Ryan and I were sent out to shoot stories for our annual Holiday Salute (formerly known as "Navy Christmas"). We were tasked with shooting several stories for the special as well as a few for our Daybreak features. We had both been on tours of Navy ships before, but neither us had been out for an overnight trip OR while underway. Needless to say, we were pretty excited. Excited to do our stories, but also very excited about hanging out on the flight deck during flight ops. For us, it was a once-in-a-lifetime chance to be up close and personal with fighter jets making arrested landings and being catapulted off the ship, all while the ship was moving at near top speed through the ocean.

Before heading out to the flight deck to see all the action. We spent several hours climbing up and down ship ladders, going to and from each story. We did countless interviews, shot video and got a tour of what is literally a city on water. Thousands of people live on this ship during a deployment, each of them with a job -- that like the eco-system -- makes it possible for the ship to operate and survive. Every person, an integral part of the success of the ships' mission. From the folks working in the laundry room, to those making sure the sailors get fed, to the men and women refueleing the aircraft as they take-off and land -- EVERYONE has an important role. We tried to stay out of the way but, we also tried to capture the day to day life of these sailors.

It was non-stop work for them and for us. And at a very fast pace. That's where the bumps and bruises come in. Going up and down those ladders all day carrying cameras, tripods, microphones and other gear -- you're bound to end up banging a body part against something hard. I nailed my knee on a ladder at the end of the first night. Ouch! It's a bruise I'll never forget. Ryan has a sore ankle and shoulder... and while I thought I was going to miss my workouts for a few days -- boy was I wrong! The leg workout you get on an aircraft carrier should be put into a civilian workout program!

I'll also never forget the 40 minutes on the flight deck. Escorted by safety personell, Ryan and I.. along with several other "DV's" as they called us... got to see what most people will never get to see in real life. We saw multi-million dollar aircraft make very dangerous arrested landings on the deck of an aircraft carrier. One after another, the F-18's came in. Some of them performed 'touch-and-go's'.. others landed for the night. All of them part of the compliment of fighter jets stationed aboard the Truman for this deployment. But it's not just the landings that are cool. In order to take-off with the speed necessary to become airborne, these jets and the other aircraft aboard an aircraft carrier, must be catpulted from the ship. It's like going from zero to 200 miles an hour in a matter of seconds (I may be exaggerating, I'm not sure.. but that's what it seemed like). We watched it from only a few dozen yards away! WOW!

Other highlights of the trip were a visit to the bridge. Since it was after sunset, the bridge was "dark". That means there are no lights on. It was very sci-fi. Even a little eerie. The bridge personal used red lights to see. The only other illumination, coming from computer screens and of course, the afterburners of the jets on the flight deck. It was just like a scene from a movie. Very cool.

Day two was a much shorter day, but just as busy. We had to wrap up all of our interviews and make sure we had everything we needed for our stories before leaving on a COD in the afternoon. We worked, again, for several hours... but managed to cover all of our bases. The thing about doing stories when a ship is out to sea is.. if you forget anything, you're up the creek becaue they won't be back for six months! We had to make sure we crossed all or our t's and dotted all of our i's before leaving that afternoon. I think we did just that! Three meals, six hours of attempted sleep, dozens & dozens & dozens of ladders, and three hours of tape later -- we were done and it was time for the other big event of our trip -- the COD.

You heard about how the jets had to be catapulted off the ship. Well, guess what.. so does the COD. A COD is a turbo-prop aircraft used to move people on and off the ship. It too, must be catapulted. It was described to us as the ultimate thrill ride and since I absolutely LOVE roller coasters -- I was very much looking forward to it! The Navy did not disappoint. The launch was very quick, but worth the wait. It was smooth and very fast, ending with a floating feeling once we were airborne. It was kind of like that feeling in your stomach when you're on an elevator.

All in all, the trip was awesome. We got great video, great stories and great photos. We met some amazing people and I gained a new respect for our military men and women. We were very tired and sore and a little banged up after the trip, but as I said, sometimes a big nasty bruise on the knee is worth it!