|
Football
Zook Enjoys Landing and Launch From Stennis Carrier (the full story)
June 3, 2008
By Cassie Arner, Illinois Sports Information Teamwork, Dedication, Passion and Loyalty. You would be very hard pressed to find any one member of the 5,500 men and women, who make up the USS John C. Stennis aircraft carrier, who don't carry those feelings. From the minute you catch that first trap and are swept off the flight deck by the many crew there to keep you safe, you feel that togetherness. For this particular trip we landed on a carrier waiting and training for deployment. This crew is made up of some who were ships' company in the previous deployment, which took them to the Arabian Sea - but many are making their initial embarkment. Regardless of rookie or veteran, you can't help but feel the patriotism that exudes from every portal of the massive ship. We were met by our "tour guides" (and I will apologize for not remembering everyone's rank) Lt. John Perkins, public affairs officer, and Dave Shark. From our arrival at Noon to our last stop of that first day which ended at Midnight, those two shuffled us through nearly every aspect of that vessel. At football games when we know we will have a fly over after the national anthem, there seems to be an extra bounce in everyone's step with anticipation. That feeling is nearly ten-fold when you see the act up close and personal. We were lucky enough to experience the landings and launches from many different perspectives -- the Bridge (Admirals' deck), Vulture's Row (outside approximately two levels above flight deck) and lastly no more than 20 feet from the catapult itself at flight deck level. We could have spent hours just watching landings (with our double-ear protection) trying to gauge which trap the jet would snag. There was something larger than life about the experience -- to watch a whole team come together to ensure a safe landing. When the aircrafts approach the carrier and attempt landing the engines are at full go to allow the plane to safely take off if a trap does not happen. In most airports, your air traffic control sits atop a tall tower. Not on the carrier, it actually sees no daylight and handles all its control of traffic from the level below. Also on that level the hydraulics for the traps are housed, one room for each of the four possibilities. Ideally, pilots should connect with the third in the line of four traps, with No. 2 being your second best option. Needless to say during our viewing time, No. 3 got a lot of work.
Obviously the technology on this ship is overwhelming for a first-time visitor and unmatched by any other country in the world. But like Zook says, "People make a place" and that was true on the Stennis as well. Being able to meet and talk with Navy personnel on the ship was the highlight for many of us. We were exposed to the highest levels (Admiral, Executive Officer, Captain, Master Chief) as well as those just enlisted. On a much smaller scale you could place members of our football team and staff in the shoes of these sailors. When we met with the pilots of the Blue Diamonds (one of the nine squadrons on the Stennis) they took every opportunity to shower praise on the flight deck crew who rarely get credit. The glamour often goes to the pilots (the quarterbacks, the linebackers) but not enough to the people who get them where they need to be (the linemen in the trenches). When we talked with the Master Chief (assistant coaches), he couldn't stop gushing about how well trained his men and women were, very protective of the morale and focus of the ship. He also stressed that it all stared with the positive tone set by the ship's Captain, the top of the leadership ladder (head coach). Personally, I closely watched PAO (public affairs officer) Perkins, who I like to call the ship's SID.
Two other very unique experiences we were fortunate enough to witness were General Quarters and the advancement of selected sailors. On Tuesday evening, General Quarters was called which calls for ship's company to practice crisis situations. During this period on the ship they are called often to ensure the effectiveness of the teams' responses to various potential situations. Once again, you see the attention to every detail that goes into their training. One small mistake can have dire consequences. Wednesday morning, sailors of different ranks were promoted in rate and pay grade - some were planned and expected, but the Captain also had the ability to surprise 15 people with unplanned promotions. Despite not wanting to leave the ship, we all knew that potentially the most exciting part of the trip was to come at our departure. Again, we were aware of the unique opportunity we were being given in being launched from the ship. We were told the catapult would shoot us out in 1.4 seconds and send us from 0-140 knots in that same amount of time. Also that it would exceed the exhilaration of any roller coaster we had experienced. Well, they were right! For more information on the USS John C. Stennis, visit the ship's website at http://www.cvn74.navy.mil/home.html A special thanks goes out to ... CRN Steven Cincotta, commanding officer for the recruiting district in St. Louis who made this trip possible for Coach Zook and his staff ... Joe Walker, GS and Navy veteran, who took care of us on the base in Coronado ... Lt. John Perkins, your warmth and humor made the tour enjoyable (even though you blew us off on day 2) ... Dave Shark, who didn't blow us off ever ... Blue Diamond and Argonaut pilots who let us crash their ready rooms, especially Officer Mike "Porkins" who probably gave up his night off to educate us on night landings (good luck on your new family) ... "Funboss" Chris Cation for wowing us with your outstanding stories (we will get to the bottom of your name) ... and last but certainly not least the leadership of the Stennis for their hospitality, Captain Bradley E. Johanson, Commanding Officer; Commander Dave Burhnam, Executive Director; CMDCM Joseph M. Powers, Command Master Chief. |
