Shellback ceremony, circa 2012
May 18th, 2012 | Life at Sea Marine Corps Morale Navy Traditions | Posted by Gidget Fuentes
Their ship’s maiden deployment now on the homestretch to San Diego, Calif., after duty in the 5th Fleet region, the crew aboard amphibious assault ship Makin Island took a little time to mark that long-held seagoing tradition of crossing the equator, the Shellback Ceremony.
No, it’s not exactly the casting call for the next sequel to “Pirates of the Caribbean.” But from the looks of these photos, a little fun was had by the pollywogs, even the “Boss Wog.” Not as crazy as those ceremonies of years gone by, for sure, but for the sailors aboard the ship, it gives them a chance to join in the organized ritual of lighthearted shaming and teasing and provides a much sought-out break from the constant of operations at sea.
The crew of the aircraft carrier Carl Vinson, which also is making its way home to San Diego, recently shared in their own fun, as you can see from photos posted in April on this online “gCaptain” blog. More are posted on Vinson’s Facebook page.
King Neptune and his court. (Navy photos on Makin Islands' Facebook page)
You want to see how the Marines, embarked on Makin Island with the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, officially marked the occasion of crossing the equator? See here and here. Well, at least there’s minimal cleanup required.
A new tradition: post-port push-ups
November 15th, 2011 | Morale Navy | Posted by Sam Fellman
Nothing says welcome back after a port call like the command: “Get on your faces!”
That’s exactly how the crew of the destroyer Wayne E. Meyer, now on its first deployment, celebrated being back aboard the ship Nov. 14, after a three-day visit to Phuket, Thailand. Undoubtedly, push-ups with your palms straining on the fo’c’sle non-skid is a palpable reminder that you’re haze gray again.
The push-up — or were they push-ups? — was to “celebrate” their successful port visit, according to the caption on this Navy newsstand photo, a moment captured by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Joshua Keim.
That only leaves one question: What do they do for a bad port call?
What do you think? Are group push-ups fun or just collective pain wrapped in hooyah?
A nice touch
November 11th, 2011 | Carriers Commanding officers Golf Morale Naval Air Station Oceana Navy Norfolk Naval Shipyard Photos Sports | Posted by Bill McMichael
Capt. Tushar Tembe was an avid golfer and was no doubt looking forward to playing in a local tournament he’d help plan that would pit golfers from his carrier, the Harry S. Truman, against players assigned to the carriers Dwight D. Eisenhower, Theodore Roosevelt and Enterprise.
Tembe, sadly, collapsed Nov. 8 while debarking the Truman at Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, Va., and subsequently died — two days before the scheduled one-day tourney at Naval Air Station Oceana. Rather than postpone or cancel the event, the East Coast carrier commanders taking part — the Norfolk-based carrier George H.W. Bush is deployed — decided to honor Tembe by playing as scheduled Nov. 10 and by naming the tournament and top prize in his honor.
“This was the most appropriate thing to do,” said Capt. William C. Hamilton Jr., commanding officer of Enterprise, and a close friend of Tembe’s. “He planned this for us, and he would be so upset if we didn’t play. We’re here to honor him and I am proud to be here.”
“Capt. Tembe came up with the idea for this tournament,” said Aviation Ordnanceman 1st Class Jeffery Crawford, leading petty officer of Truman’s Morale, Welfare and Recreation department. “He was involved in every last detail of planning this event, and that’s why we decided to name it for him.”
Before hitting the green, the players held a moment of silence for Tembe and his family.
“Personally, this is a huge loss,” said Hamilton. “He was my golf buddy … my Navy buddy. We played golf together all over the world for the past 16 years. I’ll never swing another club now without thinking about him.”
Fittingly, Truman’s team won the inaugural Tembe cup. “We played inspired golf today,” said Aviation Electronics Technician 1st Class Scott Rossi, assigned to Truman’s Aircraft Intermediate Maintenance Department. “Working with and knowing Capt. Tembe made a big impact on me, and I was thinking of him all day as were my teammates and, probably, everyone out here today.”
Quicken Loans Carrier Classic unis unveiled
November 1st, 2011 | Basketball Carrier Classic Carriers Morale Naval Base San Diego Navy Photos Sports Veterans Day | Posted by Bill McMichael
The Michigan State and North Carolina men’s basketball teams will wear school-color camouflage-style uniforms to honor the military during their Nov. 11 Veterans Day clash aboard the aircraft carrier Carl Vinson in San Diego. On Monday, the Spartans showed off the camouflage-patterned unis they’ll wear — white with a light green pattern and bordered with the school’s traditional dark green.
