Sea Time

I recently had an amazing opportunity to be a “Distinguished Visitor,” or “DV” as we were called, aboard the USS Bush (CVN 77) last week with a group of environmental professionals. We were invited to take part in a tour of the Navy’s environmental practices at sea. While I had been on the USS Reagan, while it was in port in San Diego, this would be my first time aboard a carrier at sea. I was excited, as I had heard much about Chad’s trip on the USS Stennis, several years ago and, in particular, about the flight out there on a COD (Carrier Onboard Delivery) and the harrowing “shoulder roll” it did as it dropped down to land on the ship; the joy of “sleeping” under the flight deck; and being catapulted off the ship upon departure. The USS Bush is the newest carrier and the last of the Nimitz class carriers. Construction began in 2003 and when it was launched in 2006 much of the interior was still under construction (in fact, parts of it are still being finished). Although it is the newest carrier in the Navy, its technology is already out of date, and it hasn’t even been out on deployment yet. They are already working on the USS Ford, and its technology will likely be out of date by its completion as well. To give you a sense of scale, the USS Bush stands 20 stories above the waterline, is 1092 feet long, can go 30 knots (though you can hardly feel it) and carries 6,000 people (the population of the average American city, according to one of our guides).


We started our journey at the Hampton Inn, just outside of the Norfolk Naval base, where we were met by representatives of N45, the Navy’s Environmental Readiness Unit, the organizers of our trip. After introductions, we were whisked off to LP1 (landing pad) on the base and then given a safety briefing on our COD flight, which included the issuance of a set of earplugs, cranials and a horsecollar. The cranials would go on and off at least a dozen times throughout our visit and were marked with “DV” just in case everyone didn’t already know we were visitors. Our flight out was very smooth, though quite loud (hence the earplugs and the cranials), and there was no infamous “shoulder roll” upon landing. Maybe it was the new 8-bladed propellers aboard our colorfully painted aircraft. Upon landing, we were greeted by the flight crew and escorted to the George HW Bush meeting room, which was decorated with old pictures of the Bush family, including a couple I recognized from Kennebunkport. It was stunning to see young George HW and Barbara and also little George W. The CO (Commanding Officer) of the ship introduced himself and gave us a briefing on what they had planned for us during our stay aboard. We also met the PAO (Public Affairs Officer) and our escorts. Our afternoon was filled with tours of every part of the ship, taking us up and down many ladders, through hatches, and up and down passageways every which way (blocking them with our dozen or so crew) such that we were grateful for the numerical and alphabetical grid coding marking our three dimensional position on the ship. We were escorted everywhere, which I think had less to do with security than it did with the fact that we would have most certainly gotten lost otherwise.

On the flight deck, we watched flight ops (operations) where F18 Super Hornets, CODs and E2Cs (these look like a COD with a satellite dish on top and are a type of spy plane) practice being catapulted off the ship upon take-off and then “catching the wire” upon landing.

The USS Bush carries up to 80 or so aircraft aboard. Up in the flight tower, we watched the amazing coordination between the different members of the flight crew both there and on deck, each dressed in a different color to mark their job (brown for maintenance, purple for fuel, and so on). We also visited the “Ready Room” right below the flight deck (a fact which you were not likely to forget) for the airwing that was currently on board, VFA-31, also known as the “Tomcatters”. We met a few of the pilots and learned that the Tomcatters have been around since 1935 and are one of the oldest flight commands in the Navy. We learned about the Super Hornets they were flying, which have only been around since 2000. They are 60’ long with a 45’ wing span (part of which is collapsible for storage in the hangar) go up to 1.8M, and carry 10,000 lbs of fuel. These are single seat planes, unlike the co-piloted F14s made famous in Top Gun, and the next generation of fighter planes is likely to be unmanned. We were then shown to our staterooms - I got the VP Suite (not as luxurious as it sounds), which I shared with a woman from the EPA. We had about five minutes to get settled before being escorted to dinner. A table was set for us in the Ward room where several officers joined us and we were served with military precision by an impressive staff. I was fortunate enough to sit next to the ship’s XO (Executive Officer) who was quite congenial and interested in my impressions of the ship’s operations. He presented us each with a coin from the USS Bush to take with us – it is a Navy tradition to collect these.

We had a full schedule after dinner, beginning with presentations by a Naval Oceanographer from Fleet Forces in Norfolk and by the Deputy Director of N45, describing the Navy’s consideration of marine mammals in its use of sonar and outlining the most pressing environmental priorities of the Navy, most of which focused on efficiency and energy reduction. Luckily, there was coffee provided, as well as the ubiquitous cookies (which there seemed to be plates of in every meeting room - we heard several people joke of a “5 cookie day” referring to a day with 5 meetings), because our night was still young. From there, we toured the on-board waste disposal facilities from the hazardous waste area to the compressor that turns hundreds of plastic bottles into a single giant hockey puck and the metal shredder that makes short work of aluminum cans. We were also taken down to see one of the ship’s four “screws” at the very bottom of the ship. The ship is powered by nuclear reactors (which can apparently operate for more than 20 years without refueling) which produce steam, which in turn powers the ship. Needless to say, it was quite toasty down in the bowels of the ship around the propeller shafts, which are some 40 feet long. Finally, we watched night flight ops from the vulture’s walk, outside above the flight deck, and then went up to the top of the flight tower to meet the “Air Boss” and “Mini-Boss” who run the operations. Despite the excitement of watching night flight ops, I felt myself beginning to sway with tiredness, as it was now approaching 1130pm. Finally, we were escorted back to our state rooms and, after a quick “military shower,” I headed for a peaceful night’s “sleep” right below the flight deck. I was actually grateful that they kept us up so late, as I was so tired that I actually did fall asleep (helped along by the handy earplugs).

