I was very honored to have been invited aboard the USS Stennis. It was a once in a lifetime experience. I had never been at sea before and even though I was on an enormous vessel, the ocean is vast. We were but a mere speck. As a middle earth dweller, I felt very small and insecure. I ventured to the conning tower a couple times to observe the ocean and watch the large sharks that followed the ship. Don’t fall overboard; you don’t have much chance of rescue.
The day before we pulled into port, I was jolted from slumber by a distant rumble, thwack, and roar. I was a bit freaked, did we hit something, was the boat sinking? About thirty seconds later the same heavy vibration and horrendous noise. Ahh, the catapult was being engaged to send the planes back to base. Our bunks were in the front of the ship so we got the loudest noise of the fling and boom of the jet engine gunning itself skyward. They could not launch from dock because they need several miles of open space. No point in trying to sleep, took a shower, and went to breakfast because Julie was working.
Disconcerting to see the stacks of empty body bags. An unfortunate reminder of the harsh reality of war. People die and there is no safe place. I didn’t feel frightened of attack but was a bit worried about sinking. Julie just said to swim away or I’d be pulled under by the surface tension. It was rather distressing to watch the black stream of sewage and waste trail behind the ship. They brought very little trash back to port. I suppose it would be a logistical nightmare but there must be some method to reduce environmental harm to the ocean from ships. I doubt that the US Navy is the only polluter. With the advent of unpersonned drones, there will be less need for aircraft carriers. These colossal transporters may phase out of existence someday.
We spent five days at sea. Under full power, they could have returned much faster but the decision had been made not to pull in during the weekend or on a holiday, Memorial Day 2002. We weren’t allowed up on the flight deck except for a couple special events due to safety issues. I felt a bit glum because I was deprived of sunlight. I would not of done well if I had a job below deck; no wonder people get depressed while deployed. You become a mole person and time becomes warped. We sailed into port of San Diego, California on a sunny Tuesday morning. My niece and I packed our luggage but only took an overnight bag. We stood topside to watch the crowd and the “first on shore” sailors. It is a great honor to be allowed to leave the ship earliest. We weren’t scheduled to get off for an hour later.
Her husband was waiting and they enthusiastically kissed. Julie warned me about the surfing sidewalk and she was right. All of a sudden it seemed like it was rising up at me. I had to get my “land legs” back. It took a couple hours until my equilibrium returned. We went out to lunch and back to their place. I wanted to stay at a hotel but they insisted that I sleep there. It was a bit awkward since they wanted to be intimate. I felt like a third wheel. We picked up our luggage the next day. I mailed the presents home since the airlines had already implemented a lot of restrictions. A next day I departed from the fabulous San Diego train station to Los Angeles. Hung out with friends for a couple days and flew back to Minnesota. Alas, I haven’t returned to California since that time due to financial restrictions and my niece has moved. I tucked away all my Hawaii and Stennis memorabilia into a box and was able to retrieve it for this article.
My perspective on war is realistic. It usually occurs due to a failure of politicians and diplomats. The military must respond with violence, which is a waste of human effort. There are no winners, only one side who has lost less than the other. An aircraft carrier is an instrument of war. It serves no other purpose besides a rare humanitarian mission. The airplanes are beautiful. The afterburner of a jet is gorgeous, especially the EA-6B Prowler. Lop it off, tip the tail toward the sky, polish the surface, and it would be a nice addition to the Walker Art Center Sculpture Garden.
Sailing on the aircraft carrier is definitely one of the most interesting experiences of my life. I would love to go on another cruise but no one in my family is in the Navy right now. As I have stated before, women need to be promoted to full combat duty in all branches of the military. All jobs must be opened, including cavalry, infantry, and special operations. That is the only way that females will reach parity in US society because so much of our civilian structure is based on the military. Period. End of discussion.
Part I was posted on May 24th and Part II posted on May 27th.
Aloha, I want to spend winters in Hawaii!
