Reprovisioning an aircraft carrier at sea. Informative for

[230RN]

landlubbers such as myself.  No dialog, no captions, but almost every time I had a question, it was answered within a couple of seconds in the video itself.  But was that an M14 at 00:50 and following?

https://youtu.be/Qd_stahsNOE (10:41)

[K Frame]

Yes. The M14 is Navy's standard line throwing gun.

[K Frame]

Not sure what the carrier is at the beginning of the clips, but later into it it shows flight operations on the USS Enterprise.

[BobR]

Not sure what the carrier is at the beginning of the clips, but later into it it shows flight operations on the USS Enterprise.

From the "NH" tail code on the EA6B it belongs to Carrier Air Wing 11 (CVW 11) which is based onboard the USS Nimtiz (CVN 68).


bob

[RoadKingLarry]

Yes. The M14 is Navy's standard line throwing gun.

M14 was still in service for shipboard security forces as late as 1992.
My last boat still issued 1911s and m14s for watch standers. We also had a mix of folding stock mounted Remington 870s and Mossberg 500s.

[French G.]

I am trying to find a line launcher for my M-1A. Did tons of unreps, life at sea, twice a week. Full efficiency is two ships on the replenishment vessel and two H-46s( Now 60s) swinging cargo to the decks.

We we also the gas can for our gas turbine escorts frequently. A DDG51 can almost keep up on an ocean transit, not so much for the tenders. They are typically forward deployed places like Bahrain or italy.

We also service and receive from foreign navies which is cool to watch.

[K Frame]

Here's a kicker on Navy line throwing guns...

The Trapdoor Springfield line throwing gun wasn't completely phased out of Navy service until after the Korean War.

[230RN]

M14 was still in service for shipboard security forces as late as 1992.
My last boat still issued 1911s and m14s for watch standers. We also had a mix of folding stock mounted Remington 870s and Mossberg 500s.

So when was that, more or less?

[HankB]

Interesting.

I remember attending a talk by Grace Hopper in which she mentioned a training assignment in which she was to accomplish refueling an entire task force at sea in the shortest possible time - the information given was pumping capability, fuel capacity, and fuel state of each of the task force vessels. She asked if there were any other constraints, and the reply was "None."

So she did it via that newfangled device, the computer. She had the entire task force line abreast and every hose and pump going at full power, with all the ships connected - many ships were taking on fuel on one side and pumping it off to another ship on the other side. Overall task force refueling time was the shortest (by a considerable margin) ever recorded for that training exercise.

"A very interesting solution" was her instructor's response. 

[Hawkmoon]

I've seen that video before but, when I looked at it again today I was clearly having a bad day. I saw the fuel hoses and my first thought was, "Why does a nuclear-powered carrier need petroleum-based fuel?"

Then I woke up and remembered that the aircraft aren't nuclear-powered.

[230RN]

Took me a minute to catch on to that, too, so don't feel bad.

Duhrry, 230RN

REF (Collier):

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collier_(ship)

[French G.]

I've seen that video before but, when I looked at it again today I was clearly having a bad day. I saw the fuel hoses and my first thought was, "Why does a nuclear-powered carrier need petroleum-based fuel?"

Then I woke up and remembered that the aircraft aren't nuclear-powered.

Well, it has been considered. Engine tested even. Wee bit dirty.


3 million gallons of JP-5.

My last ship was a boiler gator and so carried jp5 as well as bunker. 40k gallons a day we burned if trying to go somewhere in a hurry.

For me, a hangar deck denizen, the defining memory of an unrep is forklifts. I can still hear forklifts in my sleep. Convinced I was going to be run over. Then paly Dodge the conveyors as many many feet of removable roller track conveyors are manned by many pissed off sailors as the milk, lettuce, and everything else is shuffled below decks.

