USO Canteen FReeper Style....Aviation Ordnancemen Thank You.......July 3,2002

FRiends of the USO Canteen FReeper Style and Snow Bunny

[Snow Bunny]

Aviation Ordnancemen (AOs) are aircraft armament (weapons) specialists. They are in charge of storing, servicing, inspecting, and handling all types of weapons and ammunition carried on Naval and Marine aircraft.

Ordnance Attitude Adjustment Tools

What Aviation Ordnancemen do...

Inspect, maintain and repair aircraft mechanical and electrical armament/ordnance systems.

Service aircraft guns and accessories.

Stow, assemble, and load aviation ammunition including aerial mines and torpedoes.

Service releasing and launching devices.

Load supplementary munitions.

Assemble, test, and maintain air-launched guided missiles.

Supervise operation of aviation ordnance shops, armories and stowage facilities.

Possibly function as air crewmen in various types of aircraft.

When training is completed, aviation ordnancemen may be assigned to Navy ships carrying aircraft, air stations, squadrons deployed to aircraft carriers or other aviation facilities in the U.S. or overseas.

The Arabian Gulf, Aug. 12, 2000 — Aviation Ordnanceman 2nd Class Alejandro Montalvo of Mocha, Puerto Rico, and Aviation Ordnanceman 3rd Class Chris Tucker of Ocala, Fla., prepare a 2000 pound, MK-84 JDAM GPS Guided Weapon for loading on an F/A-18 Hornet on the flight deck of USS George Washington (CVN 73). George Washington and her air wing are operating in the Gulf in support of Operation Southern Watch. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate 3rd Class J. Scott Campbell. [000812-N-1407C-004] Aug. 12, 2000.

At sea aboard USS John C. Stennis, Mar. 5, 2002 — An Aviation Ordnanceman supervises the "bomb farm" on the flight deck of USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74). From the "bomb farm," ordnance is moved out onto the flight deck and onto the aircraft. Since World War II, the U.S. Navy's carriers have been the national force of choice. In over 80% of the times when the World was faced with international violence, the U.S. has responded with one or more carrier task forces. John C. Stennis and her embarked Carrier Air Wing Nine (CVW-9) conducting combat missions in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate 3rd Class Alta I. Cutler.

At sea aboard USS John C. Stennis, Mar. 5, 2002 — An Aviation Ordnanceman aboard USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) installs an FMU-139BB "electric tail fuse" on a 500-pound BLU-111 penetrating bomb while working in one of the carrier's weapon magazines. Since World War II, the U.S. Navy's carriers have been the national force of choice. In over 80% of the times when the World was faced with international violence, the U.S. has responded with one or more carrier task forces. John C. Stennis and her embarked Carrier Air Wing Nine (CVW-9) conducting combat missions in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate 2nd Class James A. Farrally II

Aboard USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74), Marine Corps ordnance handlers move 500-pound GBU-12 MK 83 laser guided bombs towards an F/A-18 Hornet in preparation for loading. The Hornet strike fighter is assigned to the "Black Knights" of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron Three One Four (VMFA-314). Marine aviation, flying from Navy carriers and amphibious ships, demonstrates the close integration of the Navy-Marine Corps team. John C. Stennis and her embarked Carrier Air Wing Nine (CVW-9) conducting combat missions in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. U.S. Navy photo by Photographer's Mate 3rd Class Joshua Word.

Aboard USS Carl Vinson- an Aviation Ordnanceman directs forklift operator while moving bombs in the ships hanger bay.

Steam from the catapult surrounds an aviation ordnanceman as he gives a thumbs up after checking a Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM) attached to an F/A-18C Hornet before launching from the USS Kitty Hawk (CV 63) on Aug. 22, 1999. The Hornet will be releasing the JDAM at the Okinawa, Japan Range Area in the first fleet squadron drop of the newly developed weapon. JDAM uses a global positioning system aided inertial navigation system to guide its 2,000 or 1,000 pound warhead to the target with a high degree of accuracy.

The Legend of Saint Barbara

"The Patron Saint of Cannoneers and Ordnancemen"

Saint Barbara was born in the year 218 A.D., in Nicomedia, a city of northern Asia Minor. Her father, Dioscorus, was a tyrannical Roman. During his absence from home, the girl embraced the teaching of Origen, the great Christian doctor. Dioscorus on his return ordered a new house built for Barbara, who was very beautiful, where she might entertain her suitors.

To symbolize her faith, the maiden induced the builder to put three windows in her bedroom to typify the Trinity, instead of the two windows her father had ordered.

When Dioscorus discovered the third, most significant window and questioned her, Barbara admitted she had become a Christian. Not only did she insist upon clinging to the new religion, but she rejected the suitor whom her father had selected as her husband. She was tried on her father's indictment, found guilty and sentenced to death. Dioscorus called the prefect, "Give me the sword; she shall die at my own hands."

