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 As a young sailor with numerous responsibilities, Petty Officer
3rd Class Taylor Coers is an engineman is stationed on aboard the
Norfolk-based ship, a Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier
and one of only ten operational aircraft carriers in the Navy today.
Named in honor of former President Harry Truman, the carrier is
longer than 3 football fields, at nearly 1,100 feet long. The ship
is 252 feet wide and weighs more than 100,000 tons. Two nuclear
reactors push the ship through the water at more than 30 mph.
As the first female in her family to be in the US Navy, she took her
inspiration from her godfather/uncle that was in the Navy. She added
that it is an exciting time to be in the Navy, and serving aboard a
ship. She never expected to be doing so much within a couple of
years ago. “I’ve developed my confidence,” said Parker. “I
accomplished various things within my first year including my first
nine month deployment and earning my warfare qualification.”
She also said she is proud of the work as part of the Truman’s
5,500-member crew, protecting America on the world’s oceans.
“Although work on the USS Truman has been challenging, the ship is
also like a second family,” Coers explained. “This is not a man’s
job. A woman can do much as a man can do.”
Sailors’ jobs are highly varied aboard USS Harry S. Truman.
Approximately 3,000 men and women make up the ship’s company, which
keeps all parts of the aircraft carrier running smoothly — this
includes everything from washing dishes and preparing meals to
handling weaponry and maintaining the nuclear reactors. Another
2,500 or so form the air wing, the people who actually fly and
maintain the aircraft.
“I never cease to be impressed with the type and quality of work
that goes on aboard Truman each day,” said Capt. S. Robert Roth, the
carrier’s commanding officer. “Our team is filled with highly
qualified young adults – in many cases, 19 and 20 years old – and
they’re out here running a complex propulsion system safely, serving
as air traffic controllers, operating sophisticated electronics,
launching and recovering aircraft when we’re underway, and keeping
this floating city alive and functioning. I can’t express how proud
I am to be a part of this team. They performed at the highest level,
day in and day out during our recent 9-month combat deployment and
are continuing to do so here at home. Their professionalism,
dedication and commitment to excellence are second to none.”
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USS Harry S. Truman, like each of the Navy’s aircraft
carriers, is designed for a 50-year service life. When the air
wing is embarked, the ship carries more than 60 attack jets,
helicopters and other aircraft, all of which take off from and
land aboard the carrier at sea. Powerful catapults slingshot the
aircraft off the bow of the ship. The planes land aboard the
carrier by snagging a steel cable with an arresting hook that
protrudes from the rear of the aircraft. All of this makes the
Harry S. Truman a self-contained mobile airport and strike
platform, and often the first response to a global crisis
because of a carrier’s ability to operate freely in
international waters anywhere on the world’s oceans.
As a member of one of the U.S. Navy’s most relied upon assets,
Coers and other USS Harry S. Truman sailors know they are part
of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes.
“My job has been rewarding and exciting for my first nine month
cruise and make various accomplishments and seeing exciting
countries,” said Coers. “I plan to make Petty Officer 1st Class
and I hope to teach education in South Illinois.”
[Text received; NAVY OFFICE OF
COMMUNITY OUTREACH]
"Why Being There Matters"
On our planet, more than 70 percent of which is covered by water,
being there means having the ability to act from the sea. The Navy
is uniquely positioned to be there; the world's oceans give the Navy
the power to protect America's interests anywhere, and at any time.
Your Navy protects and defends America on the world's oceans. Navy
ships, submarines, aircraft and, most importantly, tens of thousands
of America's finest young men and women are deployed around the
world doing just that. They are there now. They will be there when
we are sleeping tonight. They will be there every Saturday, Sunday
and holiday this year. They are there around the clock, far from our
shores, defending America at all times.
Thank you very much for your support of the men and women in U.S.
Navy, deployed around the clock and ready to protect and defend
America on the world's oceans.
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