By
Navy Office of Community Outreach Public Affairs
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - A Salvador, Brazil
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 1st Class Kleber Alves is an aviation
structural mechanic serving with Commander, Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing 11.
A Navy aviation structural mechanic is
responsible for performing audits to ensure that sailors are compliant to
proper procedures while working on the aircraft.
“My job is great because I get to gain
knowledge about my job everyday while helping other sailors with their jobs,”
said Alves.
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 Alves 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 Alves on our
team!"
Alves is part of a crew that began a
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.
“This command gives me an opportunity
to serve my country,” said Alves.
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 a lot as far as
personal growth,” said Alves. “It has given me a sense of responsibility,
becoming self reliant and how to take control of my own actions.”