Independence (CV 62) - Naval Cruise Book

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'few - nf .. Q ing, cooking and cleaning. Engineers also manned criti- cal damage control stations and repaired and main- tained everything from air conditioners to telephone systems. Machinery repairmen made needed parts for equipment, and hull technicians maintained the mas- sive network of pipes. Without the engineers, the city of INDEPENDENCE would have been cold, dark and immobile. Supply department also expertly performed an al- most larger-than-life mission. Supply's two messdecks A ., ivirizfigii , b 1 -:ew N ,- if X. provided hot food for the hungry crew around the clock, a huge task that required messdeck personnel to prepare and serve more than 15,000 meals per day. The ship's laundry per- sonnel cleaned more than 200,000 pounds of laundry per month. Supply ran the ship's three stores. barber shop, and soda machinesg issued and monitored hazardous materials like paint and cleaning supplies: and ordered and stored every- thing the ship needed to conduct its daily mission.

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United States Ship INDEPENDENCE . . . the city that never sleeps At sea, INDEPENDENCE was a self-sustaining city - a city with no after hours and no weekends. The crew of INDEPENDENCE worked shifts of 12 or more hours a day, seven days a week in order to meet the 'round-the- clock' demands of the ship. While thc flight deck personnel worked in all types of weather. the men below decks must contend with the heart of the machine. pumping its life blood. INDY's engineers worked in places with names like the Pit, the Hole. or Shaft Alley. They endure the ever- present heat ofthe boiler rooms to provide the steam that is the ship's lifeblood. Steam launches the aircraft, moves the ship through the water, and provides hot water for bath-

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A.. Mgt A large part ofthe daily 'ssi was carried out by the s an and boatswain's mates of deck department. Going to sea is their business. and on a forward-deployed carrier. business is good! Deck department personnel manned lndy's sea and anchor detail when the ship moored. anchored or got underway. They sent and received material during replenishments at sea: kept the ship clean. painted and well- preserved: and got the ship where it' was going. Seaman from deck department were responsible for steering the United States Ship INDEPENDENCE .Cl on mighty 80.000-ton carrier around the globe. Literally thousands of others worked in the city below decks. performing tasks vital to the safety. morale and well-being ofthe crew. Doctors performed nearly every medical procedure from routine checkups to appendeetomies. Dentists and dental technicians handled routine checkups and cleanings as well as root canals and oral surgery. Personnelmen and yeoman managed the ship's complex paperwork. Photographer's mates took and developed photos for use by intelligence specialists and 1' ff- -n '. . . S as . if 7 l 5 fl' T , R . A l I5 A-4QTxN -V'-W-fab,- ' J S - 'V ...-...,i city always the move ship's journalists. The journalists used the photos for the ship's newspaper. flyers and special-event booklets. Operations specialists. electronic warfare specialists and air traffic controllers kept electronic eyes and ears pointed in all directions, from the sky above to the sea below. Electronic technicians and interior communications electricians make sure those eyes and ears can see and hear. Electrician's mates maintain the ship's intricate web ol wiring, and safety department personnel keep an eye on everything going on. During this activity, there were jobs that had to be done that transcended a person's specialty: cleaning, damage control drills. preventive maintenance, working parties. watches and training all made demands on each Sailor's time. Yet many Sailors still volunteered their services for additional duties as instructors, religious lay readers. or members of athletic or special interest clubs. Some made time to further their education through programs like Program Afloat for College Education QPACEJ, ViS'1l the ship's library, attend worship services in the ship's chapel OI watch one of the ship's six television channels. At the end of each workday. when it finally ended. each Sailor returned to his at-sea home. For some it was a three-person stateroom. for many others it was a rack in 2 bcrthing area. As they slept, othCrS would take up the tasks to be done. Planes landed above: engines churned below. USS INDEPENDENCE -- airport. Cllbf. office and home -- steams Oll- 1-. I C i H '. E E 1 l I l i 5 i 1 l