By Bill Glauber
The Baltimore Sun
ABOARD THE USS CARL VINSON – The night was humid when the white hot afterburners from lethal strike planes lighted the starry sky above the North Arabian Sea.
It was a night when a ground crew glowed in the dark with protective clothing and worked hour after hour, preparing bombers, resetting catapults, marching back and forth across a 4 1/2-acre piece of steel as an aerial armada was assembled and launched.
And it was a night that the USS Carl Vinson, which is based at Bremerton, joined a global war against terrorism, launching strikes against Afghanistan.
It began after dusk Sunday, a few minutes after the horizon was lighted by a glow from a volley of Tomahawk missiles shot from the destroyer John Paul Jones.
And then, at 6:30 p.m., a long gray line of more than 20 refueling tankers, long-range surveillance craft and strikers were catapulted from the deck. Included in the wave were six F/A 18 Hornets and four F-14 Tomcats – attack planes that were laden with bombs.
Sailors pumped their fists on the flight deck. But for the most part this was a sober exercise, carefully planned and executed. The aircraft, racing hundreds of miles to their targets in Afghanistan, needed four hours to complete their mission.
“To me, tonight was about giving America back the confidence,” said Biff, the commanding officer of Fighter Squadron 213. The pilot, who comes from Cocoa Beach, Fla., cannot be fully identified under Department of Defense rules because of security concerns. But his squadron can be named: the Fighting Black Lions.
Preparations for the mission were calm and determined, the floating city busy with activity. Planes were readied. Pilots received their final instructions. Final approval for the mission arrived only a few hours before the strikes began.
Activity increased during the day, especially in the tower, where Brian, known around here as Mini Boss, was working with Ed, known as Air Boss, an air department officer. Like choreographers at a ballet, they directed the aircraft as the build-up continued during late afternoon.
Before leading his pilots, Biff delivered a strong message, telling them, “This is an historic event. This will go down in history. This event will be remembered for a long time.”
It was the second day on the job for the Vinson’s commander, Capt. Rick Wren, a Naval Academy graduate. He sat in his sparse state room and was notably calm, eating a turkey sandwich.
“I’ve got a lot more of a job to do, and we don’t know what (Osama bin Laden’s) response is going to be. Why don’t you watch CNN and see what he is doing in 48 hours.”
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