USS John F Kennedy CV-67 still has some fight left
Appears to me that these Kennedy men still have pride in that 38 year old CV...I served on CVA-67 from March 1972 until August 1973.
We still have a little fight left'
Carrier leaves Norfolk for the last time, heads to Boston
By Mark D. Faram - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Feb 28, 2007 12:23:18 EST
Aboard the USS John F. Kennedy —The aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy
didn't look like a ship about to be decommissioned as it left
Norfolk, Va., on Sunday.
And that's just the way the crew wanted it.
Pulling away from the pier and heading out of Hampton Roads into
open water, one "Big John" crew member was happy to have quieted the
rumor mill.
"We heard the waterfront rumors, and many here expected us to limp
in, leaking fluids and looking like a garbage scow," said the
longtime Kennedy crew member, who asked to remain anonymous. "I
guess we showed them because none of that happened — there were
three carriers in port and we looked better than all of them — we
still have a little fight left in us."
Even Capt. Todd Zecchin, the ship's commanding officer, sounded
proud when he spoke to the crew during the evening meal, lauding
them for their good showing. The ship even got underway a few
minutes early.
This was JFK's last visit to Norfolk, the ship's first home port. It
stopped there as part of a farewell tour that will include a March 1
port call Boston. It will be the ship's eighth visit to its
namesake's hometown.
"I've been onboard here for 11 months, and this is the first real
deployment I've ever been on," said Aviation Boatswain's Mate
(Aircraft Handling) Ashley Clemmer of V-3 division. "I'm really
looking forward to a real port visit, I hear Boston is very nice."
Clemmer and her shipmate, Aviation Boatswain's Mate (Aircraft
Handling) Jason Bevan, were working hard cleaning out padeyes in the
ship's hanger bay. The hangar bay will be the focal point for the
thousands of visitors expected to tour the ship during the four days
it'll be tied up in Boston.
"We are expecting thousands of visitors each day, maybe as many as a
million during our visit," he said. "That sure will be something to
see."
All over the hanger bay, new murals have been painted, including
likenesses of the ship as well as famous quotations from its
namesake, President Kennedy.
Back in the jet shop, all the way aft in the hanger bay, more
painting was going on as Aviation Machinist's Mate (AW/SW) Freddie
Rivera was airbrushing new decor on one of the ship's flight deck
tractors.
"It's a tribute to the people and the city of Boston," Rivera said
of his handiwork, which included a leprechaun dressed up as a Boston
Celtics basketball player and a bearded baseball fan at Fenway Park,
all wrapped around the Kennedy's logo. The ship's accomplishments on
its last cruise in 2004, in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and
the battle for Fallujah in Iraq, were also included in the artwork.
"We want to show the people of Boston we appreciate them and are
thankful for their support of our ship," Rivera said.
Appears to me that these Kennedy men still have pride in that 38 year old CV...I served on CVA-67 from March 1972 until August 1973.
We still have a little fight left'
Carrier leaves Norfolk for the last time, heads to Boston
By Mark D. Faram - Staff writer
Posted : Wednesday Feb 28, 2007 12:23:18 EST
Aboard the USS John F. Kennedy —The aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy
didn't look like a ship about to be decommissioned as it left
Norfolk, Va., on Sunday.
And that's just the way the crew wanted it.
Pulling away from the pier and heading out of Hampton Roads into
open water, one "Big John" crew member was happy to have quieted the
rumor mill.
"We heard the waterfront rumors, and many here expected us to limp
in, leaking fluids and looking like a garbage scow," said the
longtime Kennedy crew member, who asked to remain anonymous. "I
guess we showed them because none of that happened — there were
three carriers in port and we looked better than all of them — we
still have a little fight left in us."
Even Capt. Todd Zecchin, the ship's commanding officer, sounded
proud when he spoke to the crew during the evening meal, lauding
them for their good showing. The ship even got underway a few
minutes early.
This was JFK's last visit to Norfolk, the ship's first home port. It
stopped there as part of a farewell tour that will include a March 1
port call Boston. It will be the ship's eighth visit to its
namesake's hometown.
"I've been onboard here for 11 months, and this is the first real
deployment I've ever been on," said Aviation Boatswain's Mate
(Aircraft Handling) Ashley Clemmer of V-3 division. "I'm really
looking forward to a real port visit, I hear Boston is very nice."
Clemmer and her shipmate, Aviation Boatswain's Mate (Aircraft
Handling) Jason Bevan, were working hard cleaning out padeyes in the
ship's hanger bay. The hangar bay will be the focal point for the
thousands of visitors expected to tour the ship during the four days
it'll be tied up in Boston.
"We are expecting thousands of visitors each day, maybe as many as a
million during our visit," he said. "That sure will be something to
see."
All over the hanger bay, new murals have been painted, including
likenesses of the ship as well as famous quotations from its
namesake, President Kennedy.
Back in the jet shop, all the way aft in the hanger bay, more
painting was going on as Aviation Machinist's Mate (AW/SW) Freddie
Rivera was airbrushing new decor on one of the ship's flight deck
tractors.
"It's a tribute to the people and the city of Boston," Rivera said
of his handiwork, which included a leprechaun dressed up as a Boston
Celtics basketball player and a bearded baseball fan at Fenway Park,
all wrapped around the Kennedy's logo. The ship's accomplishments on
its last cruise in 2004, in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and
the battle for Fallujah in Iraq, were also included in the artwork.
"We want to show the people of Boston we appreciate them and are
thankful for their support of our ship," Rivera said.