The Shuttle February 6, 2012 Issue“We are Legend”Newsletter Edition

USS Enterprise (CVN 65)

USS ENTERPRISE, At Sea – The Weapons department aboard the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise (CVN 65) is constantly working to keep the ship ready for combat operations. Weapons department Sailors can be seen wearing red throughout the ship busy with their various duties, which include building bombs and missiles, delivering ordnance to aircraft on the flight deck, training their shipmates on small arms, and many other tasks.

G4 Rises to the Occasion

However, many Sailors aboard the ship may be unaware that there is a division of the Weapons department working behind the scenes to keep combat operations running like a well-oiled machine. G4 division works around the clock to ensure that the weapons elevators are properly maintained and operated safely and precisely. G4 is in charge of 13 weapons elevators and their function is to deliver ordnance and ammunition from weapons magazines located on the lower levels of Enterprise to the flight deck and hangar bay of the ship. This is where they are loaded onto aircraft, or used in defense of the ship. “The primary purpose of an aircraft carrier is to deliver ordnance onto targets in order to complete our Navy’s missions,” said Aviation Ordnanceman 1st Class Ryan G. Dooley, leading petty officer of G4. “We ensure that ordnance makes it from the magazines to the flight deck to complete that goal.” The elevators transfer bombs ranging in weight between 500

By Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class (SW) Jeffry Willadsen

US Navy photo by MCSN Harry Andrew D. Gordon

and 2,000 lbs., making it impossible for them to reach to their intended aircraft by any other means. Other weaponry stored below decks such as missiles, ammunition, and crew-served weapons are of considerable weight and are also lifted via the elevators. The weapons elevators are also used for various other tasks, such as transferring supplies in and out Enterprise’s cargo holds as well as transporting medical patients on stretchers up from

the lower levels of the ship and from the flight deck. “Our elevators are a very useful platform for many purposes other than transferring ordnance,” said Dooley. “If we aren’t able to transfer heavy things from level to level with ease, life aboard this ship would be impossible. It’s not a glamorous job, but it’s vital.” G4 is unique among Enterprise’s Weapons department, in that it is a division made up of three different rates. While other Weapons Department divisions consist fully of either Gunner’s Mates or Aviation Ordnancemen, G4 is staffed with Aviation Ordnancemen, Machinist’s Mates and Electrician’s Mates. All these rates are required to operate and maintain a system as complicated as Enterprise’s weapons elevators. Upon arrival on Enterprise, G4 Sailors are trained specifically to properly maintain and safely operate the ship’s weapons elevator systems. “Having the different rates working together ensures that we are all the best at what we do,” said Aviation

Ordnanceman 2nd Class Alex B. Pearson. “This job is important and has the possibility of being dangerous, so we have to be at the top of our game.” G4 Sailors may be called on to operate the elevators at any time of the day or night. Two Sailors are required to operate each elevator, one as an operator, and one as a safety observer. G4 Sailors also tirelessly maintain their equipment, performing between 1,500 to 2,000 maintenance evolutions each year. Maintenance is an endless process that is meant to keep the weapons elevators in top working condition according to Pearson. “We all want to do our part to complete the mission,” said Pearson. “In G4, our part is to keep these elevators as ready as possible for when Enterprise needs them.” Though G4 does a job that may be considered low visibility, G4 Sailors take a tremendous amount of pride in their work. “We go vertical when everyone else is going horizontal,” said Aviation Ordnanceman 3rd Class Nick L. Rush. “That’s our job, and we do it well.”

Monday, Feb. 6, 2012Page 2 The Shuttle

The Shuttle is published and printed daily underway and bi-weekly in port by the USS Enterprise (CVN 65) Media Department, FPO AE 09543-2810. This newspaper is an authorized publication for members of the Department of Defense. Please direct all story ideas, questions and comments to MC1 (SW) Steve Smith at smithsw@cvn65.navy.mil.

Public Affairs OfficerLt. Cmdr. Sarah T. Self-Kyler

Executive OfficerCapt. G. C. Huffman

Commanding OfficerCapt. William C. Hamilton, Jr.

