USS Nimitz CVN-68 Operation Iraqi Freedom 2003

2003 USS Nimitz CVN-68 Aircraft Carrier Cruise - Ninth? Deployment for this vessel. Book documents their Operation Iraqi Freedom cruise from 2002 - 2003. A visual record of this deployment of this Nuclear-powered Aircraft Carrier. 496 Pages.

95,000 Tons of Diplomacy

Nimitz reaches more than 18 stories high from the keel to the top of the mast.

The Hangar Bay extends for most of the ship's length. It is used for major repair and shelters aircraft not needed for that day's flight schedule.

Four distilling units enable Nimitz engineers to make over 400,000 gallons of fresh water a day for use by the propulsion plant, catapults and crew.

Nimitz can stock as least 70 days of refrigerated and dry storage goods.

Tons of wash are done every day by Nimitz' laundry, dry cleaning and tailoring services personnel.

Nimitz' two barber shops trims over 1,500 heads per week.

Nimitz has a fully equipped Dental facility, staffed by five dentists.

The Medical Department is manned by six doctors, including a general surgeon, who provides everything from surgery, physical therapy and psychology. The ship also features a 53-bed hospital ward, and a 3 bed ICU and acts as the hospital ship for the entire battle group.

Nimitz' three Chaplains conduct daily religious services in an interdenominational chapel.

Nuclear power allows the ship to store 50 percent more ammunition and almost twice as much aviation fuel as the largest conventional aircraft carrier.

Propulsion System: Two Nuclear Power Plants
Main Engines : Four
Speed : Over 30 Knots
Propellers : Four
Blades on each Propeller : Five
Aircraft Elevators : Four
Catapults : Four
Arresting Gear Cables : Four

Overall Length : 1,092 Feet
Overall Width : 252 Feet
Beam at Waterline : 134 Feet
Area of Flight Deck 4.5 Acres
Full Load Displacement : 95,000 Tons
Keel Laid : 22 June 1968
Launched : 13 May 1972
Commissioned : 3 May 1975

Contents

• History 1
• Statistics 12
• Misc. Pages 14
• Departure Day 35
• CCDG-5 40
• Admiral Locklear 42
• Chief of Staff 44
• CDMC Dearie 46
• Flag Staff 48
• Captain Gilman 52
• Captain Cone 54
• CDMC Turner 56
• Departments 58
• DESRON 23 306
• Squadrons 312
• Operation Iraqi Freedom 430
• Port Calls 434
• Steel Beach 450
• USO Show 454
• Crossing the Line 458
• Tiger Cruise 460
• New Arrivals 462
• Welcome Home 468
• Stork Express 476
• Air warfare .480
• Surface Warfare 482
• Cruise Stats 484
• Cruise Map 486
• Air Plans Cartoon 488
• Ombudsman 490
• Cruise Book Staff 492
• In Memory 494

Stats for the Cruise

navigation

• 208 days underway since March 3rd
• 63, 576 nautical miles traveled
• 35 underway replenishments conducted
• 18 special sea and anchor details

Combat Systems

• 271.086 record messages received
• 8.864 record messages transmitted
• 6.587.950 e-mails received
• 4.790,320 e-mails sent
• 184 Secure Video Teleconferences
• 18 Family Video Teleconferences

Personnel

• Over 258 re-enlistment
• 100 new fathers (as of 13 October 2003)
• 479 Qualified (Enlisted Aviation Warfare Specialist)
• 555 Qualified (Enlisted Surface Warfare Specialist)

Air Operations

Fixed Wing Operations

• Sorties: Day: 5706, Night: 4760
• Over 2.900 total passengers transported via- carrier Onboard Delivery (COD) aircraft

Helicopter Operations

• Sorties: (Day: 570, Night: 420

Air Department

• 11 ,000 catapult shots / arrested landings
• 42,000 aircraft moved on the flight deck
• 5162 aircraft moved on the hangar bay
• 2,592 elevator runs
• 16,000 aircraft fueled
• 23,200,000 gallons of JP-5 used
• 21,037,000 gallons JP-5 received

Food Service

• 3,400,000 meals served
• 1,800,000 eggs served
• 56,700 gallons of milk served
• 61,000 loaves of bread served
• 80,446 pounds of rice served
• 187,000 pounds of chicken served
• 106,345 pounds of ground beef served

Post Office

• 405,772 pounds of incoming mail processed
• 162,038 pounds of outgoing mail processed

Deck Department

• 35 Underway Refueling at Sea evolutions
• 31 Connected Underway Replenishments
• Received 3,851 pallets of stores
• Conducted 8 mooring and getting underway evolutions
• Completed 1 anchorage

Training Department

• Basic Indoctrination Graduates : 495
• Advanced Indoctrination Graduates : 190
• Total Indoctrination Graduates : 685

AIMD

• Over 38,000 aircraft components repaired, adjusted, manufactured, and tested
• 43 aircraft engines rebuilt / repaired

Medical

• Patient visits 34,400
• Immunizations 34,300
• Prescriptions filled 26,797
• Lab tests 15,245
• Hearing tests 3,966
• Physical exams 3,342
• X-Rays 1,301

Dental

• Patient visits : 10,350
• Dental cleanings : 3,150
• Restorations placed: 2,750
• Prosthetic units delivered: 92
• Root canal treatments: 75
• Extractions: 725
• Biopsies performed: 10
• Patient's treated from other strike group ships: 275
• Operational Dental Readiness: 93

Ship's Store

• 3,854,235 total sales
• 1,050,000 cans of soda sold
• 720,000 minutes-worth of calling cards sold

Chaplain

• 738 total religious services with 18,676 attendees
• 473 library users on average per day