"Carrier" on PBS tonight

sealion

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For those who are interested. It is a documentary about life aboard the Nimitz
 
Ran across it right when it was beginning. Very Cool! Gave IMO a pretty good unbiased view of the Nimitz.

Thanks!
 
It does look very interesting; should be fairly honest from what I heard (from no one attached to Nimitz, or the Navy for that matter). Sure am glad I don't have to deal with the drama on a ship THAT size.
 
it was so inspiring despite all the "drama" that went on..it just added fuel to my flame..
 
It is definitely does not portray life on the Nimitz as glamorous for the enlisted crew. For the officers, it seems a lot nicer.
 
I got to catch a few minutes of this last night, and I thought it was really cool. Is this a series or was it a one-time deal?
 
I got to catch a few minutes of this last night, and I thought it was really cool. Is this a series or was it a one-time deal?

It's a ten part series aired over 5 days. I'm pretty sure there will be a rerun of the two parts that aired last night before the two new ones tonight.
 
i love the show because it portrays what really goes on. i mean not on every ship, but it has threads that run constant throughout the navy. the episode tonight where the guy wanted to get discharged, but only got 30 days brig, and i think thirty days extra duty was really funny, and especially when he was talking to the black guy like they were old friends, but kept saying he was a huge racist was funny to. i think tonight's episode was pretty much about struggles between enlisted, and officers , male and female... great to have a show that is honest, unlike the dishonest (couhg cnn cough)
 
VERY Interesting show. And I applaud the producers (Mel Gibson is one of them!) for thier efforts to focus on the life on a carrier and all its nuances versus going down the "Hollywood Glamour" route. a very honest and brutal look at the interactions between the people in today's military. And it brings home the lesson that the services are manned by humans, not the Hollywood version of patriotic robots, and we have to deal with all the triumphs, joys, emotions, and discipline issues of the human condition.

All you future young Lts and Ensigns on this forum, take note. It will be YOU leading people just like this in a few short years, and it will be YOU having to deal with the "high school" issues and emotions displayed so well here. ALL the services, be it a the Company, Squadron, or ship level, have the same melting pot of humans and their idiosynchrocies. I especially encourage you to pay attention to the officer / enlisted interaction; try to understand both sides.

This is a great example of quite a few things we all have to deal with in your leadership positions. I do agree that life on a carrier or other Naval (or CG, got to include you LITS) vessel brings it up another notch, as you have the added pressure of soooo many in such confined spaces, with no outlet to "get away" from the drama for a little while. A part of me has always wanted to expereince life on a carrier, but think my personal limit would be about 3 days. Stay in a tent or wood hut in the sandbox for months at a time with 20 of my closest buddies, I could do it on my head! A week in a wardroom? Not my cup of tea. I salute those who have lived or our currently living this life!
 
It's very good, and I'm really enjoying watching it..though it comes on kinda late for me. The enlisted side is interesting; I served 20yrs ago (in AF) and not much has changed as far as personal issues/drama goes. I really like the one guy who does the "mock interviews" around the boat. He's making the best of a not-so-ideal way of living I think.

The thing that surprised me most was the trash (no plastic!) that gets thrown off the boat---and they said the Navy is much more environmentally-conscious than the cruise boats. Whoa! But I guess it has to end up somewhere.

It's an excellent series and done well. My hats off to these wonderful men & women who have answered the call to duty.
 
Just wondering... Not sure if its just me, but the Officers on the Nimitz seem much content than the enlisted. Is it actuality that officers generally are happier (I do realize that they have a much different job from the enlisted and dare I say have it a bit easier?), or is it that the officers are more mature (again this is a generalization, not saying ALL enlisted sailors associate themselves with "high school" drama) and have a different perspective of their mission?

Just kind of curious to what you thought. Especially some of the past/current military members.
 
I have been told here by officers and senior NCOs this: "as an officer, you can afford to boost your own morale and it is your job to boost that of your subordinates."
 
That was kinda comical when that young pilot landed his jet at Baghdad airport. It looked so out of place there. It reminded me of growing up in the hood. A fancy, expensive machine out of gas with a flat tire and in the wrong neighborhood.

It wasn't very funny for the pilot, though. Will his career survive that?

How about that Iraqi chutzpah - requesting payment for their sunken boat. I guess it doesn't hurt to ask. :wink:
 
Bruno, thank you for including me. :wink:


About trash, yes it is thrown overboard (with the exception of plastic). There are distances from land for each kind of trash. It you think about paper, that stuff will break down pretty fast. Metals will sink. There are some rules. Size is 1 inch pieces, and you really don't want to leave stuff floating. Food is also included in dumping. It's not a pretty side of shipboard life, but if there wasn't a way to get ride of it, you would be covered in trash pretty fast. Again, there are laws on what can be thrown out at what distance.


As for the "Drama" part of shipboard life. I think of it kind of like the reality TV shows...Big Brother or the Real World. On a ship you can't get away from someone that pushes your buttons, and the problems between you can build on each other. There are personalities that conflict on any vessel.

As for the officers and chief's lives, yes, I would say they are probably more comfortable. There difference is a little more defined in the Navy (they're even color coded, kaki or blue), but a majority of non-rates will have undersirable jobs. Until they make rate, they will be doing many of the same tedious things. Even after they make their rate, some will not be happy. Officers have a lot of paper work each day, in addition to managing their divisions or departments. Paperwork gets old, especially SF-4910s, but stuff has to be done. Eating in a wardroom v. eating on the messdeck is better too, where the food is served too you...however, there are also rules to the wardroom, so generally is it more fun to eat on the messdeck and speak your mind.


I'm currently underway, and I haven't been able to watch Carrier. I heard about it before it came out though.

Maybe I'll catch the reruns!
 
i wasn't able to watch the whole episode last night. does anyone know if they found the guy? when i turned the tv off the pilots were discussing if he would be able to tread water for 12 hours, with 20 jellyfish stings and sharks nibbling on his toes. its a scary situation to think that you could fall off a ship that size in the middle of nowhere, and not be seen again, but the ship has a lot of noise and commotion, so anything can happen, but that would be one hell of a way to go out.
 
i wasn't able to watch the whole episode last night. does anyone know if they found the guy? when i turned the tv off the pilots were discussing if he would be able to tread water for 12 hours, with 20 jellyfish stings and sharks nibbling on his toes. its a scary situation to think that you could fall off a ship that size in the middle of nowhere, and not be seen again, but the ship has a lot of noise and commotion, so anything can happen, but that would be one hell of a way to go out.

They called off the search after 100 hours.
 
its a scary situation to think that you could fall off a ship that size in the middle of nowhere, and not be seen again, but the ship has a lot of noise and commotion, so anything can happen, but that would be one hell of a way to go out.


I agree. It was my understanding the sailor fell off The Princeton, one of the escort ships in Nimitz's strike group..and Nimitz assisted in the search. Full-scale effort, too, I just kept hoping someone would see him, or find something, for some closure. I couldn't imagine being the one to notify the family.

And Semper, I think the officers are generally happier, better pay and better living conditions are nice. :smile: Still, everyone works hard and the mission is the same for all.

It's really interesting, very good, I like it and I hardly ever watch much TV.
 
He has some flight ops with a pilot who was prior Navy...told use losing someone on a deployment wasn't uncommon, especially when you consider the number of people who are onboard...who knows, heart attacks or falling overboard...


Not only that...you could add to the population on a carrier deployment. :eek:
 
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