Flint (AE 32) - Naval Cruise Book

Page 8 text:

Commanding Officer CDR R.J. HILLIS Robert ' J ' Hillis was born in Portsmouth, Ohio in 1935. He enlisted in the Navy during the Korean War and served as a Radioman in the heavy cruisers USS COLUMBUS (CA- 74) and USS HELENA (CA-75). He was dis- charged in 1957 and enrolled at Ohio Uni- versity, Athens Ohio, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree. CDR Hillis re-entered the Navy through the Officer Candidate School at Newport, Rhode Island, where he received his com- mission in 1963. He was promoted to the rank of commander in November of 1977. CDR Hillis has served aboard the USS PORTAGE (PCE-902), USS BORDELON (DD-881), USS HAROLD J. ELLISON (DD- 864), USS BERKELEY (DDG-15) and the USS GRASP (ARS-24). He has served in the Office of the CNO, Staff of Commander Cruiser Destroyer Group ONE, Military Sea- lift Command, Okinawa Japan and attended the Naval War College before assuming command of the FLINT in December of 1979. . • ?®s Commander Hillis is always pleased to perform one of his nicer duties, re-enlistments.

Page 7 text:

WESTPAC 1980 USS Flint AE-32 The USS FLINT was built by Ingalls Nuclear Shipbuilding, Litton Indus- tries, Pascagoula, Miss. She was com- missioned on 20 Nov 1971 in Charleston, South Carolina. On December 6 of the same year, Flint passed through the Pa- nama Locks to join the U.S. Pacific Fleet, making her homeport in Con- cord, California. The morning of February 26 1980 marked the beginning of the 6th west- ern Pacific deployment. WESTPAC 80 saw the Flint involved in RIMPAC 80, good liberty ports and pulling AFS AE duty off Gonzo Station in the Indian Ocean. Any cruise is what the crew makes of it, and the Flint had the best in the 80 ' s.

Page 9 text:

CDR B.N. KAYE Executive Officer CDR Kaye joined the FLINT in Subic Bay, Republic of the Philippines, releiving LCDR McWhirter as Exec. A change in executive officers is important to a crew. It is he who most directly affects their lives. The Cap- tain decides how the ship is to be organized and run, but it is the XO who runs it that way. His signature appears on the Plan of the Day, the detailed schedule by which each day ' s events are ordered. He is the fi- nal authority on leave, liberty and pay, which with the quality and abundance of food, most directly affects shipboard morale. It is the XO who creates or fails to create an efficient organization to handle all aspects of life aboard ship, from cleanliness through combat. One of CDR Kaye ' s many talents surfaced when he was the master of ceremony for the Wog Beauty Contest. (SN Grant, ET2 Metoyer, CDR Kaye) The XO is constantly touring the ship, ensuring a safe and cl ean enviroment.