Welcome aboard! These words carry a world of significance. They mean that you have made one of the biggest decisions a person can—you have volunteered to enlist in the United States Navy. By raising your right hand and taking the oath of enlistment, you have become a member of one of the most important military services in the world and joined one of the biggest businesses in the United States. Not only have you proved your understanding of citizenship by offering your services to your country, but you have also taken the first step toward an exciting and rewarding career should you choose to remain in the Navy.
If you are not already familiar with names like John Paul Jones, Stephen Decatur, Doris Miller, William F. Halsey, Grace Hopper, and Marvin Shields, you soon will be. And you will likely feel honored to be serving, as they once did, in the same United States Navy.
Today’s Navy is a massive and complex organization, a far cry from the makeshift fleet that opposed the British in the Revolutionary War. Hundreds of ships, thousands of aircraft, hundreds of thousands of people, and an annual budget in the billions of dollars go together to make the U.S. Navy a powerful and important component of the American defense establishment, playing a vital role in maintaining our national security, deterring potential enemies, protecting us against our adversaries in time of war, and supporting our foreign policy in peacetime. Through its exercise of sea power, the Navy ensures freedom of the seas so that merchant ships can bring us the vital raw materials we import from abroad, like petroleum, rubber, sugar, and aluminum. Sea power makes it possible for us to use the oceans when and where our national interests require it, and denies our enemies that same freedom. Sea power permits us to take the fight to the enemy when that is required, rather than waiting for the enemy to attack us in our homeland.
As a Sailor you are a part of all that—a vital part, for the ships and aircraft of the Navy are only as good as the people who operate them.
Because the Navy is both a military service and a sea service, to make the transition from civilian to Sailor you must learn the ways of both.
FIRST ENLISTMENT
Your introduction to the Navy probably started at your hometown recruiting station, with interviews and processing conducted by a Navy recruiter. He or she was specially trained to compare your desires and your qualifications with the needs of the Navy to establish the terms of your service. Your “contract” with the Navy is officially called an enlistment, but you might hear it described informally as a “hitch.” It began when you took the oath of enlistment, and it will last from two to six years, depending upon the terms agreed upon by you and your recruiter.
“Boot Camp”
All recruits begin their naval careers in what is officially called Recruit Training Command (RTC), but is more traditionally referred to as “Boot Camp.” Although you may have relatives who once trained at boot camps in other parts of the country, currently the Navy is operating only one RTC, located at the Naval Station (NAVSTA) in Great Lakes, Illinois. This 1,628-acre training facility, on the shore of Lake Michigan about forty miles north of Chicago, has been training Sailors since July 1911. During World War II, nearly a million Sailors were trained there.
You and the other recruits will make the transition from civilian to military life in the time you will spend at RTC. Nearly every minute of every day will be filled with military drills, physical training, hands-on experiences, and a busy schedule of drills and classes on naval history, traditions, customs, operations, and regulations. At first you will probably find the transition challenging and a bit disconcerting—you will have completely changed your environment, diet, sleep patterns, climate, clothes, and companions—but within a relatively short period, you will make the necessary adjustments and find a great deal of pride to replace your initial anxiety.
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[1.1] As an American Sailor, you are a vital part of the world’s most powerful Navy.
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[1.2] A large group taking the oath of enlistment in Chicago
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[1.3] Recruit Training Command, also known as “Boot Camp”
FIRST WEEKS IN THE NAVY
From the moment you arrive at RTC, the process of “Sailorization” begins, giving you the knowledge, capabilities, and attitudes necessary to be able to effectively participate in the defense of this nation and all it stands for as a valuable member of the United States Navy. It is a transformation that is not simple or easy, but it is one that has been accomplished by many before you and it is one you will not regret. Even those who remain in the Navy for only one enlistment often recall their time in the service as one of the most important times in their lives. And it all begins at RTC.
P-Days
The day of arrival at RTC is called receipt day, when your initial processing begins. The next five days will be your processing days (P-Days). The procedures may vary from time to time but in general begin like this: Report in; turn in orders; draw your bedding and bunk assignment for your first night aboard; begin learning how to be a Sailor.
Haircuts
Every recruit will get a haircut, and chances are, it will be different from what you are used to. While male recruits won’t get their heads shaved, the barber won’t leave enough hair to comb either. Female recruits must get special haircuts to conform to Navy standards. Later, at your first duty station, you will have more choice in hairstyle, but you will still have to conform to Navy Regulations.
