By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Robert Zahn, Navy Office of Community Outreach
YOKOSUKA – An Apple Valley, Minnesota, native and 2005 East View High School graduate is serving in the U.S. Navy forward-deployed aboard the guided missile destroyer, USS Curtis Wilbur.
Petty Officer 1st Class Justin Olson is a gunner's mate aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer operating out of Yokosuka, Japan. The ship routinely deploys to protect alliances, enhance partnerships, and be ready to respond if a natural disaster occurs in the region.
A Navy gunner's mate is responsible for the operation and maintenance of guided missile launching systems, underwater explosive weapons such as torpedoes, rockets and missiles, gun mounts and other ordnance equipment, and small arms magazines.
Olson is proud to serve in the Pacific and fondly recalls memories of Apple Valley.
“I learned from all the years on my swim team to always keep going no matter how tough things get, to keep pushing until it’s not rough anymore,” said Olson. “Growing up in Minnesota you learn to always find the silver lining,”
Moments like that makes it worth serving around the world ready at all times to defend America’s interests. With more than 50 percent of the world's shipping tonnage and a third of the world's crude oil passing through the region, the United States has historic and enduring interests in this part of the world. The Navy's presence in Yokosuka is part of that long-standing commitment, explained Navy officials.
“It’s rough being away from family but this command sort of becomes your new family and we all look out for each other,” said Olson.
Olson is also proud of instructing at a gunner’s mate school. He says its rewarding to know that he’s able to teach new sailors coming into his job field. He enjoys reconnecting with his junior sailors who recognize that he had a lot to do with their success.
Destroyers are warships that provide multi-mission offensive and defensive capabilities. They are 510 feet long and armed with tomahawk land-attack cruise missiles, Standard Missile-3 and newer variants of the SM missile family, advanced gun systems and close-in gun systems. Destroyers are deployed globally and can operate independently or as part of carrier strike groups, surface action groups, or amphibious readiness groups. Their presence helps the Navy control the sea. Sea control is the precondition for everything else the Navy does. It cannot project power, secure the commons, deter aggression, or assure allies without the ability to control the seas when and where desired.
Curtis Wilbur has anti-aircraft capability armed with long range missiles intended for air defense to counter the threat to friendly forces posed by manned aircraft, anti-ship, cruise and tactical ballistic missiles.
As a member of one of the U.S. Navy’s most relied-upon assets, Olson and other sailors know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes providing the Navy the nation needs.
"The Navy’s made me a better leader and more confident,” said Olson. “Being deployed here and the type of work that we do forges a certain type of person. This type of work will either make you stronger or break you.”
Seventh Fleet, which is celebrating its 75th year in 2018, spans more than 124 million square kilometers, stretching from the International Date Line to the India/Pakistan border; and from the Kuril Islands in the North to the Antarctic in the South. Seventh Fleet's area of operation encompasses 36 maritime countries and 50 percent of the world’s population with between 50-70 U.S. ships and submarines, 140 aircraft, and approximately 20,000 sailors in the 7th Fleet.