Tiger Cruise,  USS John C Stennis,  Feb 19, 2012 - Feb 27, 2012     page 80 / 166

The fuel transfer took about three hours. We took on some 400,000 gallons of JP-5 jet fuel. Meanwhile, we wandered around the ship.

I asked Steve at one point just how many tigers were on board. He indicated it was around 1500 guests! He also told me in an email that for each guest on board, a sailor is sent home early! That's easy to do on a ship which normally carries some 5-6000 sailors! Not so easy to do on a much smaller ship, where every sailor is needed all the time.

While wandering in the hangar later that afternoon, I ran into a friend, Wayne, from Gig Harbor. Wayne's son was in Tom's scout troop several years ago. He is retired now, but worked in the Bremerton shipyard as a civilian for several years as a welder and supervisor on Navy ships. It was a treat to see a familiar face and catch up.