© 2012 Ima B. Musing
Showing posts with label Navy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Navy. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Sunday, May 27, 2012
TIGER TALES, PART II
Please read Part I posted on May 24th, first.
We left Pearl Harbor the next morning. I was able to look over the side of the deck and view the rusting remains of the ships sunk on December 7th, 1941*. It was rather chilling since the USS Stennis had been used to respond to the attacks of 9-11. The deck was hot but wonderful to see the port, city, and island from topside. Aloha, beautiful island. Somehow, the sailors in their dress white uniforms stood at attention for more than an hour as the ship slowly moved out. Many were looking a bit green from drinking too much alcohol at the luau. An aircraft carrier never travels alone. We were accompanied by several vessels and a couple submarines.
My niece was an enlisted seaman so I stayed in her birthing that she shared with more than 20 other women. Spartan, cramped, stainless steel, and industrial florescent lighting. The metal bunks were stacked three tall, about three feet high, three feet wide and seven feet long. Closed on three sides and a curtain on the other, kinda like a coffin with a side opening. Not exactly the Ritz Hotel with a thin foam mattress. She procured clean bed linens and a couple pillows for me. I slept in the bottom bunk just in case I needed to run to the bathroom in an emergency and I’m a bit paranoid about rolling out of bed. I stored my stuff in a good-sized locker and had my own lock. Unfortunately, the sleeping quarters reeked of chemicals, grease, and jet fuel. Due to my allergies I developed a “carrier cough” that persisted for almost a month after I debarked.
Ok, I am a middle of the continent person. I have spent a few hours here and there on little boats and canoes. I once went on a brief jaunt on Lake Superior. I had never been out to sea. I nearly tipped over before I developed “sea legs.” I had to become accustomed to the side-to-side rolling and the front-to-back rocking. The ship was less stable because it had off-loaded a lot of material as it returned to the US. After two days I noticed that the walls were moving but I could not feel it. I wore an anti-nausea patch and never got sick. We ate in the aft galley and it was cafeteria food. Julie did say that the chow was improved due to guests. Companies donated special meals for the passengers so I experienced my first taste of king crab, wowza.
My niece had to work an eight-hour shift daily. The first morning at sea I sat in the aircraft hanger bay with a lot of other people for an orientation. Afterwards, I struck up a conversation with several people wearing tan uniforms. I knew that they were some type of officer so I didn’t get overly personal. They knew my niece and asked if we would like to go on an officer deck tour at 2pm. I said yes but I wasn’t sure about Julie since she would be tired after working. They put us both on the list and I met her for lunch. Julie nearly choked when I mentioned the tour. I’d been talking to some of the top officers, she slammed down extra caffeine, and we went back to the birthing for her to clean up. We strode up seven flights of stairs for the tour. Officers have much nicer quarters and windows. At one point, Julie grabbed my arm and said, “I’ve been on this ship for three years and never allowed on this deck, you are on this ship less than 24 hours and get us a pass.”
I guess the officers liked me because I was invited to the officer’s deck to watch the jets take-off, air maneuvers, and landing demonstration. I was the only enlisted personnel family member allowed access. We wore goggles and earplugs but the sound and vibrations were deafening. I think that I shook for an hour afterwards. Stunning to watch such high-powered vehicles get flung off the ship by the catapult and then land with the aide of the tail-hook and arresting device. The pilots have to be bold and accurate or a catastrophe will be the result. They only have a few milliseconds to latch onto a thin cable on a deck that is rocking and rolling. I would be terrified to land at night. For each plane in the air, there are hundreds of support personnel who keep everything running smoothly. The flight deck personnel have to be fearless as the jets roar past. Military precision is inspiring, though sad that it is used for destructive purposes. Alas, I didn’t get to ride on any aircraft. The F-18, F-14, EA-6, S-3, E-2C, and SH-60s were all impressive flying machines.
