Life in the “danger zone”

Mashable:

I traveled to the Persian Gulf earlier this year to visit that carrier, the USS Harry S. Truman. I wanted to see what life on this carrier actually looked like while at war. The pilots flying combat missions for weeks at a time — they must feel like they are at war. But do the other personnel on the ship? Would I?

And of course, I wanted to see for myself what life was like on an aircraft carrier. Would it be like the movies? Would I feel like a little boy again? Though I spent only two days onboard the Truman, and oftentimes, at least on the flight deck, it did look just like Top Gun. Steam and chaos in incomprehensible orchestration. And the pilots — just like in Top Gun — wearing their flight suits everywhere, walking around like they own the place.

When I was a little kid, I got the chance to go on an American aircraft carrier outside of Halifax’s harbour (it was too big to dock). I’ve always wanted to go back onboard as an adult.