Electrician Helps Fast Attack Submarine

VALPARAISO | For Cory Kennedy, it's pretty much just a regular job.

He provides security, Kennedy said, for the country and the government. The 2002 Valparaiso High School graduate just happens to do a lot of it in the middle of the ocean under hundreds of feet of water.

The U.S. Navy sailor, home on leave for the holidays, is an electrician's mate aboard the Los Angeles-class fast attack submarine USS San Juan.

Life aboard the 360-foot vessel, where he is one of about 10 seamen responsible for generation and distribution of electric power, can get into a routine similar to working in a factory, he said -- you get up, you eat, you go to work.

It's just a quirk of the job that Kennedy and the 140 other crew members may go weeks without seeing sunlight or breathing fresh air. On its recent six-month deployment to the Indian Ocean, the San Juan stayed submerged for up to 60 consecutive days.

"Once you're down there and you get used to it, you don't really notice it," Kennedy said -- not until the ship returns to the surface "and (you) notice how bright the sunlight is."

Much of life onboard is compartmentalized, he said. Kennedy's days are 18 hours long, split among six hours of watch, six hours of his job and six hours of down time and sleep. His bunk, or "rack," is 6 feet long, 24 inches wide and 18 inches high. Because of his seniority, he has his own bunk. But in other cases, three sailors will share two bunks, rotating through during their off-duty time in a procedure known as "hot racking" -- "because the mattress never gets cold," Kennedy said.

"We're used to tight quarters."

But life in the all-volunteer submarine service has provided Kennedy with many unique experiences, such as mid-ocean swims from the deck of the sub and port calls from Greece to the Seychelles. At a stop in South Africa, Kennedy got the chance to go on a wildlife park safari.

The San Juan returned to base in Groton, Conn., earlier this month following the deployment that was in support of the global war on terrorism. Kennedy said he couldn't be any more specific than that.

Kennedy, who completed two years of college and then worked in construction before joining the Navy, has another two years to his enlistment. He's undecided whether he'll re-enlist, but for now he's focused on getting the most from his undersea service.

"It's been a great experience, and it's shown me what certain parts of the world are all about," he said.