EditorsMC2 (SW) Kristin L. Grover

MCSN Harry Gordon

CSG 12 Happenings

The ShuttleUSS Enterprise (CVN 65)

Command Master ChiefABCM (AW/SW) Eric M. Young

Yesterday’s 3M answer:Work center supervisors enter Flip

Page Reports into SKED.

3M Question of the Day: What should a work candidate summary

state?

3MIt’s that time again...

Navy advancement exams are just around the corner!

EXAM DATES:E6 - March 1, 2012E5 - March 8, 2012

E4 - March 15, 2012

USS PORTER, At Sea – Sailors assigned to the Arleigh-Burke class guided-missile Destroyer USS Porter (DDG 78) successfully completed a replenishment at sea (RAS) with the Military Sealift Command fleet replenishment oiler USNS John Lenthall (T-AO 189) recently.

An MSC ship’s role is to provide fuel and cargo to U.S. Navy and allied ships underway conducting operations or training. This enables Navy warships to deploy for long periods of time without having to enter a port for supplies. “(Today) we are taking 160,000 pounds of F-76 fuel and 17 pallets of Cargo from Lenthall,” said Chief Boatswain’s Mate Anthony P. Osborne. “It will take approximately two hours to complete this RAS evolution.” “A RAS is a critical enabler of the Navy’s unique expeditionary flexibility,” said Cmdr. Martin F. Arriola, the commanding officer of USS Porter. “The ability to receive fuel, ammunition, parts and food at sea translates directly to enhanced on-station time for combatant commanders.” “The number of replenishments varies based on fuel

Story and photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class (SW) Jesse L. Gonzalez

Fill ‘Er Up: USS Porter Refuels at Seaconsumption, but I expect to receive fuel while at sea about once every seven to 10 days,” said Arriola. “It is important to note that we can spread out that number significantly if required.” One of the most critical components of a successful

RAS is safety. According to Arriola, maneuvering a 9,000-ton ship at a distance of 140 ft. from a 60,000-ton ship for a couple of hours requires proper execution by all involved. “We rehearse and practice emergency actions as a matter of routine, so that the required actions become second nature,” said Arriola. “This in turn leads to confidence and coolness under pressure during these evolutions.” “Sailors are required to keep their head on a swivel, being always aware of their surroundings,” said Osborne. Some of the risks involved during a RAS evolution include, a man overboard, a collision, trip hazards, fires and explosions. “I tell my Sailors to never turn their back to the rig and always be in proper personal protective equipment,” said Osborne. “This includes steel-toed boots, a hard hat,

a chin strap, a life jacket, and being in proper battle dress.” Osborne said a typical RAS is an all-hands evolution. Every Sailor plays a major role. There is a qualified bridge team with a master helmsman. Sailors on station will consist of a safety observer, rig captain, riggers, signalman and phone talkers, who are usually from deck division. All departments provide personnel to act as line handlers. Engineering personnel take fuel samples and advise the ship as to when to secure pumping and Gunner’s Mates are on station to fire shot line, if needed. “I have been very proud of the professional way that Porter has conducted replenishments,” said Arriola. “As our primary means to receive fuel and stores, it’s important to get this evolution right the first time and every time.”

Monday, Feb. 6, 2012 Page 3The Shuttle

Navy News

ARLINGTON, Va. – President Barack Obama today continued his commitment to improving employment among veterans by introducing an initiative to hire them as the country’s first responders. “In my State of the Union address, I proposed a new initiative called the Veterans Jobs Corps to put veterans back to work protecting and rebuilding America,” he said. “And today, we’re laying out the details of this proposal.”Speaking at a fire station here to veterans, firefighters, police officers and national park employees, Obama shared the venue’s significance before his remarks. “This is a fire station that holds some special significance for our country,” he explained. “On September 11th, the firefighters of this house were among the first to respond to the attack on the Pentagon. “You guys answered this nation’s call during its hour of need,” Obama added. “And in the years that followed, as Americans went to war, some of you answered that call, as well.” The president encouraged the hiring of veterans to replenish the ranks of the nation’s first responders. “First, we want to help communities hire more veterans as cops and firefighters,” he said. “Over the past few years, tight budgets have forced a lot of states, a lot of local communities, to lay off a lot of first responders.” The country already has made progress in veterans’ employment, Obama said. “Already, we’ve helped 600,000 veterans and their family members go back to school on the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill,” he said. “We’ve hired over 120,000 veterans to serve

