AKA-103. However, the story doesn't end there. It appears from an examination of a couple of dozen covers that someone decided to cut out the initial A from the postmark several days before the changeover! This has not been generally recognised, probably due to the usual poor state of USS Rankin postmarks from the mission.
iv) It is reported that the USS Rupertus cacheted covers up to 6 months after the recovery.
Notes Other:
1) Sold on eBay during 2011 a) 2013
2) From the collection of Robert Mcleod
3) From the collection of Tom Steiner
4) From the collection of Steve Durst
5) From the collection of Martin Schwebs Rasmussen
6) From Owen Murray's Morris Beck US Navy Covers website
7) From the collection of Gerard Zonneveld
8) From the collection of Timothy Preston
9) From the collection of Lee Kok How
This page © Dr Ross J Smith
This page is maintained by the Webmaster
Last modified on 1 July 2023
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