The NAFTS Guest Book is a place for sailors and families of sailors to ask questions or make comments about Fleet Tug sailors, ships, reunions or related topics.
from
April 9, 2020
My Dad was Captain John Aitken. He was the Captain in Command of the Arikara during the Normandy Invasion. He and his crew retrieved bodies off the beach of soldiers who died on the front lines of the invasion. He also was responsible for saving many soldiers by picking them out of the water and bring them aboard his ship. He was a brave soldier who did what was expected of him, proudly. But he came home and was never the same. Life was tough for him, his wife and his children. What he saw and experience during the war was tragic. I know we call them great men, and they were, but the pain, the tragedy of war was behind horrendous. My Dad was scared terribly in so many ways. I lost my favor before I was conceived. Sorry Dad, it wasn’t your fault. The government owed you medical, emotional and spiritual help when you returned to the United States of America.
Your daughter, Cathy
Your daughter, Cathy