Obama Announces Program to Hire Vets as First RespondersBy Army Sgt. 1st Class Tyrone C. Marshall Jr., AMERICAN FORCES PEESS SERVICE

in the federal government [and] we’ve made it easier for veterans to access all sorts of employment services.” When he first became president, Obama said, one of his first actions was to ensure state and local governments received assistance through the Recovery Act to avoid laying off first responders. “Thousands of firefighter jobs were saved because of the actions we took,” he noted. “But budgets are still tight, and that’s a problem we need to fix. Jobs that protect our families and our communities shouldn’t be the first on the chopping block. They should be one of our highest priorities as a nation.” Obama emphasized he wants to restore local communities and national parks, noting Interior Secretary Ken Salazar’s presence. The Department of the Interior manages and sustains the country’s lands, water, wildlife, and energy resources, among its other responsibilities. “He needs some help,” Obama said of Salazar. “And our veterans are highly qualified to help him. They’ve already risked their lives defending America. They should have the opportunity to rebuild America. We’ve got roads and bridges in and around our national parks in need of repair. Let’s fix them.” Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric K. Shinseki said in a conference call with reporters yesterday that the new three-part Veterans Job Corps initiative “will ensure our veterans don’t have to fight for jobs once they come home.”Shinseki called on employers to “enlist veterans in the work of rebuilding our nation.”

MUNICH – Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta Saturday called for European nations to match the United States’ vote of confidence in the transatlantic partnership, through investment in common defense and commitment to a long-term solution in Afghanistan. Panetta and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton spoke before some 10 heads of state and 40 foreign or defense ministers attending the 48th Munich Security Conference at the Bayerischer Hof hotel here. Panetta challenged his European counterparts to match the U.S. in maintaining military capability in the face of budget constraints. “Like most nations on this

Panetta Calls for Europe, NATO Defense InvestmentBy Karen Parrish, American Forces Press Service

continent, America faces a fiscal crisis,” he noted. America’s congressionally mandated $487 billion cut in defense spending over the next decade prompted a strategy that will result in a smaller but increasingly capable force, intent on emerging challenges in the cyber and space domains and focused on Asia and the Middle East, with a robust global presence and response capability, the secretary said. Panetta emphasized NATO is one of the central alliances underpinning the U.S. strategy. “I believe that today’s strategic and fiscal realities offer NATO the opportunity to build the alliance we need for the 21st century … the

core of an expanding network of partnerships across the globe,” the secretary said. The United States offers concrete proof of its commitment to Europe and NATO, Panetta said. As part of the phased approach to European missile defense, he said, the U.S. will station missiles in Romania and Poland; deploy four cruisers to Rota, Spain, capable of shooting down ballistic missiles; and contribute major funding for the Alliance Ground Surveillance system -- consisting of five Global Hawk intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance unmanned aerial vehicles and ground-based control equipment -- agreed to this week during NATO defense ministers meetings.

Monday, Feb. 6, 2012Page 4 The Shuttle

Big E Entertainment

AMEAN Bradley Barber from Newaygo, Mich., joined the Navy three years ago to follow family tradition and give back to his country. In his spare time, Barber enjoys going to concerts and exploring the state of Washington. His future plans include pursuing music production and recording with a record label in Seattle.

Aviation Structural Mechanic (Equipment) Airman Bradley Barber

Sailors of the Day

ITSN Steven Redcay from Blacksburg, Va., joined the Navy more than one year ago because he thought it would be an interesting experience. Redcay enjoys reading, playing soccer and spending time with his family and friends. In the future, he hopes to advance in rank and keep up with advancements in technology.

Information Systems TechnicianSeaman Steven C. Redcay