Master Diver Fernando Lugo discusses how his life changed after joining the military and attending Navy boot camp in San Diego, California.  Fernando enlisted as a Machinist Mate, unaware of the undersea journey that awaited him in the future.  MDV Lugo's career, Deep-Sea Stories, is about him and the Deep-Sea Divers he served with, pioneering a Navy Dive capability that contributed to the end of the Cold War.
These riveting Deep-Sea Stories center around MDV Lugo's time on the Navy's Sea Lab III project.  He discusses how he and his experimental dive team contributed to the development of deep-dive decompression tables and schedules, as well as the engineering of dive system valve placement to maximize human dive system operational performance.  A few of his team members that he mentions are Don Risk, P. A. Wells, Bob Barth, Jay Meyer, Jack Smith, Billy Kaughman, Pete Rugdon, Frank Reando, and Berry Cannon.
Fernando gives great credit to his parents, who instilled into him a strong work ethic that he needed to endure his challenging career.  "I never thought of myself as a pioneer in saturation diving.  We wanted to prove that it could work," stated Master Diver Lugo, paving the way for the future of Navy Saturation Diving.  Read more about Master Diver Fernando Lugo and his dive team aquanauts in a myriad of publications, including Sea Lab III: A Divers Story by author Kevin Hardy.  

Deep-Sea Stories podcasts are available on Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, and Spotify.

Master Diver Milford Buzbee, also known as "Buzz," began serving his country in the Army from the ages of 15 to 19.  Like many other young men who wanted to serve in the military, Milford lied about his age to enter military service.  Milford was a welder in the Army.  The attack on Pearl Harbor drove Milford to join the Navy in 1942.  He retired from the Navy in 1961.  
Son, Lewis Buzbee, collected photos and artifacts and documented recollections of his father's Navy Diving career in his published book, "Diver," by Lewis Buzbee.  Lewis said Master Diver Milford Buzbee attended boot camp and dive school in San Diego, California, followed by Seabee school in Oxnard, California.  After Seabee school, Milford was sent to Naval Base Espiritu Santo in the South Pacific Ocean.  Master Diver Buzbee's other commands were Deep-Sea Diving School in Manhattan, New York; Navy Base Norfolk, Virginia, where he deployed to conduct harbor clearance missions in the Mediterranean; Bayonne, New Jersey, where he was selected to Master Diver; and Key West, Florida where he retired from the Navy.  Milford worked on off-shore oil rigs and for General Electric after he retired from the Navy.  Son Lewis recalls his dad Milford taking him on a tour of Sea Lab II docked at Hunter Point, California.  Lewis was with his dad when they met astronaut Scott Carpenter.  Lieutenant Dole, a submarine officer, was the only name Lewis remembered.  His dad was a good friend in the Navy.   "My dad had a passion for Navy Diving.  I don't think he was the same person after he retired from Navy Diving." said son Lewis Buzbee. 

Deep-Sea Stories podcasts are available on Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, and Spotify.

HMC DMT/Independent Duty Corpsman Len Starbeck joined the Navy in 1977 and retired in 2005.  You can read about his incredible Navy journey in his self-published book "Medical Diver, What is a Medical Diver?"  Len has a potential television mini-series in the works.  Len served 24 of 28 years of active duty as a medical diver.  Len vividly describes his journey, saying they are awash in extraordinary adventures that await future medical divers.  He speaks of the inherent dangers involved in diving and the detailed intricacies of diving medicine, physiology, and hyperbaric medicine that embraces the role of a medical diver and in training his fellow divers.  Doc Starbeck served deployed with the Marines.  The duty stations he mentions are Puerto Rico, Navy Diving and Salvage Training Center in Panama City, Florida for 1C and Dive Medical Technician school, Joint Task Force Central Identification Laboratory Hickam Air Force Base, Hawaii, USS Edenton ATS-1, Harbor Clearance Unit One San Diego, California, Underwater Construction Team One Port Hueneme, California, and Explosive Ordnance Disposal  Mobile Unit 3.
Doc Starbeck recalled these Sailors he served with who were influential in his successful Navy career, Navy Officer Lou Marinocci, HMC Pedro Gonzales, MDV Rafael Hernandez, MDV Bud Killbury, MDV Marty Harholser, MDV Jim Phalin, DMO Jed Morrison, MDV Mike Washington, Craig Buttons, and Kevin Wells. 

