A Veteran's Journey

April 1977—USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63)
Somewhere off the Coast of California

“Hey Chet… You ready for this?”

I was sporting my new, brightly colored jersey… this one is yellow. My new “home” is no longer the Crash Crew, but now I’m a Yellow Shirt… a Trainee with a big “T” on the front and back. ABH3 Jimmy Smith, my good friend from Texarkana, is my mentor. Smitty is a Yellow Shirt Director in Fly 3. I’m a little taller than him, standing at 6’4”. He sports a light brown, shaggy mustache and speaks with a Texan drawl, sort of a Texan accent with a twist.

He was smiling ear to ear as we walked out onto the flight deck. He knew this was a big day for me. Fresh air in our faces… well, at least until we get that first blast of hot, smelly jet exhaust, almost blowing us down.

I’ll be shadowing him for this first, one-week at sea period since we’d returned to San Diego from the Bremerton Shipyards.

I am literally beside myself.

“Oh, hell yeah! I’ve been waiting to put on a yellow jersey since we got back from Westpac ’75.”

I’ve been in Crash for the majority of my short, 4-year Navy career, both during my 15-month tour at NAS Agana, Guam, and here aboard the aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk during Westpac ‘75. And now, just like that, I’m a yellow shirt.

My time in the Navy is winding down. We just returned from a year in the Bremerton Shipyards, and I’ve got about three months before I say sayonara.

Can we say, “Short timer?”

And to think, I’m now an ABH2 (I made 2nd Class Petty Officer while in the shipyards) and carry several other duties including Division Yeoman, Division Training Petty Officer, the Division Career Counselor, and the Division First Aid Petty Officer (I took first aid in college—one of the few “A’s” I made before flunking out). I don’t mind, though. It keeps me busy. On the other hand, I don’t think I’ll ever put any of that on a resume.

John Tubao had left V-1 Division prior to us leaving the shipyards to return to his home in the Philippines. Tubao was the division Yeoman. He was a good guy, too. I took over his duties when he left in February. I was one of a few in the division who knew how to type. I shoulda kept my mouth shut. Didn’t learn in Boot Camp the first time, either.

When we were in PI—our overseas home port during Westpac—there was that time when John arranged for several of us to visit one of his relative’s restaurants, about 30 minutes outside Olongapo. The V-1 Division Officer, LCDR Leone, went with us. John negotiated the price of a Jeepney trip—he knew the system and, being Filipino, knew how to deal with the drivers.

This restaurant was owned by an aunt & uncle and located on the beach. We caught a beautiful sunset. John had previously made arrangements for all kinds of fish, seafood, fried rice, chow mein, special salads, and unlimited beer. Everything was tasty and there was plenty of it.

But at this point in time and this place, I learned the most important lesson of eating in a foreign country.

Never… let me repeat, NEVER! ask what it is you are eating. If it tastes good, enjoy! Never ask what it is, because in a foreign country, what you taste and what you know you are eating are usually two different things. That, my friends, comes from experience.

Still… walking out onto the flight deck in a new role will take a little getting used to. I still remember all the basic hand signals I learned in ABH “A” School in Lakehurst, NJ. Those hadn’t changed. A few of the aircraft, though, had changed since the cruise—that was part of our overhaul in Bremerton.

The Navy replaced the F-4 Phantoms with the newer F-14 Tomcats (also called “Turkeys”). The S-3 Vikings (also called “Hoovers,” because they sound like a vacuum cleaner when applying full power) replaced the older, prop-driven S-2 Trackers. These guys carry a crew of four. Similar to the S-2s, their mission is ASW (Anti-submarine Warfare), dropping sonobuoys and helping track enemy subs.

These aircraft have a huge cockpit window, similar to the old AMC Pacer automobile, which just came out a year or so ago.

But we still have the A-7 Corsairs, the A-6 Intruders, the EA-6B Prowlers, the E-2 Hawkeyes, and the SH-3D Sea King helos. The COD (Carrier on-board Delivery) is still the old reliable C-1 Trader (a variant of the Grumman S-2 Tracker).

