It’s Independence Day and the Navy is here!  Aircraft Carrier USS George Washington CVN-73 and USS Cowpens CG-63 have docked in Fremantle Port for five days R&R .  Collectively, they carry a total crew of about 5,500.

The town has gone nuts.  Stores stay open late, activists are protesting, bars are hopping, and the girls are stilting around in their shortest summer dresses (and it’s about 7˚C/45˚F out).  I went into town for a coffee on Saturday night (the 4th), and watched the zoo.  I was hoping to see the boys in uniform, but they had progressed on to street clothes.  You could spot the sailors easily, though:  strolling along the cappuccino strip in groups of two or three, all of them carrying backpacks and sporting fresh crew-cuts.  One was carrying a shopping bag from Target (which is now charging customers for plastic bags, I hope he wasn’t put out by that!)  I don’t know how to explain it, and maybe I’m making it up, but even beyond these characteristics, the sailors were distinguishable from the Australian blokes on the street.  It had something to do with their slimmer body builds (navy food vs. lamb chops?), their posture and cool facial expressions.  I must say, however, despite the absence of hemlines and impossibly décolleté necklines, the Yanks were very well-behaved.  But then again, I left by 9pm, just as the pubs and clubs started thumping.

I looked into the history of the ships – the GW was christened by First Lady Barbara Bush in 1990, and her maiden deployment (the ship’s, that is, narf narf) occurred on the 50th anniversary of D-Day.  She’s spent a large amount of time in waters of the middle east, both before and after September 11.  On that day, however, the boat was in Norfolk, Virginia undergoing refurbishments and trials, and was immediately sent north to New York City to provide airspace defense. Recently she’s spent a lot of time in Japan, and to introduce herself to the Land of the Rising Sun, the ship published its own manga (a kind of comic book).  You can download it here in either Japanese or English.

The ship is somewhat accident-prone; In 2003, an arresting wire (the rope that stops the planes when they land on the ship) snapped and injured 11 of the deck crew.  The plane, an FA-18, ended up hurtling overboard with the pilot ejecting out (woohoo!); apparently National Geographic caught the whole thing on film.

The GW caught fire in 2008, injuring 37 of the crew and requiring hours of fire-fighting.  Turns out some of the crew were smoking in the room where 115 gallons of flammable refrigerant compressor oil* was improperly stored, near the aft auxiliary boiler.  It took 8hrs to find and extinguish the fire, and cost 70million dollars to repair (this is all according to Wikipedia).  It was later found that the crew was not sufficiently trained in firefighting, either.  Both the Commanding Officer and Executive Officer were fired; 12 other sailors were disciplined.

While the GW is home to some 5,000 sailors, the Cowpens is small, quick, and deadly-deadly.  With a crew of 400, she was the first to fire missiles (Tomahawks) at Iraq in 2003.  It specializes in VBSS (visit, board, search and seizure) and subsequently is proficient in anti-piracy, anti-terrorist and anti-smuggling operations.  She’s probably been pretty busy in the Indian Ocean lately.

*which reminds me of one of my favorite Dad stories:  Dad taught high school, and was frustrated by students’ frequent use of the school bathrooms as secret smoking rooms.  He remembered that when he was a sailor in the Navy, cigarettes tasted especially bad in the engine room, most likely due to the diesel fumes in the air (he never maintained the nicotine habit).  So one night, he surreptitiously sprayed the walls of the bathrooms with dieself fuel, thinking it would deter the smokers from inhaling too deeply…  The next morning, the janitor reported to the principal that someone had clearly unloaded gallons of flammable material into the bathrooms and therefore there must be an arsonist on campus.  The school was shut down, the students (and teachers) sent home.  The administration never resolved the case.

USS George Washington

Find posters, framed prints, and calendars of the USS George Washington (CVN 73) and hundreds of other naval themes at The PatriArt Gallery.

USS George Washington (CVN 73) made its first port visit to Guam as the nation’s only permanently forward-deployed aircraft carrier Oct. 31.

The visiting Nimitz-class carrier and accompanying ships USS Cowpens (CG 63) and USS John S. McCaine (DDG 56), arrived, following participation in the International Fleet Review, which commemorates the foundation of the Korean government and its armed forces.

George Washington replaced USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63) earlier this year as the permanently forward-deployed carrier at Yokosuka Naval Base in Yokosuka, Japan.

