BOXER TRIAD TABLE OF CONTENTS CAPT. COMMANDING GATOR RONALD OFFICER Osprey Rides & DOWDELL 3 Patch Swaps ON THE 10-11 CAPT. Aerographer's EXECUTIVE DALE Snipes OFFICER Mate HEINKEN 4-5 Lament STREET

12-13 CS3 Naomi Acosta East Hartford, Connecticut CMDCM(SW) COMMAND 1 What was your favorite part of ? VERONICA MASTER USS Thailand The food, especially the pad thai, it was only 3 dollars! CHIEF

HOLLIDAY 6-7 BOXER Operations 2 What are you looking forward to most on deployment?

14-15 Hitting all the ports and experiencing new cultures. 3 What are your goals for this deployment? Golden My surface warfare pin. PUBLIC PUBLIC AFFAIRS

8-9 4 Where do you see yourself in 10 years? AFFAIRS OFFICER MCCS(SW/AW) ADAM VERNON Gators I don’t know, maybe on a farm in Idaho. PUBLIC AFFAIRS MC1(SW/SCW/AW/IW) LPO BRIAN CARACCI SHSN Jocelyn Garcia EDITOR MC2(SW/AW) JUSTIN RANKIN STATUS OF THE NAVY South Bend, Indiana 1 What was your favorite part of Thailand? LAYOUT MC2 RANKIN, MC3 STROMBECK As of June 14th, 2019 + The food, my favorite was chicken curry. DESIGN 2 What are your goals for this deployment? Amphibious Assault CONTRIBUTORS Get both my pins. Active Duty: 332,507 Ready Reserve: Ships underway Officers: 54,263 101,865 USS Boxer (LHD 4) First thing you’re going to do when we return? Enlisted: 273,832 3 MC2(SW) JOHN MCGOVERN Selected Reserves: 7th Fleet MC2(SW/AW/IW) DAVID ORTIZ Midshipmen: 4,412 58,801 USS Wasp (LHD 1) Going to chic-fil-a. MC2 DALE HOPKINS Pacific MC3 ZACHARY BEHREND 4 Where do you see yourself in 10 years? MC3 JESSICA HATTEL Navy Owning a home, being financially stable and no kids! MC3(SW/AW/IW) Department Deployable Battle ALEXANDER KUBITZA Individual Ready Civilian Force Ships: Aircraft Reserve: 289 MC3(SW) KEYPHER STROMBECK Employees: (operational): 43,064 274,854 Deployable Battle 3700+ MC3(SW) JUSTIN WHITLEY Reserves currently Force Across the Fleet: EM1 Therese Sanpascual mobilized: 83 Quezon City, Phillipines 3,071 1 What was your favorite part of Thailand? Deployed Ships Aircraft Carriers Underway: Underway Wearing flip flops. 54 (19%) USS Eisenhower (CVN 69 2 What are your goals for this deployment? FAIR USE NOTICE Ships Underway for Atlantic Local Ops / Training: USS Lincoln (CVN 72) Gain some weight. Not withstanding the provisions of sections 106 and 106A, the fair use of a 29 (10%) 5th Fleet copyrighted work, including such use by a reproduction in copies or phonorecords or USS Truman (CVN 75) 3 What do you miss the most about home? by any other means specified by that section, for purposes such as criticism, comment, Atlantic USS Reagan (CVN 76) Wearing comfy clothes and going to concerts. news reporting, teaching (including multiple copies for classroom use), scholarship, or Pacific research, is not an infringement of copyright. 4 Where do you see yourself in 10 years? Having my own family. This publication is an authorized publication for military members aboard USS BOXER (LHD 4). The contents of Bark of the Boxer are not the official views of, or endorsed by the U.S. Government, the Department of Defense or the . 3 USS BOXER (LHD 4) | BARK OF THE BOXER | 2019 e all depend on the engineering department, from I: What would you say is your favorite passage? Wair conditioning to the water we drink we owe it B: The one that really strikes the most, “In every hour of all to their hard work. But what do we really know about every day, they keep the watch in hell, for if the fires ever them aside from the rumors about how hard their life must fail, the ships a useless shell.” be? I sat down with Boncardo to ask some questions and I: Wow you knew that right of the top of your head. try to get inside the mind and history of engineers to see Would you go as far to say you love your job? Thus is a general rule, what makes them tick. B: I can honestly say I love my job, the hours come with Interviewer: So why did you choose engineering? Or the territory but I love it. was it even a choice? I: So what do you love most about your job? don’t hear of these men of steel. Boncardo: I came in rated. Believe it or not I chose B: The thing I love most about my job is working with my MM. I never knew about the engineering department hands and meeting great people. The fact that specifically specifically before I joined the Navy, I just knew that here on Boxer there’s a watch team hierarchy and you So little known about this place before I joined some of my favorite classes were history, can see the visible progress as you move up through your shop classes, metal working, and wood working. At first I different watch stations. was thinking about being a Seabee but eventually I found my way into the engineering world and I haven’t looked I: You mention meeting great people, and