Michigan State's basketball uniform for the Nov. 11 Quicken Loans Carrier Classic. // Photo courtesy of Michigan State University
North Carolina’s design, unveiled Oct. 26, will feature a deep blue camouflage pattern over the traditional Carolina blue.
UNC's uniform for the Nov. 11 game. // Photo courtesy of the University of North Carolina.
The back of UNC's uniform. // Photo courtesy of the University of North Carolina.
Neither team will have player names on the back of the jerseys. Replacing the names will be “U.S.A.”, as shown on the right:
“I think the uniforms are pretty cool,” Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said. “They definitely put the spotlight on our military, and that’s what this is for.”
That Carolina blue on the UNC uniforms ought to play well with the sailors in the joint military crowd of roughly 7,000. Frankly, it could almost work as a new Navy working uniform pattern … a prospect the fleet, given what seems like near-constant seabag changes over the recent past, no doubt hopes does not materialize for at least a couple more years …
Another XO video — but this one’s G-rated
April 15th, 2011 | Carriers Morale Navy Newport News Photos Refueling and Complex Overhaul Shipyard Video | Posted by Bill McMichael
The executive officer of the carrier Theodore Roosevelt has narrated a new ship-produced video that has popped up on YouTube. The Navy’s probably happier with this video than some other recent ones.
Narrated by the XO, Capt. Douglas Verissimo, and featuring his CO, Capt. William Hart, in a walk-on part, the video touts the carrier’s ongoing Refueling and Complex Overhaul at Newport News Shipbuilding.
Verissimo supplies dramatic narration over images of sailors wielding welding torches and needle guns, all working “to prepare for another 25 years of vital missions to come.”
“Join us as we prepare to return to the fleet,” says Hart at the video’s conclusion. “Theodore Roosevelt’s getting ready.”
The aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt departs Naval Station Norfolk Sept. 29, 2009, and begins a towing operation to Newport News Shipbuilding for a Refueling and Complex Overhaul. // Photo courtesy of U.S. Navy
The video is meant “to inform and inspire the ship’s prospective crew members, current TR Sailors and the nation of the momentous efforts involved in rebuilding the ship and returning her to the fleet,” according to a press release.
“We have a very strong crew, doing great things every day, and we are rightfully very proud of our efforts to return this battle-tested carrier back to operations in the fleet,” said Hart. “This video is our way of reminding the nation and our sailors we are in an extended overhaul right now, but we’ll be back even stronger and more ready than we were when we came into the yards.”
Navy carrier hosts the Stanley Cup (the hardware, that is)
March 2nd, 2011 | Carriers Hockey Maintenance Morale National Hockey League Navy Photos Stanley Cup | Posted by Bill McMichael
For a lifelong hockey fan like Command Master Chief Gregg Snaza, it was a visit to the sport’s Holy Grail. But he didn’t have to travel far. On Feb. 25, the famous Stanley Cup was brought to his “doorstep” — the aircraft carrier Dwight D. Eisenhower, undergoing a planned incremental availability at Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Portsmouth, Va. Here’s the proof:
The Stanley Cup visits the carrier Dwight D. Eisenhower Feb. 25, 2010. // U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Christopher G. Marshall
The 34.5-pound silver-and-nickel alloy trophy — there’s only one, although its shape and size have evolved since it was first awarded in 1894 — annually goes to the National Hockey League championship team, whose members drink champagne out of the topside bowl. Since there’s only one Cup, teams don’t get to keep the trophy, although the team’s name is engraved along with those of other champions. So it’s a sporting icon and for hockey fans, truly something special.
“I’ve played and watched hockey my entire life, but this was the first time I’ve ever had the chance to see the Stanley Cup,” said Snaza. “How very cool … this opportunity was an once-in-a-lifetime chance to get up close and personal with one of the most cherished prizes in all of sports!”
More than 200 sailors and shipyard civilian workers had their photos taken with the Cup. Pretty safe to assume Snaza was one of them.
