All Hands articles from March 2009

All Hands archives from March 2009

Speaking with Sailors.
March 1, 2009... Hello shipmates. I've been your MCPON for just over three months, and I've had the opportunity to meet with many of you during fleet visits. Already I've begun to understand what my predecessors meant when they told me that nothing prepares...

Selective Reenlistment Bonus policy changes announced.(Around the Fleet)
March 1, 2009... Sailors will have the opportunity to reenlist with a Selective Reenlistment Bonus (SRB) up to 90 days before the expiration of their active obligated service (EAOS) under new policy set forth in NAVADMIN 006/09. Sailors may have less...

Navy revises short-term extension policy.(Around the Fleet)
March 1, 2009... The Navy recently announced a new policy for short-term extensions that will affect Sailors in overmanned ratings, physical fitness assessment (PFA) failures and some Perform to Serve (PTS) applicants. According to NAVADMIN 007/09,...

'Perform to Serve' extended to second-term Sailors.(Around the Fleet)
March 1, 2009... Chief of Naval Personnel Vice Adm. Mark Ferguson recently announced plans to expand the Navy's Perform to Serve (PTS) program from first-term Sailors, to all E-6 and below with 10 years or less of service. "The Perform to Serve program...

Navy makes preparing for selection boards easier.(Around the Fleet)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... A new program recently announced by Navy Personnel Command (NPC) makes reviewing records and preparing for selection boards easier by providing online access to their official military personnel file (OMPF). [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...

Continuation board allows Navy to retain top performers.(Around the Fleet)
March 1, 2009... The Chief of Naval Personnel (CNP) recently announced the establishment of senior enlisted continuation boards as a means to help shape the force. "In an effort to stabilize and shape the force, ensure continued advancement opportunity...

Chaplains offer new suicide prevention training.(Around the Fleet)(Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Navy chaplains across the Europe, Africa and Southwest Asia region are now offering a special suicide prevention program to help address the concerns Navy and Marine Corps leadership have regarding one of their top priorities--suicide...

Shipmates.(Glen T. Goodwin)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Equipment Operator 1st Class (SCW/FMF) Glen T. Goodwin assigned to Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 4, Naval Base Ventura County, Calif., was recently selected as the 31st Seabee Readiness Group (SRG) 2008 Sea Sailor of the Year....

Taking it to the seas.(Maritime Expeditionary Security Force)
March 1, 2009... In recent years the U.S. Navy role as a global force has intensified its maritime surveillance and security near coasts, harbors and straits in key regions of the world. Fulfilling this role is a dedicated and professional security force...

Putting the tip on the spear.(a sailor's deployment)
March 1, 2009... The exhausted Sailors lined both sides of the pier jutting out toward the Coronado Bay Bridge. The days spent on the water were long, and sleep... well, there would be time for that later. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] [ILLUSTRATION...

Happy birthday "citizen Sailor".(Navy Reserve Force)
March 1, 2009... March 3, 2009, marks the 94th birthday of the Navy Reserve Force. Today, some 67,000 Selected Reservists and nearly 54,000 Individual Ready Reservists have taken up the calling. They serve in all 50 states, drilling from a total of 128 Navy...

Damage controlmen take ownership of Navy's newest carrier.(NEW GENERATION OF PLANKOWNERS)(USS George H.W. Bush)
March 1, 2009... Being a damage controlman (DC) aboard an aircraft carrier means constantly keeping your finger on the pulse of the ship. DCs stand watch at Damage Control Central, maintain repair lockers and are able to respond in a moment's notice to any...

LHD 8: a new hybrid era for the amphibious Navy.(NEW GENERATION OF PLANKOWNERS)
March 1, 2009... Engineman 2nd Class (SW) Rebecca Lucero is making history. The things she's doing today will set the stage for thousands of Sailors in the future. And she knows it. "I feel like an asset to the Navy," said Lucero, work center supervisor for...

CNO and MCPON visit troops in Afghanistan.(This Just in)
March 1, 2009... Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Gary Roughead and Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Rick D. West recently met with Sailors at International Security Assistance Force Headquarters, Kabul, Afghanistan. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] ...

