June 21, 2012
Vol. 1 Issue 23
Logistics Specialist Seaman Andrew T. Lee coughs into his sleeve, demonstrating the proper illness prevention technique for coughing in an enclosed environment aboard the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68).
Sailors Encouraged to Practice Good Hygiene Story and photos by MC3 Ian Cotter
With more than 5,000 Sailors and Marines on board the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68), there is a chance for some of them to come down with an ailment and end up at sick call. There is good news though, because according to Nimitz’ Health Services Department (HSD), there are many preventive measures everyone could use to stay healthy and mission-ready. “The best way to prevent sickness is by practicing proper hand washing and sanitizing surfaces,” said Chief
Hospital Corpsman Jonathon S. Dilbeck, the preventative medicine chief in HSD. “Use approved agents, hot water and soap to wipe down surfaces. Keeping up good sanitation prevents the spread of disease.” Washing hands after using the head and before meals is also vitally important in keeping illness down on the ship. “Use hot water and soap,” said Dilbeck. “Rub your hands together briskly, getting between the fingers and underneath the finger nails for at least 20 seconds. Then dry them
off with towels or an electric hand dryer.” Aside from just washing your hands, there are many other aspects of keeping healthy and illness free aboard Nimitz. One way is to eat healthy meals during chow. “Adding fruits and vegetables to your diet gives you important vitamins,” said Lt. Karen S. Woo, Nimitz’ surgeon. “[Energy drinks] do not equal meals. An apple a day really will keep the doctor away.” According to Woo, vitamins from nutritious foods provide the building blocks for better immune function and help to prevent fatigue and illness. “If your body is not equipped right, it loses the ability to fight off everyday viruses,” said Woo. “Eating right, exercising and washing your hands will help your body fight off illness.” Hydration is also an important factor in combating contagion. “Your body is made up of approximately 70 percent water,” said Woo. “Water filters toxins out of the body and helps with digestion. You should be urinating at least five to seven times a day.” Hygiene also plays a big role in preventing the spread of sickness. See “HEALTH” page 4
USS Nimitz’ Sailor of the Day Capt. Jeff Ruth, commanding officer of USS Nimitz, named Electronics Technician 3rd Class Alan J. Owens, Sailor of the Day, June 20 in the Pilot House. Photo by MCSA Ryan Mayes.
Commanding Officer CAPT Jeff S. Ruth Executive Officer CAPT Buzz Donnelly Command Master Chief CMDCM Teri McIntyre Public Affairs Officer LCDR Karin Burzynski
Editor MC2 Robert Winn Lead Designer MC3 Jacob Milner
Nimitz News accepts submissions in writing. All. submissions are subject to review and screening. “Nimitz News” is an authorized publication for the members of the military services and their families. Its content does not necessarily reflect the official views of the U.S. Government, the Department of Defense, the Department of the Navy, or the Marine Corps and does not imply endorsement thereby.
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Sailors in a rigid-hull inflatable boat (RHIB) from the guided-missile cruiser USS Princeton (CG 59) retrieve 186 bales of marijuana, June 16. U.S. Navy photo.
Nimitz Coordinates Counter Narcotics Story by MC2 (SW) Robert Winn
The crew of the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) coordinated efforts with USS Princeton (CG 59), Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 6, Helicopter Maritime Squadron (HSM) 75 and the Mexican navy to retrieve 186 bales of marijuana, June 16, which were apparently destined for the United States. “The coordinated response of all hands involved was phenomenal,” remarked Nimitz Strike Group Commander Rear Adm. Pete Gumataotao. “The combined efforts of each of our strike group components demonstrated the flexibility and capability that defines how we conduct business.” “This crew’s response was amazing,” said USS Nimitz Commanding Officer Capt. Jeff Ruth. “To operationally shift gears quickly and safely from carrier qualifications to a real-world response shows what true professionals work here.” At approximately 1:50 p.m., USS Nimitz starboard lookouts, spotted two surface vessels, or contacts, approximately four nautical miles away and reported the contacts up the chain of command. The USS Nimitz crew then coordinated with HSC-6 to send MH-60S Seahawk helicopter 613 to perform a visual identification (VID) on the vessels. “The [helicopter] was already in the air acting as plane guard for flight ops,” said USS Nimitz’ tactical action officer at the time. “When the Seahawk got overhead, they reported two white single engine boats about 25 feet in length, which
immediately began dumping black hefty bags over the side. The small boats raced up to about 25 knots and fled to the east.” As the two small vessels fled at 2:22 p.m., USS Princeton, part of Carrier Strike Group 11, sent their rigid hull inflatable boats (RHIB) to investigate and retrieve the bags as evidence. Eighty bales of marijuana, each weighing approximately 100 pounds, were recovered at that time. At 5:05 p.m. USS Nimitz’ officer of the deck spotted a small craft at approximately three nautical miles, which also appeared to be dumping in the sea. The USS Princeton positioned HSM-75’s Lone Wolf 722, which is assigned to the USS Princeton, flying as a spotter for the rigid hull inflatable boats, or RHIBs, for further investigation. This caused those craft to flee as well. “I thought it was pretty cool,” said an HSC-6 pilot in the air at the time of the second spotting. “Most of the time we’re a just-in-case asset. It was cool to be part of a situation where none of our guys got hurt and we were able to be a part of something bigger.” USS Princeton and a Mexican naval ship that came on scene retrieved more than 186 bales. The bales were then transferred to the Coast Guard Cutter Edisto for transport to shore. The USS Nimitz Strike Group is operating in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California conducting carrier qualification operations.
