“Never Retreat, Never Surrender!”
Szöveg: Photo report by Péter Snoj | 2015. június 23. 9:00After a visit to the HMS Ocean helicopter carrier, our colleague spent a day aboard USS San Antonio, the flagship of Exercise BALTOPS 2015…
During Exercise BALTOPS 2015, the USS San Antonio was in control of 49 warships
The almost 210 meter long ship can carry helicopters, but of course it does not have the same capabilities as the earlier introduced HMS Ocean
Nevertheless, it should not be underestimated. Named after the Battle of Alamo, a central event in American history, the ship is able to accommodate and transport 700-800 troops. Besides them, 363 sailors and marines operate the vessel
Life never stops aboard the ship, where the shifts are coming and going. Sunset is beautiful as seen from the deck, but inside a compartment with no windows, you know that it is night only because the daytime lighting is replaced by red lights for the night
Despite its huge arsenal of weapons, the USS San Antonio never travels alone. During the exercise, it was sailing under escort of US and British warships
Watchmen are on duty all the time to provide security aboard 24 hours per day
They record everything. While we were there, for example, they noticed a bright flash that looked like a shooting star
The watchman immediately reported the event by radio, and gave a description so the experts concluded that judging from its color, the unknown light was a meteorite. Of course, this sighting was recorded in the logbook of the ship
“Never retreat, never surrender!" – the ship and its crew are proud to have and the famous motto of the Battle of Alamo
Maintainers do not have an easy job, as the anchor and its chains need regular cleaning, because the salty water easily eats into even the most hardened metals
The bridge from where everything can be seen and controlled
The Commanding Officer of the ship, the First Officer and the helmsman stay in this compartment all the time
Captain Michael Patterson has been Commanding Officer for four months
The whole ship counts as the area of the United States, so it is no wonder that the US mail service is present and provides free delivery for members of the US military
Like in HMS Ocean, there is a small town on the lower deck, including a battle dressing station where major surgeries can be done. Furthermore, it is directly connected with the helicopter hangar so that patients in emergency can receive immediate treatment
The “underground garage" is on the bottom floor, where lots of combat vehicles and items of equipment, and even troops can be transported
“Your ship, your shop" – the ship has an own shop, where the necessary required items of equipment can be bought as well as sweets, snacks and even sport socks
With all these things available, it is no surprise that there is a barber too
One can request any hairstyle that meets the grooming standards
The helicopter landing site is in use all the time. Before we left, an MV-22 Osprey practiced take-off and landing in preparation for the media day of the exercise
It is hard to find a lonely place in such a crowded ship. For this reason, everybody finds their island of calm at a different place
The regular Seahawk service is coming to take us from the US warship…