“This is the first visit to Guam for many of our Sailors as the ship was homeported in Norfolk, Va., before transferring to Japan,” said Lt. David Yang, a George Washington chaplain.

The carrier’s position in the Pacific supports the Navy’s role in the U.S. Maritime Strategy, which highlights the sea services’ core capabilities of forward presence, deterrence, sea control and power projection. The strategy includes international cooperation to enhance maritime security and also embraces faster response in humanitarian assistance.

Yang noted that even as George Washington Sailors strive to protect the nation and help allies, they also want to become a part of the Pacific community. To that end, Sailors from George Washington and Cowpens helped clean and paint local schools and facilities.

“Our Sailors consider it an honor to be able to serve others,” Yang said. “At every port we visit, our Sailors demonstrate their genuine willingness to offer themselves to serve and interact with the local residents.”

Sailors spent a scorching Saturday beautifying local schools and village centers in an effort to build a positive relationship between the carrier group and its new host community.

According to P.C. Lujan Elementary School Principal Jeanette Burch, Sailors from George Washington were helping out at the school by painting hallways, painting classrooms and the parking lot. She and the school staff and students were grateful for the support.

“We need their help,” Burch said. “We want the help.”

Sailors said they were more than happy to lend a hand and were eager for any chance to give back to the island.

“We’re here to help paint the school, to beautify it, to make it more perfect for the students,” said Aviation Ordnance Airman Lemar Williams. “It’s a way to establish a bond between the community and our Sailors, to let them know that we’re here to help.”
Robert Clark (NNS)

Naval Calendar 2009

Our Naval Calendar 2009 features 13 images of US Navy and allied naval forces in action. Buy the Naval Calendar 2009 exclusively at the PatriArt Gallery for only $ 19.99. Worldwide delivery available.

USS George Washington (CVN 73) headed out to sea from Yokosuka, Japan, Oct. 1, for the first time as the Navy’s only permanently forward deployed aircraft carrier to conduct training and to participate in exercises with regional naval partners.

The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier arrived at Yokosuka Sept. 25, after replacing USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63), which has returned to the United States for decommissioning after spending the last 10 years forward-deployed to Japan.

“The hospitality of our new neighbors in Yokosuka is phenomenal. We were home for only five days, but experienced a month’s worth of welcome!” said George Washington’s Commanding Officer, Capt. J. R. Haley.

“Now we are at sea doing what we trained to do. As the Forward Deployed Naval Force’s (FDNF) carrier, we work with our regional partners in our primary mission – maritime security and stability.”

This underway is significant because it is George Washington’s first operational experience in the region, and its first operations with regional naval partners.

“We obviously want to put our best foot forward while working for the first time with regional navies,” said George Washington’s Operations Officer, Cmdr. Anthony Calandra. “GW brings a substantial upgrade to the support of our regional alliances, and we begin building our operational reputation today.”

Carlos Gomez (NNS)

• Air India flight 307 left 成田空港 (Narita Airport in Chiba (near Tokyo)) for India on Sunday, 21 September 2008 but had to return to Narita because parts of the engine fell off…and struck two parked cars near the airport.One piece of debris sliced through the wind-shield of a car like butter. Luckily noone was hurt.
• The American Navy’s nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, U.S.S. George Washington, is scheduled to arrive in Japan tomorrow to commence being homeported in 横須賀 (Yokosuka (south of Tokyo)).A large number of protesters are expected to greet the ship because many Japanese are against having a nuclear-powered or nuclear-armed ship even visit Japan, not to mention being stationed here.

  

• On Monday, 22 September 2008 (two days after his 68th birthday), 麻生太郎 (Tarou ASOU) was chosen to be the new Prime Minister of Japan.

  

  (My post about the former Prime Minister, 福田康夫 (Yasuo FUKUDA), resigning on Sept 1st is here).

The U.S. Navy Base in 神奈川県横須賀市 (Yokosuka, Kanagawa-prefecture) south of Tokyo was attacked by two rocket bombs last Friday evening.

Noone was hurt. But police suspect it was an attack by activists who are against the American nuclear-powered aircraft-carrier, U.S.S. George Washington, being stationed there starting later this month.

(I wrote a post about this ship coming to Japan here
(I also mentioned it in a few other posts. If you want to see them, you can use the Search function on this blog. A search for posts on my blog “USS George Washington” can be accessed here )).

