USS THEODORE ROOSEVELT, PERSIAN GULF — Lugging heavy fuel lines across the flight deck of a massive aircraft carrier is not exactly what Navy Airman Brock Bowman had in mind for his holiday season.
The Ogden native has been away from home for just three months, but he's already counting the days until he'll be back on the Snowbasin slopes. He said all he wants for Christmas is to go home but admits that's not going to happen.
So for now, home is the USS Theodore Roosevelt, where he shares a berthing room with at least 100 other sailors. Bowman brought a little bit of home with him to the ship: His bunk is decorated with photos from home. He even found an indoor ski slope in the port city of Dubai, United Arab Emirates, where he plans to spend his Christmas holiday.
The 19-year-old is still adjusting to the brutal schedule that keeps him on the flight deck from noon to midnight each day. It's nothing like the days he spent washing boats in Ogden or patrolling the halls of Bonneville High School.
Utahns at sea
Bowman is like a handful of other Utahns serving on the massive aircraft carrier currently patrolling the Persian Gulf. Each sailor performs an integral piece of a complicated logistics system to keep the carrier moving every day in support of Iraq's transition to a democratic state.
It's Bowman's job to make sure aircraft landing on the USS Theodore Roosevelt are refueled and ready to go on other missions. Bowman drags heavy fuel lines across the flight deck to refuel helicopters, F-14 Tomcats and F-18 Raptors. He endures extreme heat as well as a chilly wind that nearly knocks him over as he walks from plane to plane awaiting fuel.
They don't call it the most dangerous industrial working environment in the world for nothing, he said.
Bowman said he has bigger plans for his service in the Navy, but for now, he has a responsibility to help troops on the ground avoid attack.
"If we didn't fuel planes, we wouldn't be able to bomb the terrorists trying to kill our guys," Bowman said.
Aircraft land on the 1,092-foot runway throughout the day and night. Bowman waits nearby to get them ready to go right back up and patrol the Iraqi skies.
Standing in the middle of such a dangerous environment is overwhelming yet amazing at times. On his third day on the ship, Bowman watched an injured sailor leave on an emergency medical helicopter for another military installation after an accident on the flight line. A tire on one of the planes blew and the sailor suffered multiple open fractures.
But Bowman enjoys witnessing the ballet of the flight deck every night. The crew communicates with hand signals and movements as planes taxi around the runway, take off for a mission or return home for the night.
"There is so much going on all at once, it's crazy," Bowman said.
Medical duty
Third Class Petty Officer Dustin VanBree doesn't get to see all the excitement up on the flight deck. Some days he doesn't see the sun at all.
The Kaysville native stays busy down in the medical office tending to the ills of the VFA15 fighter attack squadron. Pilots in that squadron fly F-18s on patrols throughout the Middle East.
It's VanBree's job to make sure pilots are healthy and able to complete missions in Iraq.
"My specific aircraft have all dropped bombs on different targets in Iraq, and it's my responsibility to save lives and keep those pilots flying," he said.
During sick call, VanBree also keeps busy seeing patients with a variety of sicknesses and injuries. With more than 5,500 people on board, various woes travel fast, he said.
Other Utahns on board also work in the medical field, like Lt. David Rich, one of the ship's general medical officers, and 2nd Class Petty Officer Ernie Jacklin, a dental lab technician.
Vital work
Jared Petersen does his part by feeding the massive crew on board the moving carrier. It's not the sexiest job, he admits, but one the Navy can't live without.
"Caesar once said, 'The Army moves by its stomach,' " the St. George resident said. "We aren't going anywhere if people don't have a full stomach. It's my job to keep them moving."
First Class Petty Officer Tyson Rees, of Coalville, loves his job. He's been repairing aircraft for 15 years. And although he is surrounded by water and hundreds of miles away from the ground battle in Iraq, the 32-year-old can see his job is incredibly important.
As an aviation structural mechanic, Rees keeps SH-60 Seahawk helicopters ready to go on a moment's notice on search and rescue missions. If a ship is in need, pilots from his HS3 helicopter squadron go to the scene and pull out the crew, like in January after a Canadian ship hit bad weather and started sinking. A chopper from Rees' squadron went to the scene and rescued the pilots.
Sailors aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt have been working nearly nonstop since Sept. 1, with few no-fly days, but are integral to the mission in Iraq, said Rear Adm. James A. Winnefeld Jr., Carrier Strike Group Two/USS Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group commander.
"I think the thing that keeps our sailors the happiest is knowing they are doing something important," Winnefeld said. "There are people on the ground that need us."
Deseret Morning News reporter Leigh Dethman and photographer Keith Johnson are traveling in the Middle East with the Naval Expeditionary Logistics Support Force. They will visit Utah-based military personnel in Kuwait, Bahrain, Iraq and on various Navy vessels.
E-mail: ldethman@desnews.com