I was on the USS John F. Kennedy getting ready to shove out to sea for 6 weeks. It was a very busy morning for me in preparation to get underway. I noticed people here and there gathered around TVs but I was too busy to see why. When we pulled out a couple of hours after the attack it was a different world and entirely evident as we left. Normally sailors go out on the weather decks or up on the flight deck to leisurely enjoy the view and the last sight of home, all while fishing and pleasure boats sailed alongside. This time a Coast Guard cutter was stationed athwart the St. Johns river to stop all traffic while helicopters flew overhead guard. All .50 cal mounts were manned, all CIWS mounts were armed and primed, no one was allowed on any outside decks, and all the hangar bay doors were closed. Not long after we hit the end of the channel the prop shafts began to vibrate the ship, which indicated they were pouring on the oil to get away from shore as quickly as possible. Without an air wing embarked we were pretty vulnerable. What a long, strange 6 weeks that was.

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