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Speaking of 神奈川県横須賀市 (Yokosuka, Kanagawa-prefecture)…if you visit that town, the US Navy base is in 神奈川県横須賀市本町 (Honcho, Yokosuka-ward, Kanagawa-prefecture).
The closest train stations are JR 横須賀駅 (Yokosuka JR Station), 京浜急行汐入駅 (Keihin-kyuukou Shioiri Station), or 京浜急行横須賀中央駅 (Keihin-kyuukou Yokosuka-chuo Station).
You probably wouldn’t be allowed inside the American base (unless it’s a day of one of their “Friendship Festivals“), but the street across from the base (that many American sailors mistakenly call “The Honch” (because the town’s name is 本町 (Honcho)) is ドブイタ・ストリート (Dobuita Street) with many shops and restaurants that are unique to the area.

神奈川県横須賀市 (Yokosuka, Kanagawa-prefecture) is famous for 海軍カレー (Navy Curry) because the Japanese Navy (which also has a base there) brought curry from India to Yokosuka.

Another thing that 神奈川県横須賀市 (Yokosuka, Kanagawa-prefecture) is famous for are the popular スカジャン (‘Suka-jyan). Which are souvenir 神奈川県横須賀市 (Yokosuka, Kanagawa-prefecture) jackets that were popular with the U.S. Military but it’s now mostly Japanese people who buy them.

There’s also 猿島 (Saru-shima (which translates to Monkey Island…but there are no monkeys there anymore)), which can be accessed by ferry.
And 三笠公園 (Mikasa Park) with the Japanese battleship Mikasa that you can take a tour of.

USS George Washington

The US Navy aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) is replacing the USS Kitty Hawk as the only US Navy aircraft carrier forward deployed with the 7th Fleet in the western Pacific. Find the USS George Washington framed art print, the USS George Washington poster, or the CVN 73 twelve month calendar at The PatriArt Gallery.

Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) repair work will enable USS George Washington (CVN 73) to assume its role in Yokosuka, Japan, as our nation’s only forward-deployed aircraft carrier in September.

Working as “One Shipyard,” skilled personnel from two NAVSEA field activities — Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility (PSNS & IMF) and Norfolk Naval Shipyard (NNSY) provided most of the craftsmen and skills required to complete the effort on Aug. 21, after only 91 days of repair work. The efforts of “One Shipyard” enabled a six-week reduction of USS George Washington’s repair schedule from initial forecasts.

“NAVSEA’s One Shipyard concept provides the fleet customer with a more capable and more flexible maintenance resource,” said Capt. Mark Whitney, PSNS & IMF commander.

The ship’s arrival was delayed due to a May 22 fire in an unmanned Auxiliary Boiler Exhaust and Supply space. NAVSEA shipyards, with PSNS & IMF being assigned lead maintenance authority (LMA), assumed the responsibility of coordinating all maintenance activities assigned to the recovery effort including Ship’s Force, Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Northrup Grumman Shipbuilding and their associated Master Ship Repair contractors and more than 15 alteration installation teams.

“This Herculean effort was the largest and most complex emergent repair ever executed on a Nimitz-class aircraft carrier,” said Vice Adm. Thomas Kilcline, Commander, Naval Air Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet.

Project, engineering and production personnel from PSNS & IMF and NNSY responded quickly to the repair challenge. The fire recovery effort required more than 55,000 man-days of work and cost approximately $70 million. More than 4,630 jobs were tasked to PSNS & IMF. NNSY also provided 85 tradesmen for the repair efforts.

“This is when you really see a ‘One Shipyard’ response. Everyone pitches in to help in something like this. We all work for the U.S. Navy,” said Glenn Edwards, NNSY’s carrier program manager.

NAVSEA’s four public shipyards — Puget Sound, Norfolk, Pearl Harbor and Portsmouth — play a major role in maintaining America’s Navy and providing a wartime surge capability to keep the nation’s ships ready for combat.

USS George Washington

Wear the US Navy aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) on your chest. Visit The Military Chest to find USS George Washington tee-shirts, casual clothing, and souvenir items.

The aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) with her crew of approximately 5,500 Sailors departed San Diego Aug. 21, to begin her journey to Yokosuka, Japan to replace USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63) as the United States’ only permanently forward-deployed aircraft carrier.

Commanded by Capt. John R. Haley, GW became the flagship for the Commander, Task Force 70 (CTF 70), Rear Adm. Richard B. Wren last week after he and his staff moved to GW from Kitty Hawk.

