By
Navy Office of Community Outreach Public Affairs
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - A 2008 Trevor
Browne High School graduate and Phoenix, Arizona 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 2nd Class Luis Gonzalez is a naval
air crewman (operator) serving with Commander, Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing
11.
A naval air crewman is responsible
for proficient detection of foreign submarines to ensure the safety of U.S.
property.
“I enjoy that my job gives me the
opportunity to fly,” said Gonzalez. “The camaraderie with your flight crew is
something that is unparalleled because of the missions and having to rely on
one another.”
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 Gonzalez 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 Gonzalez
on our team!"
Gonzalez is part of a crew that began a
transition to the P-8A Poseidon and is preparing for deployment in the future.
“This command does a great job in being
there for the sailors,” said Gonzalez. “This command understands that we are
more than sailors and we are people first and they take care of us.”
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
person,” said Gonzalez. “I have learned a lot about myself, I have learned
things that will assist me for the rest of my life. The traits that the Navy
has instilled in me are something that can relate to the civilian world.”