šŸŒŸ Countdown to commissioning ā€˜23: ARE YOU READY??

IronmanDaremo said:
He was an NFO, per my kid.

Blue Angels were awesome as usual. Even the 4 year old kept his stuff together long enough to enjoy them! Also brought along the 17 year old bro to see.

Getting onto the Yard afterward to get my '26's stuff? Nightmare ...... finally got back to stadium lot to get the car, and drove to Gate 1, which was still closed, so had to sit in traffic for over 1/2 hour to just get to Gate 8. Luckily, could get in there, and finally got to pick up all the dude's junk. Then another 2 hours to get home (with a usual 40 minute drive). Long day!
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Crossing the Bay Bridge at 11:40am it looked like Dunkirk! Iā€™ve never seen so many boats racing from the upper bay towards Annapolis!

Parked at stadium bussed to Hospital Point. The Blue Angels show was awesome. I have to say that was the most crowded Iā€™ve experienced on the Yard. Timing was on my side as we hit a food truck after show, then hit Mid store. DS was still stowing gear, so we peeked in Dahlgren and it was nicely decorated for ā€˜Mom Promā€™ & watched several firstie families getting pics at T-Court in their finest attire. By then there was no bus line, but we decided to grab dinner with DS at Picante on West and walk to car and drive back for his ā€œstuffā€.

How did I drop off with a back pack in June and now fill my small SUVšŸ¤Ŗ
 
JudgeGuy said:
How did I drop off with a back pack in June and now fill my small SUVšŸ¤Ŗ
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I was saying the same thing as my trunk and half the back seat of my car was filled with crap.

Kid had thrown out the "Can I come home with you?" But he only had liberty until 2359. I was NOT driving any more after all that mess! So I definitely gave the big, "Nope!"

We're going down to see him Saturday again, anyway.
 
IronmanDaremo said:
I was saying the same thing as my trunk and half the back seat of my car was filled with crap.

Kid had thrown out the "Can I come home with you?" But he only had liberty until 2359. I was NOT driving any more after all that mess! So I definitely gave the big, "Nope!"

We're going down to see him Saturday again, anyway.
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I always advise our firstie mid parents to be sure to make a bathroom pit stop before exiting the Yard or stadium, rule of thumb, anytime the whole class can be at something , allow 3x time. The key is to plan something to do after a big event to not be in the main wave of departures.
 
MidCakePa said:
Given VADM Buckā€™s history as an NFO and his looming retirement, flying with the Blue Angels during his final Commissioning Week seems a fitting verse in his swan song.
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He was a P-3 Orion NFO, an entirely different type of ride. I have no doubt he loved every minute of this, he deserved it, and Iā€™m glad he got to do it. The job of Supe is never easy, and he had to deal with COVID, a case study in leadership challenges for sure. I bet he got some great pics which he will treasure forever. His last set of flying orders was probably some tours ago, so the opportunity to put on a flight suit, helmet, do the pre-flight brief and fly with the Blues on a gorgeous day over the Bay, Severn and Yard - a dang salty way to wrap up your last Navy flight ever and annotate your flight log with the details.
 
Capt MJ said:
He was a P-3 Orion NFO, an entirely different type of ride. I have no doubt he loved every minute of this, he deserved it, and Iā€™m glad he got to do it. The job of Supe is never easy, and he had to deal with COVID, a case study in leadership challenges for sure. I bet he got some great pics which he will treasure forever. His last set of flying orders was probably some tours ago, so the opportunity to put on a flight suit, helmet, do the pre-flight brief and fly with the Blues on a gorgeous day over the Bay, Severn and Yard - a dang salty way to wrap up your last Navy flight ever and annotate your flight log with the details.
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My allergies kicked in reading this.

It really is well deserved.

