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Anyone done a carrier tour?
- Thread starter vellnueve
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- Joined
- May 17, 2008
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PM Gonzo
Oh crap, you'll be fine.
I was enlisted with the air wing, never was ship's company. I hit every east coast carrier out there except the Ike, which was in dry dock when I was in. I did few weeks on the Reagan just after she was commissioned when she was still out of Norfolk too. I was with a helicopter squadron and was deck hopping so often I never really got to know a particular boat, except the Roosevelt and the Enterprise, which I deployed on.
The Washington had a 23-hour taco/burrito bar, so she was my favorite. But you're an O, so it's off limits to you.
As an officer you should be fine. If you have any sea time, you won't have an issue with the big boats. There's just a lot of people and a lot of ways to get around the boat. And remember, air wing guys are dicks, with no military bearing or respect for the chain of command. Especially the flight deck crews.![[smile]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/001.gif "Smile [smile]")
Do you have sea time? Because I know that for us, the food sucked compared to small boys.
I want to say Jose was an officer on carriers too....he might be able to help you out some. I was just a green shirt. Don't regret a thing though.
I was enlisted with the air wing, never was ship's company. I hit every east coast carrier out there except the Ike, which was in dry dock when I was in. I did few weeks on the Reagan just after she was commissioned when she was still out of Norfolk too. I was with a helicopter squadron and was deck hopping so often I never really got to know a particular boat, except the Roosevelt and the Enterprise, which I deployed on.
The Washington had a 23-hour taco/burrito bar, so she was my favorite. But you're an O, so it's off limits to you.
As an officer you should be fine. If you have any sea time, you won't have an issue with the big boats. There's just a lot of people and a lot of ways to get around the boat. And remember, air wing guys are dicks, with no military bearing or respect for the chain of command. Especially the flight deck crews.
Do you have sea time? Because I know that for us, the food sucked compared to small boys.
I want to say Jose was an officer on carriers too....he might be able to help you out some. I was just a green shirt. Don't regret a thing though.
I have zero sea time (O-1 in the reserves at the moment). I'll be going active as a Dental Corps officer and had been mulling the possibility of trying to get on a carrier. Really just wondering what life is like on a carrier.
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Large. Crowded. Busy. Dull, except for the fires. The water smells and tastes of kerosene. Doubtless there will be ways to fill the idle hours.
Rode Ranger for Campaign XV as ETC (SNAIAS geek, Leading Twidget); JFK, Forrestal as civ contractor. As a ratface shipfitter apprentice, helped build Saratoga at NYNSY.
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Rode Ranger for Campaign XV as ETC (SNAIAS geek, Leading Twidget); JFK, Forrestal as civ contractor. As a ratface shipfitter apprentice, helped build Saratoga at NYNSY.
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yanici
NES Member
How about an amphib helicopter carrier. Smaller than an attack carrier but probably better living conditions on board. Take a look here http://www.kearsarge.navy.mil/default.aspx
I get the impression that carriers are pretty noisy places. They might be launching and recovering aircraft at all hours, and the catapult equipment is seriously noisy. So I hope you sleep soundly.
J
Jose
PM me. I spent two years on Nimitz in both engineering and reactor departments.
J
Jose
If you live on the O3 level, yep, sucks to be you.
If you live below the main deck, it is MUCH nicer. Just below the waterline is the ideal place for a JO's cabin.
Ask me how I know......
BTW, the arresting gear engine is LOUD as hell too.
You get used to it. My berthing was either directly under cats or arresting gear. Mid cruise we all woke up in the middle of the night and couldn't figure out why. After about 20 minutes we figured out that it was too quiet, because we weren't launching aircraft.
Also, you work at the least 12 hours a day, 7 days a week. You're so tired that you'll sleep through anything. I worked on the flight deck and used to crawl into one of the folded up helicopters on deck and sleep during flight ops, 45 ft from landing aircraft.
This. I'd rather live under the catapults than the arresting gear any day.
J
Jose
CVNs are the cushiest of all ships of the line. Period.
I went from a frigate to a carrier. If I was a staff guy, it wouldn't make a difference. But as a line officer, I loved being on a frigate. That to me was the real Navy.
I went from a frigate to a carrier. If I was a staff guy, it wouldn't make a difference. But as a line officer, I loved being on a frigate. That to me was the real Navy.
Virtual ghost town unless the Marines are embarked; then it's crowded with long lines for just about everything.
I deployed on the USS Bataan and lived a couple of levels below the flight deck. When the Harriers launched, it was really loud.
Seems like a good place to be a dentist:
Do they really give you a choice of assignment? I always though assignments were handed out "at the needs of the service." At least mine were. I was lucky that they always needed someone where I wanted to go!
J
Jose
As a dentist your choices are going to be pretty limited. Neither destroyers nor anything smaller has anything medical but an HM or two. I doubt cruisers have an MD or DDS either. Not that I recall. That leaves carriers, the big amphibs, the one or two hospital ships that we do have, and maybe a couple or three of the big UNREP ships.
I figured as much - would very much doubt that anything smaller than an LHA would have assigned doctors/dentists.
They don't give you a choice, but they do tell us what assignments will be available and let you pick several. Sometimes they actually assign you where you want to go.
