Posts Tagged ‘ navy ’

Two rear admirals are getting a third star, and two numbered fleets are getting a new boss. Defense Secretary Robert Gates on Thursday announced that President Obama nominated Rear Adm. Mark Fox for assignment as commander, U.S. Naval Forces, Central Command, and Commander, 5th Fleet, in Bahrain; and Rear Adm. Scott Van Buskirk for assignment as commander, 7th Fleet, Yokosuka, Japan. Fox currently serves as commander, Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center, in Fallon, Nev. The career aviator has flown the A-7E Corsair II and F/A-18 Hornet in more than 100 combat and contingency missions. He has logged more than 4,800 flight hours and 1,347 arrested landings on 15 different carriers. He also scored the first Navy MiG kill of Operation Desert Storm on Jan. 17, 1991, and led the opening “shock and awe” strike of Operation Iraqi Freedom on March 21, 2003. Fox’s replacement has not been named. Van Buskirk is deputy and chief of staff, U.S. Pacific Fleet. The career submariner has served on attack and ballistic missile subs. He oversaw the initial development of the Navy’s Human Capital Strategy, was the senior naval officer on the Multi-National Force-Iraq staff and served as commander of Carrier Strike Group 9 in direct support of combat operations for operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom. Rear Adm. Timothy Giardina has been assigned as the new deputy and chief of staff, U.S. Pacific Fleet, Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Also on Thursday, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead announced six other flag moves: • Rear Adm. Michael Browne will be assigned as director, Personal Readiness and Community Support Branch, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations. He currently serves as deputy chief engineer, Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C. • Capt. Clinton Faison III will get his first star and be assigned as commander, Navy Medicine West/commander, Naval Medical Center, San Diego. He currently serves as deputy chief, Medical Operations, Bureau of Medicine and Surgery, Washington. • Rear Adm. Donald Gaddis will be assigned as program executive officer for Tactical Aircraft Programs, Washington. He currently serves as commander, Naval Air Warfare Center, Aircraft Division/assistant commander for research and engineering, Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md. • Rear Adm. Michael Mittelman will get a second star and be assigned as fleet surgeon, U.S. Pacific Fleet/command surgeon, U.S. Pacific Command, Camp H.M. Smith, Hawaii. He currently serves as command surgeon, Joint Forces Command/medical advisor to Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, Norfolk, Va. • Rear Adm. William Roberts will be assigned as fleet surgeon, U.S. Fleet Forces Command, Norfolk. He currently serves as director, Medical Resources, Plans, and Policy Division, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Washington. • Rear Adm. Alton Stocks will be assigned as commander, Navy Medicine East/commander, Naval Medical Center, Portsmouth, Va. He currently serves as fleet surgeon, U.S. Fleet Forces Command, Norfolk. These assignments follow 16 other flag moves announced by the Navy in the past two weeks. OTHER RECENT FLAG MOVES • Pottenger gets 3rd star, assignment • 3-star’s next assignment announced • Roughead announces seven flag moves • Flag assignments announced by CNO

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New 5th, 7th Fleet commanders named

The F-35 Lightning II strike fighter program will breach the Nunn-McCurdy limits with a cost growth of more than 50 percent from the original 2001 program baseline, said a top Pentagon program evaluator. Christine Fox, director of the Defense Department’s Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation office, told lawmakers Thursday that the formal declaration of the breach will occur April 1. She said the Pentagon has known of this since October. That’s one month earlier than had previously been reported. The Defense Department’s latest estimates predict that each of the jets slated to be purchased will carry a price tag of between $80 million and $95 million in 2002 dollars. That's $95 million and $113 million in 2009 dollars, respectively. In 2001, the Defense Department pegged the cost per Joint Strike Fighter at $50.2 million apiece for 2,852 jets. The Pentagon updated that estimate to $69.2 million in 2007 for a planned order of 2,443 jets. The Pentagon expects to have a final estimate on the plane’s cost ready in early June, when it completes the Nunn-McCurdy re-certification package, Fox told the Senate Armed Services committee during a hearing. Fox compared the F-35 program to earlier Pentagon aircraft that ultimately produced planes that are “valuable to DoD,” such as the C-17 and the F-22. She noted that F-22 “repeatedly failed to meet key performance, schedule and cost goals throughout its development program,” yet Lockheed Martin was ultimately able to produce “a capable aircraft.” Ashton Carter, defense undersecretary for acquisition, technology, and logistics, said at the hearing that the Initial Operational Capability dates for the U.S. Air Force and Navy F-35 have been shifted to 2016, a three- and two-year delay respectively. The Marine Corps date remains 2012, he said. The Marine aircraft will use Block 2 software, whereas the Navy and Air Force jets will use the Block 3 version. Carter said Air Force Secretary Michael Donley would inform Congress of the breach within days.