Medical Examinations
As a Sailor, you will have to be in excellent health and good physical condition to perform your duties properly. Navy medical personnel will examine you from head to toe, run blood tests and urinalysis, take X-rays, and give you a series of inoculations—the works! If you need dental work, it will be done as well.
Clothing Issue
At first you will receive an initial clothing issue that includes enough uniform clothing to make you look like a Sailor and to allow you to perform your duties while in boot camp. Eventually you will receive a complete outfit, called a “seabag,” worth hundreds of dollars and a source of great pride.
NEX Card
You will not need money while in boot camp. You will be issued a Navy Exchange (NEX) card to be used in the Navy Exchange for toilet articles, sewing kits, shoeshine gear, notebooks, and pens and pencils. The total cost will be deducted from your pay.
ID Card
You will be issued a Common Access Card (CAC), a “smart” card about the size of a credit card, which is the standard Armed Forces of the United States Identification Card—“ID card”—that identifies you as a member of the armed forces. While it is unique to you and in your possession, it remains government property and must be returned when you are discharged. Altering it, damaging it, counterfeiting it, or using it in an unauthorized manner (such as lending your card to someone or borrowing another person’s card) can result in serious disciplinary action.
Your card shows your name and the date your enlistment expires. Carry it at all times. Besides granting you access to ships, Navy Exchanges, and other government installations, it will identify you as one protected by the provisions of the Geneva Convention should you become a prisoner of war.
If you lose your card, you must report it immediately and you will have to sign a statement detailing the circumstances of the loss.
BOOT CAMP ROUTINE
Soon after reporting in, you will be placed in a division and will meet the people you’ll be with for the coming weeks, and you will be assigned a division number and introduced to your recruit division commanders (RDCs), who will guide you through the Sailorization process. Upon completion of your P-Days, you will move into your barracks (named after a Navy ship). Then, during a formal commissioning ceremony, an officer will welcome you, give a brief talk on the history and mission of the Navy, and present a division flag (called a “guidon”—pronounced “guide-on”) bearing your division number.
Recruit Division Commander
Each division, usually about eighty-four recruits, is taken through training by its RDCs—outstanding chiefs and petty officers who are intimately familiar with instructional techniques, principles of leadership, and administrative procedures. The RDCs will instruct you in military and physical drills and show you how to keep yourself, your clothing, equipment, and barracks in smart, shipshape condition. While at boot camp, your RDCs are the most important people in the Navy. Keep in mind that your RDCs once went through recruit training just like you; by now, they have many years of naval experience. Follow your RDCs’ example and you’ll make a good start toward a successful time in the Navy.
Chain of Command
The Navy is organized like a pyramid, with the President of the United States at the top as commander in chief of the armed forces. There are many levels below the president leading eventually to you. This is known as the chain of command. Just as you must follow the orders and guidance of your RDCs, they must, likewise, follow the orders and guidance of the ship’s leading chief petty officer, and he or she must follow those of the ship’s officer, and so on. Your chain of command will change somewhat each time you report to a new duty station, but while you are at RTC, your chain of command is as follows:
President of the United States (Commander in Chief)
Secretary of Defense
Secretary of the Navy
Chief of Naval Operations
Chief of Naval Personnel
Commander, Naval Education and Training Command
Commander, Naval Service Training Command (NSTC)
Commanding Officer RTC
Executive Officer RTC
Military Training Director
Department Head (Fleet Commander)
Fleet Leading Chief Petty Officer
Ship’s Officer
Ship’s Leading Chief Petty Officer
Recruit Division Commanders (RDC)
Recruits (You)
Because you are new to the Navy, you will start out at the bottom of the pyramid, but time, training, experience, hard work, and the right attitude will change that. Keep in mind that everyone in the Navy began at the bottom, and your immediate seniors were once recruits like you.
Daily Routine
Nearly everything you do at boot camp is designed to prepare you for service in the Navy. In ships, submarines, aircraft squadrons, Seabee battalions, and naval stations throughout the world, the daily routine is prescribed by a bulletin called the “Plan of the Day” or, more commonly, the POD. At RTC, the daily routine appears as a schedule on the compartment bulletin board. It issues the special orders for the day, gives the hours of meals, inspections, parades, and other events. Using the master training schedule as their guide, your RDCs will post the information you need to get through each day. Once you leave boot camp, it will be your responsibility to read the POD each day to find out what uniform to wear, what special events are taking place, and so on.
