Lunch that day would be the Sunday brunch and we would be dining in the Chief Petty Officers mess. Made-to-order eggs, breakfast meats, a roast beef carving station and, of course, lemon pound cake was offered. We were coming to the end of our trip and we enjoyed visiting the Chief’s mess and with each other. Just to be on the safe side, I went ahead and took a motion sickness pill knowing the flight back to NAS North Island was coming up. I never felt the slightest seasick on the ship. I felt the movement from time to time, especially as the ship turned into the wind during launches but never to the point where stuff inside was moving around. After lunch in the Cheif's mess, I stopped to get a photo with Jen - who also is a big fan of the Blue Angels and was from the Perdido Key, FL area.
We made our way to the deck side room to prepare for the catapult launch. The Provider's flight crew were there with instructions and a video on how to handle the experience; we donned our DV Cranial helmets, goggles and life vests and waited until we were ready to go.
Another DV Kathryn wore it with style.
We had not been directly on the flight deck since we first arrived and as we made our way down the gangway I realized that the walkway was an open mesh where you are looking below your feet at least 100 feet down to the blue Pacific Ocean! As we turned the corner our C2-Greyhound was there only about 50 steps away with one of its rotors turning and the walk-up side was off. Already on the catapult was FA/18 E Super Hornet and at the exact time we hit the halfway point on the walk to the COD - off the Super Hornet went. The shooters on the deck had me and the person in front of me go down on our knees as the jet wash blasted us with steam hot jet-fueled exhaust – but the lower profile helped and we did not get swept. I continued on into an open seat through the back of the C-2 and then I tightened down my four-point harness. The Provider's flight crew checked our buckles and life vests, goggles, and helmets and when they were satisfied the COD taxied to the catapult. This time, being faced backward was not in our favor. I retightened everything down knowing that I was going from zero to 130 knots (150 MPH) in 1.5 seconds. The instructors said to move your shins against the seat in front (so you don’t bruise them) and if you are short enough, brace your feet on the seat. I placed my shins up against the seat! The turboprops roared to full throttle and the plane was shaking violently on the beefy springs of the landing gear. The Provider's flight crew again waved their hands in the air and yelled: “Here We Go!”
I don’t think I can accurately describe how this felt. I have never pulled this many G’s in my life and there was no way to know what it would feel like until you do. My consciousness did not slip but things got small. My vision tightened to a small window of view straight ahead on the metal back of the seat in front of me. I was not bodily in control whatsoever. 1.5 seconds later – it was over and we cheered – a little. I was still emotionally processing and not much for yelling. We eased off in force and continued flying in the loud droning of the turboprops for the next half an hour. The motion sickness pill which causes drowsiness worked and I fell asleep sitting up strapped in my chair like a Butterball turkey about to go into the oven.
When we landed on NAS North Island the aircrew opened the back door while we were still rolling. The Navy van was waiting to carry us over to the Visitor Center outside security to be picked up by our rides.
Safely back on NAS North Island.
The drive back seemed surreal. Did I really just go through that experience? Non-floating life seems so different from Carrier life. As we drove over the Coronado Bridge back to San Diego I got a look at the naval fleet at the docks.
I am so grateful for the opportunity that the US Navy gave me to experience something that thousands of sailors go through in their lives, and are willing to sacrifice their time away from their loved ones and possibly their very lives for our freedom. Thank you United States Navy!
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