Alumni Gazette

Shaping the Ship

“Pierside” in Mayport, Florida, for 10 months of maintenance, the U.S.S. John F. Kennedy is expected to head back to sea later this year, and Navy Lt. Commander David Kemp ’91 will be aboard to help keep the nearly 5,000-member crew sharp.

As training officer for the 23-story, 1,052-foot aircraft carrier, he’s in charge of 10 teams, each training in a different area, including combat systems, damage control, and air operations. He helps design drills, conduct training, and analyze lessons for future improvement. The varied and exacting training was put to good use in 2001, when the Kennedy was deployed to the North Arabian Sea to support ground troops in Afghanistan.

“The guys on the ground were glad to see our aircraft overhead,” Kemp says.

The Kennedy trains at sea for a month at a time, where the crew practices for missions, launching and landing 85 aircraft on the 80,000 square feet of flight deck.

“Our assignment right now is training and getting ready to get back in the fight against the war on terrorism,” Kemp says.

Active deployment on the ship lasts for six months at a time.