Back to School
You have a lot to learn in order to make the transition from civilian to Sailor. Much of your time will be spent in classrooms. A typical day of instruction includes multiple fifty-minute periods with ten-minute breaks between periods. Many topics will be covered, such as grooming standards, educational benefits, aircraft familiarization, military discipline, and survival at sea.
Some of your classroom training will be augmented by hands-on training, which will give you the opportunity to work with actual equipment and simulate real conditions. Examples of this kind of training are firefighting, seamanship, chemical, biological, and radiological (CBR) defense, and survival at sea techniques where you will actually fight a fire, work with lines and deck equipment, put on a gas mask in a gas chamber, and learn to stay afloat using your clothing as a life preserver.
Few jobs in the Navy are completely independent, so a great deal of emphasis is placed upon teamwork during your training at RTC. Military drill (such as marching) is one way that you and your fellow recruits will learn the importance of instant response to orders and the value of group precision. Later on—when you are helping to launch and recover aircraft on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier, or rescuing a shipmate from the sea, or taking a nuclear submarine into the depths of the ocean—you will fully understand and appreciate the importance of such training.
Training at RTC—which includes such things as the meticulous folding and precise stowage of clothing—may sometimes be seen as nitpicky or unnecessary, but in the highly technical, sometimes dangerous, and often unique surroundings you will find in the Navy, attention to detail can make the difference between success and failure, survival and disaster, victory and defeat. Everything you do in boot camp has a purpose, and the overall mission of RTC is to make you ready for the challenges and opportunities that await you in the U.S. Navy.
Boot Camp Life
Not all of your time at RTC will be spent in training. There will be administrative periods during which you will make pay arrangements, be fitted for uniforms, complete your medical and dental work, and make known your desires for future assignment. Based upon your Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB) test scores and your classification interviews, the initial path of your Navy career will be determined.
While at boot camp you will be given the opportunity to attend religious services of your choosing. Chaplains are available for pastoral counseling and religious education. Recruit choirs are organized and often sing at the services.
Because of the tight schedule and the great number of recruits in training, you cannot receive telephone calls while at RTC, but on specified occasions, with permission from your RDC, you will be permitted to make a few outgoing calls.
Visitors are not permitted during training, but you will be permitted to have guests attend your graduation review. Information about this will be provided for you to send home.
You will be paid at least twice while at RTC, but once you graduate you (and every other member of the Navy) will be paid twice a month. You will be paid by electronic transfer of funds through the direct deposit system to the banking institution of your choice.
Competition
The Navy relies upon competition as a means of enhancing readiness and promoting pride. Individual Sailors compete with other Sailors for promotions, and ships and aircraft squadrons compete with each other using appropriate exercises to measure readiness in gunnery, engineering, safety, communications, and other important areas. While at boot camp, your division will compete for awards in athletic skills, scholastic achievement, military drill, inspections, and overall excellence.
Special flags are awarded to divisions in recognition of their achievements, and at the graduation ceremony a number of individuals are selected to receive outstanding recruit awards. Honor graduates will be designated and other recruits will receive special recognition. If you give your best, you may well be among those recognized.
Battle Stations
Near the end of your training at boot camp, you and your fellow recruits will participate in a large-scale exercise called “Battle Stations,” which will place you in a realistic scenario designed to test what you have learned at RTC. You will simulate handling emergencies such as the kind you might encounter while serving in the Navy and learn how to function as part of a team while demonstrating your endurance. This physically, mentally, and emotionally demanding exercise will test your abilities in such events as fighting a fire, preparing for an approaching hurricane, conducting a search-and-rescue operation, transporting an injured shipmate, defending a position using small arms, abandoning ship, and so on. After successfully completing this “final exam,” your achievement will be recognized by replacing your recruit cap with the Navy ballcap you will wear in the fleet.
Core Values and the Sailor’s Creed
Underlying all the training you will receive at RTC is a focus on self-respect, respect for others, and the core values of honor, courage, and commitment. These are not just words but interrelated concepts that you must take to heart to guide you in virtually everything you do as a Sailor. Before you make a decision or do something, you must consider whether your action will reflect a loss of honor, a failure of courage, or a lack of commitment. If it does, then you should not do it. You should keep in mind that honor includes the honor of your nation and your Navy as well as your own, and that maintaining honor will often require courage and commitment. You should also remember that courage can be physical or moral—sometimes you have to make a decision that is not easy and may not result in you getting what you want, but because it is the right thing to do, you must find the courage to do it. And you must be committed to doing what you know is right, what is honorable, what is courageous.