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The 11th semi-annual Fleet Diversity Council will be held April 7 in San Diego. The event is part of the Navy’s diversity initiatives. It is open for all interested military government personnel, with a strong emphasis on San Diego-area naval bases, but command-funded travel from other areas is authorized and encouraged, according to NavAdmin 089/10. Command equal opportunity officers and equal opportunity advisers are strongly encouraged to attend. The day will include two identical sessions. The first runs from 8 to 11 a.m. at the 32nd Street Naval Station base theater, Building 71. The second will run from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Lowry Theater at Naval Air Station North Island. The council’s purpose is to educate sailors, officers and civilians on the value of diversity and the Navy's multiple diversity initiatives. Keynote speaker at both sessions will be Samuel Betances , who will highlight diversity and its role in the Navy. If you or someone in your command plans to attend, contact Master Chief Damage Controlman James Hervey at 619-532-4797/DSN 522 or james.hervey@navy.mil; or Senior Chief Gas Turbine System Technician Ferdinand Biscocho at 619-545-8634/DSN 735, or ferdinand.biscocho@navy.mil, by April 2. Dress will be uniform of the day or civilian equivalent.

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Fleet Diversity Council to meet April 7

Before Marines in Afghanistan received enhanced 5.56mm rounds last month, an influential four-star general advocated behind the scenes for an option that packs even more punch: 6.8mm ammunition. Three sources with knowledge of the Marine Corps’ acquisitions process confirmed Gen. James Mattis’ interest in the 6.8mm round, saying the head of Joint Forces Command in Norfolk, Va., lobbied for it as recently as December while pushing broadly for better service-rifle ammo. “It’s something he was definitely interested in,” said one source, speaking on the condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the subject. “He was concerned with the stopping power of the M855,” the standard 5.56mm round that the U.S. military has used for decades. Instead, the Corps adopted enhanced 5.56mm Special Operations Science and Technology ammunition, commonly known as SOST rounds. Using an open-tip match round design common with sniper ammo, they are designed to be more accurate and more deadly than M855 rounds, staying on target better after penetrating windshields, car doors and other objects. Mattis declined to comment, saying he is confident Lt. Gen. George Flynn, commander of Marine Corps Combat Development Command, is “dealing well with this complex issue.” Flynn could not be reached for comment. Behind the scenes, Marine officials have discussed for years whether a larger-caliber round is necessary. Some have said the Corps should adopt an intermediate caliber, such as 6.8mm, or go back to 7.62mm, which was fielded with the M14 Garand rifle during the Vietnam War. The Corps is still considering a swap to larger calibers, but if SOST continues to show promise, it may not be necessary, said Chief Warrant Officer-5 Jeffrey Eby, the Corps’ senior gunner. Marine officials “100 percent trust” the new round, he said, and are awaiting feedback from operating forces who are beginning to use it. The caliber question The Corps first considered fielding 6.8mm ammo in 2007, after rank-and-file members of Special Operations Command designed it with their command’s approval to address deficiencies with the standard 5.56mm round, Eby said. Neither SOCom nor the Corps fielded it, in part due to the cost and logistics it would have required to make the change. Designed to be fired from existing M4 and M16A4 service rifles after some modification, the 6.8mm special-purpose cartridge travels at higher speeds and inflicts more damage than the M855, but is lighter than standard 7.62mm ammo. The 6.8mm round is only slightly longer than 5.56mm ammo, meaning it would fit existing service-rifle magazines and lower receivers. Adopting the intermediate caliber wouldn’t be easy, though. The ballistics are different than the 5.56mm rounds’, which would require the service to adjust training and adopt new optics for their service rifles, Eby said. It also would require ammunition manufacturers to reconfigure machinery, potentially costing the service tens of millions of dollars or more. Fielding 6.8mm ammo also would result in new marksmanship challenges. Much like the 7.62mm M14, a 6.8mm rifle produces larger recoil than an M16A4 or M4, making it difficult for smaller Marines to keep the weapon on target, Eby said. “We learned with the M14 that managing that recoil across the service, especially with small-stature women and men, is hard to do,” Eby said. “If we have problems today with bucking and flinching on the 5.56, you can quadruple that with 7.62. We have service-level concerns about [going] so big that you get the ultimate lethality at the expense of marksmanship.” Brig. Gen. Michael Brogan, commander of Marine Corps Systems Command, told Marine Corps Times in mid-February that “there’s a long-going argument about the stopping power of 5.56 in general.” But he said even Marines don’t always fall after they’ve been shot by insurgents with multiple 7.62mm rounds, citing Navy Cross recipient Sgt. Maj. Brad Kasal, who was hit with seven 7.62mm rounds in Iraq in 2004 but survived and kept fighting. “Does that mean that 7.62 rounds don’t have sufficient stopping power?” Brogan asked about Kasal’s actions. “I submit the answer is no. If there had been a central-nervous shot, it might have dropped him. The same is true with 5.56 ammunition. Location is more important than stopping power.”