And so did Barbara die at the hands of her own father. Even as the sword fell, lightening fell upon this cruel father and consumed him as he stood.

Because lightening appeared to revenge the death of Barbara, she became the protectress against lightening and thunder. Ordnancemen, regardless of the flags under which they served through the centuries, have claimed Barbara as their patron saint.

[MistyCA]

LMAO! That's a good one, Spook!

[SAMWolf]

LOL! I love the punch line.

[lds23]

I'll be on vacation until 7/18 - so you all here at the Canteen have a great Independence Day weekend!

Just wanted to give a bump to psyops' 4th of July quotes post: 4th of July quotes

[Pippin]

WICKED!

[Poohbah]

The place: the flight deck of the USS Coral Sea, somewhere in the Mediterranean, 1989.

Two ordies are holding a Sidewinder about waist-high while arguing with the plane captain, one on each end of the weapon.

I proceed to limbo under the missile--and it gets caught on PLAT TV.

I didn't live that one down...

[JulieRNR21]

A wonderful tribute so much deserved!

On the Eve of our Independence Day it seems especially appropriate to remember and thank all those who serve to protect the Freedoms we all enjoy!

[Pippin]

LOL! You have a way of getting a message through, Cobby! Thank you. After yesterday with that nutcase I needed this.=^)

[COB1]

Beautiful graphic, Misty!

Thanks for the heads-up about Dr. Pepper.
All cans of Dr. Pepper now in my possession will be henceforth and forevermore relegated to the proper method of disposal - the trash can.

[Pippin]

I used to like DR. PEPPER, Now, see if I drink another drop if it!

[TADSLOS]

Let's not forget these fine folks...

"Continue the Attack"

[COB1]

I read that post about the "nutcase" yesterday, CS, and I'm sorry that there are some members of the genus Homo Erectus who have evolved way past their mental ability to do so.

The next time one of these retards says something like that, respond with:

"REMEMBER - When you put on your shorts in the morning, brown stains to the back, yellow stains to the front."

[Diver Dave]

Those Independence Day presentations are GREAT! Thanks to DSL I didn't have to go clean the house waiting for the downloads. :^) Lookin' forward to the next installment.

[COB1]

Thanks, Dave.
I'm glad you liked them.
They were originally all one file, but, alas, the old file size monster bit it.

[Light Speed]

20TH Mass at Gettysburg

[SAMWolf]

I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.

And to the Republic for which it stands.

One nation under God.

Indivisible.

With liberty and justice for all.

And I pledge allegiance to a lot more than that. I pledge allegiance to my country and to my countrymen. I pledge allegiance to the soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines who right now are standing between us and evil.

I pledge allegiance to the notion that we are all free and equal, that whether you came here on the Mayflower or a slave ship, as a refugee or a reject, a great hero or a nameless nobody, you are an American. And you are my brother or sister. And we are family. And nobody crosses us.

I pledge allegiance to the cab drivers and the waitresses, the firemen and the cops, the nurses and the teachers. The withered old people clinging to life and the squawking babies still pasty from their mothers' wombs. The people at computers and standing at assembly lines. The moms and dads, sons and daughters, the families who are the backbone of this land.

I pledge allegiance to the farmers in their fields, and amidst their herds and great orchards. The men and women who feed the world and turn nature's bounty and raw materials into the fullest supermarkets and bellies on the planet. Who produce in such abundance that the poorest of the poor eat well and the starving of the globe open relief boxes stamped with the American flag.

I pledge allegiance to two hundred and some years of doing it our way. Of conquering a continent and wrestling it into productivity and kneeling in gratitude to the God who made it all possible. I pledge allegiance to the faith of our fathers, spoken in different ways but offered up with like sincerity. To the churches and synagogues and mosques. Wherever good people learn love at the Creator's hand.

I pledge allegiance to the Founding Fathers and to their vision. To the Constitution they wrote and the nation they forged. To Washington and Adams, Jefferson and Madison, Lincoln and Roosevelt, Truman and Reagan. To Clara Barton and Frederick Douglass, Luther Burbank and Meriwether Lewis, Thomas A. Edison and John M. Browning, Dwight David Eisenhower and Harriet Beecher Stowe. To all who have gone before and done so with greatness, known to the world or consigned to obscurity. Who have contributed to the nation I love.

I pledge allegiance to the Congress of the United States, and the presidency, and the various legislatures and executives of the sundry states and municipalities. To the notion that our voices together select our leaders and laws, that through accountable intermediaries we govern ourselves, from the school down the street to the Capitol in Washington. I pledge allegiance to the courts, where justice is blind and the standing is equal, where the murderer and his victim find justice and representation before the might of the people. Where a nation of laws serves a nation of rulers.

