Arduous at Sea

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Jake
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Posted (edited)

With 161 Days Consecutively Operating At Sea, Dwight D. Eisenhower and San Jacinto Break U.S. Navy Record

https://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=113370#:~:text=ARABIAN SEA (NNS) -- As,record for the U.S. Navy.

My sea duty never came close to that record, in which they are approaching 6 months straight now.  Usually 2-4 months out before we make another port visit.  But during my extended Persian Gulf patrols, we were given two beers each to celebrate our misery.  Yeah, two warm puckin' beers, standing on barge tied alongside a missile cruiser and under a blazing Persian Gulf oven.  I was visibly pissed, poured my 1st beer over the side and then purposely gave my 2nd one to my youngest tech.  The captain was not amused.  Apparently I didn't show enough gratitude and was detrimental to ship's moral.  

I don't think so.....my tech had a total of 3 beers and was plastered!  Damn twidgets (electronics tech)....had to teach these guys how to drink like a real sailor.....he, he.  
 

Edited by Jake
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Tommy T.
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7 hours ago, Jake said:

My sea duty never came close to that record, in which they are approaching 6 months straight now.  Usually 2-4 months out before we make another port visit.  But during my extended Persian Gulf patrols, we were given two beers each to celebrate our misery.  Yeah, two warm puckin' beers, standing on barge tied alongside a missile cruiser and under a blazing Persian Gulf oven.  I was visibly pissed, poured my 1st beer over the side and then purposely gave my 2nd one to my youngest tech.  The captain was not amused.  Apparently I didn't show enough gratitude and was detrimental to ship's moral.  

I don't think so.....my tech had a total of 3 beers and was plastered!  Damn twidgets (electronics tech)....had to teach these guys how to drink like a real sailor.....he, he.  

 I was never a Navy sailor, so shouldn't really comment... but where was the rum???

It was probably Budweiser too? So that is not really considered beer in many parts of the world... no wonder you were disgusted!:hystery:

Edited by Tommy T.
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Jake
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1 hour ago, Tommy T. said:

 I was never a Navy sailor, so shouldn't really comment... but where was the rum???

It was probably Budweiser too? So that is not really considered beer in many parts of the world... no wonder you were disgusted!:hystery:

I think it was Buds, handed out warm and no place to hide under that intense sun.  As you may know, US sailors are not allowed to drink onboard any ship.  Therefore they brought alongside a barge with no canopy and no tubs/coolers of ice. 

You should ask the Aussie and the Brits (and other commonwealth nations) how they really party onboard their ship.  Long live the Queen and pass that ration of rum.  
 

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Tommy T.
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15 minutes ago, Jake said:

I think it was Buds, handed out warm and no place to hide under that intense sun.  As you may know, US sailors are not allowed to drink onboard any ship.  Therefore they brought alongside a barge with no canopy and no tubs/coolers of ice. 

 

As I said before, I never served in US Navy... But I have relatives who did, so know some of the regs there...

Yeah... even cold Buds, to me, are disgusting... warm... well... you made a good decision...

I read a lot about the "old days" of sailing and the Brits and others doled out whole pints of (yes, weak and probably nasty) rum to each sailor daily... It's amazing they ever found their way around the world, not to mention from Engliand to France!!!!

But those are the tales of old... and now we are here in the age of coast guards, viruses, lawsuits and the rest... So at least now I can sit back, coif a bit of rum (when I can get it) and be at relative peace with myself and the rest of the world as it all explodes around me. And I have a wonderful girl to share what's left of my life with too...

Life is certainly more fun in the Philippines!!!

Edited by Tommy T.
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JJReyes
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Nuclear powered aircraft carriers require refueling every 20 years. Water is through a desalination process.  The other supplies like food, mail from home, jet fuel, etc. can be delivered by transport ships or flown-in by small cargo planes. Why not try to set a world record by remaining at sea for an entire year?

By the way, submariners were not told about Covid-19 spreading throughout the world. It might lower moral if they start worrying about family and relatives while on their mission.   

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earthdome
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On 6/27/2020 at 8:35 AM, JJReyes said:

Nuclear powered aircraft carriers require refueling every 20 years. Water is through a desalination process.  The other supplies like food, mail from home, jet fuel, etc. can be delivered by transport ships or flown-in by small cargo planes. Why not try to set a world record by remaining at sea for an entire year?

By the way, submariners were not told about Covid-19 spreading throughout the world. It might lower moral if they start worrying about family and relatives while on their mission.   

I can confirm that policy as a former submariner. I was out at sea when the US hostages were taken from the US Embassy in Iran. We knew very little about what was going on. After I returned I found out from a taxi driver that every submarine that could get out to sea was gone. The US submarine fleet was on a war footing. Later I learned a friend of mine on a fast attack boat had their 6 month north atlantic run extended for another 6 months in the med while only pulling in to port long enough to load stores.

I can also confirm that on my boat there were some who were very concerned about their breath in such close quarters. They would bring along several bottles of that light brown colored "listerene" mouth wash. They must have been concerned about my breath because a few times they sweetened my coffee. :wink:

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Yeochief
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Submarines do a lot more than most people think.  Most of the crew have no ideal where they are at.  It is a different world down below. 444 days is also a long time to be a hostage of any sort.

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earthdome
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1 minute ago, Yeochief said:

Submarines do a lot more than most people think.  Most of the crew have no ideal where they are at.  It is a different world down below. 444 days is also a long time to be a hostage of any sort.

That is why it is called the silent service. Because very little is said about submarine operations.

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Dave Hounddriver
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5 hours ago, earthdome said:

That is why it is called the silent service.

That statement reminds me of an old war movie from the 50s

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0052151/

Good movie but it likely does not apply to today's silent service.

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