a watch team, that Sailors call the hole. back since. would you say it’s a “team sport”? B: On Boxer one watch stander simply cannot do the job I: I see how the shop classes fit into your job, but how alone. We have to rely on four or five watch standers in But I can sing about this place, does liking history class play into being an engineer? the space. The team building while everyone in the space B: Back in “A” School there was this one guy who came is pulling together to accomplish a task really builds a level into class and you could tell he had a few screws loose. of trust and pulls it all together. and try to make you see, He started talking about the life style of an engineer, about the hard work and the long hours. Then he started I: So what was your defining moment when you realized telling this generic story about a guy with a generic name you loved being an engineer? The hardened life of men down below, named John Snipe. He said back in some war that Snipe B: I remember at my last command at Mid Atlantic shut down the entire engineering plant of a ship because Regional Maintenance Center in Norfolk, there was this he was tired of how engineers were treated back in the one job that I got, it was a brake assembly for a sliding because one of them is me.” day. Back in the day there was really only two main pad eye. They took it to the shop and it was just rusted departments; you had deck and you had engineers. The up. There was so much corrosion and my object was to officers in deck were considered line officers and the crew break it free. The second classes in the shop were having was treated with a certain level of respect. The engineers a hard time, I was a fireman at the time and they told me however were treated like work horses. to try. So I had the idea to just cover it in penetrating oil Snipe eventually got fed up and shut down the entire and eventually I started breaking the parts free. I didn’t engineering plant on the ship and refused to bring it back know it at the time but there was this private contractor up until his crew started getting more respect. Eventually named Chris Tony watching me. He was a retired Navy we started getting called snipesmen and then it boiled engineer who had been in for like 20 years. I looked up down to snipes. That was a hard story to buy because after I had just broke all the parts free and I see him do it just seemed too generic but I started looking around this simple head nod and my first class tells me, “you see all the walls at the school house it had these poems of what that is,” I said, “no what’s going on,” and he said, “ these acquired professionals just struggling to keep an You just got the Chris Tony nod of approval, that’s the engineering plant running so everyone else is comfortable. highest reward a fireman can get.” That was one of the first times I felt good about my job and what I do. The Snipes A look into the “Snipe’s Lament” I: Do you feel like engineers are still treated the same as fact that as a fireman I was able to surpass second classes they were in the past? “I’ve seen these sweat soaked heroes fight through super-heated air to keep just out of brute level of knowledge and work ethic alone B: People definitely look at me in a different manner, their ship alive and right, though no one knows they are there, and thus was a crowning achievement for me. Run because they know we live a hard life and give me a little they’ll fight for ages on until war ships sail no more, amid the boilers mighty bit more courtesy because of the unfathomable reasons of I: That’s a great story. Thank you for sharing that. Is there heat and the turbines hellish roar. So if you see a ship pull out to meet what I go through. I’ve definitely had some people go by anything else you would like add? The a warlike foe, remember faintly if you can the men who sail below,” said and ask me, “what’s your rate.” When I tell them I’m an B: Being an engineer is not for the faint hearted. There’s Machinist’s Mate 2nd Class Joseph Boncardo, from Fishkill, N.Y., assigned Navy MM they cringe a little bit and say, “I’m sorry man.” It’s a lot of work to be done, there’s a lot of progress to be to amphibious assault ship USS Boxer (LHD 4), as he recites a passage almost like a little sense of pity. made. It’s a rigorous job to say the least. So if you if you from “Snipes Lament”. “That stanza alone just puts what it is like to be an see a person in sweat soaked steamers coming your way engineer into context.” just leave a little extra space in the p-way. USS B XER O PERATIONS

6 USS BOXER (LHD 4) | BARK OF THE BOXER | 2019 7 USS BOXER (LHD 4) | BARK OF THE BOXER | 2019 Golden Gators week of May 24th week of May 31st week of June 7th