These core values are embodied in the “Sailor’s Creed,” which you and all recruits will be expected to memorize and to live by for as long as you are in the U.S. Navy. (See TAB 1-A: The Sailor’s Creed and TAB 1-B: The Core Values of the United States Navy.)
FROM CIVILIAN TO SAILOR
The ways of the Navy are often very different from what you were used to in civilian life. In boot camp you will take the first steps toward becoming a Sailor. You will be introduced to the many differences between civilian life and Navy life, and for the rest of your time in the Navy, whether you stay for only one enlistment or have a thirty-year career, those differences will become second nature to you.
Navy Terminology
Just as doctors, lawyers, baseball players, engineers, artists, and police officers have their own language when communicating within their professions, the Navy too has its own special terminology. Doctors speak of contusions and hemostats, baseball players have their own meanings for “in the alley” or “ahead in the count,” and police officers use special words like “perp” and “SWAT.” In the Navy, special terms include helm, anchor, leeward, port, starboard, aft, bitts, chocks, and bollards for nautical equipment and concepts. Everyday items also take on new names in the Navy, where bathrooms are heads, floors are decks, walls are bulkheads, stairways are ladders, and drinking fountains are scuttlebutts. You go topside instead of upstairs and below instead of downstairs. (See Appendix A: Navy Terms and Abbreviations for more.) Many of these terms will seem strange to you at first, but you will get used to them and will soon be using them naturally. Remember that many of these terms come from a long history of seafaring and nautical traditions. By using them, you are identifying yourself as a member of a unique and very special group.
The Navy also uses short abbreviations (also known as acronyms) in place of long titles, such as OOD for officer of the deck, QMOW for quartermaster of the watch, and USW for undersea warfare.
The terms “Navy” and “naval” bear some explanation. “Navy” when used as a noun and capitalized (as in “the Navy defends the nation”) is understood to refer to the U.S. Navy specifically, unless coupled with a different national modifier (as in “the Italian Navy was much smaller than the Royal Navy”). When not capitalized, it is a more general term (as in “a navy can be effective at defending commerce”). The term “naval” is an adjective that can be used to describe things pertaining to navies (as in “naval weapon systems are usually more complicated than those associated with field artillery units”) and can also be understood to include the Marine Corps (as in “American naval forces handled the amphibious assault with efficiency”), but “Navy” is understood to mean only that service (as in “members of the Navy Reserve supplement active duty personnel in maintaining the nation’s readiness along with the nation’s other armed forces”).
People Terminology
In earlier times—before the United States of America changed the world with its successful democracy—if you were born into the so-called nobility and entered military service, you would become an officer, and as a result of good performance (or often because of whom you knew), you could aspire to reach the levels of command and perhaps go beyond to achieve the highest ranks of general or admiral. If you were of so-called common birth, your only choice was to enter the army or navy as a foot soldier or deck hand, and while you could be promoted, there was a ceiling you could never penetrate because of your social class.
In the United States of America, even though our Army and Navy were modeled after the armies and navies of Europe, this class system was obviously not going to work in a democracy. Various means of keeping this basic system but tailoring it to American ideals were tried—including the election of officers—but what eventually evolved was a system based primarily upon education. Although not quite this neat and simple, a reasonable way to look at the system that evolved, and is still basically in effect today, is to think of officers as those individuals who enter the service with college degrees already completed and to think of enlisted as those who enter the service without a degree. There are numerous exceptions and variations to this “rule” and those lines are blurring today for a variety of reasons, but it is still a reasonably accurate way to understand the system. Another way of looking at this system that is not entirely accurate but may be helpful in understanding the differences is to think of enlisted and officers as roughly equivalent to labor and management, respectively.
Keep in mind that there are many exceptions to this simple pattern I have described. One exception is that a person may enter the service with a college degree but may prefer to be enlisted rather than become an officer. Another exception is that some young men and women who have demonstrated the appropriate potential may receive appointments to the U.S. Naval Academy, in which case they will enter the service without a college degree but will earn one at the Academy and become officers upon graduation. There are also many ways that enlisted Sailors can become officers partway through their career.
One other thing to keep in mind is that enlisted Sailors who demonstrate exceptional knowledge and capability are sometimes promoted to “warrant officer,” which places them in a pay grade between officers and enlisted personnel.
