Navy Pilot Shares Update with Veterans
(PRWEB) May 21, 2014 -- The visit from LCDR Shaun Bellemare, USN and Kelly Stirling, Public Affairs Officer, Naval Air Station (NAS) Oceana, was a trip down memory lane for many of the men attending the recent Men's Club Breakfast at Lake Prince Woods retirement community.
With a large contingent of World War II and Korean War veterans in the audience, Ms. Stirling gave a brief overview of NAS Oceana.
The area of Virginia Beach known as Potter's Farm became Naval Auxiliary Air Station Oceana in 1943. Naval Auxiliary Landing Field Fentress and Dam Neck Annex are also included in Oceana. NAS Oceana's primary mission is to train and deploy the Navy's Atlantic Fleet strike fighter squadrons of F/A-18 Hornets and Super Hornets. The base is home to the Navy's F-14 Tomcats and East Coast F/A-18 Hornets. Some 19 squadrons comprised of 227 aircraft call Oceana home base.
LCDR Bellemare detailed his 14 years of Navy service and spent the majority of his presentation answering questions. Since some in the audience were former military pilots, a number of the questions had to do with improvements that have been made in aviation technology since World War II; the next generation of military aircraft was also discussed.
"I was amazed at the difference in maintenace for military aircraft now than when I flew in World War II," noted Herb Horst.
Lake Prince Woods residents will travel to NAS Oceana next month for a tour. They will see the flight line with all the jets lined up, visit the air traffic control tour, and receive updates from some of the pilots.
Lake Prince Woods is a residential retirement community offering an array of lifestyle choices. Located in Suffolk, Virginia, the community is nestled among 172 lovely wooded acres bordering Lake Prince. As a continuing care retirement community, Lake Prince Woods offers residential living, assisted living, memory care and skilled nursing care. To learn more, visit http://www.lakeprincewoods.org.
Susan Stone, United Church Homes and Services, http://www.uchas.org, +1 757-923-5511, [email protected]
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