USS Fitzgerald

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pishta

pishta

I know I'm right....
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How the hell can a Navy destroyer get T-boned by a huge slow container ship? I mean, these ships are fast enough to tow a water skier behind them, have about 10 different radars on them and all kinds of redundant collision detection alarms. WTH? I am glad they found the 7 souls but that boot Commander (1 month!) has ALOT of explaining to do....At 0230, I expect a sleepy non rate seaman at the helm, but there are always fore and aft lookouts posted.
 
There's going to be a few Navy guys turned into E--'nuttin' over this...................
 
Same can be said of any traffic intersection, but start looking for busted turn signal lenses in any intersection, and you're apt to find em.
 
The last recorded comment from the helm of the destroyer before the collision, "Hey guys, watch this!"
 
1968FormulaS340 said:
On this Navy thing, how bad is it if you only reach E-3 after being in the Navy for a little over 2 years?

Neighbors kid.
Click to expand...

E3 is not the "thing." "Getting rated" is where things get sticky. This is because depending on what you do, ratings advance differently. When I was in, the Navy "needed" electronics techs. So we advanced quickly. In fact "we" were called "push button PO's" a name obviously meant to be derogatory from those who claimed they "paid their dues." Well, the Navy made that decision, not us.

I was in for 6, and due to a paperwork error, my E4 was delayed. If not for that I could have been E6 at the time of discharge instead of E-5

There are several factors........Some commands aren't as helpful as others for advancement. If you are in a small command/ ship you won't

Plus, sometimes someone gets someone in their chain who either is not on the ball, or maybe worse, "has a hard on" for a sailor, and they won't be advanced quickly.

That's one reason I got out. One AH in your chain of command can delay a sailor for literally YEARS if they are thinking of a career.
 
Marine Corps was a little different: 6 months in you usually got E2, another 8and you get E3. Then it gets personal: You can be given a bad fitrep by a superior, or just be a "shitbird" and not make rank because your a FU. Marines also have a cutting score that you must get in order to be eligible for promotion. In my MOS (0351) the score was 999 which meant they didnt need any more E4's in that MOS. I made E4 in 46 months, with 6 weeks left in my "contract". Other MOS were flying through rank. Combat accelerates rank due to replacements of E4 and above due to the Marines allowing only a certain number of E4 and above in a certain MOS and if an E6 position opens, then it gets slotted with a promoted E5 and on and on. Making E4 in the Corps is a big deal, you career door is now open. Goodbye 0000-0400 firewatch! Hello Duty NCO where you can actually sit down...:)
 
Since I was already married, I spent 6 years in the California Army National Guard. Rank was pretty quick.
Got sworn in on July 1 but didn't go to basic training until January - had already been promoted to E2 before Basic and was surprisingly promoted to E3 at end of Basic (Fort Polk, LA). Made E4 (Corporal - NCO route, not Spec) about a year later and E5 not quite 2 years after that. Was promised E6 if I signed up for another 6 years, but was tired of 'donating' my annual day-job vacation time to my Guard summer camp time every year so got out.
That and the fact that I should have been getting "semi-combat pay" because my unit was in Compton, CA! The local civilians didn't take kindly to any form of military uniform or vehicle.
The Guard wasn't a bad way to go - add up all of the days in uniform including Basic, AIT, all weekends and 2-week summer camps (Fort Irwin, CA) and I spent less than one calendar year in uniform. At the time, the 40th Armored was the only desert-trained armored unit in the reserves.
Looking back on it, I should have stayed in another 14 years to reach 20 and been eligible for partial retirement pay.
 
67Dart273 said:
E3 is not the "thing." "Getting rated" is where things get sticky. This is because depending on what you do, ratings advance differently. When I was in, the Navy "needed" electronics techs. So we advanced quickly. In fact "we" were called "push button PO's" a name obviously meant to be derogatory from those who claimed they "paid their dues." Well, the Navy made that decision, not us.

I was in for 6, and due to a paperwork error, my E4 was delayed. If not for that I could have been E6 at the time of discharge instead of E-5

There are several factors........Some commands aren't as helpful as others for advancement. If you are in a small command/ ship you won't

Plus, sometimes someone gets someone in their chain who either is not on the ball, or maybe worse, "has a hard on" for a sailor, and they won't be advanced quickly.

