HAPPY VETERANS DAY!

The call to service is a sacred one. Whether you were drafted or willingly volunteered to place yourself in harm's way, today is your day. If you're like me, you enjoyed every moment of service to this nation and whenever you reflect back in your mind even the bad days weren't so bad. Personally, I tend to reflect back on who I served with rather than what we did.

I encourage you all to reach out to a fellow service member that you served with and thank that person for serving with you. Whenever you do, make that person a promise that you'll check on them from time to time. You'd be surprised at how it changes your entire day/mood whenever someone calls to check on you that you haven't seen for 10, 15, or even 20 years. However, knowing that someone out there is thinking of you and cares means a whole lot.

For those who didn't serve, I encourage you to venture out to a restaurant or some local pub and just listen to a veteran's stories about his service to our great nation. It doesn't have to be a stranger; it can be a family member or a family friend. For some of us, it can be therapeutic and for others maybe not so much. So, whenever you see a veteran today or a civil servant such as an EMS worker, fire fighter, or even a law enforcement officer be sure to thank them as well and buy them a coffee or if it's afterhours then buy them a drink somewhere.

To all of my fellow warriors who swore an oath I salute you. Cheers! Be safe this evening and don't drink too much. Unfortunately, yesterday was the 249th Birthday for my beloved Marine Corps. So, you may encounter a shortage on crayons. We apologize in advance and bid you a SEMPER FI, an OORAH, and GO TIGERS!

SamuraiTater®

Team Captain [494]

TigerPulse: 100%

Posts: 311

Joined: 2004

Re: HAPPY VETERANS DAY!

Nov 11, 2024, 3:07 PM

74TIGER said:

carrier deck jobs just fascinate me. lets sling them off the deck to fly and when they come in to land it goes to full throttle in case they miss the tail hook and have to fly off immediately.

74, my first day on an aircraft carrier flight deck was definitely memorable. I was assigned to the Line Division in VF-24 as a plane captain trainee. My trainer was a qualified plane captain who’d made the previous cruise. We’re standing in the starboard side (right side) catwalk just forward of the island waiting for his bird to recover and he instructs me to grip the back of his float coat. He told me in no uncertain terms I was to hang on no matter what and if at any time he felt me let go, he’d turn around and whip my ####. Once his jet recovers they would taxi it into what we called the “six pack” area. The first 6 Tomcats to return would be spotted with their noses dead on the foul line. That’s the red and white demarcation line that denotes the landing area. You don’t even think about crossing it during recovery but we will use every inch of available real estate right up to it.

He’s got a lot of things to do in order to get this bird ready for the next event and he has to hustle. Every minute counts. Once we step up on the flight deck he leads me over to the forward side of the island where there is a bunch of support equipment and I’m kind of out of harms way. He tells me to grip some piece of equipment and again the same warning if I let go of it. He leaves me there like a mother lion leaving her cub in a safe spot temporarily while his bird taxis from the landing area and they spot it in the six pack. He gets it chained down, pops the canopy, boarding ladder, steps and after the aircrew climbs down he climbs up there and pins the ejection seats. Then he comes back for me.

Now I’m holding onto the back of his float coat again, following him everywhere he goes and watching everything he does. He’s trying his best to communicate verbally but it’s really loud up there. We’re working our way around from the left side of the nose, toward the back and up the right side checking lots of things. ….Well, he is. I’m just in awe of what’s going on. As we get to the right side of the nose he pops open the Liquid Oxygen bay and checks both LOX bottles. One needs to be changed. Fresh ones are over by the island and again he needs to hustle. He takes my left hand and makes me grip the the nose wheel well door, again with his warning if I let go. Then he runs to get a new LOX bottle.

So I’m just standing there holding onto that door, gazing across the landing area……..just kind of relaxed for the moment,thinking how cool this scene is….. The nose cone is blocking part of my view of the landing area and I don’t really notice what’s about to happen….

Then out of nowhere a Tomcat suddenly traps in the wire right in front of me. The engines are roaring and it’s straining against the arresting cable which has brought it to a halt. In a landing configuration the wings of a Tomcat are out at 20 degrees and I’d estimate that right wingtip was maybe 20-25 feet from me. It was an exciting moment to say the very least. I knew right then I was going to enjoy this job.

Message was edited by: SamuraiTater®

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