Like a broken strand of pearls, the Solomon Islands form an open and extended chain from the Santa Cruz Islands in the south-east to the larger islands of Bougainville and New Britain in the west. Â Further to the south-east lie the New Hebrides. Â The islands, primarily volcanic in origin with outer coral barriers,…
June 5th: ” In every battle there is a moment when the combatants, and the world, seem to catch their breath. It is a fleeting moment, lost in the blink of an eye. But in that same blink, everything changes. Such moments are borne of desperation, of courage, of plain dumb luck. But they are…
Any of us who have spent a fair amount of time at sea become acquainted with the full cycle of life — from the births at home to the passings at sea. For those of us in aviation, that environment afforded more opportunities for the latter, sometimes, unfortunately, exceptionally so. My first encounter was when…
Setting the stage for the Solomon Islands Campaign project which kicks off next month…and what better way than with the classic, Victory at Sea:
(Courtesy Navy Newsstand) Today’s theme: Joint/combined operations. GITMO – It’s Not Just for Detainee Facilities GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba (May 24, 2009) Danny Facciola, a certified scuba instructor with Soldiers Undertaking Disabled Scuba, leads a class of wounded warriors learning open water diving at U.S. Naval Station Guantanamo Bay. Wounded warriors participating in SUDS visited U.S….
Like the ex-USS Davd R. Ray (DD-971) reported on yesterday, The Horne is also slated to be used as a target for the upcoming RIMPAC ’08 exercise. Fifth ship of the Belknap-class and named for the VCNO during most of WWII, ADM Fredrick J. Horne, she was commissioned 15 April 1967 with then-CAPT Stansfield Turner…
SJS, As I write this we are in the process of pulling pier side to a major US Naval Base on the Eastern seaboard. My squadron is being offloaded here and on the way home to our families and loved ones. At the same time we are on loading about 1500 tigers. A tiger is…
Skippy can provide a learned dissertation on the various forms of “Good-bye” one encounters in the Japanese language, but he will tell you that the one with a note of finality about it is “Sayonara.” YOKOSUKA, Japan (May 28, 2008) The aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63) departs Yokosuka, Japan for the final time…
Welcome to Marseilles! SJS, So since I last wrote you I was in Rhodes Greece. Since then about a week has elapsed and we have operated with the French Naval Air Force, being a flex deck for them to get some carrier quals in with their E-2’s and Rafales. A couple of the Rafales landed…
Southern’s latest missive arrives following liberty call in Rhodes as the Truman CSG is headed home. Having spent some time batting about the Aegean Sea in an LST for a midshipman cruise and liberty in Athens (a very long time ago – and yes, there is a story courtesy our airwing buds from the VAQ…