San Diego carrier could host big-time men’s hoops game
January 26th, 2011 | Basketball Carriers Morale Navy Photos Sports | Posted by Bill McMichael
Possibly coming next season to a flattop deck near you (if you’re stationed in San Diego):
Michigan State and North Carolina square off in the 2009 Men's Final Four basketball tournament. // Andy Lyons, Getty Images
That’s right: If you’re in the right place at the right time next fall, you could be watching a choice early season matchup between traditional men’s college basketball powers North Carolina and Michigan State aboard a Navy carrier. Will it happen? According to the San Diego Union-Tribune, Tar Heels coach Roy Williams said Monday, “It hasn’t been announced yet, but we’re supposed to be playing Michigan State in San Diego on an aircraft carrier on Veterans Day next year.” But nothing’s been set as yet. Said Naval Air Forces spokesman Lt. Aaron Kakiel, “We’re aware of their desire, but nothing has been confirmed. We’re waiting on a formal proposal.”
And way too early, he said, to name which carrier might host the game. Something about operational schedules and national security rings a bell …
The game would probably be played outside, as the flight deck seems like the only feasible area where a full basketball court and temporary seats could be set up. (The hangar is probably just too tight of a space, even with all sliding bay doors open.) The paper points out that an aircraft carrier flight deck is 1,092 feet by 250 feet, while a college basketball court is 94 feet by 50 feet. Extra space is needed on all sides for benches, media and space to dive for loose balls — not to mention a lot of seats.
Presumably, the teams would bring in a wooden floor. Sure would hate to dive for a loose ball on a flight deck!
If it happens, the paper pointed out, the game would be played on 11/11/11.
Stay tuned …
Firing Honors, pro and con, Week 2
January 10th, 2011 | Blogs Carriers Fleet Forces Command leadership Life at Sea Morale Navy Officers Personnel | Posted by Bill McMichael
Adm. John Harvey learned about the controversial, four-year-old shipboard videos co-produced by Capt. Owen Honors on Dec. 31 — the day before they were published for the first time outside the skin of the carrier Enterprise — and “immediately ordered an investigation,” he says in a Jan. 7 post on his command blog.
Harvey also says he reviewed the videotapes published online by Norfolk’s Virginian-Pilot newspaper that weekend and then made his controversial decision to fire Honors, who’d graduated from executive officer — his position when the sometimes-racy, meant-to-be-humorous short films were produced — to become the 49-year-old carrier’s commanding officer. Honors was canned barely a week before the carrier deploys Jan. 13, possibly for the final time.
“When I did view those videos, I took action – just as I would have had I seen them four years ago,” Harvey wrote.
Those weighing in on Harvey’s decision seem to fall into two distinct camps. 1: Honors was a great leader who motivated his hard-working, much-deployed crew with humor they could relate to, the content wasn’t any edgier than what is broadcast every day on cable TV and his dismissal is a gutless reaction to outside media pressure. 2: XOs and COs are supposed to behave like grown-ups; Honors created a poor command climate that denigrated at least some crew members; and like it or not, today’s naval leaders must be cognizant of the image they project, here and abroad.
One Honors supporter’s view: “How dare anyone act as if those silly videos compromise the Navy,” wrote a civilian identifying herself as Dani MarieBernadette D’Angelo. “They are what they are, a means of blowing off steam for our sons and daughters who are so far from home and in dangerous situations. … the only reason that they have become a problem now is because the Navy wants to bow to the politically correct agenda. Captain Honors lives by a set of core values that anyone would be proud of.”
Another: “Leaders lead by example,” Anonymous wrote. ” CAPT Honors produced a funny, over the top, and professional [sic] filmed movie which was not to be taken seriously. You talk to his sailors; CAPT Honors was all business, a role model, and one hell of a Navy Officer. He is the guy you want fighting your ship in battle.”
Others say Honors set a poor example for others to follow. “What those individuals have missed is, to my mind, the TRULY grievous act that CAPT Honors committed: setting a negative, hostile command environment for the crew of ENTERPRISE when he was XO,” wrote James. “He mocked anyone who objected to his unacceptable behavior. He erased ANY personal credibility that he had when it came to dealing with issues of sexual harassment. It was even implied that filing a grievance would do no good — he was `above’ their control. That, more than anything, is what makes his behavior so damaging and toxic.”
Added SubIconoclast: “The line between ‘bold’ and ‘reckless’ can shift depending on whether we are at war or in peace, and senior officers must recognize that even units employed in war WILL be evaluated against peacetime standards when they appear in the national media of a nation which is generally at peace.
“Today’s combat leaders simply have to meet both standards; complaining about it won’t change the fundamental facts of the situation. CAPT Honors knew that – he just made the mistake of assuming that he could get away with skipping the `Washington Post’ test before recording videos and broadcasting them to thousands. That doesn’t make him a bad American but it does diminish his ability to command effectively.”
Both camps generally express a common thread: Go after the senior leaders who knew of the videos and didn’t react decisively four years ago. Some of those leaders are the subject of our story in this week’s Navy Times.