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HEALTH: Healthy Habits Can Prevent Sickness Continued from page 1
Sailors and Marines that practice good hygiene stand less of a chance of coming down with something. “Regularly taking showers keeps infection away, and laundering your clothes regularly is important,” said Woo. “There’s no point in showering if you’re only going to put on a dirty uniform afterwards.” Lastly, a good night’s sleep is critical to illness prevention as well as mission readiness. Fatigued personnel may perform sub-par and also leave their immune system overworked and open to viral and bacterial attack. “Don’t substitute recreational activity for sleep,” said Woo. “Go to bed earlier if you need to. Xbox is not that important if you’re not getting enough sleep at night. Also, energy drinks are not a substitute for sleep.” Practicing good pre-emptive illness avoidance, Sailors and Marines can stay healthy and missionready. “On average, each provider sees 30 to 50 patients a day at sick call,” said Woo. “If Sailors practice good health habits, we can lower that number and they stand a better chance of preventing illness.”
Machinist’s Mate 1st Class Scott A. Merrullo serves himself a salad on the mess decks.
Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class Michael A. Waltich properly washes his hands aboard the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68). Page 4
MOTT Sharpens Bomb Building Skills Story and photos by MC2 (SW) Robert Winn
Command Naval Air Forces Mobile Ordnance Training Team (MOTT) is on board and training the Sailors of USS Nimitz’ (CVN 68) Weapons Department on regular and advanced bombbuilding techniques. Day and night classes are being held in the weapons magazines for all ordnancemen to help update their knowledge on the weapons systems the ship uses. Two sessions of missile and bomb building classes will be held, followed by a quickstrike mine building class. “We’re here with the latest and greatest information from the factories and program managers,” said retired Senior Chief Aviation Ordnanceman Bob Kline, one of the MOTT instructors. “We assist in ordnance certification through hands-on training.” The classes are limited to 12 per session to allow for maximum handson training. Sailors are instructed on all stages of bomb building. “We go over inspection, assembly, testing, disassembly and packaging,” said Kline. Though hammers are used while dealing with ordnance, the days of testing them by hitting the tops with an Acme hammer are long gone. “We’ve got things like dual mode laser guided missiles,” said Kline. “Some of the more seasoned AOs might have gone through ‘A’ and ‘C’ schools more than 10 years ago; they
Aviation Ordnanceman undergo training on the M-197 gun system in the weapons magazines.
didn’t get to learn on all the newest equipment and we want everyone to be up to speed.” Aviation Ordnanceman 2nd Class Brian Perez, from Puerto Rico, says the classes are a good refresher from his ‘A’-school days. “I know most of the things covered so far,” Perez explains. “This is a good refresher. I have learned some new safety features and components on the updated parts.” Chief Aviation Ordnanceman John Coble says the training is a welcomed tool to help educate his Sailors. “Weapons Department is currently in a training phase,” Coble said. “To augment personnel training levels we invited in the experts. These experts are civilian Page 5
ordies (ordnanceman) who travel the Navy providing guidance, proficiency and instruction to keep us all current in all facets of weapons assembly, inspection and stowage.” Aviation Ordnanceman Airman Yvette Ly is excited to go through the class for the first time. “We didn’t get much weapons handling in the yards,” said Ly. “This is a good way to shake off the rust and get back in the swing of things.” In addition to ordnance handling, Fleet Weapons Support Team is on board to introduce Weapons Department to the M-197 gun system. MOTT is expected to continue training in the weeks leading up to Nimitz’ participation in the 2012 Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) excercises.
Sailors Encouraged to Vote for Their Leaders Story by MC3 Jacob Milner
One of the many freedoms that Sailors aboard the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) are entrusted to protect is the freedom to vote, but this does not mean that a Sailor who is underway cannot vote for their leadership themselves. As of November 2012, Sailors will be able to send their vote for the 2012 presidential election via absentee ballots through the on board mail system. The primary elections, which establishes who will be on the ballot, are already ongoing. “Primary elections to decide who will be on the November 2012 ballots are underway,” said Lt. Tzu Chen, Nimitz’ voting assistance officer. “Now is the time for Sailors to submit their registration and ballot request using the Federal Post Card Application (FPCA). They can also use it to update their email or mailing address, which is crucial to ensure they receive their ballots.” The voting process for service members for the 2012 primary elections is determined by each Sailor’s home of record. “Every state is different,” said Chen. “It depends on the residency of the individual and the rules that apply to that
AMERICA NEEDS YOU.