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Two Navy ROTC midshipmen at the University of Missouri-Columbia were suspended March 3 after allegedly stringing cotton balls across the front entrance of the school’s black cultural center. Campus police charged two students, freshmen Sean Fitzgerald, 19, and junior Zachary Tucker, 21, with felony tampering in the Feb. 26 incident, according to a statement from the school. The local district attorney in Boone County is reviewing the case but has not decided how to proceed. The potentially racially motivated incident could be prosecuted as hate crimes under Missouri’s state law. A spokesman for the local NROTC unit at the campus in Columbia, Mo., said the two were placed on an “interim leave of absence” on March 3 pending the outcome of the case. The school also suspended the two. The school’s chancellor Brady Deaton called the incident “disheartening and inexcusable” and “despicable,” according to the school’s statement. The two students reportedly issued an apology through their attorneys March 5

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NROTC mids suspended in sensitive incident

The Navy on Tuesday took top honors Tuesday as the nation’s leader in human resources management as it received Workforce Management magazine’s Optimas Award for General Excellence — and its top officer gave clear orders to stay the course. The award, presented in a ceremony on Capitol Hill, recognizes the Navy’s innovative initiatives and excellence in the recruiting, development and care of its people, said Todd Johnson, Workforce Management publisher. “Optimas started 19 years ago to recognize the significant and measurable organizational impact of human resources,” said Johnson, who pointed out that the Navy is the largest organization to win. “The object to us isn’t the size of the organization. It’s the size of the impact. And we’re going to give that award this year to the U.S. Navy.” Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead, who received the award on behalf of the Navy, first acknowledged more than four dozen personnel officials in attendance, calling them “great team … who made this possible.” “[This award] recognizes the great work of people who move this great organization along,” Roughead said. “It has been a way to assess ourselves and … become better at what we do.” “I’m just proud of the Navy. I couldn’t be more pleased,” said Chairman of the House Armed Services Committee Rep. Ike Skelton, D-Mo., who hosted the presentation. The Navy, which is the first military organization to win the award, joins past winners such as Google, Intel, Hewlett Packard and AT&T. The Optimas Awards consist of 10 annual prizes. Nine are presented for initiatives in competitive advantage, ethical practice, financial impact, global outlook, innovation, managing, change, partnership, service and vision. The organization that demonstrates excellence in at least six categories receives the General Excellence Award. The Navy programs that contributed to the win are: • The Assignment Incentive Pay Program, an online assignment system that encourages volunteerism for hard-to-fill assignments by giving sailors through an incentive pay bidding system. • Global War on Terror Support Assignment Process Initiative, which provides greater assignment predictability and improved morale by allowing sailors to volunteer and plan for combat-zone assignments. • Center for Language, Regional Expertise and Culture Program, which prepares sailors for overseas assignments and enhances mission success by strengthening communication and cultural awareness. • Credentialing Opportunities Online program, which provides independent occupational certification for sailors in each of the Navy's 64 enlisted career fields. • Advancement Exam Development Conference Initiative, which enables subject-matter experts from the fleet to convene and author annual advancement examinations, allowing 85 of 100 full-time exam writers to be released for high-priority assignments, saving $7 million per year. • The Navy College Program Distance Learning Partnership, which provides greater access to higher education for sailors through partnerships with colleges and universities to offer associate and bachelor degrees via distance learning. • Task Force Life Work, which helps partner the professional and personal developmental needs of sailors and their families, to enhance