I was watching some show the other day about life on board an aircraft carrier and it got me thinking. Seems like the vast majority of the personnel on board work down in the bowels of the ship. How often do people like that actually get to see the light of day up topside?

I was on submarines last tour. We saw the sun ever few months.

Even on the smaller ships, if you don't make efforts to get out in the light you start to notice it taking a toll on your spirits, or so I have been told by someone who has spent way too much time on a boat

[This message has been edited by Dr. Devil Dog (edited 3/19/2014 12:29p).]

It's not hard to get to the hangar deck or the rails. The flight deck was open for an hour or two for pt most days, but that was on an LHD. May be different on a CVN. Still you'd have to make the effort.

My dad spent 6 years on the uss Kennedy during the late 60's to mid 70's. It was long before satellites but his job was in photographic intelligence, from what I understand analyzing photos taken by vigilantes saw some interesting things during Israel's war with Egypt. Anyway he was above deck a lot but he said he never knew what day it was and if it was a holiday you could hardly tell.

On small ships, it's almost entirely dependent on your job. A lot of times, divisions will hold quarters and other morning meetings topside, almost to force people outside.

I definitely had engineers that never went out except for those mornings. On the other hand, quartermasters and bosun's mates are almost outside, or within view of natural sunlight. If you stand watch on the bridge then you get all the sunlight you can handle for five hours at a time.

Most ships I have seen have "steel beach picnics" pretty much every Sunday afternoon. That's just a bbq back on the flight deck.

The biggest thing driving people outside is the smoke deck. A lot of people smoked because it was an excuse to go stand around outside and hear gossip going around the ship.

I've only been out to sea three times, deep sea fishing off the coast of South Padre, whale watching off the coast of Kaikoura, and the ferry between NZ south and north island, and each experience gave me respect for sailors who endure the constant motion. I'd rather be getting shot at on land.

Pro Sandy, where were you stationed last tour?

Being seasick caused me to go topside several times!

I was a topsider when I was on a small boy... So I was always able to go out and see the horizon.

I was also on Submarines.. Never saw daylight or the horizon. Was fun all-in-all.

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Pro Sandy, where were you stationed last tour?

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I was dirsup out of NIOC Georgia.

Nice, I was DIRSUP Hawaii last tour.

I just left an Aircraft Carrier last year.

You can see the light of day as much as you want to honestly. The fantail (the back of the ship) is open, unless Deck Department kicks you out for being in their space.

The fuel and line stations are open, in fact station 5 and line 6 & 7 was where the smoke deck was located.

On Friday's during our no fly day's, we had a 5k run from 1300-1500. Other than that, you never go up to flight deck unless you have to.

You can see sun, one just has to want to.