People who enlist in the Navy are generically called “enlistees” or “enlisted personnel” and serve specifically contracted periods of time called “enlistments.” Another term that is sometimes used—and gives its name to this book—is “Bluejacket” and refers specifically to enlisted personnel.
People who enter the Navy as officers (or later become officers) are referred to generically as “officers” and are said to be “commissioned.” Their commissions come from the President of the United States and are open-ended in time, ending only when the officer resigns, or is retired, or is dismissed from the service. Although officers do not sign on for specific enlistments as enlistees do, they do often incur periods of obligated service—as “payback” for going to the Naval Academy or flight school, for example—that prevent them from resigning before that obligation is met.
People who are selected to become warrant officers from the enlisted ranks are often called “warrants” but are also included in the generic term “officers.”
Although there are different terms used to distinguish officers and enlisted, all people serving in the Navy on active duty or in the Navy Reserve are known as “Sailors,” just as all members of the Marine Corps are referred to as “Marines,” regardless of their rank.
The Secretary of the Navy has directed that the terms “Marine” and “Sailor” should be capitalized. Not everyone adheres to that practice (including some newspapers and book publishers), so don’t be surprised (or offended) if you see these terms used without capitalization.
Today, you can never go wrong calling anyone in a Navy uniform a “Sailor,” but this was not always the case. In the past, the term “sailor” was often used to describe only enlisted people. In more recent times, Sailor applies to all Navy personnel in uniform—although you may encounter a “dinosaur” who still makes the old distinction.
In older books and articles about the Navy, you may see the phrase “officers and men” used when describing a ship’s crew or a list of casualties, etc. This is no longer appropriate in today’s Navy.
One holdover remains, athough it may eventually go away: when making a distinction between enlisted and officer personnel, the term “enlisted Sailor” (or “enlisted sailor”) is sometimes used, but “officer Sailor” is not. So you may encounter something like, “Many enlisted Sailors were there, but not many officers attended the seminar.”
Dates and Time
You will find that in the Navy even dates and times are stated differently. Dates are expressed in a day-month-year format (e.g., 11 October 2001 or 30AUG99) instead of the civilian month-day-year format you are probably used to.
Time is referred to by the twenty-four-hour clock. Hours of the day are numbered from one to twenty-four and spoken in very specific ways. Never say “thirteen hundred hours.” While this is acceptable practice in the Army and Air Force, the word “hours” is not used in the Navy. Just say “thirteen hundred.”
See TAB 1-C: Navy Time for more information on the Navy’s way of telling time.
Liberty and Leave
Even time off from your job is referred to differently in the Navy. At the end of a normal work day when your ship is in port or if you are stationed ashore, you may be allowed to leave the ship or station to spend some time doing what you enjoy (such as going to a movie, visiting local friends, eating at a restaurant, or going home to your family if they live nearby). This time off is called “liberty,” and may last until the next morning, or for an entire weekend, or it may end at midnight or some other designated time, depending upon the circumstances. Liberty overseas when your ship is visiting a foreign port is one of the great advantages of being in the Navy. Most people would have to spend thousands of dollars to take a trip to Italy or Japan, but as a Sailor you may find yourself visiting such places as part of your job.
What would be called a vacation in the civilian world is called “leave” in the Navy. If you want some time off to go back to your hometown to visit friends and relatives, you must submit a request, using the chain of command, specifying the exact days you want to be away. Of course, you cannot take leave whenever you feel like it. You will be an important member of the crew of your ship or station, so your absence will have to be carefully planned in order to keep things running smoothly while you are gone. Do not make airline reservations or other firm plans until your leave request has been approved.
Everyone in the Navy earns leave at the rate of 2½ days per month (or thirty days per year). If you do not use all of your leave in a year, you may carry what is left over to the next year. There is a limit, however. The maximum you may carry over from one year to the next is sixty days.
Occasionally, a death in the family or some other serious consideration will require you to need leave in a hurry. This is called emergency leave, and the procedures are, of course, different from those of routine leave requests. Tell your family that the best way to get you home in an emergency is to notify the American Red Cross, which, after verifying the situation, will immediately notify the Navy.
While in boot camp, you will not be granted any routine leave or liberty until you have completed your training.
Ceremonies
There are many special ceremonies in the Navy that are different from civilian life. You encountered your first one when you took your oath of enlistment. Morning and evening colors are ceremonies you will quickly become familiar with while at RTC. Just before leaving boot camp you will participate in a special pass-in-review ceremony that includes a full parade and the presentation of special awards to outstanding recruits and divisions. Later in your Navy experience you may participate in other special ceremonies, such as a ship commissioning, a change-of-command ceremony, or a special awards presentation ceremony.
