An official website of the United States government
Here's how you know
A .mil website belongs to an official U.S. Department of Defense organization in the United States.
A lock (lock ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .mil website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

News from around the Fleet

Ford Gets Locked and Loaded, Receives 541,000 Pounds of Ordnance

11 April 2022

From Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Jacob Mattingly, USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) Public Affairs

ATLANTIC OCEAN - USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) conducted a conventional ammunition on-load, April 9, in support of workups and training for an upcoming deployment. Ford successfully on-loaded approximately 541,000 pounds of ordnance using both connected transfers and vertical lifts from the dry cargo and ammunition ship USNS William McLean (T-AKE 12).

More than 400 Sailors from Ford’s weapons, deck and aircraft intermediate maintenance departments participated in the event, collecting more than 200 pallets from the flight deck and hangar bay then transporting them to multiple advanced weapons elevators to be stored in the ship’s magazines.

“All weapons divisions were involved with the evolution and personnel worked from the magazines to the flight deck to ensure everything was safe and efficient,” said Aviation Ordnanceman 1st Class Joshua Hitcho, from New Zionsville, Pennsylvania, assigned to Ford’s weapons department. “The whole evolution went smoothly. It was impressive to watch, and I am proud to be part of the team that made it happen.”

The on-load started with Ford pulling alongside William McLean and shooting lines over to establish communications and connect distance lines. Once attached, MH-60S helicopters attached to the “Tridents” of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 9, began to lift ammunition over to Ford’s flight deck and pallets of ammunition were transferred via connected replenishment.

“We on-loaded both live and training ammunitions to help support Carrier Air Wing 8 and our security forces on board for this underway,” said Lt. Cmdr. Paul Castillo, from San Diego, Ford’s Ordnance Handling Officer. “Every carrier needs ammunition to complete the mission. There is nothing we can’t do when we have a fully loaded ship.”

The ammunition from this on-load is essential for arming aircraft with live ordnance during carrier qualifications and carrier strike group integration.

“It feels good because we get to show what weapons department really does. We spent a lot of time and hard work to get to this point and it payed off,” said Hitcho. “Getting the entire department together as a group was great, everybody was excited and ready to go. Everybody was in the right place at the right time, it was a small part of a bigger picture.”

Onloading ammunition while underway is critical to Ford’s ability to supply the embarked air wing with ordnance needed to conduct its missions. This successful evolution will bring Ford one step closer to deployment readiness.

“I could not be prouder of our Sailors. The whole department doing what we were meant to do was the pinnacle of my time here,” said Castillo. “This on-load is a big piece of the puzzle for our ship to do what carriers were meant to do.”

For more news from USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), visit www.dvidshub.net/CVN78 or www.facebook.com/USSGeraldRFord.

 

Google Translation Disclaimer

  • Google Translate, a third party service provided by Google, performs all translations directly and dynamically.
  • Commander, U.S. Navy Region Korea, cnrk.cnic.navy.mil has no control over the features, functions, or performance of the Google Translate service.
  • The automated translations should not be considered exact and should be used only as an approximation of the original English language content.
  • This service is meant solely for the assistance of limited English-speaking users of the website.
  • Commander, U.S. Navy Region Korea, cnrk.cnic.navy.mil does not warrant the accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any information translated.
  • Some items cannot be translated, including but not limited to image buttons, drop down menus, graphics, photos, or portable document formats (pdfs).
  • Commander, U.S. Navy Region Korea, cnrk.cnic.navy.mil does not directly endorse Google Translate or imply that it is the only language translation solution available to users.
  • All site visitors may choose to use similar tools for their translation needs. Any individuals or parties that use Commander, U.S. Navy Region Korea, cnrk.cnic.navy.mil content in translated form, whether by Google Translate or by any other translation services, do so at their own risk.
  • IE users: Please note that Google Translate may not render correctly when using Internet Explorer. Users are advised to use MS Edge, Safari, Chrome, or Firefox browser to take full advantage of the Google Translate feature.
  • The official text of content on this site is the English version found on this website. If any questions arise related to the accuracy of the information contained in translated text, refer to the English version on this website, it is the official version.

Commander, U.S. Navy Region Korea   |   PSC 478 Box 1   |   FPO AP, 96212-0001
Official U.S. Navy Website