VOTE. Graphic illustration courtesy of FVAP.gov.
particular state. Some states have electronic voting so that service members can go to that particular state’s website and cast their registration there. Some states will take a form of absentee ballot that has to be submitted through the mail. Sailors would have to request that ballot from the individual state and have it sent to the ship.” The primary elections began with New Hampshire Jan. 10, and will end with Vermont Aug. 28. “Each state is different as far as when service members can register for the primary elections,” said Chen. “Each month there are a few states that have their voting process. If Sailors miss that time, then their vote will not count towards the electoral voting process.” The military absentee vote has had a big impact on the election of the nation’s leaders in the recent past and should not be taken lightly, said Chen. “It depends on how close the election is,” said Chen. “The electoral vote counts for more than an individual ballot. If you take the Gore versus Bush election in 2000, Gore won the popular vote, but Bush won the electoral vote and won the election. The military absentee vote had an impact on that presidential race.” With 5,000 Sailors on board, the process of getting all the Sailors that want to vote registered has been delegated to trained departmental representatives. “We’re in the process of getting our departmental representatives certified,” said Chen. “They have to go through a self-training course on the voting assistance program website and once we get them all certified, every department should have at least one voting representative.” The personnel already certified for voting assistance are ready to help Sailors through the process that pertains to their individual state. “Everyone that has the opportunity, should vote,” said Personnel Specialist 2nd Class Daniel Mahaffey, Personnel Department’s voting assistance departmental representative. “Every vote can make a difference in an election. If everyone wants change then the only way to make change is to vote.” With the upcoming presidential election, the registration of voters, both civilian and military, gives individuals the chance to cast their vote for who should lead. Sailors don’t have to miss out just because they are underway. For individual voter registration or to learn more about the voting process visit www.FVAP.gov.
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Transition Benefits: Life After ERB Story by Patrick Foughty, Commander, Navy Installations Command Public Affairs
When Chief Aviation Machinist’s Mate Anthony Hughes received news in November 2011, that he was on the Enlisted Retention Board (ERB) list he felt like his life was over. “I remember my CO (commanding officer) sitting me down and saying ‘Chief, I’ve got some bad news,’ and I immediately knew what was coming,” said Hughes. His commanding officer informed him of his selection for ERB, which angered him. “I felt like I had honored my part of the bargain, and the Navy had just backed out on the deal,” said Hughes. Instead of giving up or feeling sorry for himself, Hughes said he quickly accepted the news and started looking toward the future. “I literally knew exactly what I had to do at that very moment; from that day on my only mission was to get my family back home, so I could get a new job ASAP.” Hughes is one of 2,946 Sailors chosen for separation by the ERB in late 2011, all of whom were from a list of approximately 16,000 records the board reviewed to help reduce manning and meet quotas in various rates across the fleet. With record high retention and low attrition among active duty Sailors, the Navy became overmanned by greater than 103 percent in 31 of 84 ratings, resulting in increased competition and reduced advancement opportunities for strong-performing Sailors to reenlist. Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Jonathan Greenert explained in his official blog that, “ERB reduces overall manpower by reducing the number of Sailors in overmanned ratings through conversions and separations.”
Navy leadership realized; however, that while the ERB was fair and necessary for the needs of the Navy, it also left Sailors with questions and concerns for their future. “The ERB and follow-on transition process have my full attention,” wrote Greenert, “we are putting great efforts to ensure the ERB process is being conducted professionally and fairly. More importantly, we look to ensure that the means for transition is clear, broadly applied, open and readily available.” For Hughes, that message couldn’t have been clearer. “I knew I couldn’t mess around,” he said. “With a wife and two small kids, I have mouths to feed and bills to pay. There was no way I was going to let this situation mess up my family and our way of life, and as it turned out, neither was the Navy.” Soon after Hughes received the news, a representative from Challenger, Gray and Christmas (CGC), a firm contracted by the Navy to provide extensive transition services for ERB Sailors, reached out to him and began working with him on his life after active duty. “One thing that I really needed to work on was my resume, I was taking action on all other areas of my life, from my move to my out processing, but my resume needed work, and the folks at CGC really helped with it.” Hughes said he was very impressed with the comprehensive resume services offered by CGC. For more information visit the NPC ERB Web Page at www.npc.navy. mil/boards/ERB/, contact the NPC customer service center by email at cscmailbox@navy.mil. Page 7
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