Customer Reviews

The Arnheiter affair

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This story is so very true and the description of Marcus Arnheiter is factual. The man should never have been given command of a ship much less left to remain in the Navy. He is a disgrace to our military forces everywhere. I served under him when he was the XO on the USS Ingersoll as a radionman.

In March of 1966, I was on the USS Falgout DER-324 which was tied alongside the Vance in Manila Bay. I recall hearing the infamous reveille tape while I was there. I learned all about Arnheiter and his reign of terror from a couple of Vance sailors while I was on liberty one night. When I read the book a few years later, I realized that it was all true. Because the Vance was a sister ship of the Falgout, the book was a very interesting read for me. I recommend it very highly if you're interested in Naval history and Navy justice.

When I was S Division Officer aboard the USS El Paso from 1971 to 1973, one of my stalwart Chief Petty Officers was SNC Gustavo P. (Gus) Revita. Chief Revita was a fine Navy man in every respect. I respected him, liked him and relied heavily on him. He never let me down.

The Chief served on the Vance throughout Arnheiter's command and had the quarterdeck watch when Navy brass finally came aboard to relieve Arnheiter of his command. I wouldn't betray the Chief's confidences by posting here everything he told me. I will say that he was reluctant to discuss the situation but told me and others who asked him about it that everything in the book was absolutely accurate.

I knew other officers who knew Arnheiter before he was given command of the Vance. None could believe the Navy gave him command at sea.

I love the Navy but it made a terrible error here before finally correcting it.

This is a well written and highly readable account of the tragedy of the Vance. I highly recommend it.

A sailor at sea has only one ultimate authority; his commanding officer (CO). What happens when the CO goes beyond the brink of rational thought? This tell-all true story describes a man who is obsessed with the enormous power of his position and wields it to do practically whatever he wishes. Force religious services on the crew, ban movies at sea, wage war against the Vietnameese in violation of direct orders not to...the only thing missing is a search for the key to the strawberries.

I was a radioman aboard the Vance from 1965-1968. Reading this book brought back many memories. Some good and alot of very tough times due to the unpredictable Arnheiter. He was a very strange person. This book is extremely accurate and very well written.

In 1972 I was in high school. Queries about this book and the constant news coverage of this case caused tremendous embarassment to me and my family. Ultimately I changed my name to my mother's maiden name.

Today I understand more than the book could ever hope to realistically describe what life was for those who served on the USS Vance.

I am also a family member who understands and appreciates the personality that was Lt. Cmdr. Marcus Aurelius Arnheiter's.

I am a daughter of Marcus' twin brother.

Forgiveness and understanding. I have both. It is the only way to let go and begin.

The Arnheiter Affair by Neil Sheehan is not fiction. It surprises me how accurately he captured the events aboard the USS Vance Der 387 off the coast of Vietnam. It surprises me because the crew was given orders not to speak to any of the news teams who came aboard. The crew was also told not to make eye contact for any pictures taken on board the Vance.

Being a radioman from 1965 - 1968 aboard the Vance I can make these comments because I now they are true.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in factual naval history.

I have read this book many times, and I have to say that it is one of my favorites. I think that it shows the average person that the greatest danger you might face in war time may not be the enemy. I have to marvel at the strength of character and will of these men to brave such a storm for so long. I am a history teacher in high school with a special interest in Naval History, and I find this book an absolute treasure. I would definitely say that it is a must read.

This book is incredibly captivating and should be read by any sea-going current or prospective naval service commanding officer or executive officer. Highly recommended reading for all of the wardroom. There are many good lessons to learn from this book - an event that actually happened. Outstanding tool for effective leadership classes, particularly in every maritime institution of higher learning.

Neil Sheehan deserves much praise for this fine piece of reporting. "The Arnheiter Affair" deals with extraordinary events which took place aboard the USS Vance during the Vietnam War era. These events culminated in the summary relief from duty of the ship's Captain, Marcus Arnheiter. This relief immediately plunged the Navy into controversy, and it was difficult for outsiders to know whether Captain Arnheiter was the victim of a conspiracy among disloyal officers (as he strenuously alleged) or whether, in fact, the Navy acted correctly in relieving Arheiter.

In my opinion, author Neil Sheehan proves his case that Captain Arheiter was spectacularly unsuited for command of a US naval vessel, and should not have been selected for command. In fact, Sheehan does a thorough job of showing that even the process for selecting Arhheiter for command appears to have been irregular or indeed, perhaps improper. More to the point, Arheiter behaved strangely and illegally during his 99 days as Captain of the Vance. Sheehan documents the apparent fact that Captain Arnheiter ordered his officers to send false position reports to conceal the apparent fact that the Vance was outside of its patrol area and violating its orders. This alone would have merited Arnheiter's relief from duty and indeed it would have justified a General Court Martial. But Arnheiter's failure to properly command the Vance was much more pervasive than this, and Sheehan's documentation of Arheiter's activities makes for fascinating reading. I could not put this one down when I first read it in the 1970s, and in re-reading it recently, I found that the story was just as enthralling now as it was when this story was first published. Sheehan portrays Arnheiter as a real-life Captain Queeg (the subject of Herman Wouk's famous story "The Caine Mutiny") and in fact some of the resemblances are striking.

In my opinion the events in connection with Captain Arnheiter in no way reflect poorly on the Navy. Every great organization will have a few misanthropes, and the Navy acted reasonably quickly to correct its mistake in appointing Arnheiter to command. Further, author Sheehan's thorough research strongly indicates that it was only a circumvention of Navy protocols that enabled Arnheiter to be assigned to the Vance.

Mr. Sheehan treats his subjects--Captain Arnheiter and the US Navy, with insight and sensitivity. This story is in no way a "trashing" of the military as is all too common in journalistic circles. This is a real-life drama and a first-class example of in-depth reporting by Mr. Sheehan, who deserves more kudos than he received for his work in producing this story. Highly recommended.