Last Day As A Maintainer On C-130s. It’s Bittersweet, Amazing Planes, So Many Greta People And Stories.

Aussie Growler rocketing out on sunset with full burners!

F-22 Raptor vs man

I remember it ...

I REMEMBER THIS

I made a wood topographic Airport Diagram. Laser burnt, hand assembled. Sky Acres Airport

1931  Sikorsky S-40

Some humans on a 742 for scale

Washed clean….and almost renewed….

PHILIPPINE SEA (June 1, 2020) – United States Navy nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) transits the open ocean….passing through typical tropical downpours in the early morning hours….

….scrubbing much of the outside of the ship clean.

                                 USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71)

                                             *          *          *          *

The supercarrier is continuing to ramp-up to full fighting readiness following nearly two months of quarantine in Guam to rid the ship of a massive COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak among its crew.

Roughly a quarter of the crew of nearly 6,000 men and women tested positive for the virus at the worst of the outbreak. One crewmember, Aviation Ordnanceman Chief Petty Officer Charles Robert Thacker Jr., USN, age 41, died of complications from the coronavirus.

In respectful memory of  Aviation Ordnanceman Chief Petty Officer Charles Robert Thacker Jr., USN

The memory – and conspicuous absence – of Chief Thacker will be an enduring reminder aboard this huge warship of the perils of even the most microscopic of threats – a microbe.

But, knowing Sailors like I do (having either lived among or been one of them for a half-century), he will also be a rallying point for a crew trying to restore their ship to its very best. I have no doubt Chief Thacker would have wanted nothing less….

….as his spirit, rest-assured, sails along with his shipmates aboard this capital warship nearing a full-recovery from the coronavirus.

                                              *          *          *          *

A brief Sea Story:

Back in my own U.S. Navy ship-driving years, safety and operations permitting, the Captain would allow those of us controlling the ship to “chase” rain showers on the open ocean….to give the ship a precious fresh water washdown.

This would save the deck crew endless hours of toil in the often broiling tropical heat and humidity….and wash the ship clean of salt, dirt and other airborne corrosives. It was especially helpful keeping exterior hard-to-reach electronics systems – like radars and fire control systems – clean of those corrosive elements.

And it was a heck of a lot of fun for us professional ship-drivers since it provided some excellent maneuvering (picture ship-driving) training.

                                          ______________________

>>Top photo: Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Julian Davis, USN

red emojis

📌 - what’s your favourite picture/pin you have saved on pinterest?

i don’t have a favourite, but this is a particularly good one

🌹 - drop a sentence from one of your wips

a voice at the back of alex’s mind that sounds an awful lot like lena whispers ‘she’s always alone, though, isn’t she?’

🍷 - if you could only drink one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?

tea!

🥀 - what is the most disappointing thing that’s ever happened to you?

2020

The Independence-variant littoral combat ship USS Gabrielle Giffords (LCS 10), front, exercises with the Republic of Singapore navy Formidable-class multi-role stealth frigate RSS Steadfast (FFS 70) in the South China Sea, May 25, 2020.  (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Brenton Poyser/Released)