Our future is in good hands in the military

Somewhere between a tail hook and a catapult are the lessons of a lifetime. I had the opportunity to land on the USS Truman Aircraft Carrier last Monday for an overnight visit and tour. The ship is preparing for deployment and was very active. I have never seen so many, so young, with so much responsibility manage their jobs so well. The average age of the crew is approximately 22-years-old.

As we landed by way of the COD aircraft, the F-18 Fighter Jets were landing one by one after our arrival. We watched with amazement as the tail hook caught the wire and the pilot pushed the engine to full throttle roaring just before they were sure of the wire trap. They quickly moved to the side making sure that they were out of the way for the next jet. The pilots made it look easy as the crew of different colored shirts performed the orchestra of movement surrounding the launch and retrieval of the 45,000 pound,  $60,000,000 aircrafts.

We spent the day Monday watching flight operations. We watched the jets land and take off from different vantage points. We saw the flight deck manager use a scale size board, video cameras, and a crew of young and very focused sailors to manage the location and constant movement of the jets.

The night operations were even more impressive. The flight operations moved from looking over the deck from a windowed overhang during the day to a surreal glowing room with night video cameras, charts on flat screens, and a communication device at every turn under the flight deck. The crew on the deck held flashlights that matched the significant color of their uniforms — indicating job function.

The jets made landing at night on a small spot in the ocean look like a movie. They landed one after another in perfect sequence catching one of the 4 wires available to stop the jets in landing. We are the only military in the world that has pilots trained to land on a carrier at night. Our pilots are the best in the world.

On Tuesday I had breakfast in the mess with many of the young crew members — most of them 19-years-old and full of passion for the US Navy. They work 12 hours days; 18 hours days are not uncommon. They have a library, a gym, a place of worship, some entertainment and that is it… One of the crew told me that he wakes at 4 a.m. to work out (to beat the evening crowds), eats breakfast, goes to work in jet engine shop for 12 hours, and then likes to stay in shop to learn as much as he can. These are the leaders of tomorrow — a great work ethic,  a love of country and the capacity to handle significant responsibility.

The ship is a learning machine — each sailor in his or her role functioning together in symphonic fashion to hear the roar of the jets take off and land safely. The mission is to be ready for the call when it comes. And we pray that it never comes. But if it does our country is served by the best in the world. The business of protecting our country is in good hands — the crew of the USS Truman and the many others in our US Military.