FReeper Canteen ~ Road Trip: Naval Air Station Key West, Florida ~ 04 FEB 2014

Serving The Best Troops and Veterans In The World !! | laurenmarlowe

[Kathy in Alaska]

 

 

~The FReeper Canteen Presents~

Road Trip: Naval Air Station Key West, Florida

Naval Air Station Key West is a naval air station and military airport located four miles east of the central business district of Key West, in Monroe County, Florida, United States.

NAS Key West supports the needs of aviation units and is host to many tenant commands, including Fighter Composite Squadron 111, (VFC-111), Strike Fighter Squadron 106 (VFA-106) Detachment, the Caribbean Region Operations Center (CARIBROC), Naval Security Group Activity Key West, the Air Force's 6947th Electronic Security Squadron (6947 ESS), the U.S. Army's 749th Military Intelligence Company, the U.S. Army Special Forces Waterborne Operations Division (SFWOD) and Joint Interagency Task Force East (JIATF - East).

  NAS Key West is the U.S. Navy's premier training facility for tactical aviation squadrons. Local aerial ranges enable aviators to engage in training maneuvers within minutes of takeoff. The station is equipped with a sophisticated tactical combat training system which tracks and records combat aerial maneuvers. As a host facility, NAS Key West provides and maintains facilities and services for tenant commands, and ensures quality of life for all personnel.

NAS Key West is the host facility for numerous tenant activities, including Joint Interagency Task Force South, U.S. Coast Guard, and U.S. Army Special Forces Underwater Training School to name a few.

 As in the past, NAS Key West continues to be frequently utilized for detachments by active and reserve U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps fighter squadrons and U.S. Air Force, Air Force Reserve and Air National Guard fighter and rescue squadrons for exercises and unit level and continuation training. The Naval Air Training Command also uses NAS Key West from time to time for training detachments of student strike pipeline aviators, including initial carrier qualifications.

U.S. Navy P-3C and E-2C aircraft also routinely conduct detachment operations at NAS Key West, primarily counternarcotics (CN) reconnaissance missions in the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean basin in support of both the U.S. Coast Guard and Joint Interagency Task Force East (JIATF - East).

Learn More About NAS Key West Base Here!

Built in 1847 to aid to ships navigating dangerous reefs off the lower Keys, the Key West Lighthouse now stands sentinel over one of Florida's finest historical sites.

The tower and nearby Keeper's Quarters have been faithfully restored and maintained as they were before the lighthouse was deactivated in 1969. Many of the historic elements remain, including the pipes used to deliver acetylene gas that powered the light before it was electrified in 1927.

The clapboard bungalow where the keepers and their families lived while maintaining the beacon has been recreated in turn-of-the-century style with historic furniture, furnishings and photos that provide a sense of life in Key West during that formative time.

Visit The Key West Lighthouse Here!

FR CANTEEN MISSION STATEMENT~Showing support and boosting the morale of our military and our allies military and the family members of the above. Honoring those who have served before. 

Please remember: The Canteen is a place to honor and entertain our troops. The Canteen is family friendly. Let's have fun!

We pray for your continued strength, to be strong in the face of adversity.

We pray for your safety, that you will return to your families and friends soon.

We pray that your hope, courage, and dignity remain unbroken, so that you may show others the way.

God Bless You All ~ Today, Tomorrow and Always

 

 

[Arrowhead1952]

Good morning to everyone at the Canteen. 41º with a light drizzle.

[luvie]

'Sup, Early Birds?
It's a bit warmer here today,
but it's very damp.
Not a bad thing for us!
Hope all of you are warm, safe and dry!
...and don't have to work too hard!
((((hugs))))

[Arrowhead1952]

It never got warmer than 35 today,

We were at 43 or 44 all day yesterday. Good morning and (((HUGS))).

[luvie]

Howdy, Arrow! (((hugs)))

Hope your day is warmer...before the next cold front hits tomorrow. I think we’re having winter this year! :)

[MEG33]

Love that cute owl, LUV
It’s a foggy, damp 39 here..Any moisture is welcome..This day it will warm up to 60..then back to the 40s..

[Arrowhead1952]

Yes, we are having our regular winter, rather than the mid 50s to mid 60s daytime temps.

[E.G.C.]

((HUGS))Good morning, LUV W. How’s it going?

[Arrowhead1952]

We will have similar weather as you have. Up - down temps with light drizzle. Repeat daily.

[MEG33]

The roller coaster weather continues!

[Iron Munro]

I was at the Key West Naval Air Station during the Cuban Missle crisis.

The place was so crowded with aircraft that they were diagonal parked along the sides of the runway.

There were aircraft from the Air Force, Navy and Marines.

It was so crowded there was no more space to pitch tents so military forces were put up in hotels and motels all over Key West.

It looked like something out of a WWII Movie with every street packed with military men in uniform with Jeeps and military trucks transporting troops back and forth to the base.

[relentlessly]

55 years ago today....

[Kathy in Alaska]

WOW! That would be a sight no one would forget, especially knowing why you were there.

Thanks, Iron Munro, for sharing your experiences.

[Iron Munro]

WOW! That would be a sight no one would forget, especially knowing why you were there.
Thanks, Iron Munro, for sharing your experiences.

It was quite an experience.

Aircraft and men along with equipment of every type and we were fully ready to go on a moment's notice.

It's probably difficult for many to imagine today but there was a very real fear that the confrontation would end with an exchange of missles or some other hostile action between us and the USSR and Cuba.

And knowing we were geared up to protect our own country there was an entirely different mindset than if we were facing hostile action in a foreign country.

[Kathy in Alaska]

Everyone have a great Tuesday!!

[Arrowhead1952]

Hope you are having a good day Kathy. We may hit the mid 60s, but the sun just started peeking through the clouds the past hour or so and it is only 50 now.

[E.G.C.]

BTTTT

[luvie]

Awwww! It’s been great so far! :) hope you’ve had a good one too! (((Hugs)))

[left that other site]

Awww. Cute Kitteh gives a Flower!

[ConorMacNessa]

GOOD EVENING To Our Valiant Troops, To Our Vets, To Our Families, Our FRiends, Our Allies And To All Canteen Denizens!

GODSPEED OUR TROOPS around the Globe, especially those in combat!




Evening Colors
U.S. Army Bugler
(Click)



MAY THE LORD Protect And Uphold Our Troops In Their Performance Of Their Vital Mission!

MAY HE KEEP Their Families Secure During Their Time Of Separation!

MAY HE PRESERVE And Uphold The American Nation In This Time Of Crisis!

Genuflectimus non ad principem sed ad Principem Pacis!

Listen, O isles, unto me; and hearken, ye people, from far; The LORD hath called me from the womb; from the bowels of my mother hath he made mention of my name. (Isaiah 49:1 KJV)

[Kenton]

I was stationed there in 1966 at Fleet Sonar School. I went back to Key West a couple of years ago just to look around.

Alas, Key West is no longer my sleepy little Navy town. I'm glad I still remember what it was like back then.