A Veteran's Journey

Trivia Questions (Answers @ end)

1. Who said, “By the time a man realizes that his father was right, he has a son who thinks he’s wrong.”?
2. In what movie (and who said it) did we hear, “Whatever you do… don’t fall asleep.”?
3. In what song (and who sang it) did we hear:
   I’ve been waiting so long
   To be where I’m going

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Thanks to those who commented on my previous blog, “#61—There’s a Reason for the Flight Deck ‘Foul Line.’” Several comments were spot on and reminded me of things I’d forgotten. Here are a few more shared “memories:”

• “Hey–you in the port catwalk… #&*@!”
• “We used to race each other to tackle the khakis that came up from below decks to watch flight ops in the port catwalk. We had a free shot… for safety, of course.”
• “I always had respect for the Hummer [E-2] pilots, but the Whales [A-3]? We always backed away from the foul line when they were landing.”
• “Cross the foul line and meet the Air Boss in person.”
• “Yep, been there, done that. It only took one time to meet the Air Boss to set me straight.”
• “Those lines are the difference between life and death.”

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Dangerous?

It’s been said that the flight deck of an aircraft carrier is the most dangerous place to work. I’ve been there and done that and… from my own personal experiences, I tend to agree.

But on the other hand, I’ve never served in a forward infantry combat unit, never been shot at (purposefully), and never been under an artillery barrage. So, my Army & Marine veteran friends may disagree with that proclamation and I totally respect that.

I spent 2½ years aboard USS Kitty Hawk, CV-63 (’75-77) and made the Westpac ’75 cruise. I worked on the flight deck in V-1 Division, both in Crash & Salvage and as a Yellow Shirt director.

I can tell you without a doubt, the flight deck is dangerous. I’ve written several times before about the challenges and the excitement. One wrong move… wrong place, wrong time… you could be gone in an instant.

You have to keep your head on a constant swivel and never let your guard down, especially during flight operations. It’s even more dangerous at the end of an 18-hour day, recovering the last group of aircraft on a dark and stormy night. Everyone is dog-tired.

But there were also times when we were not at flight ops. Now and then, one of us might start something that led to… face it, a lot of fun, even if we got chewed out for it by the Flight Deck Officer, the Air Bos’n, the Air Boss, or even the ship’s Commanding Officer.

Let me tell you about some of these flight deck “shenanigans.”

After Days/Weeks of Flight Ops, a “Slippery” Flight Deck

You can imagine that after days or weeks of continuous flying with multiple types of aircraft from various squadrons, the flight deck may get… a little… “greasy” from all the jet exhaust, leaking tractors, and various other fuel and hydraulic spills.

There were times when you could almost “skate” on the deck in your steel-toed boots, especially if you found yourself behind a taxiing jet’s exhaust. And yes, I’ve been known to do that once or twice… on purpose!

In fact, I wrote a song about it to the tune of a famous Christmas song: “Up on the flight deck slick as glass, let’s watch Adkins bust his ass.”

Yeah, I know… don’t give up my day job.

Anyway, the point is that the flight deck needed to be cleaned. The day before we pulled into port (either San Diego or PI), most of the aircraft had flown off the carrier back to their squadron home bases. Those that couldn’t fly for whatever reason were stored below on the hangar deck.

Prior to coming into port, we had to scrub the flight deck. This was a job for the V-1 Division.

Scrubbing the Flight Deck

Back in my day, we used several MD-3 aircraft tow tractors for the task.

We’d first string out a couple of 2½” fire hoses from the port and starboard catwalk fire stations, manned by five- to six-man crews. The crews would first wet down the flight deck with salt water—really making it slippery.

One MD-3 tractor would begin the task and lead the way with one guy driving and two guys on the back throwing out cupfuls of yellow-orange colored powdered soap called ZEP that came in fifty-gallon drums.

Two more MD-3s would follow. Each had a 12’ rope tied to the back pulling a metal pallet with several rows of large wooden scrub brushes attached underneath, similar to the old-style push brooms.

These tractors followed the guys throwing out the ZEP powder. Two guys sat on each pallet to help weigh it down.

All went well until one of the tractor drivers got a heavy foot, then the other would speed up, and soon it was a race around the flight deck. Even though there were no planes on deck, when these tractors sped and turned a corner, the guys on the pallet would fly around hanging on for dear life, all the while with great big grins, hootin’ and hollerin’.

It reminded me of when I used to water ski at Kingsley Lake, Florida and the boat driver took a wide, slow turn, so I could build up momentum and speed. Except, that was in calm fresh water and not a non-skid flight deck… and it was clean, not oily… and it didn’t hurt (much) when you took a spill.

