Gosport - May 15, 2015

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Vol. 79, No. 19

VISIT GOSPORT ONLINE: www.gosportpensacola.com

May 15, 2015

Construction to begin May 18 at back gate By Janet Thomas Gosport Staff Writer

Drivers should take note of construction signs going up at the Naval Air Station Pensacola (NASP) back gate off Blue Angel Parkway. The signs are the first step in a sixmonth construction project to install an automated vehicle gate (AVG), said Sam Lee, construction manager with the NASP Facilities Engineering and Acquisition Division (FEAD). Work is scheduled to begin May 18, he said. The gate will remain open, but drivers will need to be prepared for unexpected traffic delays, said NASP Security Director Paul Wright. Lee has worked out a construction schedule that should help make things go smoothly. Work will not begin until after the peak traffic period of the day has ended, he said. “During the construction, we are not going to let the contractor start until 8 a.m. every day, so between 5:30 a.m. and 8 a.m. there is not a problem,” Lee said. But after 8 a.m., traffic flow will be reduced to one lane in and one lane out. Six to eight workers will be active in the area, Lee said. There should not be any big hold ups,

but there will be other challenges, Lee said. At times, there will be open trenches in the area and cars will have to travel over the trenches on steel plates. Wright said it will be an active construction zone and drivers will need to use caution. “If you have to stop, don’t get out of your vehicle,” he said. Drivers also are encouraged to use the NASP Main Gate on Navy Boulevard when possible. The installation of the automatic gate is part of a Navywide mandate to free up security personnel for other duties. Several other bases already have automatic gates, Wright said. “In an effort to reduce manpower and to save government funding, we are automating this gate,” Wright said. “However, in the meantime we are continuing to man it as we always have.” After completion of the back gate project, security personnel will remain on duty and the automatic function will be used when traffic is light, Wright said. Another upgrade also was recently completed at NASP’s gates, Lee said. LED lights were installed. “It is an energy saver and it also improves the lighting on scene,” Lee said.

National Naval Aviation Museumʼs ʻSymposium 15ʼ ... Naval Air Station Pensacola Commanding Officer Capt. Keith Hoskins greets the crowd May 7 at the opening of the annual naval aviation symposium at the National Naval Aviation Museum. The Naval Aviation Museum Foundation presents the twoday symposium to highlight historical events in which U.S. naval aviation has played a major role. For more information about the symposium, and more photos, go to www.NavalAviationMuseum.org. Photo by Janet Thomas

Doolittle Raider celebrated at NAS Pensacola Story, photo by Mike O’Connor Gosport Associate Editor

The North American B-25 Mitchell bomber and “USS Hornet” (CV 8) setting made Doolittle Raider, retired Lt. Col. Richard Cole, smile. So did the 600-plus service members that lined up to meet him at a “Doolittle Raider Celebration” May 8 at Forrest Sherman Field onboard NAS Pensacola. NAS Pensacola’s Training Air Wing Six (TraWing Six) and the Air Force’s 479th Flying Training Group (FTG) joined together to welcome Cole and hold a question-and-answer session with the World War II flyer at Sherman Field’s Aircraft Intermediate Maintenance De-

Retired Lt. Col. Richard Cole, center, shares a candid moment with Air Force Capt. Meghan O’Rourke, left, and Navy Lt. Cmdr. Collin Kightlinger.

partment hangar. Cole, who is 99 years old, flew as copilot to Lt. Col. Jimmy Doolittle on the

April 18, 1942, raid on Tokyo and other locations in Japan. It was the first attack of the war on the Japanese home islands, and

coming less than six months after the attack on Pearl Harbor, provided a needed boost for American morale. The B-25 bomber was flown in for the occasion by T. Reilly Vintage Aircraft Inc. Local dive shop MBT Divers joined in by lending their aircraft carrier parade float, freshly painted with USS Hornet’s hull number. With the historical backdrop and catered food and beverages, a crowd of mostly student aviators shook hands with Cole as he signed autographs before speaking. “The purpose of tonight’s event is to bring the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps team here at NAS Pensacola back together again,” Air Force Lt. Col. Rob

See Raider on page 2

Troops to Teachers job fair tomorrow (May 16) By Kim Stefansson ECSD Public Affairs

The Escambia County School District (ECSD) will be hiring teachers; a lot of teachers, for the 2015-16 school year, and as a result is hosting a Teacher Job Fair tomorrow, May 16, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Booker T. Washington High School, 6000 College Parkway in Pensacola (across from Sam’s Club). “The goal for the job fair is to identify candidates to fill an anticipated 200-400 teacher positions before the start of the 2015-2016 school year,” said Vicki Gibowski, ECSD director of middle school education. “The district is interested in hiring a wide range of teachers; new teachers

right out of universities and colleges, experienced teachers interested in moving to Pensacola and positions perfect for those looking to start a second career such as service members coming out of the military.” Gibowski added that there will also be education support positions available for the new school year including classroom and administrative support, transportation and maintenance. “The sooner we can get the teaching and other positions hired, the sooner they can be assigned to schools, acclimate and attend summer training opportunities.” ECSD offers support for brand new,

Energy-saving LED light fixtures being installed at NAS Pensacola ... Old-style metal halide and mercury vapor parking lot and streetlights are being replaced with energy- and cost-saving LED lights, said Clyde Hamilton, superintendent with base contractor R.L. Burns. About 622 LED light fixtures will go in at NASP; 385 at NASP Corry Station. (Above) NASP command headquarters, the Walter Leroy Richardson Bldg. (Bldg. 1500) gets new parking lot lights installed May 8. Photo by Mike O’Connor

See Teachers on page 2

Published by Ballinger Publishing, a private firm in no way connected with the Department of the Navy. Opinions contained herein are not official expressions of the Department of the Navy nor do the advertisements constitute Department of the Navy, NAS Pensacola or Ballinger Publishing’s endorsement of products or services advertised.


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