Whidbey turns green into platinum

For the third year in a row, NAS Whidbey Island has received the Platinum Level of Achievement award from the Secretary of the Navy for its outstanding energy program and exceptional energy project execution. Chris Taylor, Energy and Utilities Program Manager and Jeff Hrovat, Resource Efficiency Manager, both Naval Facilities Engineering Command (NAVFAC) Northwest personnel who work here at NAS Whidbey Island were very pleased by the recognition for themselves and the base. “We’re one of only eight shore bases in the Navy to achieve the Platinum Level of Achievement,” said Taylor.
September 2, 2010
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WWII enlisted flying ace meets Embry-Riddle students

Retired Navy Capt. Lee “Paul” Mankin recently met with students attending class at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University’s Whidbey Island Campus. Mankin has the distinction of being the only enlisted pilot to shoot down five enemy aircraft during World War II. Accompanied by his wife Nada, Mankin spent several hours discussing fascinating personal accounts of dogfights and battles while serving in the Pacific Theater. In 1942, Mankin was assigned as a Pilot First Class at Navy Fighter Squadron VF-5. The squadron arrived at Guadalcanal from the carrier USS Saratoga, which had been torpedoed by a Japanese submarine. He shot down his first enemy aircraft over Guadalcanal — a Japanese “Betty” bomber — while piloting a Grumman F4F Wildcat fighter. In the two months that ensued, Mankin would shoot down four more Japanese fighter and bomber aircraft, earning him the coveted “Ace” title. It was only after becoming a flying ace that Mankin accepted a commission as a naval officer.
September 2, 2010
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Electronic attack community honors their own

In the newly-renamed Haviland Hangar, Capt. Thomas Slais, commander, Electronic Attack Wing, U.S. Pacific Fleet, recognized top Sailors Aug. 19 during the annual Electronic Attack Awards ceremony. Special guests in attendance were Capt. Gregory Johnston, NAS Whidbey Island Commanding Officer; Steven Hogan, Northrop-Grumman; Mike Chotkowski, Pratt and Whitney; Kevin Fogarty, The Boeing Company; Representative Barbara Bailey, Washington State Representative District 10; and City of Oak Harbor Mayor Jim Slowik. Slais signed and presented Electronic Attack award winners with a Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal, and a plaque provided by Northrop-Grumman and the Pratt and Whitney Corporation. The winners are:
September 2, 2010
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New leadership for Zappers

After a successful tour of command of Electronic Attack Squadron (VAQ) 130 Cmdr. Jeff Hammer handed the lead to Cmdr. Robert Coughlin, Aug. 12, while airborne over USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75). Hammer commanded the Zappers since May 2009 and led them through a seemingly endless Fleet Readiness Training Cycle that included detachments to Air Wing Fallon (parts 1 and 2), TSTA, JTFX, COMP2EX, COMP3EX, and COMP4EX. With his command tour now complete he travels to the Joint Forces Staff College for training and then to the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, Washington, D.C. “The Zappers are the most professional, motivated, and dedicated team I have ever had the pleasure of serving alongside,” said Coughlin. “They run hard because they want to, not because they need to.
September 2, 2010
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Navy Dental Corps closing in on 100

The Navy Dental Corps, established in 1912, celebrated its 98th birthday on Aug. 22. Naval Hospital Oak Harbor’s nine dental officers and civil service dentists, including general dentists, a dental surgeon, periodontist, endodontist and prosthodontist, gathered Aug. 20 to celebrate their heritage with a cake-cutting ceremony at Naval Hospital Oak Harbor. Letters of congratulations from the Navy Dental, Medical and Nurse Corps chiefs and the Navy Medicine force master chief were read to those in attendance. In keeping with tradition, the oldest and youngest Navy Dental staff members, Cmdr. Marisa Leandro and Lt. Michael Nguyen, respectively, cut the cake to cap the celebration.
September 2, 2010
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Helping Sailors, Marines continue a ‘culture of safety’