recruiting and retaining our best and brightest to ensure mission success. • Crisis Action Organization, which assists commands in accounting for Navy personnel and their families following catastrophic events such as severe hurricanes, tornadoes or wildfires using a Web-based system. Interestingly, the Navy handicapped itself by entering in only eight of Optimas’ nine categories. Fifteen programs were initially submitted to a team of 50 personnel officials who narrowed the field to eight. “We looked at the programs we have, the impact they’ve had and the improvements they’ve made for the sailors,” said Cmdr. Lisa Truesdale, chief strategist for N1. “We expected to win in a couple categories, but the overall award was a surprise.” The word “surprise” was echoed by Johnson, who first saw the Navy’s submission when presented the finalists. “We were surprised to see their application, but quickly sold,” he said. “They had done a wonderful job of tying their programs into very specific and quantifiable results, so the surprise didn’t last very long. They made a very compelling argument. It was easy to give them the award.” Roughead, however, wasn’t surprised. “I think this tells our sailors that we indeed are the Top 50 organization that we set ourselves out to be,” the CNO told Navy Times. “That what we do as part of our daily work is viewed by those outside of the Navy as pretty forward leaning, being well above the norm and being that standard of excellence that we aspire to be.” Such recognition is becoming commonplace for the Navy, which has received 20 work force awards in 20 months. In February, it took the 17th spot in Training Magazine’s Top 125 Organizations That Excel at Employee Development. Still, the Optimas Award “is the top award,” Truesdale said. Roughead called the award a milestone and a milepost, “because we don't intend to stop here.” “Clearly, the focus that we have been able to bring to the ‘work/life balance’ is going to become more important as we move into the future,” he told Navy Times. As we attract, recruit and train young people, how we balance that while meeting the missions the nation expects from us will be absolutely key.” The CNO pointed to the “extremely important” cyber community as a prime example. “That’s a group within our Navy that will be in great demand outside the Navy,” he said. “What we want to be able to do is to create an environment where they believe that they are working for the absolute best organization in the world when it comes to cyber activity. Maybe they’ll see better salaries on the outside, maybe they’ll see a bit more stability on the outside, but when they work it through in their minds, we want them to say ‘I’m going to do this in the Navy because there is no better place to do it.’ ” As this happens, the Navy is setting its sights on something that never has been done — winning a second Optimas. “It’s a very difficult thing to do,” Johnson said. “The bar is getting set higher each year, so it will be interesting to see.” Truesdale is not deterred. When asked if she and her peers will try again next year, her answer came with no hesitation. “Absolutely. And I think we have a great shot at it.”

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Navy honored for human resources innovation

Florida’s Mayport naval base got a boost Tuesday when the Navy’s top officer confirmed it as the future home and primary site of East Coast littoral combat ships. The first LCS vessels are to be homeported at Mayport beginning in 2016, Adm. Gary Roughead, chief of naval operations, said during a military construction hearing on Capitol Hill. The ships, of which two are now in service, are initially being based at San Diego. The Florida base is normally home to an aircraft carrier, a handful of cruisers and destroyers, and about a dozen frigates. But the base has been without a carrier for three years, and all the frigates are scheduled to decommission over the next few years. The Navy, supported by the recent Quadrennial Defense Review, is upgrading the base to take a nuclear aircraft carrier. Roughead said the LCSs are seen as a replacement at Mayport for the frigates. He also said the LCS is optimized for operations in Southern Command, which overseas Central and Latin America. Those missions include counterdrug operations and maritime cooperation work, similar to the deployment now being carried out by the Freedom, the first LCS.