MMFR Dane Stokes BM2 Silvia Leon LSSN John Schmidt

CPL Ryan Morris CPL Benjamin Doronila LCPL Alex Salazar

HM2 Richard Garcia CTT3 Tyler Thrower ATAA Kayla Johnston public affairs meeting in the ship’s bar. No, I’m not It was also apparently a great kidding. The bar was something else. There were place for patch swapping, a practice plenty of couches to lounge, a foosball table, another I didn’t realize was as common as it Osprey Rides dimly lit wooden interior, all incased with the pounding was. After the second jet had taken rhythm of Swedish House Mafia music videos playing off, I was approached by a French from a television set on the wall. ABH. He was wielding one of the blue Charles de Gaulle patches, and he was We had some syrup water, which was exactly what pointing out to one of the patches on & it sounds like, talked about our joint mission in public my shoulder. I definitely wanted to snag affairs, shared some port stories and compared ship life on one of those patches, so I ripped off my their respective ships and navies. ‘don’t tread on me’ patch and swapped Patch Swaps We soon rejoined the tour group and were with him, having to pocket my other one shown the bridge and some viewing windows for in the process. He wasn’t the only one either. the flight deck before lunch. Soon after, others came wanting to do similar exchanges. I didn’t really have anything else to trade, but For lunch, we went next door to another Capt. Stanger came prepared. In his backpack, he had a U.S. Navy Story and Layout by similar room. There was a salad bar with several stack of the 11th MEU patches for this kind of occasion. different kinds of odd salads, two seeming like Buying some off of him, I was able continue trading MC2 John Luke McGovern pretty different takes on chicken salad and carrot throughout the day. salad. One of the PAOs requested baguettes, which is when I found out the ship makes and goes The rest of the afternoon was filled with more through 2,000 a day, roughly the ship’s population. I flight deck photography from vulture’s row, fumbling “You better hold onto that,” said Sgt. Austin Moments after, the aft end of also had some weird, fuzzy red fruit I had never seen through the controls of their flight simulator, and more Decker, motioning to my camera. the Charles de Gaulle flight deck appeared before. I asked one of the French PAOs what it was. informal public affairs meetings in their photo lab. During out of the back window as we began to hover one of these meetings, I looked over to see one of their My camera strap was already around my neck, above. Soon we landed, were permitted to loosen “That was actually for dessert,” she said. photographers editing some of their photos and saw and my camera bag under my seat. Since I was already the seatbelts, and I pounced out to take pictures of, “But that’s fine.” myself on the screen. He had captured me photographing strapped into my seat with a seat belt that resembled well, everything I could. I shot photos of the crew as their jets taking off through the same photo editing some contraption from one of those loop-de-loop rides Still don’t know what that was. I tried software we use on the ship. they were leaving the chopper, sprinted after our XO, googling it. ‘Fuzzy fruit’ can only lead so far. in an amusement park, I didn’t really think I could get any the Commandant and our Commodore to catch them safer in this MV-22B Osprey about to depart to France’s Somehow, amongst all the meetings about our shaking hands with the rear admiral of the French ship, Lunch was brought out on porcelain plates efforts towards interoperability, seeing all the hard work Marine Nationale FS Charles de Gaulle (R and aimed the camera to vulture’s row to capture the consisting of mashed cauliflower and some of the 91). Especially since the back door was about to close. being done on their aircraft, it finally hit me. There was French’s reaction of us landing. best tuna I’ve honestly ever had. no ‘theirs’ and ‘ours.’ We were all on the same side, using “I don’t normally do this, but you’re in the back Our tour group was soon met by a French Following lunch, we soon trailed down to weird hand signals on flight deck, working through the seat, where I normally sit,” said Decker. “That way you public affairs officer who, with impressive English, gave their photo lab for another short meeting before same long nights, and sometimes sitting down with the can get shots of us leaving the aircraft. I’ll be strapped us the rundown for the tour of the day, let us know moving to the aircraft control center. It was there we same software all to work toward the same goal – peace, into the side.” where and when we could take photos. Following that, met up with Chief Warrant Officer 3 Nicole Campbell and if necessary, to fight and win. nd By “strapped in,” Decker meant a tie-down strap we were led through surprisingly wide p-ways down and Yeoman 2 Class Matthew Perry. Perry, who A ship can feel lonely when all you see on the connected to the wall of the aircraft. It looked safe. to the hangar bay and shown some of their aircraft. speaks fluent French, played interpreter between the horizon is empty ocean waters, but for the first time, I Really safe. Seeing that made me immediately feel right back French air traffic control officer and ourselves as the was made aware of just what kind of global scale the at the Boxer. It was like every morning before flight officer showed us the arrangement of the flight deck. United States Navy and our allies reach. Knowing there are Suddenly, with the back door still open, the helo quarters in there. He soon gave us float coats and hearing thousands of uniquely capable people doing their best to started up and lurched off from the flight deck and into the make their ships better for the safety and protection of the sky. I don’t know if I’m going to have the chance to ever go Being in a public affairs rate, I was attached to protection, which materialized out of a fruit candy tin, Capt. James Stenger, the public affairs officer for the so that we could go on the flight deck and see of the globe brings the comforting feeling that you’re never alone on one of these rides again, but I don’t think I could ever on the ocean. You never were. To be a part of that bigger get tired of the view. The height was just part of the fun. 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU). He had taken French aircraft in action. the place of Lt. Andrew Bertucci, my PAO, for the ride mission, that partnership, just made me proud to be right We rocketed off through the air, passing other to the Charles de Gaulle. His reasoning? Watching those F/A 18s get catapulted into the sky where I am. Hooyah. from such a short section of their runway was a heck French ships that were beginning to position themselves At the end of the day, we met up with the rest of for the photo exercise alongside Boxer. “I’m the better looking one,” said Stenger. of a rush. But, with less than a football field of space, they roared into the air like clockwork. the tour group, waved good bye to our The horizon line suddenly flipped to the right as He and I were led by two French PAOs through tour guides, snapped some last- the helo took a rapid right turn. I, a reasonable person, some wood-paneled hallways and carpeted floors Campbell, Perry, Stenger and myself were all minute group photos, and made freaked out… and realized I was the only one to do so. The past statue heads of past commanders and parchment confined into a smaller viewing area of the flight our way back to the flight deck other passengers showed no reaction and Decker, who has certificates commemorating the rich French history. We deck portside of where the jets were taking off. It to head back home. Exhausted been standing next to the open door this entire time, just dropped off some gifts provided by our higher ups in was a great photo spot to capture some of the in the best way, some of us casually leaned toward the side of the aircraft to the flag mess there. All three gifts were great, but maintenance performed behind the scenes and wielded patches and some, counteract the momentum of the turn. I’ve gotta hand it to the Marines. Their gift was a an even better location to feel the immense sacks of baguettes, I think wooden Roman gladiator sword. Hoooo-rah. power of these beasts of machinery. all could agree we were just Yep, I can do that too. thankful for an opportunity to After that, we had an informal see how similar we really are. A day in the life Story by Mass Communications Specialist 3rd Class Zachary D. Behrend