Mrs Supe is an amazing person, so he must be as well, at the human level. She spent a lot of time, at the Supe party, speaking with and encouraging our soon to be DIL about being a military wife. I thought that was neat, recognizing that itā€™s a partnership, and how important she is. For BOTH of them (easy to overshadow during commissioning week!). Our almost DIL took a great deal away from that convo!

I Wonder if his allergies kicked in. A lot to reflect upon šŸ„¹!!
 
FutureAcademyDad? said:
The Supe's ride explains why only 5 planes actively participated in the rehearsal.
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There are a variety of reasons this can happen, mostly itā€™s because planes break. The Blues are hard on jets and they break a lot. Then they shift them around. For practice rides it starts with basically a get familiar with the ā€˜boxā€™ the mid point and all their marks. They usually go up 2 by 2 by 2. Then will do a practice after all that. If planes break they will move them around on the fly. Itā€™s why on practice days you may see 7 flying as 1. They usually donā€™t move numbers for the practice. 7 is a ā€˜spareā€™ for shows as 7 is the announcer for shows and flies VIPs and media earlier in the day. They also have spare jets that a ferry pilot can bring in from Pensacola as well. They do this for long road trips. The pilots get a lot of the glory, but those ground crews are the best of the best as well. They work at all hours to keep those planes moving. Itā€™s not unheard of to have Fat Albert fly from wherever back to Pensacola to pick up an engine land in the middle of the night and the crew install it. #7 usually then does the check flight.
 
The oath taken later today by the newest ensigns and second lieutenants:

The Oath of Office (for officers): "I, _____ (SSAN), having been appointed an officer in the _____ (Military Branch) of the United States, as indicated above in the grade of _____ do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign or domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservations or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office upon which I am about to enter; So help me God."

A mini-playlist to start the day. Welcome to the Fleet and Corps!






https://youtu.be/FHzcgdafzHw


And, the Class of 2023 Induction Day video - how they have grown, in ways visible and not.

https://youtu.be/_tuPR-edJKE
 
This thread has been great - nice counterpoint to 2028ā€™s I-Day thread.

Canā€™t wait to read after-action reports from our ā€˜27-affiliated posters. Bet those eye allergies are already acting up like crazy! šŸ˜­šŸ„²šŸ„¹
 
Capt MJ said:
The first group is the ā€œwith distinctionā€ crowd. After that, I think itā€™s by company, because they are seated by company.
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It is indeed by company. Son was in 30th Company back when. They were the last group up but just as excited while waiting their turn. It is a pretty festive atmosphere down on the infield. Some funny things have happened in the past on the stage. A mid from the seventies released some doves from under his service whites after receiveing his diploma. An exuberant mid gave the President (GW Bush, I believe) a bear hug. That was not in keeping with decorum and probably made the secret service nervous but the person was overjoyed to be graduating. I think he got a talking to afterwards. At least he has a good graduation story to tell.

Congratulations to the Class of 2023! Go forth and do great things!
 
WT Door said:
It is indeed by company. Son was in 30th Company back when. They were the last group up but just as excited while waiting their turn. It is a pretty festive atmosphere down on the infield. Some funny things have happened in the past on the stage. A mid from the seventies released some doves from under his service whites after receiveing his diploma. An exuberant mid gave the President (GW Bush, I believe) a bear hug. That was not in keeping with decorum and probably made the secret service nervous but the person was overjoyed to be graduating. I think he got a talking to afterwards. At least he has a good graduation story to tell.

Congratulations to the Class of 2023! Go forth and do great things!
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Here he is, great story. Not the best journalism, but the major story points are there.

www.dailymail.co.uk

Navy officer who hugged George W Bush at his graduation is commander

US Navy officer Bobby Rashad Jones made headlines when he hugged former President George W Bush at his graduation. It was a risky stunt but Jones is a commander and loves his job.
www.dailymail.co.uk www.dailymail.co.uk
 
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Love watching this event on line. And really looking forward to seeing it live next year.

Congrats to all the class of 23. Best of luck as you spread out along the globe.
 
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