- Name: Leland Bruce Schaar
- Location of Birth: Daisy Forsman Clinic in Deer River, Minnesota
- Date of Birth: June 28, 1941
- Date of Death:
- Parents: Bruno and Alfhild Schaar
- High School and Class: 1958 - Deer River High School, Deer River, Minnesota
- College: 1962 - University of Minnesota
- Highest Rank: LTJG (Lieutenant Junior Grade)
- Branch: Navy
- Other Branch:
- Date Sworn In: December, 1961
- Place Sworn In: Minneapolis Recruiting Station, Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Date of Discharge: March 8, 1966
- Place of Discharge: Treasure Island Naval Station, San Francisco, California
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Units and Locations:
Start Date End Date Unit(s) and Location(s) Served October, 1962 March, 1963 Officer Candidate School at United States Naval Training Center in Newport, Rhode Island March, 1963 June, 1963 Diesel Engineering School, Coronado Beach, San Diego, California June, 1963 March, 1966 USS Savage (DER 386) at Honolulu, Hawaii - Military Awards:
- Military Highlights:
I was home ported in Honolulu, Hawaii for almost three years aboard the USS Savage (DER 386). The Savage was a World War II version destroyer escort and we made patrols off the Aleutian Islands as search and rescue for aircraft flying the DEW Line (Distant Early Warning Line) patrol from Midway to Alaska. Because we were a diesel powered ship we could stay at sea for extended times without refueling. Thirty days was our average length of patrol. From May to September the patrols were non-memorable but from September to May, we constantly experienced 20+ foot seas and high winds. On one memorable patrol we experienced two typhoons and a gale in a 30-day period which gave us 50' seas and 100 knot winds. Not an enjoyable experience!
In 1965 the Savage was to be decommissioned and I had been given shore duty orders stateside along with 30 days leave. On our last patrol we received a message that all orders were cancelled and we would be going to Vietnam to patrol that coastline. Since I had not been home for two years that was very disappointing. After a couple months in the shipyards in Honolulu to get repairs and add additional armament, we sailed for Vietnam and were there for nine months doing patrols up and down the coast. Our longest stay at sea there was 45 days. We did stop at Da Nang and Vung Tau but only for brief times.
Patrolling the Vietnam coastline at night was very nerve-wracking as there would be numerous fishing junks out and, of course, they had no running lights and we were also unlighted. We would see approaching junks on the radar but when we would get within a few hundred yards, they would be beneath the radar and disappear off our scope. Fortunately we did not hit any but there were some near misses.
We departed Vietnam in time to return to Honolulu and for me to be discharged at Treasure Island and back home arriving on my sister Shirley's birthday on March 8th. - Wars Involved:
Vietnam Era - MIA / POW:
- Civilian Life:
- Tribal Affiliation(s):