Free Republic

by Sgt. Jeremiah Johnson May 21, 2004 A Soldier provides security with a 50 caliber machine gun in Mosul, Iraq. He is assigned to the 2nd Infantry Division’s Company C, 1st Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment, Stryker Brigade Combat Team. This photo appeared on www.army.mil.

Story Number: NNS040419-05 Release Date: 4/19/2004 11:36:00 AM By Journalist 1st Class Brigette A. Moritz, Naval Reserve Naval Media Center BALTIMORE (NNS) -- Twenty-six Reservists from Naval Reserve Center (NRC) Baltimore received awards during a ceremony April 17, for rescuing passengers of the Lady D, a Baltimore Harbor water taxi that capsized during a storm March 6. Within minutes of the accident, the Reservists were in the NRC’s small landing craft and on the scene. According to Chief Storekeeper Ricardo Duncan, administrative department head for Fleet and Industrial Supply Center Norfolk, Det. 106. Once the Reservists reached the water taxi,...

Story Number: NNS040420-02 Release Date: 4/20/2004 9:28:00 AM By Chief Journalist (SW/AW) Mark O. Piggott, Commander, Naval Submarine Forces, Public Affairs NORFOLK, Va. (NNS) -- The fast-attack submarine USS Hampton (SSN 767), along with the Royal Navy submarine HMS Tireless, surfaced through the ice at the North Pole April 19. The two vessels surfaced through two naturally occurring leads or “gaps” in the ice about one-half mile from each other, following joint operational exercises beneath the polar ice cap. “It’s a pretty amazing ship, and I’m happy to be a part of it,” said Cmdr. Robert P. Burke, Hampton’s commanding...

Story Number: NNS040416-20 Release Date: 4/16/2004 3:44:00 PM By Chief Journalist (SW/AW) Mark O. Piggott, Commander, Submarine Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet Public Affairs PORTSMOUTH, Va. (NNS) -- Cmdr. Gregory M. Ott relieved Cmdr. David M. Duryea as commanding officer, USS Florida (SSGN 728), April 16 at Norfolk Naval Shipyard. This was another milestone in Florida’s transformation from ballistic missile submarine to guided-missile submarine. “Historic Norfolk Naval Shipyard is the nation’s first public shipyard, and no stranger to naval transformation,” said Vice Adm. Kirkland H. Donald, commander, Naval Submarine Forces. “It has been no easy task (for Duryea) taking Florida from...

Story Number: NNS040416-19 Release Date: 4/16/2004 3:44:00 PM By Madeleine Scott, Naval Historical Center Public Affairs CHARLESTON, S.C. (NNS) -- In April, scientists working for the Naval Historical Center, after years of extensive research, released facial reconstructions and crew-profiles of eight crew members of the Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley. The Civil War-era crew consisted of sub commander Lt. George Dixon and crewmembers Arnold Becker, Lumkin (first name unknown), Joseph Ridgaway, Frank Collins, Miller (first name unknown), Cpl. J.F. Carlsen and James A Wicks. The profiles and personal information were created from extensive genealogical and scientific research led by the Hunley...

Story Number: NNS040409-25 Release Date: 4/12/2004 11:00:00 AM By Madeleine Scott, Naval Historical Center Public Affairs CHARLESTON, S.C. (NNS) -- The eight men strong crew of H.L. Hunley, after 140 years, will finally be laid to rest April 17 at the Magnolia Cemetery in Charleston, S.C. The submarine, under preservation by the Naval Historical Center (NHC) for the last three years, disappeared during the Civil War and was not discovered until 2000 and raised in 2001. “Hunley is renowned in history as the first successful combat submarine," said overall NHC supervisor and project leader of the Hunley conservation project, Dr....

Story Number: NNS040401-03 Release Date: 4/1/2004 11:00:00 AM By Journalist Seaman Ryan McGinley, Commander, Navy Region Hawaii Public Affairs PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii (NNS) -- USS Lake Erie (CG 70), in conjunction with Afloat Training Group (ATG), Middle Pacific (MIDPAC), competed in the Damage Control (DC) Olympics March 19. The DC Olympics were held on Naval Station Pearl Harbor to help train Sailors in a hands-on environment and have fun at the same time. "We just wanted to make sure the crew had awareness of damage control and they think about their basic skills before we start getting underway again," said...

