Posted on 02/27/2009 4:26:08 PM PST by SandRat
WASHINGTON, Feb. 27, 2009 Navy Master Chief Petty Officer Korey Ketola recalled that he was uneasy when he embarked on his first submarine patrol in 1983.
Yet, today, Ketola is the current holder of the coveted Neptune Award for having completed 35 strategic submarine patrols -- the most patrols among active-duty officers and enlisted members in the U.S. Navy. Ketola, now the senior noncommissioned officer at the Trident submarine training facility at Kings Bay, will retain the award until someone else surpasses his total or he retires. All 35 of his patrols, Ketola said, were made aboard Trident strategic missile submarines. Tridents are nuclear-powered, Ohio-class submarines. At 560 feet long and 42 feet wide, Tridents are the largest submarines in the U.S. Navys inventory. A Trident crew consists of about 160 officers and enlisted sailors. The original ballistic missile versions are nicknamed Boomers, and they feature the designator SSBN. The Boomers are capable of carrying as many as 24 Trident II D-5 nuclear missiles. The vessel also carries Mark-48 torpedoes. Ketola completed his first patrol aboard the USS Michigan. Later, he went on to serve aboard the submarines USS West Virginia, USS Wyoming and USS Maine. The veteran submariner also earned the Neptune Award in 2005 by accruing 29 completed Trident submarine patrols. The Trident submarine is a fantastic machine, probably the second-most complex machine you have, next to the space shuttle, Ketola told reporters. |
Related Articles: Kings Bay Training Facility Prepares Trident Submariners |
Good God! 35 runs! Yikes...I did three and that was enough for me.
He’s got that Randy Quaid look going on. Section him out with full benefits before he accidentally snaps some newbie’s neck!
Seriously though, that is an awesome feat. Wonder how it breaks down to years, months, days and hours underwater.
I wonder how many patrols number two has?
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