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Mayport to get first East Coast littoral ships

SAN DIEGO — Three weeks after a carrier-based chief petty officer suffered a fatal electric shock, the commander of the Navy’s surface fleet ordered all ships to review training and reinforce safety measures for all shipboard electrical systems. In his safety advisory issued Monday, Vice Adm. D.C. Curtis warned the fleet to follow safety procedures and safe practices and not take dangerous shortcuts that can risk injury. “Given the recent number of electrical related incidents, we must exponentially raise our awareness forcewide to the hazards associated with what has incorrectly become considered routine or everyday work,” Curtis, Naval Surface Forces commander in Coronado, Calif., said in the message. “Adhering to electrical safety standards is not routine and should not be considered everyday work.” Curtis ordered that all ships do a thorough review of all electrical safety-related documents and manuals and ensure compliance of those procedures; hold all-hands training on electrical safety and tag-out procedures; and ensure that sufficient electrical safety personal protective equipment and materials, such as insulated tools, test equipment and rubber gloves, are on hand. Ships must complete their reviews and report to their class squadrons by March 26. The electrical safety advisory came a week after San Diego-based 3rd Fleet directed a wider electrical safety stand-down for all ships and shore commands and safety reviews completed by March 26. The directive by Vice Adm. Richard Hunt came on the heels of two fatal accidents in recent months. Chief Electrician’s Mate (SS/DV) John G. Conyers, 36, died Feb. 19 after he was electrocuted while working in an auxiliaries space aboard the carrier Ronald Reagan, which is undergoing a maintenance availability at North Island Naval Air Station in Coronado. On Nov. 28, Engineman 3rd Class David Mudge, 22, died aboard the frigate Rentz after he was shocked while working in an auxiliary machinery space while the ship was berthed in Jebel Ali, United Arab Emirates. Officials have not yet provided details about what happened in each case. Both incidents are being investigated. After the Rentz incident, Naval Sea Systems Command issued several advisories about shock hazards that reiterated existing shipboard safety and electrical procedures and advised the fleet to inspect all shipboard electrical enclosures for rust and corrosion, especially high-humidity areas that have higher risk of corrosion. The recent incident involved the installation of a breaker into a 450-volt load center during the maintenance availability, but, according to a NavSea safety advisory, power sources were not secured, and the load center wasn’t de-energized and tagged. NavSea’s commander, Vice Adm. Kevin McCoy, in the March 1 safety advisory, urged “strict adherence” of safety procedures for shipboard electrical systems. McCoy also sought to dispel misconceptions about safety measures, and he warned against complacency. “The misconception that exists in some parts of the fleet that racking in or out a breaker in energized switchgear is routine and low risk must be eradicated,” he wrote. “Beyond electrical shock, such work poses a significant risk of arc flash if technical manual guidance in not strictly followed.” “Every job must be approached with a focus on what could go wrong and careful consideration of the worst case risk inherent in what is being planned,” he added. “No electrical work, no matter how frequently performed, should be considered routine; steps should always be taken to remove dangers and keep people safe.”

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SurFor stresses electrical safety after deaths

Rear Adm. Carol Pottenger has been nominated for promotion to vice admiral and assignment as deputy chief of staff for capability development, Supreme Allied Command Transformation, Norfolk, Va., according to a Defense Department news release. Defense Secretary Robert Gates announced the nomination Tuesday. Pottenger is commander, Navy Expeditionary Combat Command, Norfolk. Navy officials confirmed Wednesday that she would become the fleet’s fourth female three-star. OTHER RECENT FLAG MOVES 3-star’s next assignment announced Roughead announces seven flag moves Flag assignments announced by CNO

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Pottenger gets third star, assignment

The Navy says that three dogs died and dozens more were in poor health after being neglected by a private security contractor in Chicago that had been hired to train the dogs to detect explosives.

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Navy Says Dogs Died After Contractor Neglect