At 5am in the morning, we got a knock on the door from one of our escorts telling us to get ourselves up and ready for a 6am breakfast followed by a helo (helicopter) ride out to the DDG Gonzalez, a Destroyer that was nearby. En route, we were able to see both the Bush and the Gonzalez clearly from the air. Once aboard the Gonzalez, we were greeted by the CO, one of the few female COs of a Destroyer. We learned that the Gonzalez was about to deploy to West Africa on an anti-piracy mission. We also learned about UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles), which are remote-controlled helicopters equipped with video cameras that feed live video back to the ship and used to detect enemy ships. The CO also presented with a USS Gonzalez coin to add to our collection. Much of our time on the ship was spent learning about the Navy’s practices regarding marine mammals. We saw a marine mammal drill where the captain reduced the ship’s sonar strength in response to the siting of a marine mammal. They have some pretty handy tools for identification and for knowing the required practices for operations in various areas depending on the local marine mammal populations and their endangered status. One of the neatest parts of the trip was going down into the sonar room. This was the only part of our tour where we weren’t allowed to take any pictures. You really had the sense that this was where it all happened – myriad screens with displays in green and yellow and a line-up of sailors with headsets and microphones communicating positions to each other. Apparently, unlike in the old days of Russian nuclear subs, today, most of the enemy subs are diesel-electric and are small and very quiet, making them very difficult to detect. Whereas the bigger nuclear subs were detectible with passive sonar (basically just amplified listening) these new types require active sonar (sending out a signal) and this is what can cause impact to marine mammals. In accordance, the Navy has a very strict protocol to “step down” the sonar in the known presence of a mammal.

We returned to the USS Bush via the helicopter for lunch and a handful of remaining ship tours.

These included the anchor room (each link weighs 365 lbs!), which is typically used for many ceremonial functions, but today was being used for choir and band practice - as ships are not known for sound absorbent surfaces, it was nearly impossible to hear our tour guides with the music. Then, we saw the flight hangars, which double as the onboard gym and are filled with treadmills and stationary bicycles; then to the medical ward, where we saw the onboard operating room; then, to the enlisted berthing, where bunks were stacked three high and it was hard to imagine not clocking your head every time you got in and out. We also got to tour the galley, full of giant cooking cauldrons and the food storage area (though I wasn’t impressed with the amount of processed cheese and canned meat products, the level of organization was certainly impressive – the ship can carry supplies for 90 days at sea). We also got a tour of the media department, which produced all of the snazzy folders and information sheets we received as a part of our tour. And, we visited the ship store where we were able to purchase USS Bush paraphernalia for friends and family. Finally, we got a brief peek at the sunshine when we were invited to partake in a “Fob” (foreign object), walk on the flight deck. Every day, everyone aboard walks slowly across the deck in silence, save the rock music blaring over the loudspeaker, to check for every tiny piece of debris that might be on the flight deck and could pose a safety hazard to the planes. They also call this operation the “Skittle parade” because of all the different crews on the flight deck, each in their different colored turtlenecks.

We ended our tour in the Bush tribute room, where I was impressed to learn that George HW Bush was the youngest aviator in the Navy at age 18. His plane was shot down in Chichi Jima, Japan in WWII, but not before he completed the bombing mission. For his bravery, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. After four hours in a life raft, he was rescued by an American rescue submarine and all of this was remarkably captured on video. We returned to the Bush meeting room for a farewell from the CO where he presented each of us with a personalized set of souvenirs and asked if I would be a volunteer to show what we would received. We each were given a photo book ending with a picture of us sitting in the captain’s chair in the flight tower, which one of the ship’s media crew had taken the night before. We also received a certificate declaring us each an “Honorary Tailhooker,” having “experienced deceleration from 105 to 0 mph in two seconds and acceleration from 0 to 128 mph in three seconds” on board our C-2 Greyhound COD (something we were about to experience). I was honored to be personally presented with my certificate by the CO, who shook my hand as he read it aloud. Back on with the cranials and horsecollars, we said many thank yous and marched out to the COD. The catapult was quite an experience, like being lurched forward and frozen there for what seemed like minutes, though I know it was a matter of seconds. The flight crew has a little fun with the whole operation and just before you are slingshotted off the carrier, they yell “Here we go!” and flail their arms in the air. Partway through the flight, they invited anyone interested to ride in the cockpit, which I jumped at. The pilots were very friendly, but I quickly found out that my microphone didn’t work so we had to resort to a sign language. A short ride later, our crew arrived back at LP1 and went our separate ways, all looking forward to a good night’s rest after quite a busy trip.

After the whole experience, there were a few things that made big impressions on me: the professionalism of all the personnel we encountered and their ability to communicate what their jobs were(which was often quite complex) to an audience unfamiliar with military operations; how candid the Navy representatives were about their mission, which is military, not environmental, though they try to have the best possible environmental practices they can without impeding their operations; and how much I miss the camaraderie of the Navy and the variety of interesting people we encountered from all backgrounds and experiences during our time involved. All in all, it was a once in a lifetime experience.