Hawaii commands participate in first middle Pacific group sail.(This Just in)
March 1, 2009... Pearl Harbor-based ships and aircraft recently participated in the first Commander, Naval Surface Group Middle Pacific (CNSG MIDPAC) Surface Combatant Group Sail off the coast of Oahu, Hawaii. USS Hopper (DDG 70), USS Chosin (CG 65), USS...

Carter Hall boat engineers contribute to MSO.(This Just in)(maritime security operations)
March 1, 2009... The visit, board, search and seizure (VBSS) team aboard the amphibious dock landing ship USS Carter Hall (LSD 50) is an integral part of the ship's overall mission to conduct maritime security operations (MSO) in the 5th Fleet Area of...

Navy announces decision on Mayport Homebasing.(This Just in)(Mayport Homeporting Environmental Impact Statement)
March 1, 2009... Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Installations & Environment, B.J. Penn, recently signed a Record of Decision for the Mayport Homeporting Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The Navy's decision is to implement the preferred...

Coalition forces work to deter piracy in Gulf of Aden.(This Just in)(Combined Task Force (CTF) 151)
March 1, 2009... Combined Task Force (CTF) 151 is working closely with international navies in the Gulf of Aden to conduct counterpiracy operations and ensure a lawful maritime order in the region. "We're out here as a force, with the coalition nations,...

CVN 77 Ordnanceman lives the dream of racing on weekends.(This Just in)(Aviation Ordnanceman 1st Class David Steele)
March 1, 2009... Sailors sometimes joke with each other that they're "livin' the dream, but Aviation Ordnanceman 1st Class (AW) David Steele assigned to USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77), says he really is living his dream--on the weekends. [ILLUSTRATION...

Afloat college enrollment soars on Stennis.(This Just in)(USS John C. Stennis)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... Nearly 1,000 Sailors aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN 74) enrolled in college classes held aboard the warship during John C. Stennis University's (JCSU) first term of 2009. The program allows Sailors to...

Bradley is first U.S. Navy ship to visit Bata, Equatorial Guinea.(This Just in)(USS Robert G. Bradley)(Brief article)
March 1, 2009... USS Robert G. Bradley (FFG 49) recently became the first U.S. Navy ship to anchor in Bata, Equatorial Guinea, while conducting Africa Partnership Station (APS) initiative. APS is an ongoing, U.S. Navy-led, multinational effort aimed at...

A GI Bill for the 21st century.(Something to Think about)(Post 9/11 Veterans Educational Assistance Act)
March 1, 2009... Former Presidents Gerald R. Ford and George H. W. Bush served in similar ways. Both were vice president and president of the United States, and were World War II veterans. Not as widely known is they both received their educations with...

Decisions, decisions, decisions--which GI Bill is better?(Something to Think about)(Post-9/11 Veterans Education Assistance Act of 2008)
March 1, 2009... Military members thinking about or already enrolled in college may have a decision to make when planning for their education. The Post-9/11 Veterans Education Assistance Act of 2008, also known as the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill or Chapter 33,...

Shining star.(Focus on Service)(Curtis Bembow)
March 1, 2009... Taking a bite out of the Recruiter of the Year competition wasn't enough for Electrician's Mate 2nd Class (SW/AW) Curtis Bembow. The enterprising Sailor from Naval Recruiting District Miami went back for seconds as Diversity Recruiter of the...

Being first was not the goal.(History)(Darlene Iskra)
March 1, 2009... When Darlene Iskra joined the Navy in 1979, she was by no means the first woman to serve in the U.S. Navy. The first female, Loretta Walsh of Philadelphia, a yeoman, enlisted in 1917, almost exactly 62 years earlier. And it would still be...

A world of possibilities: Navy lieutenant gets settled on the ground in Afghanistan individual augmentee.(Ryan Petrosky)
March 1, 2009... Lt. Ryan Petrosky has spent most of his time in the Navy at sea, but recently, this naval officer went from an afloat experience to a boots-on-the-ground Sailor serving with the Army in Kabul, Afghanistan. [ILLUSTRATION OMITTED] "One...