I pledge allegiance to the future, and to the nation we will give our children. We will work to leave it as prosperous, free and strong as we received it. To give as good as we got, to bequeth our descendents a land as great as the one delivered to us by our ancestors.

I pledge allegiance to the force of arms against our enemies and attackers. I will fight in any and every way to protect my nation, its interests and people, be that in the arena of opinion and public attitude, or on the field of battle. I pledge allegiance to the notion that American victory must be unequivocal and absolute, that no weapon or means should be spared to protect this nation and that no consideration should be allowed to temper the fury of our defense. Those who attack us must surrender unconditionally, or be annihilated.

I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.

And to the Republic for which it stands.

One nation under God.

Indivisible.

With liberty and justice for all.

And I pledge allegiance to a lot more than that.


- by Bob Lonsberry © 2002

[WhyisaTexasgirlinPA]

Oh - I just got to see and hear part I of your video! Thank you so much for sharing this with us......it is beautiful! I am already downloading Part II.........

Happy 4th to you and yours Cob!

[g'nad]

I thought y'all might like this:

These are the words of a retired Marine Master Gunnery Sergeant. Ed Evans is a close friend of a comrade that sent this to meand a veteran Marine of the Vietnam War. He is a great guy with a level headed and clear view of the world.

I Will NOT Forget!

I sat in a movie theater watching "Schindler's List" asked myself, "Why didn't the Jews fight back?"

Now I know why.

I sat in a movie theater watching "Pearl Harbor" and asked myself, "Why weren't we prepared?"

Now I know why.

Civilized people cannot fathom, much less predict, the actions of evil people.

On September 11, dozens of capable airplane passengers allowed themselves to be overpowered by a handful of poorly armed terrorists because they did not comprehend the depth of hatred that motivated their captors.

On September 11, thousands of innocent people were murdered because too many Americans naively reject the reality that some nations are dedicated to the dominance of others. Many political pundits, pacifists and media personnel want us to forget the carnage. They say we must focus on the bravery of the rescuers and ignore the cowardice of the killers. They implore us to understand the motivation of the perpetrators. Major television stations have announced they will assist the healing process by not replaying devastating footage of the planes crashing into the Twin Towers.

I will not be manipulated.

I will not pretend to understand.

I will not forget.

I will not forget the liberal media who abused freedom of the press to kick our country when it was vulnerable and hurting.

I will not forget that CBS anchor Dan Rather preceded President Bush's address to the nation with the snide remark, "No matter how you feel about him, he is still our president."

I will not forget that ABC TV anchor Peter Jennings questioned President Bush's motives for not returning immediately to Washington, DC and commented, "We're all pretty skeptical and cynical about Washington."

And I will not forget that ABC's Mark Halperin warned if reporters weren't informed of every little detail of this war, they aren't "likely - nor should they be expected-to show deference."

I will not isolate myself from my fellow Americans by pretending an attack on the USS Cole in Yemen was not an attack on the United States of America.

I will not be appeased with pointless, quick retaliatory strikes like those perfected by the previous administration.

I will not be comforted by "feel-good, do nothing" regulations like the silly "Have your bags been under your control?" question at the airport.

I will not be influenced by so called,"antiwar demonstrators" who exploit the right of expression to chant anti-American obscenities.

I will not forget the moral victory handed the North Vietnamese by American war protesters who reviled and spat upon the returning soldiers, airmen, sailors and Marines.

I will not be softened by the wishful thinking of pacifists who chose reassurance over reality.

I will embrace the wise words of Prime Minister Tony Blair who told Labor Party conference, "They have no moral inhibition on the slaughter of the innocent. If they could have murdered not 7,000 but 70,000, does anyone doubt they would have done so and rejoiced in it?

There is no compromise possible with such people, no meeting of minds, no point of understanding with such terror. Just a choice: defeat it or be defeated by it. And defeat it we must!"

I will force myself to:

-hear the weeping
-feel the helplessness
-imagine the terror
-sense the panic
-smell the burning flesh
-experience the loss
-remember the hatred.

I sat in a movie theater, watching "Saving Private Ryan" and asked myself, "Where did they find the courage?"

Now I know.

We have no choice. Living without liberty is not living.

Master Gunnery Sergeant Ed Evans USMC (Ret.)
Not as lean, Not as mean, But still a Marine. Semper Fi

[MistyCA]

I am fine Clara....just real busy so I will be in and out of here again today :(

[68-69TonkinGulfYachtClub]

Please take a moment and Thank a Service Man or Woman.
Just Click on the graphic to send an e-mail.

[MistyCA]

Thank you Cob! Glad you enjoyed it! :)) Yup! Dr. Pepper is history! :)))