West Haven native serves aboard Navy warship in Norfolk
http://navyoutreach.blogspot.com/2018/03/west-haven-native-serves-aboard-navy.html
By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Steve Watterworth, Navy Office of Community Outreach
Photo by Dusty Good
NORFOLK, Va. -- A West Haven, Utah, native and Fremont graduate is serving in the U.S. Navy aboard the guided-missile destroyer USS Mason.
Petty Officer 3rd Class Kaidan Mickelsen-Lechuga is a fire controlman aboard the destroyer operating out of the Navy's largest base. A Navy fire controlman is responsible for the maintenance of radars.
"My hometown taught me hard work and dedication," Mickelsen-Lechuga said.
More than 300 sailors serve aboard the ship, and their jobs are highly specialized. The jobs range from maintaining engines to handling weaponry along with a multitude of other assignments that keep the ship mission-ready at all times, according to Navy officials.
Navy guided-missile destroyers like USS Mason are multi-mission ships that can operate independently or as part of a larger group of ships at sea. They are equipped with tomahawk missiles, torpedoes, guns and a phalanx close-in weapons system.
Mickelsen-lechuga has military ties with family members who have previously served and is honored to carry on the family tradition.
"My dad was a gas turbine systems technician," Mickelsen-Lechuga said. "My uncle was a machinist's mate on a submarine. The Navy has shown me the diversity in the world."
As a member of one of the U.S. Navy's most relied-upon assets, Mickelsen-Lechuga and other sailors know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes providing the Navy the nation needs.
"The best part about serving aboard this ship is serving next to outstanding sailors," Mickelsen-Lechuga said.
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