Naval Station Mayport, Fla. - A 2005 Pleasantville High School graduate and Atlantic City, New Jersey, native is serving aboard the future USS Wichita, a littoral combat ship homeported in Mayport, Florida.
Chief Petty Officer Angel Rodriguez is a quartermaster responsible for safety of navigation for the ship. “You have the best view on the ship,” said Rodriguez. "You perform jobs that most people wonder about when they go on a cruise ship, like driving and navigating using paper charts."
Wichita is a Freedom variant littoral combat ship that is a resilient flexible warship, designed from the keel up to affordably take on new capabilities - from the most advanced sensors, to the latest missiles, to cutting-edge cyber systems. Its speed, strength and versatility make it a critical tool to help our sailors achieve the mission.
Littoral combat ships are a fast, agile, mission-focused platform designed to operate in near-shore environments, while capable of open-ocean tasking, and win against 21st-century coastal threats such as submarines, mines, and swarming small craft.
Rodriguez has carried lessons learned from his hometown into his military service.
“Living in my hometown taught me the importance of respect and humility,” he said. "You may not like who you work with, but you need to respect the ranks."
The Surface Force is focused on providing lethal, ready, well-trained, and logistically supported surface forces to fight today and in the future. The highly professional men and women serving aboard USS Wichita are some of our nation's best and brightest, and are typical of the talented Sailors on duty in our Navy around the world today. They are prepared to go into harm's way, properly trained, and ready to carry out orders in defense of our nation's freedom.
“Chief Rodriguez has been a vital part of the crew,” said Cmdr. Nathan Rowan, Wichita's commanding officer. “He is unique in his duties and responsibilities in that if he gets it wrong, the ship can sail in grave navigational danger. I am very proud of his level of knowledge and his work ethic. He has achieved a qualification such as being a ship driver, that most Sailors never have the opportunity or are afforded the responsibility in their career. It is a highly trusted position, but Chief Rodriguez has proven he is up to his one sole task, keeping the ship safe! I am fortunate to have him aboard.”
Rodriguez is the first in his family to serve in the Navy and his proudest accomplishment was achieving the rank of chief petty officer.
“A Navy chief is a rank that a lot of people strive for, but only a few actually reach,” he added. "The sense of heritage and tradition coupled with the additional responsibilities make it challenging and exciting."
As a member of one of the U.S. Navy's high-tech and lethal surface combatant ships, Rodriguez and other Wichita sailors are proud to be part of a warfighting team.
“Serving in the Navy means a great deal to me,” said Rodriguez. “I am contributing to something greater than myself and it has taken me to places I could have only dreamed of.”
Wichita is the fourteenth littoral combat ship to enter the fleet and the seventh of the Freedom variant. It is the third Navy combat ship named after Wichita, the largest city in Kansas. The first USS Wichita (CA 45), a heavy cruiser, was commissioned in 1939 and served in World War II. The second, Wichita-class Replenishment Oiler (AOR-1) was commissioned in 1968 and served in the Vietnam War.
The warship will be officially placed into active service at a Jan. 12, 2019 commissioning ceremony at Naval Station Mayport, Florida - the ship's assigned homeport. The ceremony includes “bringing the ship to life” and other orders rooted in centuries old naval tradition.
For information about the commissioning ceremony, visit https://usswichita.org/.