Support for Capt. Honors
January 3rd, 2011 | Aviation Carriers Facebook Fleet Forces Command leadership Life at Sea Morale Movies Navy Officers Video | Posted by Bill McMichael
The Navy didn’t mince words in its official reaction to Capt. Owen Honors’ role in the creation of what are viewed by many as overly suggestive or inappropriate videos — meant to be humorous — that were broadcast aboard the carrier Enterprise during his run as XO back in 2006-2007. “Those in command … are held accountable for setting the proper tone and upholding the standards of honor, courage and commitment that we expect sailors to exemplify,” said Cmdr. Chris Sims, spokesman for U.S. Fleet Forces Command.
You won’t find any such criticism on a Facebook page, “We Support Captain O.P. Honors!”, established on Jan. 1 — the same day the story was broken by Norfolk’s Virginian-Pilot newspaper — that describes itself as a “Support Group for a great Executive Officer and his extraordinarily funny XO Movie Night Skits.” It’s growing by the minute, with 1,230 members as of 12 noon EST Monday and nearly 600 posts, nearly all praising Honors, who now commands the ship as it prepares to deploy, and dismissing the videos as harmless fun meant to lighten the stress of shipboard life. Here are some examples:
“I used to be a sailor aboard the USS Enterprise and served while Capt Honors was both a XO and a CO,” one woman wrote. “I was aboard the ship while the videos under question were being filmed and watched them myself. The way the videos were reported to the world as `raunchy’ and `lewd’ is completely unrepresentative of the good-natured humor behind them. Capt Honors’ videos were always a highlight of the week.”
“I served with then-CDR Honors during the 2006 Deployment and know him to be an honorable man,” wrote one man. “The XO made the videos to address real shipboard issues in a comedic fashion. The crew always looked forward to them. Do not sacrifice this officer on the altar of political correctness.”
In the Tell Us What You Really Think Department, 0ne woman really let fly. “I pretty much hated EVERYTHING about being on the Enterprise EXCEPT for the people I worked with, and XO MOVIE NIGHT!,” she wrote. “Way to GO Capt. Honors! F*** EVERYONE ELSE that finds that s*** offensive….let them get back to their Lifetime Original Movies.”
The videos — you can see an edited version here — have generated national attention, with broadcast stories on every network. The videos include scenes of simulated same-sex showers and masturbation and a reference by one of Honors’ “alternate personalities” — a video trick — to another as “fag SWO boy,” leading some commentators to call the videos lewd, sexist and homophobic. Others raise questions about Honors’ leadership style. Sims said Fleet Forces has launched an investigation into the production of the videos.
What do you think?
What price tunes?
September 30th, 2010 | Morale Washington | Posted by Phil Ewing
MU2 Nicholas Jones drummed along with Pride, Navy Band Southeast's rock and/or roll operations unit, back in 2006. // JO2 Christine Hannon / Navy
Here’s a story that came on in legions of Priuses and Volvos yesterday as they inched through traffic back to tastefully decorated, environmentally conscious homes, and it bears revisiting: National Public Radio’s Robert Siegel pitted a grand old grouch of Washington, WaPo institution Walter Pincus, against Marine Col. Michael Colburn, director of the Marine Corps’ “President’s Own” band. The topic: In this era of belt-tightenry, should taxpayers keep spending hundreds of millions of dollars on the military’s hundreds of bands and thousands of musicians?
The Defense Department, Pincus said, is the biggest employer of musicians in the U.S. It has more of them than the State Department has foreign service officers. Many of them have one or more advanced degrees, paid for by Joe and Jane Taxpayer. Does the Navy need all its marching bands, jazz bands, dance bands, “Top 40″ bands, choirs, country and bluegrass bands?
Oh, c’mon, Colburn said. He argued Americans get at least their money’s worth from the President’s Own — and, by implication, from the dozens of other bands — and that they’re critical for recruiting and showing the flag. Moreover, Pincus has clearly never been strolling up the boardwalk on a mid-summer’s night in Virginia Beach and stopped for a Dilly Bar at that giant Dairy Queen and happened to catch a Navy band in the band shell playing swing selections and seen the vacationers from northern New Jersey attempting to dance along.
NPR’s segment won’t settle the issue. And incredibly, the piece also neglected to mention today’s most famous ex-military musician, former Musician 3rd Class Phil Stacey, whose star-making turn on “American Idol” rocketed him to his current heights atop the pop charts.
So what do you think?