Photo By Petty Officer 3rd Class David Cox | 151016-N-KM939-113 SAN DIEGO - Boatswain's Mate 1st Class Steve Whitmire from Coloma,...... read more read more
Subscribe
SAN DIEGO, Calif. - The guided-missile destroyer USS Shoup (DDG 86) opened its doors to over 2,000 San Diego residents and tourists while moored at the Broadway Pier in downtown San Diego, Oct. 17 and 18.
The visit occurs following the Navy’s 240th birthday and guests will get the opportunity to tour the ship and talk with Sailors.
Ensign Zach Bessette the ship's public affairs officer and tour coordinator says that tours like this help to strengthen the bond between the military and the local community and allows them to also recognize an important day in Naval history.
“This is a great opportunity to show our local community that they’re supporting America’s Navy and the hard work these Sailors put in every day,” said Bessette. “It’s also important that it comes right after the 240th birthday of the Navy, so it really allows us to showcase that even after 240 years what the Navy still continues to do and how important that legacy is and hopefully it impacts them on a personal level as well.”
The tours included the ship’s foc'sle, boat deck, galley, bridge, and damage control center. Bessette says that a ship of this size usually doesn’t host tours when in port, but that this tour will help to educate the community on the capabilities of a guided-missile destroyer.
“To do an event like this, which we don’t do often, gives Sailors a rare opportunity to really show off their knowledge and to demonstrate their gear,” said Bessette.
The tours start on the flight deck and bring visitors through the hangar bay, boat deck where the RHIBs (Rigid Hull Inflatable Boat) are kept, then it’s on to the foc'sle where they get to see missile launchers, crew-served weapons and deck guns. After the bridge which houses the navigation equipment, it’s down to Damage Control (DC) Central to show guests the equipment used to repair and save the ship, and finally the tours come to an end right where they started.
Tim Kemper who attended the tour says that getting the opportunity to view and walk the ship first-hand was an eye opening experience.
“I definitely got to see that you guys are very well-trained and skilled in a lot of complex equipment have a lot of responsibility,” said Kemper. “I happen to live here in San Diego, so I’ve been waiting for an opportunity to see this amazing piece of military hardware and you guys that operate it. I couldn’t get over how at the end of the tour the Chief thanked us when we should be thanking you guys for your service, the quality of the Sailors is just fantastic, in our day-to-day lives in San Diego we don’t see that very often, so it’s great to have the opportunity to interact with you guys.”
USS Shoup is homeported in Everett, Wash. and is the 36th Arleigh Burke-class destroyer. The ship was built to conduct simultaneous warfare operations in multi-threat environments to include air, surface and subsurface targets.
The U.S. Navy looks to increase its community outreach in the future in an effort to partner with their host cities.
| Date Taken: | 10.16.2015 |
| Date Posted: | 10.18.2015 01:00 |
| Story ID: | 179206 |
| Location: | CA, US |
| Web Views: | 167 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, San Diego hosts ship tours downtown, by CPO Jason Perry, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
LEAVE A COMMENT