By
Navy Office of Community Outreach Public Affairs
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - A 2009 Riverview
High School graduate and Tampa, 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 2nd Class Jadahiel Montilla
is a naval air crewman serving with Commander, Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing 11.
A naval air crewman is responsible for operating the
radar aboard the P-8.
“I utilize the onboard systems to locate and track
surface and subsurface contacts as well as monitor and report my findings," said Montilla. "We
also conduct search and rescue with the Coast Guard, depending on our
location. The flying part is what I like about my
job and to say that is my office. The crew can be together for a year so we
become close and depend on each other. It’s good camaraderie."
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 Montilla 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 Montilla on
our team!"
Montilla is part of a crew that has begun
transition to the P-8A Poseidon and is preparing for deployment in the future.
“I like this command for the
professional consistency and the high priority placed on the mission,” said
Montilla. "Being stationed in Florida is
not bad either."
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 about
responsibility as I transitioned from high school to petty officer," said Montilla. "I can take
that aspect and apply to everything else and succeed in any endeavor."