The Carl Vinson Voice is an internal document produced by and for the crew of the USS Carl Vinson and their families. Its contents do not necessarily reflect the official views of the U.S. Government or the Departments of Defense or

the Navy and do not imply any endorsement thereby.

Story by MC2 Byron LinderUSS Carl Vinson Staff Writer

See SAVING` page 3

VOL 1 / NO 51 December 12, 2010

A ship’s deployment offers a variety of opportunities for professional and personal benefits. While a renewed dedication to physical fitness or achieving personal and warfare qualifications are at the forefront of many minds, improving your financial fitness deserves equal attention.

One way Sailors on board Carl Vinson can maximize their money’s effectiveness during deployment is through the Navy’s Thrift Savings

Plan (TSP), which allows Sailors to maximize the money they are saving by distributing it through investments.

For Sailors not currently participating in TSP, Chief Machinist Mate (SW/AW) Leodias Jack, Vinson’s command financial specialist, says there has never been a better time to start with the newly revitalized program.

“When I first signed up for TSP, you were allowed to invest a percentage of income and 100% of your special pay, and it would sit in a government fund,”

said Jack. “Now it’s focused on Sailors at different points in their career, with about 50% in higher-risk funds in the stock market and 20% and 30%

in government funds. Even with market fluctuations, you have time to make up for losses.”

“A senior person might be hesitant because they’re getting close to that retirement age and doesn’t have that time to make up losses in the market like the Sailor just coming in does,” said Jack.

But for senior Sailors, Jack explained how the TSP percentages of higher risk investments shrank in proportion with time in service,

being replaced by government-backed funds.Jack encouraged Sailors to think of their financial decisions as steps to

taking care of themselves in the future.“I want Sailors to look and see how their grandparents are living. Are

they still working to make ends meet and do you want to be in that same position?”

Financial fitness is becoming more and more essential to many facets of a Sailor’s life, said Jack.

“If you’re always in debt, and the command is getting (letters of indebtedness),

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Electronics Technician 2nd Class Michael Ramas-anto has a heavy workload, but he’s not afraid to say “yes” to more tasks when they fall into his lap.

Ramasanto, or “Ramo”

as he’s called by his ship-mates in Combat Systems Department CS-5 Divi-sion, wears many hats. He’s the system administrator for Carl Vinson’s Carrier Tactical Support Center (CV-TSC) and Under Sea Warfare-Decision Support System (USW-DSS). When he’s not busy managing these networks or serving as the work center super-visor for Anti-Submarine Warfare-Machinery Con-trol Monitoring System (ASW-MCMS), he’s busy with maintenance, trouble-shooting, and repairing servers and hard drives.

But what’s unique about Ramasanto, is the fact that he’s the only CV-TSC technician on board. He’s the one people call when there’s a glitch in the sys-tem. And what’s more, he didn’t receive any formal schooling to maintain and repair that system.

Scott Drew, a civilian contrac-tor who came on board to provide training support during Vinson’s re-cent Fleet Synthet-ic Training (FST) exercise, described his impression of Ramasanto.

“I’ve worked with numerous CV-TSC techni-cians from all [carriers] on nu-merous occasions, and [Ramasanto] is by far one of the best. This is espe-

cially impressive given that he had to learn everything through trial and error or by on-the-job training (OJT),” said Drew.

Drew was also impressed by Ramasanto’s work ethic.

“[During FST] he came in extremely early and worked well past the work day, even staying ‘til 8 p.m. one night,” Drew added. “He never complained about the long hours. He busted his butt every day I was there and worked ex-tremely hard to support the mission at hand.”

Ramasanto’s Leading Chief Petty Officer (LCPO), Chief Fire Controlman (SW) Christopher Mascio-vecchio, said Ramasanto is a stand-out Sailor because he takes pride and owner-ship in his work.

“If his name is associ-ated with a job, he wants to make sure he puts 100 percent into it,” said Mas-ciovecchio. “He’s highly motivated. Once he starts working, he’s like a diesel engine building momen-tum, and it’s hard to slow him down.”

What keeps Ramasanto going like a diesel engine is a lesson he was taught when he was growing up.

