Postcards from Deployment: Coming Home (?)

SJS,

So two carriers or one? I can’t say, don’t know, and even if I did can’t talk about it. That being said, the media and some of their retired talking heads are playing up something out of nothing. We traded off with our relief and am now out in the IO cruising around Gonzo Station. Waiting for the word from people above us on when to being the transit home. So now it is just sitting around for a few days and trying to keep from getting bored. Flying has tapered off and now it is death by PowerPoint with training lectures, meetings, and various other projects. Most of these relate to our operational tempo when we get back. Such fun things as post cruise inspections, other training ops, possible CQ detachments, finally the chance of being surged back out. This is the most dangerous part of a cruise. When we have be on edge all this time and home seems so far away. Now it is a reverse, home seems so close and the edge is starting to wear off. It is hard to keep people motivated in this situation. It is even harder to keep people’s minds on the fact that this is still a dangerous place out here.

The dangers are still out here. For example just last night we had an ABE almost lose an arm while doing repairs to an arresting gear engine. I only know from reading the basic safety report published that he had his arm in the engine turning a wrench. Some how miscommunication occurred between the below deck crew and the above deck crew ready to pull out the wire. So the wire was pulled out and this ABE arm was caught up in turning mechanisms. I don’t know if the medical crew was able to save his arm and the debate as I come to work today was whether or not a fly off to the beach and an ashore hospital for further treatment. The rest of this past few days safety report has been filed with injury reports of people tripping over things, bashing their heads, and even just rapping their knuckles on things. It seems as if there is now more sky larking and day dreaming; thinking of such things as munching down on a Philly Cheese steak from Geno’s, hanging out on the beach with ones friends, spending time with Martha and the kids. That is why this is the most dangerous time of the year.

One of the other things to mention is that summer is coming and with it comes the high humidity, the temps on the flight deck around 125 in the shade without engines turning and maybe 140 with full flight schedule planned. I can handle the heat. I can’t handle humidity. Heck at night when I am working it is hot and miserable right now. I think we are experiencing nights of 80% humidity and temps in the nineties. When I get off from work I stand under a cold shower just to feel better. During the day times we have chiefs and officers grabbing guys and telling them if they are up on the roof for longer then a couple of hours to head down to inside the skin of the ship and get some water while sucking up the air conditioning. I can’t wait to get back into the Med and even the Atlantic where even in the summer time it is still cooler then what the IO and the Persian Gulf is. I really am going to feel sorry for the bubba’s on the Lincoln.

I wish to thank all your readers for all the sympathy and nice notes that I have seen from the comment sections. I wish to also relay from my supervisor that those who have sent care packages were really appreciated by the guys out here. I will say that if anyone else wants to send one last care package, cookies are always appreciated by the folks out here. If you mail it before the 20th of the month we should get it while out here. Anytime after that most of our mail will be on the route to home.

Final note to think of. We have caught bits and pieces of Carrier Documentary when it has been shown on AFRTS. Also the cruise movie for this cruise has been “Superbad”. I think that has been on more often then any other movie out here. The only movie that would come in a close second would of been “Any which way but loose” with Clint Eastwood and Clyde the Orangutan.

That is about it to report while out here. Hope to have something new and some new pictures whenever we begin our transit home.

Sincerely,

Southern Air Pirate

ed. For those cards, letters and all important care packages, send them to Southern’s W/C Supervisor at:

ATI Charles Berlemann

VAQ-130

UNIT 25404, FPO AP 96601-6414