I met the knot-tying experts, Deck Department. They had a cool display of the main types of knots that they knew how to create. Handy. Total geeks but important to mariners. All departments are vital for a ship to function at peek efficiency. I greatly enjoyed the demonstration day when many of the departments explained their function. One day I walked into to the bunkroom and found a bunch of guys standing over an open access port. They were “sounding the void” and looking for leaks because the ship had struck something. They let me look down into the bowels of the ship. It was a six or seven story drop to the bottom. Scary but cool. They located a small leak and were able to plug it from inside. It would be fully repaired when we got into port.
Marines and Special Operations teams were on board but they didn’t interact with the visitors. Very imposing, I would just say hi and maybe they would grunt in return. I visited with the Chaplains, quite friendly. My niece converted from Catholic to an alternative faith while on board. I was happy that the Navy permitted non-mainstream religious groups to meet without harassment. I hope that agnostics and atheists get the same opportunity.
One time I got lost and ended up on the smoker’s balcony. The best place to socialize on board. Personnel of all levels intermingled without taboo. It was filled with people laughing and having a great time. If it weren’t so smoky, I would have stayed. Another time I ended up in male bunks, oops. Thankfully, no one was undressed and I apologized. The female bunks at least have doors with signs. Granted, the ship only included a couple female bunks and bathrooms when it was built in 1995. The Navy was forced to become more equitable after the fiasco of Tailhook.
The ship was very worn from my initial viewing just before work-ups. It was scratched and dirty after seven years in service and an arduous deployment. The vessel was hot from being in the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean during the summer. The deck normally has several inches of metal texturing for traction but several spots were worn down to bare plate, which is dangerous. Everyone aboard was exhausted. They had flown three times as many flights as usual and been at sea longer than usual. Thankfully, no one died during the deployment. The post 9-11 stress was intense so there had been suicide attempts, illness, and accidents but none were fatal. With approximately 3,000 personnel on board that was remarkable.
The Saga Sails On…
* = My brother-in-law’s father was on shore during the attack on Pearl Harbor. He watched as his ship sunk and rarely spoke about it.
© 2012 Ima B. Musing
We left Pearl Harbor the next morning. I was able to look over the side of the deck and view the rusting remains of the ships sunk on December 7th, 1941*. It was rather chilling since the USS Stennis had been used to respond to the attacks of 9-11. The deck was hot but wonderful to see the port, city, and island from topside. Aloha, beautiful island. Somehow, the sailors in their dress white uniforms stood at attention for more than an hour as the ship slowly moved out. Many were looking a bit green from drinking too much alcohol at the luau. An aircraft carrier never travels alone. We were accompanied by several vessels and a couple submarines.
My niece was an enlisted seaman so I stayed in her birthing that she shared with more than 20 other women. Spartan, cramped, stainless steel, and industrial florescent lighting. The metal bunks were stacked three tall, about three feet high, three feet wide and seven feet long. Closed on three sides and a curtain on the other, kinda like a coffin with a side opening. Not exactly the Ritz Hotel with a thin foam mattress. She procured clean bed linens and a couple pillows for me. I slept in the bottom bunk just in case I needed to run to the bathroom in an emergency and I’m a bit paranoid about rolling out of bed. I stored my stuff in a good-sized locker and had my own lock. Unfortunately, the sleeping quarters reeked of chemicals, grease, and jet fuel. Due to my allergies I developed a “carrier cough” that persisted for almost a month after I debarked.
Ok, I am a middle of the continent person. I have spent a few hours here and there on little boats and canoes. I once went on a brief jaunt on Lake Superior. I had never been out to sea. I nearly tipped over before I developed “sea legs.” I had to become accustomed to the side-to-side rolling and the front-to-back rocking. The ship was less stable because it had off-loaded a lot of material as it returned to the US. After two days I noticed that the walls were moving but I could not feel it. I wore an anti-nausea patch and never got sick. We ate in the aft galley and it was cafeteria food. Julie did say that the chow was improved due to guests. Companies donated special meals for the passengers so I experienced my first taste of king crab, wowza.
