Photos

Air Station San Francisco celebrates 60 years

Story and photo by Lt. j.g. Jared King, Air Station San Francisco

Air Station San Francisco celebrates 60 yearsSAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 22 — Coast Guard Air Station San Francisco celebrated its 60th anniversary at its present location on the north side of San Francisco International Airport. Coast Guard veterans who were assigned to the station throughout its history, including several World War II vets, attended. Vice Adm. Ernest Riutta, Pacific Area commander, and Rear Adm. James Olson, the Coast Guard's ancient albatross, presented several awards to active duty and civilian personnel. A C-130 from Air Station Sacramento, Calif., and an HH-60J from Air Station San Diego, both formerly stationed at Air Station San Francisco, were on display. A local aviation museum donated the use of its helicopter simulator in the air station's hangar for the guests and families to enjoy. The festivities were wrapped up with a birthday cake and a barbecue put on by the chiefs' mess.

The service's involvement in aviation can be traced back to December 1903, when lighthouse keepers from Kill Devil Hills Life-Saving Station in Kitty Hawk, N.C., helped carry materials to the launch site for the Wright Brothers' first successful heavier-than-air aircraft flight.

The first Coast Guard Airwing was established at the Naval Aviation School in Pensacola, Fla., in 1916.
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Coast Guard personnel take a break from duty and train, train, train

Coast Guard personnel take a break from Duty and train, train, trainFIRE ISLAND, N.Y., Feb. 13 — Station Fire Island and Station Jones Beach, N.Y., personnel participate in a two-week boatcrew school. The training included a required survival swim and an in-the-water pyrotechnics session.
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Trying to keep the logs from rolling

PAC Marshalena Delaney, 17th Dist.

Trying to keep the logs from rollingKODIAK, Alaska, Feb. 8 — The 551-foot log carrier Leo Forrest makes way toward Amchitka Island, about 60 miles west of Adak in the Aleutian Islands. The vessel was losing logs overboard and listing in heavy seas at 1:45 am. The master said he intended to take cover in the lee of Amchitka Island, where the crew would tie down the loose logs.

When the Coast Guard contacted the Leo Forrest about half an hour later, the master said the ship was rolling 25 degrees to starboard and 15 degrees to port. The master turned the vessel north to lessen the effects of the sea. There were 20 people on board, three life rafts, four survival suits and enough life jackets for the entire crew.

A total of three C-130 aircraft and crews from Air Station Kodiak, the CGC Mellon, and the 120-foot long-liner Deep Pacific provided continuous coverage of the Leo Forrest until it was out of danger.

The ship eventually returned to Japan with its cargo reloaded and its broken deck stanchions repaired.
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Elizabeth City Coast Guardsmen get extra shadows for the day

Story and photo by Lt. j.g. Craig Neubecker, Air Station Elizabeth City

 Elizabeth City Coast Guardsmen get extra shadows for the dayELIZABETH CITY, N.C., Feb. 2 — The groundhog saw his shadow this year, and while six more weeks of winter was expected, the day meant something much more to 27 eighth-grade students from North Carolina and Virginia. This was the fourth year for the Nationwide Groundhog Job Shadow Day program, and the second year that the six Elizabeth City Coast Guard commands hosted kids from the local area. The program links eighth graders with professionals who serve as mentors for the day from career paths that the students have chosen. The students are interested in careers in the Coast Guard, some to become pilots, some to become rescue swimmers, flight mechanics, boatswain's mates or to work in marine safety or other Coast Guard career fields. They spent the day shadowing 27 Coast Guardsmen to see what a career in the Coast Guard might be like and to see the latest Coast Guard equipment. The air station hosted 12 students, who were given tours of the HH — 60J Jayhawk and HC-130H Hercules aircraft, as well as facilities such as the flight planning and weather information center, the air traffic control tower, and the rescue swimmer hoist training device and pool.

While observing what Coast Guard men and women do during the day, the students also learned the levels of education and training required for the many different career paths that the Coast Guard has to offer and, in turn, the importance and value of a solid education.

The students also shadowed personnel at the boat station, the aircraft repair and supply center, the support center's medical, dental, law enforcement, computer science, and MWR offices, the Aviation Technical Training Center and the National Strike Force Coordination Center.

The groundhog might have been scared of his shadow, but not the Coast Guardsmen who were thrilled to have the opportunity to work with their eighthgrade "shadows" and hopefully inspire them to pursue a career in the Coast Guard.
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OCS students learn skills with "hands on" training

Story and photo by Lt. j.g. David Aragon, ISC Kodiak

OCS students learn skills with "hands on" trainingKODIAK, Alaska, Jan. 17 — Ten members of Coast Guard Officer Candidate School class 1-01, Alpha company, arrived in Kodiak for their "long cruise" aboard the 378-foot CGC Mellon, homeported in Seattle.

The long cruise is a 10-day underway period where the officer candidates practice some of the skills they've learned in OCS. They stand break-in watches with qualified personnel to get some on-the-job training before returning to OCS for three more weeks of academic studies.

The first step in becoming a commissioned officer in the Coast Guard is to meet certain qualifications. Once qualified, the applicant submits a package that will be added to hundreds of others. Only a select few are chosen to attend.

The rigorous 17-week program is designed to teach the future officers to think and work together as a team, from the time they get up to the time they get to sleep. Their every second is accounted for. Physical fitness, room and personnel inspections, academic studies, and teamwork are all part of life at OCS.

"I am glad to be here, and the CGC Mellon is an outstanding platform for the OCs to learn on. Everyone here on the Mellon has been a great help," said CWO Gary Cooper, OCS instructor and trip supervisor.

Every day of OCS is a challenge, and on graduation day, new challenges will be just beginning. The team that struggled together for 17 weeks will be separated, and the newly commissioned officers will embark on new careers. From ships to air stations, they should be ready for the challenge of serving in the U. S. Coast Guard.
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