“It was instilled into me that if you work hard you’ll get far,” Ramasanto said. “People base their impres-sion of you on how well you do your job…that’s how your reputation gets made. You earn respect from the work you do.”

Taking pride in his work

is something that’s very im-portant to Ramasanto.

“Knowing I played my part to keep the systems running feels good,” he said. “Ownership is a big part of it. I treat my systems like they’re my babies.”

Ramasanto isn’t shy about the things he’d like to achieve and the goals he’s set for himself.

“I’d like to make Chief one day… no, wait, make that Master Chief,” he said, laughing. “I also want to get both my surface and air warfare pins and work on getting my master’s degree in business…I think that would really help me at the khaki level. And one day I’d like to start a small busi-ness, maybe open up an Italian restaurant.”

Despite all the praise he’s gotten, Ramasanto remains humble about his accom-plishments.

“I feel like the recogni-tion should be given to the department as a whole,” he said. “I’m just a small part of Combat Systems. We’re content knowing we sup-port the mission and keep the systems running.”

Ultimately, Ramasanto explained his dedication to his job comes down to one word: respect.

“It’s important to have respect for the people you work with and the job you do. Especially the job of serving your country, and the fact that we even GET to serve our country…par-ticularly one of our nation’s most valuable assets.”

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Publisher Capt. Bruce H. Lindsey

Commanding Officer

Executive Editors Lt. Cmdr. Erik Reynolds

Public Affairs Officer

Lt. Erik Schneider Deputy Public Affairs Officer

Managing Editor MC2 Ashley Van Dien

Photo Editor MC2 Adrian White

Layout and DesignMC3 Patrick Green

Staff Writers/Photographers

MC2(SW) James EvansMC2 Byron Linder

MC3 Jessica RobertsonMCSN Christopher HwangSTAFF

Story by MC3 Jessica RobertsonUSS Carl Vinson Staff Writer

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there’s a lot of stress and you’re not focused on what you need to be doing,” he said.

Jack encouraged Sailors to use Vinson’s departmental command financial specialists (CFS) to formulate solid monetary plans.

“We’re here to encourage Sailors on smart spending. All the financial specialists go to the same five-day training class, and have a refresher course every three years. We can help you decrease your spending, and we can help you budget for a new baby. If your CFS isn’t available, you can come see me anytime.”

Further information on TSP is available at www.tsp.gov.

From`SAVING` page 1

Sailors on board USS Carl Vinson and the Los Angeles-class attack submarine USS Jefferson City (SSN 759) participated in SUBFAMEX (Submarine Familiarization Exercise), a training event designed to teach Sailors how to recognize the presence of a submarine.

The event consisted of a variety of steps designed to help the VINSON Sailors sharpen their skills as watchstanders.

“First, Jefferson City came up to periscope depth to establish communications with Carl Vinson,” said Lt. Eric Eckstrand, submarine officer for Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 1. “The sub was told where it needed to go and what time it needed to be there. Once it was in position, it started raising and lowering its two periscopes, radar mast, communication masts, and snorkel mast.”

SUBFAMEX is of particular importance as the Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group, DESRON 1 and Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 17 prepare for a

western Pacific deployment.“[Submarines] are one of the biggest

threats, especially to a strike group,” said Master Chief Fire Controlman (SW) Chris Jones, Command Master Chief for DESRON 1. “By taking part in SUBFAMEX, we’re improving our ability to identify a submarine and improving our chances of keeping the strike group safe.”

The end goal, according to Eckstrand, is to become familiar with what a sub looks like in different postures, visually and via radars and electromagnetic sensors. “We have to get a good feel for how it looks and sounds because that’s how we’ll track it,” he said.

The visual aspect of recognizing a submarine is the trickiest part, said Cmdr. Kyle Michael, Vinson’s Combat Direction Center (CDC) Officer.

“You have to train your eye on what to look for, otherwise you won’t see that periscope, you’ll just see a disturbance in the water,” Kyle said.

Jones described the type of water disturbance to look for.