“The transition had been tremendously smooth and it’s clear that we’re passing an enormous milestone towards reaching USS George Washington’s ultimate forward deployment assignment to the Western Pacific and Indian Oceans,” said Wren. “We are particularly excited to foster a new era in our long-standing relationship with our host nation of Japan and the city of Yokosuka.”

This will be the first time GW gets underway with CTF 70, Carrier Air Wing 5 (CVW 5) and Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 15. GW will be the permanent flagship for CTF 70 while GW is forward deployed to Yokosuka, Japan.

Task Force 70 is the Carrier Strike Group component of Battle Force Seventh Fleet, also led by Wren. In the past, the task force has been centered on USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63), which will soon head to Bremerton, Wash. to decommission from naval service next year after 48 years on active duty.

The security environment in the Western Pacific region requires the United States to station the most capable ships forward for deterrence and the best possible response times for maritime and joint force operations. The forward deployment of GW ensures the ability of Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet, to fulfill the U.S. Government’s commitment to the defense of Japan, and the maintenance of international peace and security in the Far East in support of mutual cooperation and security. This posture also brings our most capable ships with the greatest amount of striking power and operational capability in the timeliest manner.

GW’s replacement of Kitty Hawk is part of the Navy’s long range effort to routinely replace older ships assigned to the Navy’s forward-deployed forces with newer or more capable platforms.

Chief of Naval Operations, Adm. Gary Roughead, visited USS George Washington (CVN 73) at Naval Air Station North Island, San Diego, Aug. 19, to address the crew and take questions as the ship prepares to get underway for Yokosuka, Japan.

Upon deployment to the 7th Fleet area of operations in the Western Pacific, George Washington will become the Navy’s only permanently forward-deployed aircraft carrier, replacing USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63), the Navy’s last diesel-powered aircraft carrier.

“Now you really are the ambassadors of the United States Navy and ambassadors of the United States,” said Roughead, a former George Washington Carrier Strike Group commander. “I know this ship. I know the crew. And you are going to do an absolutely superb job.”

More than 500 Kitty Hawk Sailors and 1,800 Carrier Air Wing 5 Sailors have moved aboard George Washington since Kitty Hawk returned to San Diego Aug. 8. Kitty Hawk, the Navy’s oldest active-duty warship, will decommission early next year after 47 years of service, 10 of which have been in Japan.

The CNO commended the George Washington crew on their firefighting efforts during a fire May 22, and the subsequent 55,000 man days of repairs performed by crew and the civilian workforce at North Island since the ship arrived here May 27.

“You have done an absolutely incredible job,” Roughead said to George Washington’s crew during an all-hands call in the ship’s hangar bay. “This ship was tested, but you fought valiantly and effectively.”

Before leaving, Roughead and Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy (SW/FMF) Joe R. Campa Jr. answered questions from the crew ranging from sea-shore rotations to recent world current events.

Campa fielded a number of questions including one related to a recent newspaper article about the use of shipmate in an unflattering way.

“I think that the term ’shipmate’ is something honorable and it’s something that each one of you earns. It should be something to be very proud of,” Campa said.

The visit is the last stop in CNO and MCPON’s 10-day tour world tour, which included stops in Bahrain, Iraq, Afghanistan, Singapore and Hawaii.

Carlos Gomez (NNS)

USS George Washington (CVN 73) Sailors welcomed nearly 600 new shipmates Aug. 12 as former USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63) Sailors reported to their new ship.

Representatives from nearly every shipboard department manned tables in the ship’s hangar bay, streamlining what could have been a very time-consuming check-in process. GW sponsors were on hand to meet the new Sailors and guide them through the line, also helping to fill out necessary paperwork.

Between 150-200 Sailors were able to check in each day, thanks to the “assembly line,” as Senior Chief Personnel Specialist (SW/AW) Daniel Sanchez, GW’s administrative department’s leading chief petty officer, called it.

“It’s geared towards getting Sailors properly checked in as quickly as possible,” Sanchez said.

He said that Sailors were able to complete about 90 percent of the check-in process, as well as meet members of the GW chain of command and some new shipmates, in less than an hour.

“Each department, especially those that gained Sailors, played a huge role in making this successful,” Sanchez said. “However, [our] admin department plays the lead. Sailors have to come through us to ensure that all their paperwork is in line and to get them entered into the ship’s [administrative] system.”

Sanchez said that coordination was the biggest challenge.