The Source for Navy News Story Number: NNS021016-01 Release Date: 10/17/2002 By Lt. Leslie Hull-Ryde, Commander, Logistics Group, Western Pacific Public Affairs SINGAPORE (NNS) -- For years, the United States has worked closely with Vietnam to account for all armed forces personnel missing in action as a result of the Vietnam War. Joint Task Force-Full Accounting, Detachment 2, based in Hanoi, leads the search efforts for thousands of MIAs. The Naval Regional Contracting Center did its part recently to help bring closure to many American families still grieving over their losses. Representatives from NRCC exercised a contract's option period,...

Story Number: NNS040324-08 Release Date: 3/25/2004 9:40:00 AM By Journalist 1st Class Todd Macdonald, Logistics Group Western Pacific Public Affairs SINGAPORE (NNS) -- While nothing can replace family and friends on the pier for Sailors and Marines returning from deployments, the crew of the San Diego-based USS Boxer (LHD 4) had arguably the next best thing waiting for them pierside March 21 - pallets of Girl Scout cookies —enough for everyone aboard. Local Girl Scouts, acting on behalf of their counterparts from the San Diego-Imperial chapter and its Operation Thin Mint (OTM) initiative, delivered 310 cases of cookies, along with...

Story Number: NNS040326-01 Release Date: 3/26/2004 8:51:00 AM Special release from the U.S. Department of Defense WASHINGTON (NNS) -- Secretary of the Navy Gordon R. England announced March 25 that under the authority of Title 10 United States Code Section 7306, the historic tugboat Hoga will be donated to the Arkansas Inland Maritime Museum (AIMM), a qualified non-profit organization located in North Little Rock, Ark. Before its opening to the public later this year in Arkansas, AIMM plans to perform work necessary to display the tugboat as a Navy memorial. "I'm pleased this historic vessel will be preserved as a...

Story Number: NNS040326-06 Release Date: 3/26/2004 10:34:00 AM By Coleen R. San Nicolas-Perez, U.S. Naval Forces Marianas Public Affairs SANTA RITA, Guam (NNS) -- At Helicopter Combat Support Squadron (HC) 5, community service is more than an opportunity for Sailors to grow. It’s a tradition. HC-5 donated 50 computers to F.B. Leon Guerrero Middle School March 17. The school will utilize the equipment in its computer science-journalism laboratory. The school will also be able to create a reading lab, said Principal Ken Denusta. “[HC-5] has done a lot of wonderful things for the school,” he said. “The partnership with HC-5...

Story Number: NNS040326-08 Release Date: 3/26/2004 11:20:00 AM By Journalist 3rd Class Devin Wright, Commander, Navy Region Hawaii Public Affairs PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii (NNS) -- Almost 130 Naval Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps cadets took part in an annual four-day spring camp beginning March 19. The spring camp consists of a day of boot camp-style instruction on military protocol, and a basic seamanship course that includes sailing and kayaking. There is also a physical readiness portion in which cadets hike Diamond Head and complete second class swimming qualifications. Cadets also receive an historical overview of the Navy here in Hawaii,...

Story Number: NNS040326-14 Release Date: 3/26/2004 8:49:00 PM By Marine Lance Cpl. John E. Lawson Jr., Combined Joint Task Force-180 Public Affairs KABUL PROVINCE, Afghaniston (NNS) -- Navy corpsmen from 2nd Battalion, 8th Marines conducted a medical civil affairs program (MedCap) March 7-8. “During the two-day MedCap, a Navy lieutenant and four corpsmen treated about 160 patients at a local hospital,” said Lt. Kenny Uy, assistant battalion surgeon. “The Sailors saw Afghan patients with ailments ranging from coughs and colds to worms and nutritional deficiencies.” Patients also sought care for other ailments, including arthritis and blindness. While supplies and time...