Every Yellow Shirt uses the same basic hand signals on the flight deck to direct aircraft; otherwise, the circus would run probably amok. However, eventually every Yellow Shirt develops his own style of directing. But since I’d already spent a long time on the flight deck and know the ins and outs (and the where-to-be and where-not-to-be areas), it won’t take me long to learn the ropes of directing. Smitty is an excellent mentor.

It’s a lot easier to tow or taxi an aircraft moving forward than backing it up. While I’d backed up a plethora of fishing boats over the years, this will be completely different. Backing up a fishing boat on a trailer goes the opposite way of the steering wheel since there’s only one point of contact—the trailer hitch.

Aircraft tow tractors have two points of contact: one is the trailer hitch on the back of the tractor and the nose wheel of the aircraft where the tow bar connects. The aircraft goes the way the tractor turns. It sounds confusing—and it is—but I’m sure I’ll get used to it. And besides, someone else will be driving the MD-3 tow tractor, not me.

Smitty said he’d let me do all the directing, starting with moving an F-14 Tomcat from its parking spot on the fantail, move it up the flight deck, and hand him over to the Fly 2 directors stacking up the aircraft on the waist cats (Catapult’s #3 and #4). He stands behind me, keeping me on task, and watches to make sure I don’t cause a “scratch.” That would be a bad day for both the aircraft and for me.

This first one, I’ll work directly with the pilot to help him taxi out under his own power. No tow tractors needed. I walk over to the Plane Captain—we know each other from the cruise, but he knows with the big “T” on my jersey, I’m still a newbie. Smitty gives him a thumbs up, as do I, and he returns it. Smitty’s one of the best directors on the flight deck and has a reputation among the pilots and Plane Captains in Fly 3. They know I’ll do right with Smitty around.

The pilot looks at me and gives me a thumbs up… he’s ready to move. I’ve got his confidence now and will maneuver his aircraft out of a tight parking spot. By tight, I mean two multi-million-dollar F-14s parked within a few inches of each other. That’s tight, especially when they’re slightly off center.

After he clears the F-14 on the port side, I turn him slightly toward the waist cats. This is easy, I say to myself. About the same time, I look over my shoulder to see which Fly 2 Yellow Shirt I’ll hand this Tomcat off to. I spot ABH2 Glenn Law, another good friend of mine. We were roommates in Guam. He’s got his hand up, ready for the handoff. I look back at the pilot, then pass him along to Glenn.

One of Smitty’s other roles is the Yellow Shirt that positions himself in the “crotch” of the flight deck during recovery. That’s the area at the far end of the waist cats where the angled deck ends. That director guides aircraft out of the recovery area after they trap. That’s my next goal, but Smitty said I need more time moving aircraft around. I don’t disagree with him, but I am chomping’ at the bit.

It’ll be a few more weeks before I get to take that position. I can’t wait, though.

As I direct another aircraft from Fly 3 to the waist cats, I’m thinking to myself, “It’s another fine day in the Navy. I love my job.”

And the best thing… I get to do this all day long!

Until we meet again,
Andy

Andy Adkins is a US Navy veteran (’73-77) and the author of several books. His newest novel, NEVER FORGET, is the story of A Vietnam Veteran’s Journey for Redemption & Forgiveness. NEVER FORGET is FREE (eBook, PDF) for all veterans. Download your FREE copy HERE.

Previous Blogs mentioned in the Post:

• #68—Flight Ops: Another Fine Day in the Navy!
• #30—USS Kitty Hawk @ Bremerton Shipyards, Part 1
• #67—Flight Ops: A Day in the Life of Crash & Salvage
• #53—You Always Remember Your First…
• #25—“Livin’ the Dream: Life Aboard an Aircraft Carrier
• #20—Port Call: Philippines
• #4—From Civilian to US Navy
• #99—Dismissed for Academic Reasons
• #35—US Navy “A” School (ABH)
• #54—Westpac ’75 Aircraft Carrier Squadrons
• #98—Flight Ops: Aircraft Recovery