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USS TRUXTUN DDG 103  and the US Navy

I would like to take up a few minutes of your time today to recap a few days I just had out in Norfolk.

My son Rick has been in the navy just  over 1 year now. I went out to Norfolk on May 7 to be pier side when his ship ( USS Truxtun DDG 103) pulled away for a 7 month deployment. I was able to spend a few days with him prior to him leaving, and was so impressed with the Naval Base and the people on the base. I also was surprised when my son asked if I wanted a tour of the ship and see what type of duties he has. Let me report that it was an experience that everyone should take part in. Of course we could not see it all but I was amazed that what I was able to see took about 1 hour and 1/2. I was introduced to other sailors and Ensigns and Chiefs all who were very nice and willing to talk about the ship and the time they have had on it. On Wednesday  May 11 which was also my sons 23rd birthday, Myself along with his girlfriend and the other sailors family members were able to be on the ship just hours before they were to leave. We again were able to speak with and be with my son and meet his friends family members. The time I spent I was able to develop a mutual bond with other parents and exchanged emails and phone numbers, and both promised to keep in touch and use each other over the next 7 months and to make plans to see each other again at the end of the deployment. At 11:00 AM it was time for the ship to pull away from the dock. Watching everyone standing at the rails as the ship left was truly a feeling you can only experience if your there. Two hours later I was back at the airport flying back to Wisconsin as a proud father of a US Navy Sailor and as an American knowing that the freedom we live with everyday is because of the men and women who serve and have served this country. 

 Thank you ..... 

By Corinne Reilly
The Virginian-Pilot
© April 20, 2011

A sailor was found dead Tuesday aboard the Norfolk-based aircraft carrier Enterprise, which is deployed in the Arabian Sea.
 The Navy declined to identify the sailor but said in a news release that the sailor's family has been notified. It's not clear how the sailor died. The Navy is investigating what happened, the news release said.
 No other details were provided. The Navy command that announced the death, the U.S. 5th Fleet, is headquartered in Bahrain. Calls to the 5th Fleet went unanswered Tuesday.
 This is the second time in less than a month that an Enterprise sailor has been found dead on the carrier. Petty Officer 1st Class Vincent Filpi, 41, died March 22. He was married and had a son and five stepchildren.
 The Navy has said his death wasn't combat-related and it wasn't indicative of a safety threat onboard the carrier. No other information has been made public.
 In addition to the deaths, two Enterprise sailors have gone overboard in the past two weeks, the most recent one on Monday. Both were pulled from the water in good condition. The Navy hasn't disclosed any other details about the incidents except to say it's investigating them.
 The Enterprise left Norfolk in January for a roughly six-month deployment. It's in the Arabian Sea supporting operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

My condolences, throughts, and prayers are with the family and shipmates of the deceased Sailor... 

MY SR wrote home said that the RTC has a facebook page and posting photographs of our SR's anyone know this site?

I can't say enough about how proud I was during PIR on March 11 at Great Lakes. My little sailor moved on to A School in Mississippi and now is headed home for some much needed R&R...The Navy is going to open some doors for her and I'm grateful. The graduation ceremony was amazing. The Navy does it with all the pomp and circumstance it deserves. 845 other sailors graduated that day.

And, I got some very good information from this site. One I'd like to pass along is to consider staying at the Navy Lodge if you have someone PIR. It's about 1.5 miles from the base, was very clean and the staff was incredibly nice.

It was walking distance although the temps in winter were really cold. Otherwise, a cab ride cost $3...Good luck to all those families and sailors in process now. Be proud at graduation and stay strong.

We support you always.

Bravo Zulu to all.

congrats

It was posted about 30 min ago on RTC Facebook page: To clear up any confusion, the correct graduation day for Memorial Day weekend is Thursday, May 26.

And From RTC WEBSITE:

My input:

Our Son Maxwell will Graduate this Friday April 15th, 2011 (Ship 09 Div 136). We are so proud of him and the accomplishments thus far. He will be continuing to Monterey, CA where he will be studying a foreign language CTI.

We are hoping he will get ten days of leave, but we are not certain yet.

Does anyone else have a Son or Daughter in this ship /division, and also maybe going to Monterey, CA.

We reside in Redding, California.

We will be flying out this Thursday to attend his Graduation. 

Looking forward to your replies.

Sincerely

Michael

Well it has been a while but I'm back. My son Wyatt just called from MEPS in Portland Or. and he is now in the delayed entry program for the Navy. He will be on that until November. He wants the Master at Arms job, so he wants to wait for the job to open. If one comes available before November he will go early. We are very proud of him and all the hard work. I will keep you all up to date on whats going on. He's finely on his way.

