Big brother tanks Ballarat

]Volume 49, No 10, June 15, 2006

FILL ’ER UP: The USS Ronald Reagan, refills HMAS Ballarat in the Gulf.

By SBLT Alistair Walsh

The crew of HMAS Ballarat had the chance to get “up close and personal” with one of mightiest naval craft in the world while en-route to Dubai recently.

Needing fuel to complete the journey from the Gulf to Dubai on April 21, the top-up was provided by the latest and greatest Nimitz class aircraft carrier from the United States of America, the USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76).

Weighing in at 102,000 tons, with an overall length of 333m, she is the biggest carrier in the world.

After taking station a mile astern, Ballarat increased in speed and slowly ranged up beside the towering frame of the mighty aircraft carrier, with Ronald Reagan’s curious deck crew and pilots peering down upon her.

After getting into the correct position, lines were passed across, the gun line first, fired from rifles on Ronald Reagan, before the span wire was hauled across by the crew.

After successfully connecting the fuel hose, pumping started as the sound system on Ballarat’s upper decks played various classic Australian and American 80s hits, much to the amusement of sailors on the carrier.

As the last lines dropped into the water and were recovered by the carrier, Ballarat increased in speed and slowly pulled away, initially taking up position one mile astern of the carrier before driving up beside her, sitting half a mile on her port side ready to “defend the flag” when needed.

The jet pilots on Ronald Reagan were about to strut their stuff and Ballarat’s crew had box seats to watch the action.

With many of the ships crew positioned on the flight deck and gun direction platform with cameras at the ready, the first F/A-18 Hornet could be heard warming up, the throaty roar of the jet engines rolling across the waves.

The sharp hiss of the steam catapult was the first indication that things were getting under way as the sleek body of the jet launched off the front of the carrier and climbed into the sky.

Over the next 15 minutes another five jets and a supporting E2C Hawkeye were flung into the sky, much to the amazement of Ballarat’s crew, most of whom had only witnessed carrier flight operations in the Hollywood movie Top Gun.

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