NAVAL STATION NORFOLK, Va. — Though much of the East Coast was buried in a blizzard, the guided-missile destroyer Jason Dunham cut through the gray haze in the early hours Tuesday Jan. 27 to start a six-month, independent deployment to the U.S. 6th Fleet, which includes waters in and around Europe and parts of Africa.

The ship and its crew of 320 will first head south for the warmer waters of the Caribbean, where it will conduct training with partner nations located in U.S. 4th Fleet. That brought a smile to the face of Fire Controlman 3rd Class Kari Brown, a native of Racine, Wisconsin., who joined the Navy two years ago to get away from the cold weather and see the world.

Deploying in this weather "is definitely an experience, but we are bundled up and ready to go," she said. "I've been waiting two years for this day."

This is the fourth cruise for Culinary Specialist 1st Class Micah Lee, who commended the crew for "a lot of hard, stressful work" in preparation for this deployment. Though no cruise is easy, the eight-year vet is especially excited about this one. Lee was part of Nassau's decommissioning crew, and the difference between life on a 35-year-old amphibious assault ship and a 4-year-old destroyer is night and day, he said.

"It's actually really nice coming from a ship where not a whole lot of things worked," he said. "This ship is awesome. I wouldn't want to be anywhere else."

The Jason Dunham made history on Dec. 23 when it launched MQ-8C Fire Scout unmanned helicopter. The Fire Scout has plenty of flight time on frigates, completing a six-month cruise with the Elrod off Africa's west coast in July, but this marked the first time an unmanned helicopter took off from a Navy ship at sea, and the first time one ever launched from a destroyer.

The Navy plans to deploy 10 Fire Scouts with eight MH-60Rs this fall aboard the littoral combat ship Fort Worth as part of Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 35. Though prepared to incorporate such a mission if needed, Jason Dunham will instead deploy with an SH-60 Romeo.

The Jason Dunham made history on Dec. 16 when the Navy and Northrop Grumman Corp. successfully flew the MQ-8C Fire Scout system for the first time at sea off the destroyer. The unmanned helicopter completed 22 takeoffs and landings near the Virginia coast, according to the Navy. It also marked "the first time an unmanned helicopter has operated from a destroyer," Capt. Jeff Dodge, Fire Scout program manager at Naval Air Systems Command, said in a news release.

A smaller version of the Fire Scout — the MQ-8B — is already operational, having been deployed on frigates and currently deployed alongside an MH-60R helicopter on the littoral combat ship Fort Worth in U.S. 7th Fleet.

The large MQ-8C Fire Scout — based on a Bell 407 helicopter — provides the Navy with an increased range of over 30 percent, twice the endurance and an increased payload capacity over the existing MQ-8B variant, which is based on a Schweizer Aircraft commercial airframe, according to a Northrup Grumman fact sheet.

In addition to the Fire Scout, Jason Dunham will deploys with an SH-60R Romeo Seahawk.

The versatility required of this deployment — operating off three different continents in a wide variety of maritime missions — has become the norm for these independent emdeployers. Still, the training and certifications required isare anything but routine, said Cmdr. Darren Dugan, the ship's skipper.

"It is a very demanding training cycle, and I think that is a good thing," he said.

Commissioned in November 2010, the destroyer completed its maiden deployment in April 2013.

Share:
In Other News
Load More