By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Theodore Quintana, Navy Office of Community Outreach
SASEBO, Japan – – A Springdale, Arkansas, native and 2012 Harber High School graduate is serving in Japan in the U.S. Navy aboard one of the forward-deployed mine countermeasures ship, USS Patriot.
Petty Officer 3rd Class Ryan Gross is a machinist's mate aboard the Avenger-class mine countermeasures ship, operating out of Sasebo, 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 machinist's mate is responsible for operating and maintaining steam turbines and reduction gears used for ship propulsion and auxiliary machinery.
Gross is proud to serve in the Pacific and fondly recalls memories of Springdale.
“Hard work and patience is what I learned form my hometown, day to day paying attention to the little things and what it means to put in a hard days of work,” said Gross.
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 Sasebo is part of that long-standing commitment, explained Navy officials.
With a crew of more than 80, Patriot is 224 feet long and weighs approximately 1,300 tons. Patriot is one of the Navy’s 11 Avenger-class mine countermeasures ships that are designed to neutralize mines from vital waterways and harbors. There are four minesweeper in Sasebo as part of the forward-deployed mine countermeasures force that are on-call to respond in the event of a mine-clearing operation in the Indo-Pacific.
MCMs in Sasebo routinely operate with allies and partners to build mine countermeasures proficiency and sustain our alliances.
“Being forward deployed is busy but you get a lot more opportunity to get underway and learn your rate and more opportunities for leadership tasks,” said Gross.
As a member of one of the U.S. Navy’s most relied-upon assets, Gross and other sailors know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes providing the Navy the nation needs.
“Serving in the Navy means representing your family to the Navy and representing the Navy to the world,” said Gross.
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.