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Welcome aboard an EA-18G Growler catapult shot off the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71), somewhere near Wake Island in the beautiful Pacific Ocean. This was a 59K MAX power Case I launch off catapult 3 on a day training sortie. Look at the color of the water. Absolutely amazing. Fly Navy!

In a ghostly reminder of the Bay Area's nuclear heritage, scientists announced Thursday they have captured the first clear images of a radioactivity-polluted World War II aircraft carrier that rests on the ocean floor 30 miles off the coast of Half Moon Bay. The USS Independence saw combat at Wake Island and other decisive battles against Japan in 1944 and 1945 and was later blasted with radiation in two South Pacific nuclear tests. The Navy deliberately sank the contaminated ship in 1951 south of the Farallon Islands. The rediscovery of the USS Independence offers a fascinating glimpse into American military...

Excerpt - A decision about the future of the Air Force facility on Wake Island, devastated last August by Super Typhoon Ioke, is expected later this month, officials told Stars and Stripes. ~ snip ~ A decision is expected from Pacific Air Forces sometime in late January, according to a statement from Maj. Clare Reed, spokeswoman for the 15th Airlift Wing, Wake’s parent command at Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii. Ioke, a Category 5-equivalent tropical cyclone, passed just north of Wake overnight Aug. 30 and into the morning of Aug. 31, packing sustained 161-mph winds and 198-mph gusts. Weather sensors...

9/14/2006 - WAKE ISLAND (AFPN) -- After Super Typhoon Ioke's 155 mph winds and driving storm surge devastated Wake Island Aug. 31, members of the 36th Contingency Response Group at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, made up the initial assessment team sent to the island. "Prior to the storm the experts were all saying there would be no runway left to assess," said Maj. Pat Poon, the team commander. "The thought was the waves and storm surge were going to erode the runway or at least cause some major damage, so we had to come by ship on the...

9/5/2006 - HICKAM AIR FORCE BASE, Hawaii (AFPN) -- A U.S. Coast Guard aerial assessment of Wake Island Sept. 2 showed less destruction than expected from Super Typhoon Ioke, but the Air Force needs people on the ground at Wake to determine the full extent of damage, officials said. The Coast Guard flew the mission to check for pollution releases. It was flown in a Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules from Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point in Kapolei, Hawaii. Footage and pictures taken on the mission, which were reviewed by Coast Guard and Air Force officials, don't show any...

Wake Island may be small, but it stood up to a super typhoon in a big way last week. The U.S Coast Guard flew a reconnaissance mission over the weekend to check on the island just days after Typhoon Ioke roared through. When the crew approached the Island they weren't sure what they were going to find. "Our first assessment that we heard of the island could be pretty massive devastation. When we came to the island we flew over it at a thousand feet and we were pleasantly surprised that any significant hazards, fuel tanks, runway, general building conditions...

Excerpt - HONOLULU (AP) _ A first look at the storm damage inflicted on Wake Island by Typhoon Ioke showed no oil spills. A Coast Guard C-130 flew over Wake Island this weekend to make an initial assessment of the destruction brought on by the storm. Observers aboard the plane couldn't see any spills or other hazardous material releases. ~ snip ~

9/3/2006 - ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, Guam (AFPN) -- Airmen and Sailors from Andersen will sail 1,500 miles to Wake Island to see how well the U.S. territory survived Super Typhoon Ioke. The Air Force evacuated all 188 island residents on two C-17 Globemaster III aircraft Monday before the typhoon arrived Thursday with 155 mph winds and gusts to 190 mph. The residents include Airmen, Department of Defense employees and Defense contractors. Members of Andersen's 36th Contingency Response Group and U.S. Navy Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 25 will sail Sept. 4 on an expected four-day trip to the island....

The Air Force is waiting for Super Typhoon Ioke to clear out of the way before it files back to survey Wake Island. A Hickam Air Force Base spokesman said he does not expect that to occur until Sunday at the earliest. Once the 10,000-foot runway is deemed safe to use, an assessment team will be dispatched. The super typhoon was expected to head straight for the three-island atoll. Last night, its eye was about 60 miles east of Wake, with the storm traveling west at about 10 mph. "That's a bull's-eye, as far as I'm concerned," said Tim Craig,...

Excerpt - Super Typhoon Ioke, a Category 5 storm and the strongest to hit the Pacific in more than a decade, slammed into tiny Wake Island Thursday, threatening to submerge the U.S. territory, U.S. Navy weather forecasters said. The storm, packing sustained winds of more than 220 mph, with some gusts topping 250 mph, came ashore at about 10 a.m. ET, and was slowly tracking west, gaining strength over the warm tropical waters, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center reported. Wake Island is located about 2,300 miles west of Honolulu. ~ snip ~

For the first time in nearly five decades, this tiny coral atoll in the middle of the Pacific, where its highest point barely rises to about 18 feet, has been evacuated. The reason is Super Typhoon Ioke, whose eye is aiming straight at Wake Island, home to an American base. The fragile atoll is expected to be pummeled by gusts of up to 160 knots and waves of up to 40 feet. "This is the most excitement I have seen in years," said Bill Wilson, one of 188 residents who were evacuated by the Air Force and flown to Honolulu...

KHON TV - Super typhoon Ioke is barreling towards Wake Island It's big and packing quite a punch. Super typhoon Ioke is barreling towards Wake Island. The massive storm is churning around in the central pacific. It's packing winds of more than 160 miles per hour, a category five storm. Roy Matsuda from the Central Pacific Hurricane Center says, "it is projected to go along this track toward wake island as you can see and to reach Wake Island approximately Wednesday afternoon our time within 13 nautical miles." And because of that a team from Hawaii will head to Wake...

Lord, Keep our Troops forever in Your care Give them victory over the enemy... Grant them a safe and swift return... Bless those who mourn the lost. . FReepers from the Foxhole join in prayer for all those serving their country at this time. ...................................................................................... ........................................... U.S. Military History, Current Events and Veterans Issues Where Duty, Honor and Countryare acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated. Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. In the FReeper Foxhole, Veterans or their family members should feel...

U.S. Military History, Current Events and Veterans Issues Where Duty, Honor and Countryare acknowledged, affirmed and commemorated. Our Mission: The FReeper Foxhole is dedicated to Veterans of our Nation's military forces and to others who are affected in their relationships with Veterans. We hope to provide an ongoing source of information about issues and problems that are specific to Veterans and resources that are available to Veterans and their families. In the FReeper Foxhole, Veterans or their family members should feel free to address their specific circumstances or whatever issues concern them in an atmosphere of peace, understanding, brotherhood...