What is even worse than trying to help people who totally reject everything we stand for is that our combat readiness has suffered for it.
An aircraft carrier is an instrument of national policy and the big stick she carries is her air wing. An air wing has a set of very demanding skills and they are highly perishable. We train hard every day at sea to conduct actual air strikes, air defense, maritime surveillance, close air support and many other missions - not to mention taking off and landing on a ship at sea.
Our safety regulations state that if a pilot does not get a night carrier landing every seven days, he has to be re-qualified to land on the ship. Today we have pilots who have now been over 25 days without a trap due to being unable to use Indonesian airspace to train. Normally it is when we are at sea that our readiness is at its very peak. Thanks to the Indonesian government, we have to waive our own safety rules just to get our pilots off the deck.
In other words, the longer we stay here helping these people, the more dangerous it gets for us to operate. We have already lost one helicopter, which crashed in Banda Aceh while taking sailors ashore to unload supplies from the C-130s. There were no relief workers on that one.
I'm all for helping the less fortunate, but it is time to give this mission to somebody other than the U.S. Navy. Our ship was supposed to be home on Feb. 3 and now we have no idea how long we will be here. American taxpayers are spending millions per day to keep this ship at sea and getting no training value out of it. As a result, we will come home in a lower state of readiness than when we left due to the lack of flying while supporting the tsunami relief effort.
I hope we get some good PR in the Muslim world out of it. After all, this is Americans saving the lives of Muslims. I have my doubts.
Ed Stanton is the pen name of a career U.S. Navy officer currently serving with
the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group. Send Feedback responses to dwfeedback@yahoo.com
Article comments
1 - bhw
Funniest unintentional comedy I've seen in a while:
It was all I could do to keep from jerking him off ....
Thank goodness the next words were "his feet"!
2 - andy marsh
I think the thing to understand about that part of the story is this: officers pay for their food. They are given subsistence allowance and they pay for meals out of that allowance. All the food served in the wardroom is paid for by the officers themselves. So, if the Indonesians don't pay and the UN doesn't pay, then those officers pay and I'm here to tell you, nobody in the military makes great money.
But you're right...maybe I should have put a return in there...just to keep you guessing.
3 - bhw
I understand his sentiment -- the other idiot was out of line.
But the phrasing of that sentence!
4 - NancyGail
One only wonders what will happen to Iraq sentiment one elections are over.
5 - andy marsh
One only wonders what that has to do with ingrateful people on board the USS Lincoln?
6 - Joe
Here's a view from a non-pseudononamous officer from the Lincoln.
7 - Ayu
Apart from what the goverment had done, the people in Aceh are grateful for having the US there to help them, as well as those from other countries in the world. Even Indonesian president, as far as I watched on CNN (taken from local TV channel in Indonesia) said on his speech that Indonesia is in need of help from others. The limitation for the relief effort is given considering the situation in Aceh which is still unsafe. Just last week some policemen who were looking for their missing relative after the tsunami were shot by the rebels. Actually, it has been the first time that Aceh is opened to foreigners, so some are still a little bit sceptical about them. But in general, I think people welcomed the US. I have seen pictures from Indonesian newspapers where the natives were hand in hand with US soldiers, a woman was crying on the shoulder of an American, and such sympathetic things. Oh, and Indonesia is a democratic country, although the majority of the people are Muslims. So don't worry..they have MTV there.
8 - andy marsh
Joe - thanks for the link to another view point from on Board the Lincoln. Two completely different perspectives. It was good to read that their were some there that were happy to see us, but I still don't doubt that the things in the other letter happened as well.