Month: July 2022

Source: United States Navy

NAVAL STATION NORFOLK – The United Through Reading Program’s mobile story station visited the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77), July 26-27, 2022.

The mobile story station, which is a library and video studio on wheels, provided the Sailors of George H.W. Bush and Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 10 the opportunity to record themselves reading books to their loved ones before the upcoming deployment.

The two day event was organized by Chief Religious Program Specialist Angel Pacheco and Religious Program Specialist 3rd Class Chauncey Phillips to honor the Bush family legacy and lifetime mission of spreading literacy and resiliency across military families through the program.

“It was a great opportunity to bring this event to our crew prior to our deployment,” said Pacheco. “Families will be able to have a recording during the first portion of deployment, instead of waiting for Sailors to mail the first recording. It was a great morale enhancing event.”

The Mobile Story Unit’s visit to George H.W. Bush also marked a successful first visit to the east coast, with 71 Sailors participating in 81 recorded reading sessions and taking home many free children’s books.

“The act of shared reading has a profound impact on the connection between the reader and the child,” said Laura Steiner, program manager Navy East, United Through Reading. “We strive to enable service members the opportunity to maintain and grow this connection during deployments and other times of separation, wherever they serve. It is our pleasure to make this accessible through our on-board Story Stations, our App, and our Mobile Story Stations. We hope this week’s visit from our Mobile Story Station brings a positive start to the USS George H. W. Bush’s upcoming deployment for its crew and their families.”

United Through Reading video recording sessions will continue at sea across CSG-10 as coordinated by the respective ships’ religious ministry teams of chaplains and religious program specialists. Any Sailor is able to talk to a religious program specialist, chaplain, or representative about recording a video while out to sea. After the video is recorded, the video and card will be mailed to the recipient’s home through the command ministries department and United Through Reading on the Sailor’s behalf.

“Chaplains care for the soul of the Sailor and their families, and the best way to show that, is through acts of compassion,” said Cmdr. Douglas Grace, CSG-10 chaplain. “Our entire George H.W. Bush Strike Group has built a foundation of leadership and compassion that starts at home. Just as Barbara Bush believed in family as the foundation for a legacy to endure, the Sailors within the Strike Group shared their passion for literacy by using the United through Reading program that facilitates a read-aloud experience for military families. This proven benefit strengthens family bonds and encourages early childhood literacy.”

George H.W. Bush provides the national command authority flexible, tailorable warfighting capability as the flagship of the George H.W. Bush Carrier Strike Group which maintains maritime stability and security to ensure access, deter aggression and defend U.S., allied and partner interests. For more information about the ship you can visit its Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, or official webpage. For more information about the George H.W. Bush Carrier Strike Group you can visit its official website, Facebook, or LinkedIn page.

Source: United States Navy

The Navy has expanded advancement opportunities for active component Sailors with an update to its Advance-to-Position (A2P) Program, announced in NAVADMIN 172/22, July 28.

This modification now incorporates active component E-4 and E-5 Sailors who are in their detailing window and allows them to apply for E-5 and E-6 jobs respectively. This guidance does not apply to ratings participating in DMAP.

First introduced in 2019, the Navy’s family of “Advancement-to-Position” initiatives has steadily expanded into an alternate advancement path up the petty officer ranks alongside the Navywide Advancement Exam (NWAE) and the Meritorious Advancement Programs (MAP). 

Sailors selected for an A2P position can be frocked to their new paygrade after receiving their orders. For all A2P Sailors, the advancement becomes permanent upon checking in to their new command, after completing any required training.

Sailors selected for A2P jobs remain eligible to advance through the Navy’s other methods such as MAP and NWAE and could advance sooner if selected.

To be eligible for A2P, Sailors must have passed the most recent advancement exam, completed their Professional Military Knowledge Eligibility Exam and be eligible for advancement to the next higher paygrade.

Sailors looking to take advantage of A2P can apply to sea duty jobs, regardless of sea/shore flow considerations.  Sailors should contact their rating detailer if they have any questions regarding qualifications needed to fill a specific A2P job.

Eligible Sailors looking to apply for A2P jobs will find them under the “Advance to Position” category in MyNavy Assignment (MNA). Sailors will apply in the same way they would for standard cycle applications.

Selection for the job comes through a competitive rack and stack of applicants utilizing a Sailor Scoring Criteria. A sample of the Sailor Scoring Criteria is available here:

https://www.mynavyhr.navy.mil/Career-Management/Detailing/Enlisted/Detailing-Marketplace/

Also coming into play is whether they already have the needed critical skills or are eligible to obtain them.

Complete details are available in the NAVADMIN.

For more news from the Chief of Naval Personnel, follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mynavyhr, Twitter at https://twitter.com/mynavyhr, or visit https://www.navy.mil/cnp.