Most tedious unrep is ammo load/off-load. Several days, stay connected until sunset, break away and then do it again. Connected replenishment swinging pallets of bombs in concert with many helos transferring weps to the flight deck. Usually a second ship just for the vert rep, helos also working the connected ammo ship. Hangar Bay full o bombs. Angry people everywhere, smoking lamp out all day. My last ship we did ammo load pierside in New Jersey, but the carriers do it underway.

Best part of an unrep is fresh veggies. After a few weeks at sea it is nice. Always waited on the blood oranges and whatever other local weird foods. Worst part, if I was a bio weapon terrorist, this is the supply chain I would target.

[230RN]

"boiler gator" =

"unrep" =

"weps" = weapons?

"jarg" = jargon

I get the "boiler" part.

Duhrry, 230RN

[freakazoid]

"unrep" = what?

"weps" = weapons?

"jarg" = jargon

Duhrry, 230RN

Underway Replenishment

[RoadKingLarry]

So when was that, more or less?

July 21st, 1992, more or less.
After that date I couldn't say what happened on board.

[230RN]

So why not just call it UR?  I mean, YK, the military is all bonkers about As.

Roffle.


Thanks, RKL, but that was even earlier than someone else cited.  Just wondered, trying to get a handle on when the Navy might have changed that.

[RoadKingLarry]

I've seen that video before but, when I looked at it again today I was clearly having a bad day. I saw the fuel hoses and my first thought was, "Why does a nuclear-powered carrier need petroleum-based fuel?"

Then I woke up and remembered that the aircraft aren't nuclear-powered.

 
That's what they want you to believe...

[French G.]

Unrep explained already. Conrep=connected replenishment. Vertrep=vertical replenishment. Gator is an amphib, LHA in my case, big helo carrier. I do try to de jargon, but after awhile that's how you think and translation is a bear.

I have seen M-14s on watch in the early 2000s. Never qualed, I got an M-9 and occasionally an M16A4. Also had shotgun and M11 quals. The Navy and rifles is a rant worthy topic, especially since on my own doing I shot with the Navy team and can hit things at 600 and 1000 yards. Short version is shipboard sailors, even the ones who stand armed watch everyday, are not issued weapons. In the armory, out of the armory. Arrrghh, fine for a Mossberg 590 or a pistol, but hey, look at those knobs on our rifle! I estimate about zero chance of being effective at rifle ranges. Qualification does not teach sight adjustment or come ups. Never is a rifle going to be sighted by its end user. And the cherry on top? The Navy spent money to specifically get the M-16A4 which has a full happy switch, I assume for hosing small craft. Guess what we never train on and are forbidden to touch? So, about the most useful thing we do with a rifle is launch lines.

And funeral detail. I volunteered to do several old duffer burials at sea. No blanks, so they used line launching cartridges, lotta powder, loud. No orange ear plugs in video, no flinching in video, me with my back directly in front of the honor guard. Unburnt powder in my Dixie cup. Wonder why my hearing is degraded, episode 5312... :D

[HeroHog]

Fuel oil for diesel generators, whale boat engines, tow tractors would also be onboard.

[230RN]

French G.,

Ha, ha, gotcha.  TNX explan.  Probably skipped over unrep explan b4, finally got a rd to asking this time a rd.

I'm not against acronyms and abbreviations in principle, having mastered 10-codes and Q-signals a couple of decades ago, in radio stuff, especially with respect to (WRT) Morse code.  However, there are reasons for those abbreviations in those cases.

But nowadays, it just seems like folks are deliberately trying to "out-hip" others... as if using an arcane acronym makes one cooler, sharper, smarter than your "verbal opponent," if you will.

To me, it just means you're lazier. TMIJMYL

The one exception to my general outlook on this is the phonetic alphabet.  Now if they'd just leave the "official" version alone from decade to decade it would be just grand.

Terry

[HeroHog]

I was a "Phone Talker" in main engineering during drills and other times when communication was critical so clear speech and knowing all the phonetics was important.
"Whisky, Tango, Foxtrot, over..."