thedrifter
04-30-06, 08:06 AM
FLEET WEEK USA
Saluting ships, thousands in military
Fleet Week USA, the five-day event leading up to this weekend's McDonald's Air and Sea Show, begins Monday.
BY ERIKA BOLSTAD
ebolstad@MiamiHerald.com
In the days leading up to the Air & Sea Show this weekend, eight military ships and more than 3,000 sailors and marines with the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marines, U.S. Coast Guard and the Canadian Navy will make Fort Lauderdale their temporary home.
Fleet Week USA, which begins Monday, celebrates past heroes, such as the Tuskegee Airmen, as well as current heroes and those who fight in the war in Iraq.
All but one of the eight ships in town for Fleet Week will enter Port Everglades, guided into port by the Goodyear Blimp, an on-again, off-again tradition that is on again this year.
''It's a reminder of the old days of World War II, when blimps guided in ships and acted as reconnaissance to search out enemy submarines,'' said Elaine Fitzgerald, a spokeswoman for Fleet Week and the Air & Sea Show.
In another throwback to World War II, Fleet Week will feature several events with 12 of the Tuskegee Airmen, the African-American pilots who served as the first black military airmen in the United States. On Wednesday, sculptor George Gadson will unveil a piece depicting the Tuskegee Airmen; the sculpture will be donated to the Broward County Library.
Modern naval weaponry will be on display beginning Monday morning, as the parade of military ships begins. The ships include a guided missile cruiser, a guided missile destroyer, a Coast Guard cutter and a fast attack submarine.
The final ship, a Canadian helicopter carrier, will arrive 11 a.m. Tuesday. Most of the ships will leave Friday.
LIMITED ACCESS
The general public will have minimal access to the ships while they're in port. In a post-9/11 world, the general public isn't allowed to tromp aboard naval vessels. Only pre-cleared school and community groups are allowed on the ships.
''It's a shame that the world has changed, but we literally go to great lengths to get as many members of the public on the ships as possible,'' Fitzgerald said. ``We've had to restructure so that sailors go to the public.''
The only way to get a good glimpse of the actual fleet will be from the south side of the 17th Street Causeway bridge, where anyone willing to hoof it up to the top will have a nice view of the ships in port, especially when they arrive. There are also good views from John U. Lloyd Beach State Park and the southern end of Fort Lauderdale beach, said Ellen Kennedy, spokeswoman for Port Everglades.
Unlike previous years, there will not be an aircraft carrier in town during Fleet Week. Because of new U.S. Navy safety regulations, military ships must be kept a certain distance from the dock, Kennedy said.
Port Everglades pilots, who guide ships into the port, decided an aircraft carrier would jut too far into the port and impede commercial traffic.
SHORE LEAVE
But even for people who don't have clearance to go aboard one of the ships, there's plenty of time to get to know a sailor.
More than 3,000 sailors and marines migrate into town for Fleet Week, and they'll be involved in dozens of community activities, including volunteering on construction projects with Habitat for Humanity.
And there's a party every night where sailors and marines can mingle with the public -- and vice versa.
Fleet Week has a lengthy history in Fort Lauderdale, long considered a warm and friendly port of call for sailors. And it will be the second week in a row that thousands of sailors flood the city.
Last week, the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower was offshore for a training exercise -- as well as shore leave for the crew of 5,000.
''It has always been a favorite liberty call port of the Navy,'' Fitzgerald, the event's spokeswoman, said. ``We roll out the red carpet for them. This is our thank you.''
Ellie
Saluting ships, thousands in military
Fleet Week USA, the five-day event leading up to this weekend's McDonald's Air and Sea Show, begins Monday.
BY ERIKA BOLSTAD
ebolstad@MiamiHerald.com
In the days leading up to the Air & Sea Show this weekend, eight military ships and more than 3,000 sailors and marines with the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marines, U.S. Coast Guard and the Canadian Navy will make Fort Lauderdale their temporary home.
Fleet Week USA, which begins Monday, celebrates past heroes, such as the Tuskegee Airmen, as well as current heroes and those who fight in the war in Iraq.
All but one of the eight ships in town for Fleet Week will enter Port Everglades, guided into port by the Goodyear Blimp, an on-again, off-again tradition that is on again this year.
''It's a reminder of the old days of World War II, when blimps guided in ships and acted as reconnaissance to search out enemy submarines,'' said Elaine Fitzgerald, a spokeswoman for Fleet Week and the Air & Sea Show.
In another throwback to World War II, Fleet Week will feature several events with 12 of the Tuskegee Airmen, the African-American pilots who served as the first black military airmen in the United States. On Wednesday, sculptor George Gadson will unveil a piece depicting the Tuskegee Airmen; the sculpture will be donated to the Broward County Library.
Modern naval weaponry will be on display beginning Monday morning, as the parade of military ships begins. The ships include a guided missile cruiser, a guided missile destroyer, a Coast Guard cutter and a fast attack submarine.
The final ship, a Canadian helicopter carrier, will arrive 11 a.m. Tuesday. Most of the ships will leave Friday.
LIMITED ACCESS
The general public will have minimal access to the ships while they're in port. In a post-9/11 world, the general public isn't allowed to tromp aboard naval vessels. Only pre-cleared school and community groups are allowed on the ships.
''It's a shame that the world has changed, but we literally go to great lengths to get as many members of the public on the ships as possible,'' Fitzgerald said. ``We've had to restructure so that sailors go to the public.''
The only way to get a good glimpse of the actual fleet will be from the south side of the 17th Street Causeway bridge, where anyone willing to hoof it up to the top will have a nice view of the ships in port, especially when they arrive. There are also good views from John U. Lloyd Beach State Park and the southern end of Fort Lauderdale beach, said Ellen Kennedy, spokeswoman for Port Everglades.
Unlike previous years, there will not be an aircraft carrier in town during Fleet Week. Because of new U.S. Navy safety regulations, military ships must be kept a certain distance from the dock, Kennedy said.
Port Everglades pilots, who guide ships into the port, decided an aircraft carrier would jut too far into the port and impede commercial traffic.
SHORE LEAVE
But even for people who don't have clearance to go aboard one of the ships, there's plenty of time to get to know a sailor.
More than 3,000 sailors and marines migrate into town for Fleet Week, and they'll be involved in dozens of community activities, including volunteering on construction projects with Habitat for Humanity.
And there's a party every night where sailors and marines can mingle with the public -- and vice versa.
Fleet Week has a lengthy history in Fort Lauderdale, long considered a warm and friendly port of call for sailors. And it will be the second week in a row that thousands of sailors flood the city.
Last week, the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower was offshore for a training exercise -- as well as shore leave for the crew of 5,000.
''It has always been a favorite liberty call port of the Navy,'' Fitzgerald, the event's spokeswoman, said. ``We roll out the red carpet for them. This is our thank you.''
Ellie