My niece had to work an eight-hour shift daily. The first morning at sea I sat in the aircraft hanger bay with a lot of other people for an orientation. Afterwards, I struck up a conversation with several people wearing tan uniforms. I knew that they were some type of officer so I didn’t get overly personal. They knew my niece and asked if we would like to go on an officer deck tour at 2pm. I said yes but I wasn’t sure about Julie since she would be tired after working. They put us both on the list and I met her for lunch. Julie nearly choked when I mentioned the tour. I’d been talking to some of the top officers, she slammed down extra caffeine, and we went back to the birthing for her to clean up. We strode up seven flights of stairs for the tour. Officers have much nicer quarters and windows. At one point, Julie grabbed my arm and said, “I’ve been on this ship for three years and never allowed on this deck, you are on this ship less than 24 hours and get us a pass.”
I guess the officers liked me because I was invited to the officer’s deck to watch the jets take-off, air maneuvers, and landing demonstration. I was the only enlisted personnel family member allowed access. We wore goggles and earplugs but the sound and vibrations were deafening. I think that I shook for an hour afterwards. Stunning to watch such high-powered vehicles get flung off the ship by the catapult and then land with the aide of the tail-hook and arresting device. The pilots have to be bold and accurate or a catastrophe will be the result. They only have a few milliseconds to latch onto a thin cable on a deck that is rocking and rolling. I would be terrified to land at night. For each plane in the air, there are hundreds of support personnel who keep everything running smoothly. The flight deck personnel have to be fearless as the jets roar past. Military precision is inspiring, though sad that it is used for destructive purposes. Alas, I didn’t get to ride on any aircraft. The F-18, F-14, EA-6, S-3, E-2C, and SH-60s were all impressive flying machines.
I met the knot-tying experts, Deck Department. They had a cool display of the main types of knots that they knew how to create. Handy. Total geeks but important to mariners. All departments are vital for a ship to function at peek efficiency. I greatly enjoyed the demonstration day when many of the departments explained their function. One day I walked into to the bunkroom and found a bunch of guys standing over an open access port. They were “sounding the void” and looking for leaks because the ship had struck something. They let me look down into the bowels of the ship. It was a six or seven story drop to the bottom. Scary but cool. They located a small leak and were able to plug it from inside. It would be fully repaired when we got into port.
Marines and Special Operations teams were on board but they didn’t interact with the visitors. Very imposing, I would just say hi and maybe they would grunt in return. I visited with the Chaplains, quite friendly. My niece converted from Catholic to an alternative faith while on board. I was happy that the Navy permitted non-mainstream religious groups to meet without harassment. I hope that agnostics and atheists get the same opportunity.
One time I got lost and ended up on the smoker’s balcony. The best place to socialize on board. Personnel of all levels intermingled without taboo. It was filled with people laughing and having a great time. If it weren’t so smoky, I would have stayed. Another time I ended up in male bunks, oops. Thankfully, no one was undressed and I apologized. The female bunks at least have doors with signs. Granted, the ship only included a couple female bunks and bathrooms when it was built in 1995. The Navy was forced to become more equitable after the fiasco of Tailhook.
The ship was very worn from my initial viewing just before work-ups. It was scratched and dirty after seven years in service and an arduous deployment. The vessel was hot from being in the Arabian Sea and Indian Ocean during the summer. The deck normally has several inches of metal texturing for traction but several spots were worn down to bare plate, which is dangerous. Everyone aboard was exhausted. They had flown three times as many flights as usual and been at sea longer than usual. Thankfully, no one died during the deployment. The post 9-11 stress was intense so there had been suicide attempts, illness, and accidents but none were fatal. With approximately 3,000 personnel on board that was remarkable.
The Saga Sails On…
* = My brother-in-law’s father was on shore during the attack on Pearl Harbor. He watched as his ship sunk and rarely spoke about it.
