An Cosantóir

27 PO AILEEN HANNA culture shock, you are at college and then you go to sea and you see things you never saw before," she said. Her first time at sea was memorable for other reasons. "It was really bad weather; we were thrown up and down all over the place. I was seasick for two days, but I haven't been since. I think I inherited my sea legs from my father. Not many people I know would get over it that fast. I know people who have been in the Navy for 20 years and they would still get seasick," Aileen recalled. But the small size of the Irish Navy flexibility is key, which means Aileen does not spend all day slaving over a hot stove. "We still have military duties to do", she explained, "For instance I am part of the ship's fire-fighting team and we also fire the weapons. There has to be a lot of multi-tasking because of the size of the crew. We are first and foremost sailors and military people and we have to be ready to go at any stage." Her main job, of course, is in the kitchen. Aileen cooks for an average of 60 people on board the LE George Bernard Shaw. That's three meals a day – breakfast, lunch and dinner – which means a very busy workload. So what are the favourite items on the menu at sea? "You have people on board aged from 18 to 60 all with different tastes but usually the young guys prefer chicken and chips while the older men want their potatoes, veg and meat. I have to keep everyone happy because unlike in a restaurant they won't be walking out the door at the end. When we are sitting around in the evening I'll have to face them and listen to any complaints!" But there's more to life at sea than slicing and dicing. Aileen was amongst the crew who took part in Operation Pontus rescuing migrants in the Mediterranean while on board the LE Roisin. "It was quite harrowing but we were good at it and you felt pride that you were helping people in distress. It was tough but because we were such a small unit we were able to look after each other if it got a bit too much for someone. At the end of the day we could be having a cup of tea and everybody talking about what they had seen and done," she says of one of her more stand-out memories. Aileen added: "It was pretty awful at times but there were happier times too. When we were rescuing people they would be singing because they knew they were going to be safe. And when they saw me in my white coat, they would smile as they knew food was coming." The mood on board ship could vary, she said, depending on what they had to face. "If the people were in a boat for a couple of days without water under the hot sun with no shelter or if they had capsized and we were picking them out of the water, then things could be very quiet. When we lost a few lives amongst the migrants, you could feel the atmosphere on the ship." At other times when the migrants were in better condition, they would be singing and celebrating they that have been rescued. "I had never seen anything like it and if I had my way, I would have taken every single one home with me," said Aileen. The whole humanitarian experience gave her great pride in the Naval Service and in the country. "It showed how good we were compared to bigger navies, we could hold our own and there was a huge pride when we came home." Then there was Operation Fortitude when the Defence Forces – including the Naval Service – were involved in setting up and manning COVID testing centres on behalf of the HSE when the Pandemic first struck Ireland in early 2020. "We would have been one of the first ships in Dublin. It was like a field hospital really. It was quite weird in Dublin at that time; there were no people and no traffic on the Quays. People were scared because it was all so new," she recalled. But it was also very rewarding for Aileen and her fellow crew. "It was rewarding in that we were helping people out in a national emergency. The public generally don't see what we do in the Naval Service but this time they could see us in action helping people and that was good." Back on regular patrol duties, only recently Aileen and the crew of the LE George Bernard Shaw were involved in a major search and rescue of a trawler off the West Coast. It was in very rough seas and weather but, thankfully, all of the trawler crew got off safely. Aileen is married to former Merchant Navy seaman Richard and they live in Cobh, Co Cork. v Arriving home from operation Pontus 2016 onboard P52 LE Roisin v Parade Celebrating her completion of the 25th Senior NCOs Course FEB 2021 v Winning Bronze Medal Knorr Chef Ireland Competition

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