“Silence on the line, silence on the line! Fire, fire, fire! Fire in propulsion lube oil bay! Class bravo fire in propulsion lube oil bay! Fire, fire, fire!” After notifying the crew in maneuvering, I quickly donned my emergency air breathing apparatus. The general alarm was sounded. This noise was like someone with a low… Continue reading 13. Sucking Rubber
Category: at sea
11. Knowledge and Power
“Droughton, front and center. Everyone else, dismissed.” “Crap,” I thought to myself, “What did I do this time?” It was best just to be honest with Queen La Chiefa because he knew everything. Oh yeah, he knew everything about the ship, plus he saw and heard everything going on inside of it too. He could… Continue reading 11. Knowledge and Power
8. More Dubious Flirtation
Who controls reactor power? I was standing in front of Queen La Chiefa for my Engine Room Lower Level qualification interview when he asked me that question. This was before pulling into port during the last underway, and this was big time for me. I was being grilled for my first “steaming watch,” meaning the… Continue reading 8. More Dubious Flirtation
7. Long, Hard, and Full of Seamen
“DIVE! DIVE!” <AROOOOOT, AROOOOOT> “DIVE! DIVE!” The Chief of the Watch made those announcements over the 1MC ship-wide announcing circuit under orders passed from the Captain, to the Officer of the Deck, to the Diving Officer, and then finally to him. That COW-boy also sounded the modern digitized dive alarm. The 688 class did not… Continue reading 7. Long, Hard, and Full of Seamen
4. Dubious Flirtation
The USS San Francisco was just hours away from getting underway. It was time for us to bring her to life. I was standing an under instruction watch in engine room lower level with Jay-Jay during the startup. We were just a couple of dudes in the engine room when—wait. Sorry. Forgot. There are no… Continue reading 4. Dubious Flirtation