Solvay grad taking part in international maritime exercises
Petty Officer 2nd Class Conrad Guardipee is a fire controlman (aegis) aboard USS Preble, currently operating out of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.
Guardipee is a 2002 graduate of Solvay High School.
A Navy fire controlman (aegis) is responsible for providing weapon direction systems employment recommendations.
Guardipee applies the lessons learned from Syracuse to working in the Navy.
“Syracuse is all about loyalty,” said Guardipee. “You have to be loyal and be there for your shipmates and when you are in the middle of the ocean we have to be there for each other.”
As the world’s largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity that helps participants foster and sustain cooperative relationships that are critical to ensuring safety at sea and security on the world’s oceans. RIMPAC 2018 is the 26th exercise in the series that began in 1971.
The theme of RIMPAC 2018 is Capable, Adaptive, Partners. The participating nations and forces exercise a wide range of capabilities and demonstrate the inherent flexibility of maritime forces. These capabilities range from disaster relief and maritime security operations to sea control and complex warfighting. The relevant, realistic training program includes, gunnery, missile, anti-submarine and air defense exercises, as well as amphibious, counter-piracy, mine clearance operations, explosive ordnance disposal and diving and salvage operations.
“Hopefully we get to go through training scenarios I haven’t experienced yet to increase my knowledge in my field,” said Guardipee. “I am always looking to increase my level of knowledge. Every time there is a new problem there is a new lesson to learn.”
This is the first time Israel, Sri Lanka and Vietnam are participating in RIMPAC. Additional firsts include New Zealand serving as sea combat commander and Chile serving as combined force maritime component commander. This is the first time a non-founding RIMPAC nation (Chile) will hold a component commander leadership position.
Twenty-six nations, 46 surface ships, five submarines, and more than 200 aircraft and 25,000 personnel will participate in the biennial Rim of the Pacific Exercise. This year’s exercise includes forces from Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Colombia, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Peru, the Republic of Korea, the Republic of the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Tonga, the United Kingdom, the United States and Vietnam.
As a member of the U.S. Navy, Guardipee and other sailors know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes providing the Navy the nation needs.
“Since I joined the Navy I learned that I am actually a leader and people trust me and people have a tendency to follow my lead,” said Guardipee. “Serving in the Navy is an honor to serve my country and family and give myself a better life.”
Additional information about RIMPAC is available at cpf.navy.mil.
