Posted on 10/14/2023 6:15:35 PM PDT by NautiNurse
NORFOLK — “I see him!” exclaimed 8-year-old Penelope Holbert, vigorously waving. Her father, Petty Officer 1st Class Drew Holbert waved back from a platform at the stern of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower.
Holbert, an aviation structural mechanic, was one of 5,000 sailors who deployed Saturday aboard the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower — the flagship of the Ike carrier strike group. It has long been scheduled to deploy this week to the Mediterranean.
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The Eisenhower is expected to be deployed for about six months.
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The Virginia Beach strike fighter squadrons known as Gunslingers, Fighting Swordsmen, Rampagers and Wildcats will embark with the group. Norfolk groups include the Screwtops of Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron 123, the Dusty Dogs of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 7 and the Rawhides of Fleet Logistics Support Squadron 40.
The warship will also be supported by Norfolk-based cruiser USS Philippine Sea and destroyer USS Gravely — both departed Friday. The USS Mason, a destroyer, departed Friday from Naval Station Mayport in Florida.
“What we do on a daily basis matters. And we are going to make history in some form, fashion, function, wherever we go,” Miguez said.
The carrier was scheduled to push off Friday, but experienced a 24-hour delay.
“It gave us extra time … but he was anxious to get going,” Carol Maher said of her grandson Mason Dollar, 21.
Dollar is an aircrew survival equipment man for an embarked helicopter squadron. His grandma and three cousins made the drive from Texas to see him off for his first deployment.
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(Excerpt) Read more at pilotonline.com ...
The bow has a freshly painted rainbow.
The US presence in the region is not there to support Israel.
It’s a show, like everything else democrats do.
The Carriers are there to prevent Israel from destroying HAMAS, and for spying on Israeli efforts to hunt down the subhuman monsters that murdered innocent men, women and children.
If this Administration was serious about helping Israel, they would not continue to provide funding to Iran or the Palestinians.
Dang. That looks like just about every gray day I pulled away from Pier 12 down in Norfolk!
Hellofa target raght thar.
Our assets are to be used to bomb Hezbollah rocket launchers which will be widespread and well hidden, I would think, along with keeping other players from attacking Israel as they focus on reducing Hamas to bad memories.
If they’re looking to turn Israel’s war into WWIII, this should do the trick.
I spent about a month on the Ike when she was spanking new.
Lot of water over the Dan sine then.
What year was the Ike christened?
What the hell are we doing? I get the feeling no one is really following the ball, and we are sliding into WWIII. This is the day of cheap drone swarms, not super carriers
That is one big ship.😮
That’s what I keep thinking about.
Were the WW2 carriers also the fleet oil tanker ?
I believe she was christened in 1975, and commissioned in 1977. I was on her in 1978. Our sister squadron lost a pilot to a cold cat shot while were were deployed on her. It was a terrible thing. We all watched him die in slow motion from the flight deck as they tried to get him out of the water, but he got tangled in his shrouds.
Funny. That’s about the only thing I remember about being on her.
LOL, they always called Norfolk “NoF**k Vagina”...
I was born at Norfolk Naval Hospital...long time ago.
We also refueled other ships when I was on the Kennedy...she was the last conventionally powered carrier, so she had fuel to spare.
It would be interesting to know how many talked their way out of having to deploy. I’ll bet it’s pretty high.
My understanding was that even the nuclear carriers are also the fleet oil tanker.
Info from someone who worked on the analysis of a destroyer heat exchanger that failed. They were trying to increase destroyer engine efficiency so they didn’t have to refuel so often.
My grandson is assigned to a destroyer that was recently modernized and is being inspected and tested for future deployment. I pray daily for his safety as I do not trust the demented regime that’s currently in power.
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