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CNN Live Saturday

Interview With Alec Fraser

Aired April 26, 2003 - 18:18   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: There was an awful lot of kissing in Pearl Harbor today, awash with tearful emotion as 350 sailors returned from war to the warm embrace of their families. The USS Paul Hamilton pulled into home port after nine months at sea, including one month of war.
Alec Fraser knows about the rush of emotions these sailors are experiencing. He's a retired Navy captain who served aboard the USS Cape St. George, an Aegis cruiser much like the Paul Hamilton.

And Captain Fraser, thanks for joining us tonight.

CAPT. ALEC FRASER, U.S. NAVY (RET.): Nice to be here.

COOPER: As you looked at those pictures, what went through your mind?

FRASER: I've come back from at least several dozen deployments and it feels like I just came back a few minutes ago, from all of them. Because they're all moments that you remember and you never forget. It's not so much the banners and the bands and the hoopla. It's that first hug that you get from somebody that you know, that means you're back off the ship and you're back in a normal lifestyle.

COOPER: You know, they were away for some nine months or so, I think a lot of -- you know, six months is the regular deployment. What kind of an impact does that have on the family? I mean, I find it remarkable or difficult to imagine what it would be like and be away from one's loved ones for six months. How do the families get along?

FRASER: Well, six months and up to nine months for a lot of the sailors in this battle group. But they are working 18 hours a day. They're doing watches. They're doing their normal work. And they are constantly on alert. So, to come home, they are now having to sort of shift to the environment. And that's a difficult transition for them to do. And there is a transition assistance team that helps the families do that. Both the families at home and the sailors, as they are en route, coming back from the Persian Gulf.

COOPER: Let's talk about that transition a little bit. What's the most difficult part? You said, it is hard making the switch, but what aspect of it?

FRASER: I think it's calming down. You're always tense; you're always alert; you're always ready for something to happen. And so just sort of relaxing, enjoying life, understanding that the spouse has been running the show now for a long time at home. And you're not the captain. You're not in charge, she's been doing, or he's been doing a lot of the -- most of the work. And it's a gradual transition that you have to go into.

But everybody is so excited. It's such a great time, to come home, that most people get over that really quickly.

COOPER: So, you might be an officer on the ship, but you're enlisted once you get home?

FRASER: You know who's in charge, it's your spouse.

COOPER: How long do they get off before they have to start up again?

FRASER: Most of these sailors will get two or three weeks off. Two sections, the first section will be off for two or three weeks; second section gets two or three weeks off. Then they're back. And they're going back to sea again to start their training exercises, to start preparing for the next deployment, which is in a year, year and a half, or so.

COOPER: Do you think it's tougher for the families who are at home? You said the people onboard the ship they're always active. They always have something to do. But for the families it's not that way at all.

FRASER: Well, I think they have things that they make themselves do in order to take up the time. There are wives clubs. There are social gatherings that they all do to get together. They depend on each other as they go through these problems. Most of the time when a ship deploys that very day, the washer would break, the car breaks, all types of things happen. And they help each other out and that's how they get through it.

COOPER: All right, Alec Fraser, appreciate you joining us. Thanks it was a remarkable day. Thanks.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired April 26, 2003 - 18:18   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: There was an awful lot of kissing in Pearl Harbor today, awash with tearful emotion as 350 sailors returned from war to the warm embrace of their families. The USS Paul Hamilton pulled into home port after nine months at sea, including one month of war.
Alec Fraser knows about the rush of emotions these sailors are experiencing. He's a retired Navy captain who served aboard the USS Cape St. George, an Aegis cruiser much like the Paul Hamilton.

And Captain Fraser, thanks for joining us tonight.

CAPT. ALEC FRASER, U.S. NAVY (RET.): Nice to be here.

COOPER: As you looked at those pictures, what went through your mind?

FRASER: I've come back from at least several dozen deployments and it feels like I just came back a few minutes ago, from all of them. Because they're all moments that you remember and you never forget. It's not so much the banners and the bands and the hoopla. It's that first hug that you get from somebody that you know, that means you're back off the ship and you're back in a normal lifestyle.

COOPER: You know, they were away for some nine months or so, I think a lot of -- you know, six months is the regular deployment. What kind of an impact does that have on the family? I mean, I find it remarkable or difficult to imagine what it would be like and be away from one's loved ones for six months. How do the families get along?

FRASER: Well, six months and up to nine months for a lot of the sailors in this battle group. But they are working 18 hours a day. They're doing watches. They're doing their normal work. And they are constantly on alert. So, to come home, they are now having to sort of shift to the environment. And that's a difficult transition for them to do. And there is a transition assistance team that helps the families do that. Both the families at home and the sailors, as they are en route, coming back from the Persian Gulf.

COOPER: Let's talk about that transition a little bit. What's the most difficult part? You said, it is hard making the switch, but what aspect of it?

FRASER: I think it's calming down. You're always tense; you're always alert; you're always ready for something to happen. And so just sort of relaxing, enjoying life, understanding that the spouse has been running the show now for a long time at home. And you're not the captain. You're not in charge, she's been doing, or he's been doing a lot of the -- most of the work. And it's a gradual transition that you have to go into.

But everybody is so excited. It's such a great time, to come home, that most people get over that really quickly.

COOPER: So, you might be an officer on the ship, but you're enlisted once you get home?

FRASER: You know who's in charge, it's your spouse.

COOPER: How long do they get off before they have to start up again?

FRASER: Most of these sailors will get two or three weeks off. Two sections, the first section will be off for two or three weeks; second section gets two or three weeks off. Then they're back. And they're going back to sea again to start their training exercises, to start preparing for the next deployment, which is in a year, year and a half, or so.

COOPER: Do you think it's tougher for the families who are at home? You said the people onboard the ship they're always active. They always have something to do. But for the families it's not that way at all.

FRASER: Well, I think they have things that they make themselves do in order to take up the time. There are wives clubs. There are social gatherings that they all do to get together. They depend on each other as they go through these problems. Most of the time when a ship deploys that very day, the washer would break, the car breaks, all types of things happen. And they help each other out and that's how they get through it.

COOPER: All right, Alec Fraser, appreciate you joining us. Thanks it was a remarkable day. Thanks.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com