© 2012 Ima B. Musing
Thursday, May 24, 2012
TIGER BY THE TAIL
Aircraft carriers are a magnificent masterpiece of engineering and seafaring. I visited my niece, Julie, who was stationed in San Diego. I was awed. It was the largest ship that I had ever seen. It made the cargo ships in the port of Duluth look puny. The carrier had just been repaired, repainted and was ready for “work-ups” to prepare the crew for a six-month deployment. It embarked and returned to be repaired, which takes about six months. Work-ups were underway when 9/11 occurred. As a result, the ship was sent out in October 2001 to the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Oman, several months before it was scheduled to leave port.
I was fraught with worry. I knew people helping at the World Trade Center Ground Zero site, Pentagon, and Pennsylvania and now a family member was being literally shipped out. The initial attack on Afghanistan was launched from the USS John C. Stennis aircraft carrier. I was anxious during Julie’s entire deployment. In February 2002 she contacted me to be her guest for a “Tiger Cruise.” I was honored and accepted, after receiving clearance from my boss and the Pentagon. I paid my Tiger fee, booked a round trip ticket to Los Angeles, and a one-way flight to Honolulu. I flew to LA on May 17th, 2002. Arrived in time to consume lunch with a friend in the fun LAX space lounge. I got the total pat down and questioning in LA as I transferred to the Hawaii flight. They asked what cruise line I was sailing on, I replied the US Navy. The response elicited a lot of chuckles and I handed them my boarding pass. Painfully long flight to Oahu but I sat next to a nice native Hawaiian and she let me know how not to insult Pele. I adore Hawaiian music so I listened on the aircraft radio when we weren’t chatting.
I stayed with friends of a friend in Honolulu. It was sweet to be greeted with a fragrant homemade lea upon arrival. They let me sleep on the couch in their spare room. Tourist has so many negative connotations. I prefer to be a traveling learner; I want to soak in the local atmosphere. I rode the bus all over Oahu and my hosts dropped me off a few times at various destinations. The volcano inspired architecture of the Hawaiian Capitol building is awesome. I visited several art museums and attended a Pow-wow. The gathering was almost identical to community Pow-wows in Minnesota except the fringe was longer and the clothing had more neon hues. I didn’t have the funds to go island hopping; I longed to see a live volcano. I did naively ask what the huge pole by the beach was for and a man growled back, tsunami. If it howls, head for the hills.
Road the “Circle Bus” around the island. It was fun getting off and on at the various stops and visiting with the locals. Completely flummoxed when someone spoke to me in Pidgin because they didn’t think I was a visitor. I had no desire to hang out with “tourists.” The behavior of some of the visitors was hideous. I only ventured to Waikiki Beach for an art fair and entertainment on the beach boulevard. My first experience with bubble tea, mmm good! Usually the residents despise tourists but because people were afraid to fly they were nice to me. Surprised that Spam was served in every restaurant I visited, except two. When I mentioned that I was from Minnesota, the people would ask if I had been to the Spam factory. Yes, I did tour the Hormel plant when I was a kid. The recent film, The Descendents, shows many of the places I visited on Oahu. Good movie but irritated that the Native Hawaiians were only portrayed in a negative manner.
I ran around Oahu for four days and knew the ship was to arrive soon. I asked my hosts to borrow their binoculars to look out at the ships approaching the harbor since we were located on a high bluff. I knew that I had a very slim chance of spotting the aircraft carrier but there it was CVN-74, moving towards port. My host was impressed with my timing. On May 22nd, I met the ship docked in Pearl Harbor. Disappointed that the museum was closed that day. It was a Wednesday so we walked over to the Flea Market at the Stadium. What a wonderful market, the best shopping on the whole island. The merchandise was diverse and half the cost of other retailers. We also ventured to the Naval Exchange to procure a few more items. I have been to a lot of military retail markets but this was the most impressive.
That night we attended a cheesy luau. The food was bland, entertainment was okay, and the drinks strong. We wore military nametags so the alcohol was 80% of the drink. I would always get an empty glass and a plain Coke to water down my rum-n-cokes. It was too strong otherwise. We sat next to a man with his ten year old son. I asked what he did on the ship, he said “Special Ops.” That ended that line of conversation. I was sitting across from a trained assassin. Not exactly dinnertime conversation so we talked about other topics.