Source: United States Navy

Known as Unmanned Logistics Prototype trials, each test event increases the perception capabilities and complexity of behaviors demonstrated by the autonomous systems. Test evolutions to date include point-to-point autonomous navigation, vessel handling and transfer of vessel control between manned to unmanned modes.

“The autonomous capabilities being demonstrated by this prototype system represent a major technological advancement for the EPF platform, the Navy at large and our industry partners. EPF 13 will be the first fully operational U.S. naval ship to possess autonomous capability including the ability to operate autonomously in a commercial vessel traffic lane,” said Tim Roberts, Strategic and Theater Sealift program manager, Program Executive Office (PEO) Ships. “This testing is a game changer and highlights that there is potential to expand unmanned concepts into existing fleet assets.”

Collaboration for the test events include team members from PEO Ships, PEO Unmanned and Small Combatants, Naval Systems Engineering and Logistics Directorate – Surface Ship Design and System Engineering, Supervisor of Shipbuilding – Gulf Coast, Naval Surface Warfare Center support from Carderock, Combatant Craft Division, Dahlgren and Philadelphia and the Navy’s shipbuilding and industry partners, Austal USA, L3 Harris and General Dynamics.

Future test events will add levels of difficulty and include night navigation, and differing weather and sea states. These trials will set crucial groundwork for autonomous vessel operations, to include vessel encounter and avoidance maneuvering and compliance with International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea.

EPFs are shallow draft, commercial-based, catamaran designed for rapid, intra-theater transport of personnel and equipment. The EPF’s high speed, shallow draft, and ability to load/unload in austere ports enables maneuver force agility in achieving positional advantage over intermediate distances without reliance on shore-based infrastructure.

EPF 13 is scheduled to deliver to the Navy later this year.

As one of the Defense Department’s largest acquisition organizations, PEO Ships is responsible for executing the development and procurement of all destroyers, amphibious ships, special mission and support ships, boats and craft.

Source: United States Navy

The inaugural SCOTA was hosted by Western Hemisphere (WHEM) undersea leadership from allied and partner submarine-operating nations to showcase and address national undersea domain capabilities, the challenges of interoperability, and undersea collaboration against strategic competitors in the WHEM.

Vice Adm. William Houston, commander, Submarine Forces, kicked off the multinational conference with a welcome remark to attendees from Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Peru and the U.S.

“We are all at this conference together because out countries share the same values of democracy,” said Houston. “Our submarine forces all offer unique capabilities and advantages and this conference will enable all of us to take the next step forward in our partnerships while also strengthening our ability to operate as a cohesive joint and combined force which can respond to emerging crises if needed.”

Following Houston’s introduction, a video of Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro was played for participants thanking them for their time and collaboration while encouraging them to take advantage of the unique opportunity to bolster knowledge between strengthening relationships between allies and partnerships.

“I would like to thank all of the key leaders of the West’s undersea domain who are participating in this important conference today,” said Del Toro. “I believe SCOTA will lay a new foundation for a renewed sense of collaboration and threat awareness from the undersea domain, so I urge you to make the most of this gather and keep building our vital security partnerships.”

After two days of presentations and discussions, Rear Adm. Carlos Alfonso Saz Garcia, commander, Submarine Forces, Peruvian navy, left the conference with deeper comprehension on the challenges of interoperability and undersea collaboration against strategic competitors in the Western Hemisphere (WHEM).

“For us it is very important to participate in this type of gathering, which is the inaugural Submarine Conference of the Americas, as it seeks to unify the collaboration amongst all the submarine forces in the western hemisphere,” said Saz Garcia. “We have many things in common, we navigate the same seas and have similar submarines. I truly think SCOTA will reinforce ongoing partnerships and provide a different vision from the undersea to a common security problem throughout the Americas.”

The conference included presentations from multiple subject matter experts on global threats in the undersea theatre, Navy security, the future of the combined fight in the western hemisphere and lessons in hemispheric security. One subject matter expert was Adm. Daryl Caudle, commander, Fleet Forces Command, who spoke on the advantages and capabilities participating countries had over potential adversaries.

“One of our key advantages collectively in this room is our navies’ capabilities and overmatch in the undersea domain,” said Caudle. “Our competitors cannot duplicate or match the advantages we hold in the undersea environment. We must all have a deep level of understanding of what each of our navies’ strengths and capabilities are, so that we can better integrate together when the time arises.”

The conference also included a tour of the Virginia-class fast-attack submarine USS Montana (SSN 794), allowing participants to view the capabilities of the U.S. Submarine Force in person while offering a chance for questions and ideas to be asked and shared.

The Submarine Force executes the Department of the Navy’s mission in and from the undersea domain. In addition to lending added capacity to naval forces, the Submarine Force, in particular, is expected to leverage those special advantages that come with undersea concealment to permit operational, deterrent and combat effects that the Navy and the nation could not otherwise achieve.

The Submarine Force and supporting organizations constitute the primary undersea arm of the Navy. Submarines and their crews remain the tip of the undersea spear.