Story Number: NNS040326-16 Release Date: 3/26/2004 10:40:00 PM From Commander, U.S. Naval Air Force, Atlantic Fleet NORFOLK, Va. (NNS) -- The pilot of a Navy F/A-18 Hornet aircraft, which crashed the afternoon of March 26 at Raleigh-Durham International Airport in North Carolina, is uninjured. He has been identified as Lt. j.g. Wesley Baumgartner of Yorktown, Va. Baumgartner was the pilot of the aircraft, assigned to the “Valions” of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 15 based at Oceana Naval Air Station in Virginia. He was part of a two-aircraft flight on a routine cross-country training mission when they made a stop at...

Story Number: NNS040325-01 Release Date: 3/25/2004 1:42:00 PM From Commander, Naval Air Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet Public Affairs NORFOLK, Va. (NNS) -- A U.S. Navy F/A-18 Hornet aircraft on a routine training mission crashed at about 12:30 p.m. EST March 24 off the coast of South Carolina. The pilot was rescued uninjured and taken to a hospital at Hunter Army Air Field near Savannah, Ga., for observation. The aicraft was assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 82 based at Marine Corps Air Station Beaufort, S.C. Known as the "Marauders," the squadron returned Feb. 25 from a six-month deployment as part...

Story Number: NNS040326-05 Release Date: 3/26/2004 10:32:00 AM By Coleen R. San Nicolas-Perez, U.S. Naval Forces Marianas Public Affairs SANTA RITA, Guam (NNS) -- Members of Helicopter Combat Support Squadron (HC) 5 were awarded Air Medals and Navy and Marine Corps Medals March 11, for demonstrating bravery and heroism during a rescue at sea in June 2003. Lt. Harrison Schramm, Lt. j.g. Isaiah Blake, Chief Aviation Structural Mechanic (AW/SW/NAC) Mikel Carr, Aircrew Survival Equipmentman 2nd Class (AW/NAC) Joseph McCollum and Aviation Ordnanceman 2nd Class (AW/NAC) Rusty Jack were presented the medals in front of shipmates at the command’s hangar on...

Story Number: NNS040322-10 Release Date: 3/22/2004 3:34:00 PM From Commander, Joint Forces Maritime Component Commander/Commander, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/Commander, U.S. 5th Fleet Public Affairs MANAMA, Bahrain (NNS) -- USS Yorktown (CG 48) aided in the recovery of two dozen mariners March 22, after their tanker collided with a fishing vessel and caught fire off the coast of Oman. At approximately 7:30 a.m. local time, motor vessel Everton made a bridge-to-bridge distress call indicating they had collided with fishing vessel Chun Ying, resulting in a fire amidships and possibly rupturing Everton’s oil tanks, fueling the fire. Several commercial vessels nearby...

Story Number: NNS040317-12 Release Date: 3/17/2004 11:48:00 PM By Journalist 3rd Class (SW) Kristine DeHoux, USS Nimitz Public Affairs NORTH ISLAND, Calif. (NNS) -- Four USS Nimitz (CVN 68) Sailors helped represent the Navy March 6 at a NASCAR Busch Series race held in Las Vegas. The No. 14 Navy “Accelerate your life” Chevrolet Monte Carlo ran in the Sam’s Town 300 and was dedicated to the ship and her crew. Former pro-football player Terry Bradshaw and the FitzBradshaw racing team own the Navy-sponsored car that was dedicated to Nimitz. They've had an ongoing partnership with the Navy for two...

Kerry vs. Kerry. 30 rounds of fun!

Story Number: NNS040311-12 Release Date: 3/12/2004 6:19:00 AM By Lt. Karen Eifert, Naval Aviation Schools Command Public Affairs PENSACOLA, Fla. (NNS) -- MTV visited Naval Aviation Schools Command (NASC) over Valentine’s Day weekend to film an episode of "Made," a reality television program that normally airs on MTV Saturdays at 3 p.m. The premise of the episode involving NASC was to take an ordinary 16-year-old high school student named Adam Pears and help him achieve his goal of becoming a varsity athlete. The question immediately became, “Can a 5’8” and 120-pound individual with minimal athletic training who is also an...