To be Continued
© 2012 Ima B. Musing
I was fraught with worry. I knew people helping at the World Trade Center Ground Zero site, Pentagon, and Pennsylvania and now a family member was being literally shipped out. The initial attack on Afghanistan was launched from the USS John C. Stennis aircraft carrier. I was anxious during Julie’s entire deployment. In February 2002 she contacted me to be her guest for a “Tiger Cruise.” I was honored and accepted, after receiving clearance from my boss and the Pentagon. I paid my Tiger fee, booked a round trip ticket to Los Angeles, and a one-way flight to Honolulu. I flew to LA on May 17th, 2002. Arrived in time to consume lunch with a friend in the fun LAX space lounge. I got the total pat down and questioning in LA as I transferred to the Hawaii flight. They asked what cruise line I was sailing on, I replied the US Navy. The response elicited a lot of chuckles and I handed them my boarding pass. Painfully long flight to Oahu but I sat next to a nice native Hawaiian and she let me know how not to insult Pele. I adore Hawaiian music so I listened on the aircraft radio when we weren’t chatting.
I stayed with friends of a friend in Honolulu. It was sweet to be greeted with a fragrant homemade lea upon arrival. They let me sleep on the couch in their spare room. Tourist has so many negative connotations. I prefer to be a traveling learner; I want to soak in the local atmosphere. I rode the bus all over Oahu and my hosts dropped me off a few times at various destinations. The volcano inspired architecture of the Hawaiian Capitol building is awesome. I visited several art museums and attended a Pow-wow. The gathering was almost identical to community Pow-wows in Minnesota except the fringe was longer and the clothing had more neon hues. I didn’t have the funds to go island hopping; I longed to see a live volcano. I did naively ask what the huge pole by the beach was for and a man growled back, tsunami. If it howls, head for the hills.
Road the “Circle Bus” around the island. It was fun getting off and on at the various stops and visiting with the locals. Completely flummoxed when someone spoke to me in Pidgin because they didn’t think I was a visitor. I had no desire to hang out with “tourists.” The behavior of some of the visitors was hideous. I only ventured to Waikiki Beach for an art fair and entertainment on the beach boulevard. My first experience with bubble tea, mmm good! Usually the residents despise tourists but because people were afraid to fly they were nice to me. Surprised that Spam was served in every restaurant I visited, except two. When I mentioned that I was from Minnesota, the people would ask if I had been to the Spam factory. Yes, I did tour the Hormel plant when I was a kid. The recent film, The Descendents, shows many of the places I visited on Oahu. Good movie but irritated that the Native Hawaiians were only portrayed in a negative manner.
I ran around Oahu for four days and knew the ship was to arrive soon. I asked my hosts to borrow their binoculars to look out at the ships approaching the harbor since we were located on a high bluff. I knew that I had a very slim chance of spotting the aircraft carrier but there it was CVN-74, moving towards port. My host was impressed with my timing. On May 22nd, I met the ship docked in Pearl Harbor. Disappointed that the museum was closed that day. It was a Wednesday so we walked over to the Flea Market at the Stadium. What a wonderful market, the best shopping on the whole island. The merchandise was diverse and half the cost of other retailers. We also ventured to the Naval Exchange to procure a few more items. I have been to a lot of military retail markets but this was the most impressive.
That night we attended a cheesy luau. The food was bland, entertainment was okay, and the drinks strong. We wore military nametags so the alcohol was 80% of the drink. I would always get an empty glass and a plain Coke to water down my rum-n-cokes. It was too strong otherwise. We sat next to a man with his ten year old son. I asked what he did on the ship, he said “Special Ops.” That ended that line of conversation. I was sitting across from a trained assassin. Not exactly dinnertime conversation so we talked about other topics.
To be Continued
© 2012 Ima B. Musing
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