set condition one mike: June 2010

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Magnetic material control is everybody's business

This picture was posted on the door of the CIC (Combat Information Center) of the USS Pluck, MSO464 with the caption"Magnetic material control is everybody's business".

In this official U.S. Navy photograph, Republic of Korea minesweeper YMS-516 is blown up by a magnetic mine, during sweeping operations west of Kalma Pando, Wonsan harbor, on 18 October 1950.
This ship was originally the U.S. Navy's YMS-148, which had served in the British Navy in 1943-46.

Condition One Mike

"Condition One Mike" (Cond1 M) is a special type of General quarters aboard Ocean Going Minesweepers. The ship is at full alert and all battle stations are manned. The crew is deployed about the weather decks, the only persons left inside the skin of the ship being the helmsman and lee helmsmen. Bed mattresses are placed on the overhead of the pilot house for the benefit of those two crewmen in the event of a mine detonation too close to the ship. The deck crew is stationed on the fantail and tasked with deploying and recovering the sweep gear. This is hazardous duty, a mixture of some of the same hazards found on flight decks, with wires under high tension and sailors working in very close proximity to such wires, explosive cutter cartridges which have to be armed one at a time as they are set out and disarmed before being brought back on board , often by a Boatswain's mate or Gunner's mate hanging over the very ass end by a safety harness. They are armed and disarmed with a small cotter pin similar to a hand grenade. The whole scene is very similar to the modern TV show "Deadliest catch", but the crab pods are mine sweeping devices, and the "catch" are big round and cylindrical BOMBS capable of sinking an aircraft carrier.