“You have so many moving pieces that need to fit together just for one single event,” he said. “You could compare it to planning a concert — you have to book the band, print the tickets, rent a venue and set up chairs. There are a lot of different things to plan for.”

Administrative Department Sailors had a chance to prepare soon after the ship arrived in San Diego in late May. More than 70 new Sailors checked in May 31.

“It did wonders as far as planning,” Sanchez said. “It was definitely a good learning experience for us. We were able to take some information and use it toward this actual cross-deck. There were lessons learned and we got a very good idea of how to make this bigger transition run smoother.”

With a complete crew on board, GW is getting ready to head to Japan as the Navy’s only permanently forward-deployed aircraft carrier.

Dave Reynolds (NNS)

Why?

Because the Navy experienced “a loss of confidence in his ability to command and his failure to meet mission requirements and readiness standards.”

What For?

Unauthorized smoking ignited some 130 liters of lubrication oil that was improperly stored in an auxiliary boiler on the starboard side of the ship.

Really? Was it a joint?

Yes. The fire blazed for 12 hours, burnt one sailor and injured 36 others. Don’t know what sort of weed it was that started the fireworks!

What about the exotic weapons and the nuclear reactors on board the supercarrier?

Don’t know!

Don’t know? How can you trust the sailors aboard a nuclear warship who smoke without permission, store highly flammable oil improperly … Do they play chicken [or Russian Roulette] with the weapons during breaks, too?

Hope not!

What if a couple of sailors had an unauthorized drink or two and decided to play Star Wars’ “May the Force Be With You” game with the ship’s smorgasbord of weapons, or mess around with the two nuclear fission pressurized water reactors? Isn’t that possible, given the sailors’ inadequate training and poor discipline?

Well!

How close did you say the Yokosuka Naval Base was to the heavily populated Yokohama and Tokyo?

Yokosuka Naval Base is situated about 30 km south of Yokohama and 45 km southwest of Tokyo!

USS George Washington (CVN73) Photographed November 19, 1997. REUTERS/Files. Image may be subject to copyright. See Notice of Fair Use!

The following excerpts are from Wikipedia:

On May 22, 2008 a fire was reported on the ship off the Pacific Coast of South America that burned one sailor and injured 36 others. There were no fatalities on the ship. The Navy defined the incident as ’serious’. According to a statement from Naval Air Forces’ public affairs office, the fire broke out in the ship’s air-conditioning and refrigeration space and an auxiliary boiler room. The fire spread via a cableway and caused extreme heat in some parts of the ship. It took 12 hours for the ship’s crew to contain and extinguish the fire.

On July 13, 13,000 Japanese protested in Yokosuka against the basing of George Washington in Japan, saying that the onboard fire showed that the nuclear-powered carrier was unsafe. The US Navy said that Rear Admiral James Kelly, commander of US Naval Forces Japan, is planning to meet soon with Yokosuka Mayor Ryoichi Kabaya, who has requested that the US military fully explain the fire and what preventive measures the navy plans to take.

On July 30 the Navy confirmed that improperly stored flammable oil was a major factor in the seriousness of the fire, and that the blaze was likely triggered by unauthorized smoking. It was also simultaneously announced by ADM Robert F. Willard, commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, that the carrier’s commanding officer, CAPT David C. Dykhoff, had been relieved of his duties citing “a loss of confidence in his ability to command and his failure to meet mission requirements and readiness standards.” The ship’s Executive officer, CAPT David M. Dober, was also relieved for “substandard performance.

How could any sane government entrust multi billion dollar dangerous nuclear toys like George Washington in the hands of inexperienced, undisciplined sailors and simply wish nothing would go wrong?

Wishful thinking!

Related Links

• The Other Victims of GW Bush’s War Racket

• Houston, We Have a Problem!

Pacific Fleet commander Adm. Bob Willard hinted Friday that the USS George Washington would be in Yokosuka by the end of September, reports the newspaper Stars and Stripes.

At a news conference Friday, Willard said he wanted to have the aircraft carrier in Yokosuka “getting acclimated to her new homeport” a couple of weeks before the International Fleet Review in South Korea in October.

While “exact details have yet to be finalized,” the ship’s repair work is “ahead of schedule,” Willard said, adding that his goal is to have the ship “back at sea” by the end of August. It will then complete all of the necessary sea trials and certifications before the ship reaches Yokosuka to assume its role as the Forward Deployed Naval Forces carrier.