By
Navy Office of Community Outreach Public Affairs
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - A 2010 Fort
Walton Beach High School graduate and Fort Walton Beach, Florida native is
serving in the U.S. Navy aboard Naval Air Station Jacksonville, the largest
base in the Southeast Region and third largest in the nation.
Petty Officer 3rd Class LaDrake Bell is
an aircrew
survival equipmentman serving with Commander, Patrol and Reconnaissance
Wing 11.
A Navy aircrew survival equipmentman is
responsible for keeping parachutes, life rafts, personal flight gear and other
aviation survival gear in proper working condition.
“My job is very important at this
command," said Bell. "The safety of people’s lives is
my responsibility."
According to Navy officials, Wing 11’s history and
reputation remain unparalleled since being commissioned on August 15, 1942.
Throughout the decades, Wing 11 has continued to fly combat missions in direct support of
the troops on the ground and delivered
traditional maritime capabilities, real-time intelligence, surveillance and
reconnaissance.
Beginning in the
1960s, the P-3C Orion, a land-based, long-range anti-submarine warfare patrol
aircraft, replaced the P-2V Neptune fleet. After 50 years of faithful
service and the 50th anniversary of Maritime Patrol and
Reconnaissance Force, the P-3C Orion is being phased out of the fleet,
according to Navy officials.
The P-8A is a modified Boeing airframe
featuring a fully connected, state-of-the-art, open architecture mission system
designed for long-range anti-submarine warfare; anti-surface warfare; and
intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions, Navy officials
explained.
"The U.S. Navy sometimes asks the
impossible of our people. It is sailors that make the impossible possible,”
said Capt. Anthony Corapi, Commodore, Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing 11. “Petty Officer Bell is one example of a selfless
servant of our nation. These heroes ask
for very little recognition and perform their daily job with pride and
professionalism defending freedom and our way of life around the world. Each member of the Navy's combat team is
crucial to our success. I am very proud to have Petty Officer Bell on our
team!"
Bell is part of a crew that began transition
to the P-8A Poseidon in 2014. Earlier this year, squadron VP-45 entered the
Inter-Deployment Readiness Cycle in preparation for their first deployment as a
P-8A squadron.
“Serving with VP-45 is like being with
family," said Bell. "I like the camaraderie and I get
to meet more people in different rates and different shops."
According to Navy officials, the Navy
continues to meet milestone after milestone on this world-class mission and is
providing an aircraft with superior capabilities to the men and women in
uniform that will have a lasting legacy promoting a global maritime strategy.
“The Navy has taught me how to be a
better leader and I am more outspoken about my beliefs,” said Bell.