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USS Peleliu Sailors Stay the Course

Navy Newsstand

Story Number: NNS031027-05

Release Date: 10/27/2003 12:58:00 PM

By Journalist 3rd Class Ben Hoisington, USS Peleliu Public Affairs

ABOARD USS PELELIU, At Sea (NNS) -- Since Amphibious Assault Ship USS Peleliu (LHA 5) left its homeport of San Diego Aug. 22, it has traveled more than 9,400 miles to reach the Northern Arabian Gulf. The men and women of Peleliu's Navigation Department ensured the ship reached her destination safely during the transit.

During the course of the ship's travels, Peleliu navigated through the Pacific Ocean, the Philippine Sea, through the Suragao Straits, the Sulu Sea, the Straits of Mallacce, the South China Sea, the Arabian Sea and the Straits of Hormuz before arriving in the Gulf.

Peleliu's navigation team is made up of quartermasters (QM) and signalmen (SM), each with their own separate trade skills and responsibilities.

Quartermasters keep track of where the ship is located at all times, lay out new courses, maintain the ship's charts and logs, and ensure the chain of command has current updates on the ship's course, speed and heading.

The team uses a variety of technology, both new and old, to determine the ship's position.

"As Quartermasters-of-the-Watch, we're constantly plotting our course on the chart using a variety of methods," said Quartermaster 3rd Class Mark Elliott. "We use the Global Positioning System (GPS) for tracking the ship's position through satellites, bearing points (landmarks) to fix the ship's position and celestial navigation in the open ocean."

Celestial navigation is the method used to find the ship's position using a sextant and the position of the sun and stars. This is the oldest form of navigation known to man, and still relevant in today's modern world of satellites.

"This is one of the cooler parts of the job. There's a standing order for the QMs to take the ship's position every night by the stars to keep in practice," Elliott said. "Using the stars has been the primary tool of navigators throughout the history of ocean travel so it's pretty cool to be using skills that were first used hundreds of years ago. It's definitely my favorite part of the job."

Without the quartermaster's constant vigilance and dedication to the mission, Peleliu could find herself in harm's way without even knowing it.

"If we don't keep our charts constantly updated there's no way of telling what's in the water in front of us," Elliot said. "If I plot something wrong, say for example, I place something on land that should be in the water, the ship could be in serious danger. Running into a rock has the potential of sinking the ship and jeopardizing the lives of the entire crew."

The other half of the navigation team is made up of signalmen. These communication specialists speak to other ships through the use of a flashing light, semaphore and flag hoists. They also provide personnel for the expert lookout watch and are considered to be experts at rendering honors and ceremonies for dignitaries.

"Semaphore is a form of communicating using flags and our arms in certain positions to speak with other ships," said Signalman 2nd Class Keith Baker.

Peleliu's signalmen are responsible for identifying vessels or obstacles on the horizon and determining if they're friendly, neutral or potentially harmful to the ship.

"I really didn't know what a signalman was until I went through "A" school and came to the ship," said Signalman 3rd Class Gary Hanson. "I did a bit of research on my own about the rating and learned about my rating's history. Signalman, quartermasters and boatswain's mates have been around since the formation of the Navy and long before our Navy was even formed. It's like being part of history. I like having a connection to such a rich tradition."

While the invention of radio, satellite communications and the Internet have replaced some of the day-to-day use of a signalman's skills, they constantly train for the day in the event high-tech communications fail and their talents are called upon to assist Peleliu.

"If there was no radio, we'd become the ship's primary form of communication," said Baker. "We'd be the only ones who could send messages from ship to ship and captain to captain. In Peleliu's situation, as the flagship of Expeditionary Strike Group 1, we'd be relaying the admiral's orders to the rest of the strike group. Signalman would let them know what formation to go into and pass along operational messages."

Whether it's reading the stars to plot the ship's location or passing along vital information, the Sailors of Peleliu's navigation department stand ready to aid the ship as she continues her mission in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.