Steaming Volume Five

When you're done reading Volume 5, you'll have seen 75-percent of the KP Site. It's kind of sad to realize that the end is so near. But that sadness is miniscule compared with the sorrow of knowing our beloved ship is rusting away in Hampton Roads, semi-abandoned in political/fiscal limbo. She deserves better than that. Thankfully, these archived sea stories and memories will keep her alive forever.If I were an independent observer reading the Steaming books, I'd have a pretty good idea of what life was like in the nuclear navy of yore, especially aboard the mighty warship USS Enterprise. It must be extremely apparent by now that there were good times and bad times to be aboard the Big E. The lucky ones were there when she was a West Coast carrier, reigning supreme over the South Pacific and Indian Oceans in the 70s and 80s. Nukes from Class 69-3, 70-3, 7401, and 8502 seem to have the fondest recollections. That's because they arrived en masse with dozens of friends and classmates and made 2 to 3 action-packed WESTPACs on her. Then a hard-earned DD214 sent them on their way to a slightly better life, doing pretty much the same thing in civilian life with some of the same people. The unlucky ones showed up when the Big E was in the yards, especially Norfolk. This generation worked their asses off within dark, cold iron dungeons and never saw the Big E's mighty engine rooms come alive.An independent observer would also notice that if you served once on the Big E, you seemed to return ad infinitum. The only way to escape being a Chief, Senior Chief, and then Master Chief on the CVN 65 was to accept a commission and leave the nuclear field altogether. Those retiring as Big E nukes did four or five sea tours on her. They saw both the dreadful yards and most of the world. An independent observer would also see how important good leadership was in keeping a ship like the Big E fully operational. Chiefs and officers who treated their men poorly always seemed to have "bad luck." They might have still advanced through the ranks, but they never garnered respect and respect was the one thing they desired more than anything. The good chiefs and officers had a special bond with their men and that made all the difference when the shit hit the fan and the world needed saving.And, I guess an independent observer would probably also have to conclude that serving on a carrier-especially the Big E-was far and wide better than serving on any submarine or cruiser. The bubbleheads may disagree, but we Big E nukes feel blessed that we served on the greatest engineering marvel of all time. Not one of us would ever choose another way to go to sea.