Area native featured on show
A Uniontown native serving as an officer aboard the Navy nuclear submarine USS Florida plays a feature role in a National Geographic TV show about the sub’s stealthy operations. Navigational and operations officer Lt. Dennis Milsom Jr., 33, the son of Sue and Dennis Milsom Sr. of Uniontown, talks about his duties, which include deploying Navy SEAL teams and navigating the vessel, said Sue Milsom.
“He talks about his position as a navigational officer. He stays in contact with the SEALS. It was really very nice. He downplayed it quite a bit to us,” Milsom said.
The show also features interviews with the commander and other officers, who discuss their roles on the sub, and tours of the parts of the $1 billion sub the TV crew was allowed access to, she said, adding that some areas are off limits.
The USS Florida is one of four older subs the Navy converted to run on nuclear power, she said.
The program aired on the National Geographic Channel Thursday night and will run again at 10 a.m. today and 4 p.m. Thursday, Milsom said.
Her son enlisted in the Navy 15 years ago, but went on to become an officer, she said. He received a bachelor’s degree in engineering from Penn State and a master’s degree in engineering from Old Dominion University in Virginia. He is stationed in King’s Bay, Ga.
He, his wife, Sue, and their children Devin, 3, and Lily, 1, live in Yulee, Fla.
His grandparents are Robert and Agnes Ventura of Uniontown and William Milsom of Kittanning.