Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Tim Miller
LEMOORE, Calif.- A 1998 The Cardinal High School graduate and Bulacan, Philippines, native is currently serving with a U.S. Navy strike fighter squadron which flies one of the world’s most advanced warplanes.
Chief Petty Officer Eduardo Bolos is a personnel specialist with the Kestrels of VFA 137, which operates out of Naval Air Station Lemoore. A Navy personnel specialist is responsible for maintaining financial and service records for all personnel in command. “Growing up in the Philippines, I was taught to not take everything for granted,” Bolos said. “I learned the importance of being grateful and just to appreciate the small things. In the Navy, I value my work and the people I work with.”
Members of VFA 137 work with the F/A 18 Super Hornet, one of the most advanced aircraft in the world. The Super Hornet takes off from and lands on Navy aircraft carriers at sea and is capable of conducting air-to-air combat as well as striking targets on land. It is approximately 61 feet long, has a loaded weight of 51,000 lbs., and a max speed of 1,190 miles per hour.
Operating from sea aboard aircraft carriers, the Super Hornet gives the Navy the power to protect America’s interests anywhere, at any time. The versatile jet has the ability to destroy targets located hundreds of miles inland, without the need to get another country’s permission to operate within its borders.
“Strike Fighter Wing, U. S. Pacific Fleet, based at Naval Air Station Lemoore, California, is the heart of Naval Aviation,” said Capt. James S. Bates, Deputy Commodore, Strike Fighter Wing, U.S. Pacific. “The sailors assigned to SFWP always exceed expectations and produce amazing results through team work and dedication to their department, squadron, the U.S. Navy and their family. Naval Aviation is a challenging occupation, but our sailors work day in and day out to provide fully mission capable aircraft and fully qualified aircrew to ensure leadership is able to answer national level tasking. I am humbled to be able to lead the sailors of SFWP and I am proud to call Lemoore my home.”
Bolos has military ties with family members who serve and is honored to begin a family tradition.
“My cousin served in the Navy,” said Bolos. “I was the first in my family to join the Navy. I think I had a small influence on her decision to join.”
Bolos is also proud of making the rank of chief petty officer while serving with VFA 137.
As a member of one of the U.S. Navy’s most relied-upon assets, Bolos 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 everything to me,” Bolos said. “It's a legacy I will leave behind. It is something that my children will be proud of, that their dad was a part of the world's finest Navy.”