That's one reason I got out. One AH in your chain of command can delay a sailor for literally YEARS if they are thinking of a career.
Click to expand...


He said it's unlikely that he will make rank and won't be allowed to stay in once his time is up. Knowing nothing about the Navy, we were all a little confused by this.
 
Yeah, absolutely no excuse for this to happen. Who's to say it wasn't deliberate on the part of the cargo ship to ram us...
 
1968FormulaS340 said:
On this Navy thing, how bad is it if you only reach E-3 after being in the Navy for a little over 2 years?

Neighbors kid.
Click to expand...
The Navy aint what it used to be.
But this was a huge ship, without anywhere near the nimble navigation capacity of the American ship that was crashed into. There is no reason the US ship shouldn’t have been able to get out of the way.

No reason other than that our military is now run by people with similar IQs to the average Filipino.
 
1968FormulaS340 said:
He said it's unlikely that he will make rank and won't be allowed to stay in once his time is up. Knowing nothing about the Navy, we were all a little confused by this.
Click to expand...
Tell him to re-up before his EAS date or change MOS/Title. He could always 'cross deck' to another service (Marines) or join the active reserves and babysit an empty building 3 weeks a month. My employer allows reservist duty 2 weeks a year off the books.
Getting back to the collision. Navy says it may take up to a year to determine the findings on the collision. thats a crock: there is so much data on the ships logs (any modern ships) that all you would have to do was to subpoena the nav records of all the ships within 20 miles of the event and plot them. They are saying that the container ship made 'erratic' maneuvers 10 minutes before the collision and that set off a chain reaction as the shipping lanes are pretty congested in that area. I hope we get a speedy verdict on this for the 7 Sailors sake.
 
communication probably went something like this:


In the darkest part of the night, a ships captain cautiously piloted his warship through the fog-shrouded waters. With straining eyes he scanned the hazy darkness, searching for dangers lurking just out of sight.

Then His worst fears were realised when he saw a bright light straight ahead. It appeared to be a vessel on a collision course with his ship. To avert disaster he quickly radioed the oncoming vessel.

"This is Captain Jeremiah Smith," his voice crackled over the radio. "Please alter your course 10 degrees south! Over."

To the captains amazement, the foggy image did not move. Instead, he heard back on the radio, "Captain Smith. This is Private Thomas Johnson. please alter your course 10 degrees north! Over."

Appalled at the audacity of the message, the captain shouted back over the radio, "Private Johnson, this is Captain Smith, and I order you to immediately alter your course 10 degree south! Over."

A second time the oncoming light did not budge. "With all due respect Captain Smith," came the privates voice again, "I order you to alter your course immediately 10 degrees north! Over."

Angered and frustrated that this impudent sailor would endanger the lives of his men and crew, the captain growled back over the radio, "Private Johnson. I can have you court-marshalled for this! For the last time, I command you on the authority of the United States government to alter your course 10 degrees to the South! I am a battleship!"

The privates final transmission was chilling: "Captain Smith, sir. Once again with all due respect, I command you to alter your course 10 degrees to the North! I am a lighthouse!"
 
1968FormulaS340 said:
He said it's unlikely that he will make rank and won't be allowed to stay in once his time is up. Knowing nothing about the Navy, we were all a little confused by this.
Click to expand...
He is most likely in for 4 years. He should be rated as there are very few people without rates these days. Basically rated means he has a job title. Its very hard not to make E4 in 4 years. You have to be a complete drunk that is always in trouble.
 
So sad. Prayers and thoughts to the 7 sailors that lost their lives. Regardless of the how and why something like this could happen, those sailors made the ultimate sacrifice. It's a shame....
 
Being on a DDG during Viet Nam I'm scratching my head at this. Destroyers are quick for their size , can and will out maneuver any freighter in the ocean been there done that. Radar , Sonar , plot boards , look outs. The plot board alone has all the ships in the area on it and is updated as the ships move. In this case the freighter,. should have had a constant watch on it. There should have been an OOO **** from someone on the bridge.
 
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