Who is Mother Nature? She is the sometimes-unpredictable force that affects our After their hourly visit to vulture’s row they return to their office with all their day-to-day lives. She doesn’t get on the 1MC every morning and announce what she will gadgets and portholes and log it in their observation station. bring us each day, and no one on board Boxer has a better connection with her than the Aerographer’s Mates. The reason for going up to vulture’s row every hour is what they call their sanity check. This verifies the model data of their Hazard Weather-Detection Display Capability There are many aspects that go into being able to forecast what Mother Nature (HW-DDC), which works in conjunction with the SPS-48 Air Search Radar to create a brings us each day. There is never a real break since she is around 24/7 and constantly mobile Doplar radar. The model data calculates the best forecast of what to expect in the changing her mind. future based on patterns in the weather.

“The atmosphere is very dynamic with constant changes in temperature, moisture The model data helps the AGs decide the best recommendations on if the operations and flow,” said Chief Aerographer’s Mate Horace Mai. “Like a pot of boiling water. When are safe to carry out. This includes small boat operations, well deck operations, flight you watch the water you see the bubbles rising up, the water rippling as the water rises operations and refuel-and-supply operations. and falls. That is the air around us at all times.” “Every operation has its own weather threshold,” said Aerographer’s Mate 2nd Class This is why every hour of every day, and every 30 minutes during flight operations, Jarrod Stone. “Regardless of whether it is minimal, marginal or severe we inform people there’s an Aerographer’s Mate (AG) out on the weather decks, seeing what she’s up to. of the weather’s impact on operations. We give them recommendations based off weather This is their routine hourly operations. forecasts for the safety of operations.”

Up on vulture’s row you can find an AG gathering data. While up there they view They are a small rate of a little over 1,200 Sailors in the fleet, but they carry a big voice the entire celestial dome. The celestial dome is horizon line to horizon line of what we when it comes to the safety of carrying out operations. can see. USS Boxer is the middle of the dome. They are recording wind speed, wind direction, cloud coverage, sea direction, swell wave height, wind wave height, swell wave Thanks to them we have a direct line to Mother Nature, and although she can be period, visibility due to fog, temperature, dew point and wet bulb. unpredictable, the AGs are there every day to figure out what she’ll do next.

12 USS BOXER (LHD 4) | BARK OF THE BOXER | 2019 13 USS BOXER (LHD 4) | BARK OF THE BOXER | 2019 MWR presents Thailand

14 USS BOXER (LHD 4) | BARK OF THE BOXER | 2019 15 USS BOXER (LHD 4) | BARK OF THE BOXER | 2019