“A good indicator that a submarine is nearby, is what is called a ‘feather’,” he said. A feather is a very thin line of white

Carl Vinson Participates in SUBFAMEX

Story by MC3 Jessica RobertsonUSS Carl Vinson Staff Writer

Boatswain’s Mate Seaman Apprentice Christopher Handlin points at a contact while Boatswain’s Mate 3rd Class Reginald Thornton looks on during a submarine familiarization training exercise. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Christopher Hwang.

See SUB` page 4

‘foam’ across the water’s surface where it has been disturbed by the top-most portion of the submarine.

The most important thing to keep in mind when you think you’ve just seen a submarine, Kyle added, is to not let it out of your sight.

“Don’t avert your eyes, because it’s

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so hard to see amongst all the waves, and you might lose it,” he said. “It’s also important to have some kind of general idea of its location and the time you saw it.”

One Sailor who was lucky enough to spot the submarine described the experience.

“It was amazing! It was probably the sweetest thing ever in my naval career thus far,” said Seaman Steel Thomas, assigned to Deck Department 3rd Division.

Thomas was on the flight deck with the rest of his department when SUBFAMEX was in progress. He said that although he had to wait a little while, it paid off in the end.

“We were told to look, and we were looking for 15 minutes and saw nothing. Then the top structure of the submarine emerged,” Thomas said. And then, when Jefferson City submerged again, “we still had our eyes on the spot where the sub had been, and just before the periscope came up, we saw the feather and we knew what we were seeing,” he said.

There are two types of submarines: diesel-electric and nuclear. While nuclear-powered submarines can go long periods of time without ever surfacing, diesel-electric submarines can’t. A large portion of their power is supplied by batteries, which must be recharged with oxygen by raising the sub’s snorkel above the water’s surface daily or twice daily, depending on the

sub’s battery usage. This can leave the sub vulnerable to detection or attack from opposing forces.

The only other time a submarine will make itself visible, aside from onloading or offloading supplies or personnel, is when it is searching for another vessel. The rarity with which subs are visible to the naked eye is exactly the reason why Sailors must maintain vigilance.

“A sub will raise its periscope to verify an enemy vessel before it shoots, so the lookout has a very short period of time to see it, raise the alert and take action,” Michael said. “It’s the one chance you get because the sub could be taking one last look before, say, firing a torpedo.”

The task of submarine familiarization falls on the shoulders of the average Sailor on the flight deck, on the smoke deck or in the hangar bay, Michael added.

“It’s the job of everyone on the ship. Know your environment. Don’t take away from your job, but if you are outside you are a de facto lookout. Enjoy your cigarette or your sunset, but if you see something, it’s your responsibility to report it. Accidental sightings, or sightings not from an actual watchstander, are just as vital and valid as a person standing watch.”

Thomas commented on the value of the training he’d received during SUBFAMEX.

“I would not have known what to look for before…hopefully that will make me a much better watchstander,” he said.

From`SUB` page 3

Boatswain’s Mate Seaman Dontaye Oliver looks for a contact during a submarine familiarization training exercise . U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Christopher Hwang.

Holiday season is upon us! We are having a nice time together here at sea. We have beautiful decorations on the mess decks, in the Chief ’s Mess, the wardroom, and even a magnificent tree outside the Executive Officer’s cabin.

Holidays are very special at sea and in the field. It has been my privilege to celebrate holidays in Okinawa, on the high seas, in Iraq, in Diego Garcia, in Italy, and in many other places. The people who go to sea on ships, or to remote and isolated spots, or who have to stand the watch on holidays are always very kind to the chaplain. And we appreciate the sacrifices that each of us is making on behalf of the nation, our friends, and their vital interests.

All the best to each and every family that gives us the love and support we need to do this job, particularly during the holidays.

The holiday gift that you give to our ship, in the family members that sail the seas to provide opportunity, prosperity, and security to our nation and our world are appreciated, honored, and respected by all. Thanks so much for letting me share in your lives.

The gift that our Shipmates give to each other, to the fleet, to the nation, and to the world, is legendary. What better time to serve the people who love us the most than the holidays?

Have the happiest and best of holidays! And please feel free to touch base with us if there’s anything your Command Religious Ministries team can do for you.

By Cmdr. Keith ShuleyCommand Chaplain