By
Navy Office of Community Outreach Public Affairs
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - A 2005 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 Nick Gettler
is a naval air crewman
serving with Commander, Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing 11.
A naval air crewman is responsible for tracking
submarines.
“I localize and track
submarines using operating systems with those capabilities and report my
findings,” said Gettler. “The best part of this job is flying
around the world and visiting places I would not have seen if I had not joined
the Navy."
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 Gettler 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 Gettler
on our team!"
Gettler is part of a crew that is transitioning
to the P-8A Poseidon and preparing for deployment in the future.
“There is a lot of camaraderie in this
command," said Gettler. "The command is very proficient
in winning awards for being the best squadron and meeting demanding missions."
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
integrating into a team and being a part of the team,” said Gettler.