Take care and be safe.

Chuck

Eight warships are headed to Japan to render disaster relief in the wake of a catastrophic magnitude 8.9 earthquake that left hundreds dead Friday. The quake unleashed a tsunami that is tearing across the Pacific. It unmoored two subs and is forcing other ships to get underway or ease their lines as the surge waters arrive, according to updates posted on official Navy Facebook pages across the region



The earthquake, the most devastating to have struck Japan since the country began tracking seismic activity more than a century ago, leveled homes and buildings, and spawned a 23-foot high wave that carried away cars and people.

Japan has requested aid through the State Department, Armed Forces Press Service reported Friday.

“Our deepest sympathies go out to our close friends in Japan as they deal with this tragedy,” Adm. Patrick Walsh, Pacific Fleet commander, said statement posted on his Facebook page. “U.S. Pacific Fleet is making preparations and posturing our naval assets to provide assistance when directed. We stand ready to support those in need. Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Japan.”

None of the 38,000 military personnel assigned to Japan are dead, Pentagon spokesman Marine Col. Dave Lapan said Friday. He said six ships are headed to Japan to render aid, if called upon: the aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan; amphibious assault ship Essex; dock landing ships Germantown, Tortuga and Harpers Ferry; and amphibious command ship Blue Ridge.

In addition, cruiser Chancellorsville and destroyer Preble, along with Reagan, have been ordered to “proceed at best safe speed toward Japan,” Pacific Fleet said on its Facebook page at noon Eastern time.

“We’re doing all of the planning that you would expect … to determine exactly which ship will need to go where, if we get directed,” said Pacific Fleet spokesman Capt. Jeff Breslau. “And then again, continue to move the ships so that we’re ready to go.”
In Guam, the tsunami snapped mooring lines to two attack submarines, Houston and City of Corpus Christi. Tug boats immediately responded. “Both subs are safe and under the control of the tug boats,” Joint Region Marianas posted on its Facebook page. No injuries have been reported. Both subs were tied up to the pier shortly afterwards and without significant damages, Breslau said.

In Japan, no facilities damage was reported. The headquarters of Combined Task Force 72 Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Force in Misawa, Japan, was evacuated and without power, according to an update just after 5 a.m. Eastern time by 7th Fleet. And the staff of Combined Task Force 76 Amphibious Force at White Beach, Okinawa, retreated to higher ground at Kadena Air Base.

7th Fleet directed ships in Guam to get underway, if practical.

There were no reports of damage to the aircraft carrier George Washington, which was in port in Yokosuka, Japan.

Tortuga is headed for Pohang, South Korea, where it will embark MH-53 heavy lift helicopters, said Navy spokesman Lt. Myers Vasquez, who also said that all 7th Fleet ships, except Washington and the destroyer Lassen, must be ready to go to sea within 24 hours. The Reagan strike group is sailing for the northwest coast of Honshu, Japan, hard-hit by the tsunami, and is expected to arrive within a day, Vasquez said.

In Hawaii, there was no reported damage to ships or facilities as the tsunami passed through. Army Logistics Support Vessel CW3 Harold Clinger left port Friday due to its berth close to the mouth of Pearl Harbor, Navy Region Hawaii said in a press release.

The Pacific Missile Range Facility on the island of Kauai was evacuated, but wasn’t damaged by the ocean surge, Navy Region Hawaii said. In addition, three torpedo retrievers in Port Allen were sent out to sea, two helicopters were moved to Lihue, and two range support C-26 aircraft are in the air.

In another post soon after, officials said that “the Navy is closely monitoring wave assessments inside Pearl Harbor and indicated that there is no need to sortie ships at this time.”

Pentagon spokesman Lapan said the Boxer Amphibious Ready Group is bound for Guam, as planned.

The aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln, returning from a six-month deployment to 5th Fleet, pulled into Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on Thursday, according to its official Facebook page. Lincoln closed the brow as the tsunami passed through in the early morning and opened it for liberty call five hours later, at about 1:15 p.m. Eastern time.

Smaller tides of two or three feet were expected to reach southern California, where 3rd Fleet and I Marine Expeditionary Force at Camp Pendleton are wrapping up an offshore logistics exercise at the amphibious training base. Naval Beach Group 1 units participating in the Pacific Horizon exercise moved some encampments “to higher ground” as a precaution as they wrap up the training, said Cmdr. Gregory Hicks, a fleet spokesman.

Fleet officials ordered ships in San Diego to remain in port, with sailors standing by to tend lines Friday morning. The transport dock Dubuque, which was doing an ammunition onload at Seal Beach Naval Weapon Station near Long Beach, was ordered to sortie offshore as a precautionary measure, Hicks said