They don't give you a choice, but they do tell us what assignments will be available and let you pick several. Sometimes they actually assign you where you want to go.
yanici
NES Member
When I was discharged back in '68, they sent me back to the States on an old WWII APA or AKA, attack cargo ship. It had nice medical and dental facilities on board. I was surprised. Of course those ships are now long gone as is my old flat bottomed, bathub with bow doors, LST.
J
Jose
My four man bunk room was just below the waterline all the way outboard on the port side around the location of the main wardroom's galley.
Flight deck noises were too far to be heard. The worst noise I had to put up with was the hum of one of the propeller shafts about eight decks below. Kinda easy to fall asleep.....
However, once we went into PSNS for refit, life sucked to an astronomical degree. Being a nuke I had to sleep aboard on duty night even after the ship was officially declared uninhabitable and the rest of the duty section moved to a berthing barge moored alongside.
Flight deck noises were too far to be heard. The worst noise I had to put up with was the hum of one of the propeller shafts about eight decks below. Kinda easy to fall asleep.....
However, once we went into PSNS for refit, life sucked to an astronomical degree. Being a nuke I had to sleep aboard on duty night even after the ship was officially declared uninhabitable and the rest of the duty section moved to a berthing barge moored alongside.
Rockrivr1
NES Member
Ok, you're getting a lot of the negatives. Here are some of the positives. Carriers carry Admirals and other high level officers regularly. This means when deployed, you get to see the absolute best liberty ports. They want to see these places, so you get to see those places as well. In my 4 years of being deployed on the now retired USS Midway, we saw just about every port in the Asia Pac as well as Australia and a few in Africa. Also, you have every available option provided to service people on board. Gym, store, medical, (as you know) dental, TV, Movie nights, more then one galley and I hear now that some of the bigger ships have full internet access so you can email and surf the net. That would of been great when I was in.
Yes, you can work 12 on 12 off or some variation of this, as well as being out for long periods of time. But overall it's great duty. I worked the deck as an Aviation Electrician on F4s and FA-18s. Loved it. The deck was the place to be. My birth was right below arresting wire #2. After a few days, you don't even hear it anymore.
Then again, as an officer, you're in great shape. All the comforts of home you will have.
Yes, you can work 12 on 12 off or some variation of this, as well as being out for long periods of time. But overall it's great duty. I worked the deck as an Aviation Electrician on F4s and FA-18s. Loved it. The deck was the place to be. My birth was right below arresting wire #2. After a few days, you don't even hear it anymore.
Then again, as an officer, you're in great shape. All the comforts of home you will have.
ChevyGuy91
NES Member
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I was on a DDG from 2004-2009, we had internet on board, it was E7 and above for the first 2 years, but they loosened up on that. It was on a deployment that I found NES!
So if the small boys have it, you know the big decks do.
We had internet on the CVN's when I was in, 2000-2004, but man was it sloooooooooow. I have a buddy on the Ike right now and he says it's a lot better. And RockRivr1 says, on a CVN, the deck is the place to be. I was an AE as well, on H-60's, and working the deck on nightshift was the best job I've ever had.
As a grunt in the Marines, i got FAPT out to combat Cargo aboard the USS Belleau wood LHA-3. I got to live the Navy life for several months while forward deployed. I must say, while i worked Combat Cargo, it was a vacation for me. I found it peaceful. I remember i had a night rations meal card and got to eat 4 meals a day. We got to get off ship before all the other Marines and never had to pull duty while in port. I birthed with the Navy seals and those guys were great. They got special treatment. Back then, they had Satellite TVs in our birthing area and had Nintendo and Sega ( far short of todays technology) both of which came in handy while deployed for many months. Those guys were off ship more then they were on and they were nice enough to let us use their video games. No one ever entered the seals birthing area so we were never bothered by the officers. Plus they also had better bath rooms. So with that said we were spoiled. We got to see more countries than i can even remember.
![[iwojima]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/030.gif "IwoJima [iwojima]")
If i was to grade my ship tours i would give my 1st one an A+ and my second a B. Dont get me wrong, i would never join the Navy. I just enjoyed my vacation from the grunts.
If i was to grade my ship tours i would give my 1st one an A+ and my second a B. Dont get me wrong, i would never join the Navy. I just enjoyed my vacation from the grunts.
This is pretty much correct. I was on four carriers as an enlisted PH, two (one only briefly) as a Photo LDO. While my first berthing as an O was up forward on the O-2 (?) level with my squadron-mates, I later berthed on the second deck right opposite the blackshoe wardroom. This was probably vaguely in the area where a Dental LT would expect to be. I was next door to the Marine XO (an O-3).
I suspect that a Dental LT would stand some sort of Dental duty. I doubt that you could be a boat officer or even an OOD. Basically you have a normal life, albeit on a ship, and you're subject to GQ's, and some duty while you're in port, unless you take leave.
I knew an MD who, when I asked him why he was in the Navy, said that it was because he could lead something more closely resembling a normal life than if he had pursued his profession outside.
The opportunity to experience furrin countries is significant. While I kind of like the States, and prefer to travel here, I can say that with a little more confidence, having visited more than a dozen countries in the Med and a bunch in the Pacific.
Go for it.