Well, you get the idea.

Many times the Air Boss or the Flight Deck LPO (Leading Petty Officer) would chew us out for such flight deck shenanigans. But it was worth it—and if memory serves, they were laughing, too. Nobody got hurt, at least not during our watch.

Water Fights

Once we thoroughly scrubbed the flight deck, the hose crews would commence the wash down, starting at the bow and working their way toward the stern. That took a while since there was usually a lot of soap & scum on the flight deck.

During the summer (Westpac ’75) when we returned to the Philippines port, our overseas home port, it was hot as hell and the hose teams sometimes “slipped” with the hose, starting a water fight. With 5 to 6 men on each hose–and periodically we’d have 3-4 teams–we’d get soaked to the bone. You had the wind advantage if your hose team was forward, toward the bow.

I think the Captain and the rest of the crew on the bridge thought it was quite funny, because they didn’t put a stop to it. It was all in good fun and welcomed after so many grueling hours of flight ops.

Later, we’d call this type of shenanigan a “morale booster.”

But that’s how we cleaned and scrubbed the flight deck back in my day.

Today, I believe the Navy uses “manual” labor–the flight deck crew pushing stick brooms–to scrub the flight deck. What’s the fun in that?

Falling Asleep on the Crash Tractor

I’m not sure this would count as a flight deck “shenanigan,” but…

Crash always had a firefighting tractor parked & idling next to the foul line during recovery operations, ready to roll at a moment’s notice. The wind always blew down the deck, so we didn’t have to breathe in diesel exhaust fumes.

During our time at sea, especially on cold nights, a bunch of us would huddle around the crash tractor. Since the engine was always idling, it provided a continuous source of warmth. Between the warmth and the gentle vibration of the idling engine, it was pretty relaxing.

More than once late at night in between aircraft recoveries, I drifted off to sleep while leaning over the hood of the tractor. I wasn’t the only one, either.

Sending the FNG on an “Errand”

Of course, one thing that almost every Navy veteran took part in was to send a new recruit on a wild goose chase. There were so many unique items and everyone on the ship knew “the joke.”

More than once while Kitty Hawk was in her San Diego home port, a FNG joined us in V-1. Someone, usually an experienced & seasoned Blue shirt, would ask him (we didn’t have women sailors on board back in my day) to go down to V-3 Division office and see if they had a “left-handed screwdriver” or a “metric crescent wrench.”

Of course, there was no such thing. But because the FNG wanted to make a good first impression—and I think some of them really didn’t know the difference—they’d run the errand.

Once they got to V-3 and asked for the specific item, the guy in V-3 would immediately pick up on the joke and without letting on, would say something like, “We don’t have one, but I think V-4 Division does; ask them.”

It was cruel, but all in good fun.

One day in the not-too-distant future, I’ll write about the various “errands” we’d ask the new recruits to run.

Merry Christmas from Florida

I’m posting this blog on Tuesday, December 22. Friday is Christmas 2020. I have a lot of veteran friends who celebrate Christmas, but I also have plenty of friends with different religious backgrounds.

Becky & I normally send out a “Newsletter” to family & friends at this time of the year, letting everyone know what’s been happening at Casa Adkins and where we traveled during the year, complete with photos.

We didn’t write one this year because, frankly, we haven’t gone anywhere since March, other than to the grocery store and to Lowe’s/Home Depot. Our newsletter pictures would probably consist of 2×12″ #2 untreated pine lumber for our raised-bed vegetable garden or an outdoor grill or perhaps the multiple varieties of peanut butter on Publix aisle #10.

It’s certainly been a challenging year for all of us.

I also know that the holiday season is harder for some than it is for others. Several friends lost a parent or a spouse or a child this past year. On top of that loss, we are all also dealing with this pandemic and may not be able to visit family or friends, for one reason or another, anytime soon.

In one way, life has become bigger and more precious than ever. In another, our “bubble” has become much smaller.

If you know of someone who is alone this season, write them a letter, send them an email, or better yet… call—let them know they’re not alone.

Merry Christmas from Florida.

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 posts mentioned in this blog:

• #61—There’s a Reason for the Flight Deck ”Foul Line”
• #3—Between a Rock and a Hard Place
• #10—You Light ‘em, We Fight ‘em
• #36—Gone in an Instant

Answers

1. Charles Wadsworth.
2. Nightmare on Elm Street (1984), Nancy Thompson (Heather Langenkamp).
3. Sunshine of Your Love (1968), Cream; written by Eric Clapton, Jack Bruce, Peter Constantine Brown, Peter Ronald Brown.