A few months back, some bloggers were invited to fly onto the USS Nimitz, a working aircraft carrier. Reading the stories of the trip (here, here, here), I was jealous beyond belief. You see, one of my life goals is to visit (hopefully via an arrested carrier landing) such a ship. I saw Top Gun in the 7th grade and was convinced for years I was going to go into the Navy. Growing up in Southern California, it was common practice to head to San Diego to see ships come and go, tour ships, tour NSA Coronado, and watch F-14 touch-and-gos at Mirmar.
So you can imagine my delight when Jenn recommended me for the next Navy embark to the new ship, the USS Green Bay. That’s right! In September, I’ll be boarding a Navy helicopter and heading out to tour the Green Bay for the day. (Thanks, Jenn, I owe you one! Sorry about all those nasty things I said about you getting to go to the Nimitz when I didn’t… )
I am really excited to take this trip and will be posting photos, videos, and stories before, during, and after. I apologize in advance for my probable gushing. Hopefully it won’t turn the Navy team off of inviting me to the next USS Nimitz trip! (Life dream, folks. Help a blogger out!)
Here’s the skinny on what the mission the USS Green Bay will focus on now that it’s going into service:
The USS GREEN BAY will be used to transport and land Marines, their equipment and supplies, by embarked air cushion or conventional landing craft or Expeditionary Fighting Vehicles, augmented by helicopters or vertical take off and landing aircraft. USS GREEN BAY will support amphibious assault, special operations, or expeditionary warfare missions throughout the first half of the 21st Century.