Deep-Sea Stories podcasts are available on Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, and Spotify.

Chief Warrant Officer 4 Joe Kingsbury joined the Navy in Providence, Rhode Island 1966.  Warrant Officer Kingsbury retired in April 1996 after 30 years of Navy service.  Joe was a diesel-submarine Sailor.  He references a book named, "Blind Man's Bluff" by Sherry Sontag and Christopher Drew to describe his sub-service time on the USS Trout SS-566.  Warrant Kingsbury recalled other tours of duty on the USS Florikan ASR-9 and the USS Arcadia AD-23.  He was involved with the Seal Delivery Vehicle and dry-dock shelters during his tour of duty at Submarine Squadron One.    Warrant Kingsbury was the diving officer onboard the USS Cape Cod AD-43 when he and his dive team were unexpectedly tasked to change out Cape Cod's 92-thousand-pound propeller.  He was also stationed at COMNAVSURPAC.  CWO4 Joe Kingsbury completed his 30 years of Navy service at the Consolidated Divers Unit in San Diego, California.
Joe mentioned these names that stood out during his 30-year Navy Career.  Commanding Officer Bart Bacon, CMDR Troy Papas, MDV Rick Bedard, MDV Ray Straining, CWO4 Ed Delanoy, MDV/CWO5 Rick Armstrong, CWO5 Terry Harris, MDV Sam Sangrey, Combat Photographer Bernie Campoli, and NAVSEA Representative Frank Bruski.
Joe said Ray Graber, his father-in-law, who was a World War II Sailor, had the most significant favorable influence on him, driving him toward a successful Navy career.  Warrant Officer Kingsbury wanted to remind all military senior officers and enlisted, "Never forget where you came from and stick up for your troops!" 

Deep-Sea Stories podcasts are available on Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, and Spotify.

Master Chief Master Diver Retired Bruce Earnest (a.k.a. dirty Ernie) joined the Navy in 1969 and retired in 1993.  MDV Earnest duty stations were USS Cascade AD-16 in Naples, Italy, Diving Instructor Duty Washington DC, Saturation Dive School, USS Elk River IX-501, Diving Instructor Duty Panama City, Florida and Coronado, California, USS Opportune ARS-41, COMNAVSURFRON 8, Little Creek, Virginia, USS Edenton ATS-1, USS Grapple ARS-53, and the USS Pigeon ASR-21.  Master Diver Earnest conducted salvage of a 45-foot Coast Guard vessel from the Colombia River using the saturation dive system on the USS Pigeon.  He led a salvage dive team to recover the Space Shuttle Challenger off the coast of Cape Canaveral, Florida. 
MDV Earnest remembered these names, which stood out during his career.  Gary Ball, Jim Starchier, MDV Ragman Ridici, LCDR Billy Webb, MDV Paul Schadow, MDV Ole Olson, and MDV Donnie Roberts.  Bruce identified these names as influential toward his successful Navy Master Diver career, MDV Bobby Moore, MDV George Powell, MDV Tyron Goacher, MDV Bill Gholson, and MDV Bobby Cave.  Master Diver Earnest said the successful Master Diver knows that "Training never stops!"  Master Chief Master Diver Bruce Earnest identifies himself as "One of the last Buffalo Robers."   

Deep-Sea Stories podcasts are available on Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, and Spotify.

