Fleet Week Sails Away

The Navy ships in San Francisco departed yesterday as Fleet Week came to an end. An estimated one million visitors flocked to the San Francisco waterfront to tour the ships and watch the air shows. It was the biggest Fleet Week in 20 years.

I toured three of the nine ships: the USS Curts (FFG 38) a Guided Missile Frigate, the USS Pinckney (DDG 91) a Guided Missile Destroyer and the USS Pioneer (MCM 14) a Mine Countermeasures ship.

It was interesting to see up close some of the weapons that use machine vision imaging technology for targeting and mini submarines that search for mines. The mini submarines on the USS Pioneer use mounted cameras to help the navigator locate the mines remotely. Some of the guns on the USS Pinckney had cameras that could be switched between color, monochrome, infrared thermal imaging depending upon the conditions.

It was a pleasure to meet the sailors, marines and coasties who welcomed us into their floating homes and gave us a tour.

The Blue Angels ended Fleet Week with a roar that was heard and felt standing there on the waterfront and across San Francisco no doubt! Looking forward to next year’s Fleet Week already.

Guided Missile System - Remote control center. Images from the

cameras mounted in the weaponry are viewed on these screens.