Carl Vinson (CVN 70) - Naval Cruise Book

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Capt. George D. O ' Brien Jr. Commanding Officer USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) Cxaptain George D. O ' Brien Jr. was born in Detroit, Mich. He was raised and attended schools in Michigan and in Washington, DC, including Gonzaga High School in Washington and the University of Detroit .Jesuit Academy in Michigan. He graduated from the Naval Academy in 1960 and was designated a naval aviator in November 1961. In 1962, he reported to Patrol Squadron Sixteen, where he completed deployments to Iceland, Bermuda and South Africa. During this tour he qualified as a patrol plane commander in both the P2 and the P.I aircraft. From January 1966 to June 1970 he attended the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, Calif., where in June 1970 he was awarded a PhD m Aeronautical Engineering. He is a member of Sigma Xi. Following completion of .let Transition Training in October 1970 and subsequent training in the A-6 Intruder, he reported to VA-34 in Oceana, Va. In VA-.W he made two Mediterranean deployments in USS John F. Kennedy (CV 67), serving as operations officer and subsequently as aircraft maintenance officer. After a tour in VX-5 as director of A-6 aircraft test projects and a brief tour as readiness officer on the staff of Commander Medium Attack Wing One, he joined VA-.15 as executive officer in January 1976. In March 1977 he assumed command of VA-.15. During this tour the squadron deployed in USS Nimit (CVN 68) for its first two Mediterranean deployments and won both the AI RLANT Battle Efficiency and the Aviation Safety Awards. Following this tour. Capt. O ' Brien served briefiy as director of engineering for the A-6 aircraft program with the Naval Air Systems Command. He completed nuclear power training in OHando, Fla., and Idaho Falls, Idaho, before reporting to USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) in September 1980 as executive officer. In the Ike, he completed deployments to the Indian Ocean and to the Mediterranean. In January 198. ' !, he a.ssumed command of USS Wabash (AOR 5) in Alameda, Calif. In Wabash, he deployed to the Western Pacific and the Indian Ocean with the USS Kitty Hawk Battle Group. From July 1984 to July 1985, he was a fellow of the Chief of Naval Operations ' Strategic Studies Group in Newport, R.I. In August 1985. he reported to the staff of Commander-in-Chief Atlantic and Commander- in-Chief Atlantic Fleet as assistant chief of staff for current operations. Capt. O ' Brien has been awarded the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal and the Joint Service Commendation Medal! He has logged over 5,000 flight hours in various types of aircraft and has made over 6(X) carrier landings. Capt. O ' Brien is married to the former Elise Montilla Haeussler of Washington, DC. They have four children, Cieorgc III, Caroline. Kevin, who ' s a student at the Naval Academy Preparatory School, and Roseleen. They currently reside in Alameda. Calif.

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REAR ADMIRAL EDWARD W. CLEXTON JR. COMMANDER. CARRIER GROUP THREE Commander Carrier Group THREE is under the administrative command of Commander Naval Air Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet, and is directed operationally by Commander THIRD Fleet while operating in the Eastern Pacific and by Commander SEVENTH Fleet while deployed to the Western Pacific. The command normally functions as the operational commander of a ta sk group or force in addition to duties as an inspector or evaluator of ship and air wing readiness. Currently, Commander Carrier Group THREE serves as the administrative commander for USS CARL VINSON (CVN 70) and USS ENTERPRISE (CVN 65). Commissioned in March 1950 as Commander Carrier Division THREE, the command has completed 35 deployments to the Western Pacific, and has been commanded by 35 rear admirals and one captain. During that time, the command has embarked on 19 aircraft carriers. Carrier Division THREE was designated Carrier Group THREE in 1973. Since the end of the Vietnam conflict, Carrier Group THREE has made regular SEVENTH Fleet deployments, leading carrier battle groups in the Western Pacific and Indian Oceans, participating in numerous multi national training exercises in support of America ' s national interests. Rear Admiral E. W. Clexton, Jr. assumed the duties of Commander, Carrier Group THREE February 28, 1986, on board USS CARL VINSON (CVN 70). Rear Admiral Clexton was formerly the Director of the Total Force and Fleet Operations Divi- sion in the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations. Washington, D.C. A native of Arlington, Va, Rear Admiral Clexton enlisted m January 1955. He received a fleet appointment to the Naval Academy and graduated in I960. After making two Western Pacific Deployments with Fighter Squadron 143, embarked in USS CONSTELLATION (CV 64), and serving as a test pilot at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Md, he completed 200 combat missions while deployed twice to the Western PacificA ietnam with Fighter Squad- ron 114, embarked in USS KITTY HAWK (CV 63). He then deployed to the North Atlantic and twice to the Mediterranean as Executive Officer and Commanding Officer of Fighter Squadron 102 embarked on USS INDEPENDENCE (CV 62) from 1971 to 1973. Rear Admiral Clexton attended Nuclear Power School in 1974 and subsequently served for three years as the first Executive Officer of USS DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER (CVN 69). He was Commanding Officer of USS EL PASO (LKA 1 17), an amphibi- ous cargo ship, before being assigned as the U S Navy representative to the Department of State Executive Seminar on National and International Affairs. Rear Admiral Clexton returned to USS DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER (CVN 69) in July 1981, serving as the Commanding Officer for three years. The IKE deployed three times to the Caribbean, twice to the North Atlantic and twice to the Mediterra- nean under his command, including four months of continuous operations in the eastern Mediterranean during the Libyan and Lebanese crisis. Rear Admiral Clexton is married t(» the former Catherine Boecker of Naperville, II. They currently reside in Alameda, Ca with two sons, David, 20, and Matthew. 13. °