JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — There are thousands of active duty military service members living on the First Coast right now, but have you ever thought about how the equipment that they use gets put together?
In this week's Stories of Service we meet a sailor from NAS Jax who helps pull back the curtain on the process for building helicopters.
Long before Navy helicopters are up in the air, they begin in a room on the ground in production control. On this day Petty Officer 1st Class Luis Fernando Rosas Pineda oversees the creation and testing of fiber optic cables for electrical work inside of helicopters.
"There are millions of pieces that go into making everything happen," said Rosas Pineda, "it wasn't until I got into production control and started seeing how everything came together from every work center to make one helicopter fly, that was the moment it gave me an effective shock."
Rosas Pineda joined the Navy in 2014. He was born in Mexico City, Mexico and immigrated to the United States when he was 9 years old. He's thrilled to be stationed in Jacksonville.
"I love all of the open areas, I love trails, going to the beach, I love going to the river, I love the zoo, I love Jacksonville," said Rosas Pineda.
He also loves the impact he can make as a member of the Navy.
"That's the reason why I joined the Navy, because I wanted to do something that would be meaningful and perhaps one day tell stories to my kids and everybody," said Rosas Pineda.
With nearly a decade of service so far, he has plenty of stories to tell already.
We'd like to share your Stories of Service. If you would like us to spotlight a member of the military or a veteran who is doing great things, send us an email to storiesofservice@firstcoastnews.com