The following is an account from a crewmember of the Glomar Java Sea. The correspondence is dated 17 February, 2000. Any questions or comments, please contact AII POW-MIA.

"Greetings,

I was a former crew member of the Java Sea, and in fact joined her as she was being finished at the Livingston Shipyard in Orange, Texas, back in August of 1975.

I knew several of the crewmen who either perished or were taken captive and was on the same "hitch" as these individuals had I not parted company with ship earlier.

I have extensive maritime experience and have served on a wide variety of vessels. We were on location on the Java Sea in the Gulf of Mexico during a violent winter storm. With four anchors fore and aft she had the most peculiar motion...one that I will never forget. She felt as though she would "turn turtle" (capsize) at any moment. I never slept during the storm. I have never felt a motion like it on any other vessel.

I worked in the engine room as oiler. Whenever the drilling crew was going to raise the "BOP" (blow-out preventer), I was called upon to begin ballasting the side opposite (port) where the BOP was to be placed on deck (starboard).

The BOP weighed some 35 tons, if I'm not mistaken. If the ballasting was not done before it was raised and placed on the starboard side, the ship would list heavily. I will always remember the Java Sea as being somewhat unstable, especially with the BOP on deck.

Furthermore, while the Java Sea was attempting to maneuver around a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico, she foundered due to the practice of adding used engine lubrication oil to the "day tanks". These were the fuel storage tanks that the main engines burned from. The sludge was churned-up by the heavy seas and clogged the engine fuel filters to the point the the ship lost its way.

I can well understand the circumstances of her sinking even if there was no hostile action, which seems to have also been a factor.

I was aboard the starboard lifeboat during a fire and boat drill when the engine quit. We drifted some distance before I was able to bleed the fuel injection system in order to get the engine restarted. As in most maritime operations, safety and readiness were never as important a concern as they should have been.

A small aside: my engineer on watch was Bill Cowsill of the "Singing Cowsills" fame. He too parted company with the Java Sea and as I understand died in Mexico.

It sickens me to realize that the government of the United States has abandoned these civilians as well as countless POWs. The USG is not legitimate in any manner whatsoever. Research indicates that the USG has been a rouge government at least since the assassination of JFK and probably as far back as the FDR administration. My personal opinion is that the United States as originally conceived ceased to exist after the civil war. Benjamin Franklin was quoted as having said the revolution was lost since those they had fought had insinuated themselves back into positions of power after the struggle for independence.

Regards,

(Signature)"

Name and Address redacted to prevent spam and harassment. Should you wish to comment, please contact AII POW-MIA and we will forward your correspondence.

NOTE FROM AII POW - MIA:

There has been much confusion and correspondence regarding "Bill" Cowsill. William "Bud" Cowsill, father of the singing Cowsill Family, indeed passed away, from complications of leukemia, in September 1992. His son, also known as Bill Cowsill (which has elicted much of the confusion), passed away February 2006, in Calgary, Canada.

For more information on the Glomar Java Sea loss, please see - http://www.aiipowmia.com/sea/gljvac.html