Robert McCormack is returning to NAS Whidbey Island, again. The last time he worked at the base, he was a senior chief explosive ordnance disposal technician with EOD Mobile Unit 11 with 22 years of active duty military service. This time heís a civilian employee taking over the important position of explosive safety officer, recently vacated by Larry MacArthur. McCormack was working for a private company doing ordnance avoidance on Adak Island in Alaska when a friend told him about the job. McCormack applied and got back to Whidbey Island in time for the interview. He said he feels lucky to get the job and to be home again. “My family’s here, I retired here and I loved living here; Iíve been a member of Team Whidbey since 1993,” McCormack said. “It’s good to formalize that relationship as a civilian employee.” McCormack’s wife works in Coupeville and his daughter is a senior Coupeville Senior High.
September 2, 2010
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Wildlife biologists come cross country for conference

Topics about Avian flu sampling, airport wildlife hazards and brown tree snakes made for lively conversation at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) 2010 Washington & Alaska State Conference held for the first time at NAS Whidbey Island last week. More than 65 people came from USDA’s Washington and Alaska staffs, including program leaders and biologists from around the country. Meeting every two years, conference leader Roger Woodruff of USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service in Olympia, Wash., said they wanted to try something different this year. “We have a program here (Bird Airstrike Hazard Program) with wildlife biologist Dane Ledbetter, so it seemed like a natural fit for us to come,” said Woodruff. “Our purpose is training and education, information exchange and interfacing with cooperatives like the U.S. Navy.”
September 2, 2010
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NHOH hosts asthma camp

Aug. 26 marked the fourth anniversary of Naval Hospital Oak Harbor’s Pediatric “Asthma Camp.” During the four-hour event, three healthcare providers and five support staff collaborated to provide an innovative, hands-on learning experience for 18 pediatric asthma patients and their parents. The camp began with a spirited interactive CD-ROM video navigated by Licensed Vocation Nurse Kathryn Cabigting and narrated by popular celebrities such as Cuba Gooding Jr. and news correspondent Diane Sawyer. Camp participants, ages 3-12, journeyed through a maze of bronchioles, alveoli and other lung structures. Along the way, they battled “asthma villains” such as smoke and a variety of allergens. This vivid visual landscape helped campers grasp the concepts of effective asthma management. Additional activities included Asthma Jeopardy, Bronchial Binoculars and Lungo Bingo. In Asthma Jeopardy, the 7-12 year olds demonstrated their knowledge of asthma medications, asthma action plans including symptom recognition and asthma triggers. In Bronchial Binoculars, participants, the 3-6 age children created normal versus abnormal bronchioles. Both groups joined in to play Lungo Bingo, a game to help them recognize symptoms associated with their asthma.
September 2, 2010
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Lancers see deployment on horizon

The VAQ-131 Lancers went aboard USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) in July for Composite Training Unit Exercise (COMPTUEX). The squadron, with Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 2 executed both Unit Level Training and Large Force Exercises in preparation for their upcoming deployment. “COMPTUEX was a superb opportunity for the Lancer Team to fully integrate with CVW-2 and the Abe Lincoln Strike Group,” said Cmdr. Tom Huerter, Lancer Commanding Officer. “As we complete workups, we stand ready to proceed West on deployment and look forward to the challenges that lie ahead.” Members of the squadron were put to the test during the 18-day exercise by Strike Force Training Pacific. This team was aboard the USS Lincoln to assess the carrier’s ability to meet certain metrics, proving the carrier and air wing’s combat readiness.
August 26, 2010
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Spreading kindness in war and peace

When Ingeborg Johnston was a teenager, she was a German nurse helping soldiers injured in World War II. When she was in her thirties, she was a Red Cross nurse helping American amputees from the Vietnam War get their balance back in swimming pools. And now in her eighties, she’s helping men and women, civilians and veterans online, with food and exercise advice. The energetic wife of an energetic Navy captain, Jim Johnston, has learned many things but perhaps the most important was in World War II.
August 26, 2010
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