Jon Klukas, Master Chief Master Diver Retired joined the Navy in 1990 and retired after 28 years of active duty.  Jon is still involved in the leading edge of diving and hyperbaric technology development as the Copper Collar Group, LLC Co-Founder.  His twenty-eight-year Navy career journeyed through dive missions all over the world.
Jon's Navy Dive commands mentioned were the USS Beaufort ATS-2, Deep Submergence Unit, USS Salvor ARS-52, USS Safeguard ARS-50, Command Task Force-73 Singapore, SWRMC Dive Locker, and Enlisted Community Manager for Navy Divers.
The names Jon recalled that influenced his career success were MDV Jim Nichols, MDV Rick Bettua, MDV Richard Storment, MDV Jon Sommers, MDV Paul Adams, MDV Mike Winters, MDV Dave Gove, MDV Rod Stewart, MDV Steve Mulholland, LCDR Dan Kerns, Rob Taylor, and William Feser. 

Deep-Sea Stories podcasts are available on Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, and Spotify.

A Deep-Sea Story about Chief Warrant Officer Grover Cleveland Burke.

The furnace that forged Iron Men was set on high temperatures during deck, diving, and salvage evolutions on board the USS Reclaimer ARS-42.  The unwritten rule "I'll watch your back, you watch mine" was in effect when USS Reclaimer's powerful capstans, gypsy heads and cranes pulled heavy strains on wire rope and mooring lines.  Chief Warrant Officer Grover Cleveland Burke's focused leadership kept us safe from disturbing Neptune's realm when we were conducting dangerous deck evolutions on the seas of the Pacific Ocean. 

Deep-Sea Stories podcasts are available on Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, and Spotify.

A Memorial Day Message.  HMC (FMF/SW/DV) and Diving Medical Technician Pedro J. Gonzales reported to the Consolidated Divers Unit, now known as the Southwest Regional Maintenance Center Dive Locker, in December 1999. The Petty Officer's Mess knew Pedro as "Pete."  In the fall of 2000, Chief Gonzales was one of the dive team members who assisted with pushing the RC 6500 recompression chamber inside the newly reconstructed chamber medical room.  Pete led the oversight team that monitored contracts to install two diver compressors and all the associated piping for the recompression chamber.  Ghief Gonzales applied for a temporary duty assignment with the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command, Hawaii.  Pete met up with his specialized medical team to recover missing prisoner of war remains in Vietnam in February 2001.  Tragically, Chief Petty Officer Gonzales and his medical team were killed in action on 7 April 2002 when their helicopter crashed while in transit to a POW-MIA excavation site in Quan Binh, Vietnam.  Navy Divers at Consolidated Divers Unit dedicated the RC 6500 recompression chamber to Pete shortly after the chamber obtained initial certification in August of 2001.  Consolidated Divers Unit became the hub for Navy Divers, Explosive Ordnance Disposal Technicians, Navy SEALS and other service members suffering from diving-related illnesses and other illnesses requiring recompression chamber therapy.

Deep-Sea Stories podcasts are available on Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, and Spotify.

In August of 2007, Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit Two Navy Divers were ordered by President George W. Bush to recover victims from under the collapsed Interstate Highway Bridge in the Mississippi River.  Recovery of victims was part of the harbor clearance mission to restore the $1.3 million-a-day commercial waterway.  The conditions in the Mississippi River were challenging.  During my Command Master Chier and Master Diver tour of duty, this is how I viewed this mission outcome through my Faceplate Window.  These are my opinions.    

Deep-Sea Stories podcasts are available on Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, and Spotify.

Robert Leroy Cave Engineman Master Chief, Master Diver, we knew him as Bobby Cave.  He was a 35-year Veteran of the United States Navy.  He attained the Rank of Master Chief Petty Officer.  Bobby was a Saturation Master Diver.  He is the world record holder for the deepest ocean suit dive.  In 1972, exposed to ambient pressure in the open ocean, the record was set at 1,025 feet of seawater by a small Navy dive team with Bobby Cave, using the MK2 diving system.  The decompression schedule lasted two weeks and was completed at a hyperbaric recompression chamber at the U.S. Navy Experimental Diving Unit in Panama City, Florida.  Many Navy leaders I admired as I progressed through the Navy ranks were fortunate to experience dive missions with Bobby Cave.  In this episode, I describe my twenty-minute encounter with Master Diver Cave.  A lesson I'll never forget.   

Deep-Sea Stories podcasts are available on Amazon Music, iHeart Radio, and Spotify.