ORDERS
Before you know it, recruit training will be over. And it won’t be long before you are a seaman apprentice instead of a recruit, with two stripes on your sleeve and higher pay. Some of your shipmates, those who went through training with you, may go with you to your next assignment; some you will never see again; others you may meet years later at some far-off duty station or aboard one of the Navy’s many ships.
Training
Because the Navy is a very complex organization that is frequently leading the way in adopting new technologies, and because advancement is one of the goals the Navy has in mind for you, training is an almost constant part of Navy life. Recruit training is just the first step. After boot camp you will go to apprenticeship training or to a Class “A” school. After that, you may receive still more schooling. Later in your career you will probably go to other schools for advanced training. Even when you are doing your job aboard your ship or station, on-the-job training will frequently be a part of your routine.
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All formal training in the Navy comes under the control of the Naval Education and Training Command (NETC), which is headquartered in Pensacola, Florida. NETC plans and directs training programs for several hundred activities, everything from basic recruit training to postgraduate instruction for officers.
APPRENTICESHIP TRAINING
If you have not been slated for a Class “A” school, you will attend a course called apprenticeship training. Upon completion of the course, you will be ordered to your first ship or duty station.
CLASS “A” SCHOOL
If you were selected for a Class “A” school, you will be going there after graduation from RTC. In Class “A” school you will receive specialized training that will prepare you for a specific occupational specialty. For example, you might receive specialty training in weapons or in the culinary arts. Successful completion of this training will give you the knowledge and skills necessary to do your job and will enhance your chances for promotion.
Transfers
Once your new duty assignment has been made and you have received your official orders, it will be time for you to check out of your old duty station and move yourself and your belongings to the new location. Sometimes a transfer can be as simple as walking across a street or a pier. Other transfers can involve moving you and your spouse and children halfway around the world. The Navy will provide you a great deal of assistance in making the transfer as smooth as possible, but you must also do your part to ensure a smooth transition.
DEPARTING
Make certain when you are checking out of your old duty station that you understand all the details outlined in the orders. If they authorize DELREP (delay in reporting) to count as leave, make certain you know the date on which you must report to the new station. Sailors are normally authorized to use up to thirty days of their personal leave between duty stations. If you have any questions at all, ask the person managing your transfer before you leave; this may save you a lot of trouble later.
If you have a spouse or children who will be going with you to your new duty assignment, it is a good idea to contact the local housing office at your new duty station to get housing information. The housing office can also give you information about the area you will be moving to, including schools for your children, employment opportunities for your spouse, special needs programs, and health care facilities.
Make certain that you file a change of address form at your old duty station so that your mail can catch up to you.
EN ROUTE
While you are on your way to your new duty station, you may encounter some problems. For example, if you are assigned to a ship, you may get to the port where she is supposed to be only to find that she got under way the day before because an airliner went down off the coast and the ship is needed for rescue operations. There may be no way to join the ship until she returns from the rescue operation. What do you do?
Remember, it’s all one Navy, and no matter where you are you can find someone to help. Always keep your orders, records, and pay accounts with you, not in your baggage, which may be lost. With them, you can obtain further transportation if needed and draw some of your pay if you are running out of money. If you are in an area where there are no Navy facilities, Army and Air Force personnel can help you with these matters as well.
The Navy will assign you a sponsor—someone who has been at your new command for some time and can help you settle in. As soon as you get your orders, make contact with your new command and ask who your sponsor is so that he or she can begin helping you.
If you are in doubt as to the location of your new duty station when you arrive in the area, check in with the Navy Shore Patrol or look in the local telephone directory under “U.S. Government” to find some naval activity where you can obtain help. Most areas have a local Navy or other armed forces recruiting station, and they can help you find your new station.
If you have dependents (spouse and/or children) with you, get them settled into a temporary lodging facility (a hotel, a motel, or a Navy Lodge if one is available) before reporting to your new duty assignment. Navy Lodge facilities are often limited, so make your reservations as soon as your travel arrangements are complete.
REPORTING
When reporting to your new duty station, be in complete and proper uniform. Because you are going to be making a first impression and you want it to be a good one, look your sharpest and present yourself well when you report.
Be sure you have all your necessary gear with you; the ship may get under way the same day you report, and what you check in with could very well be all you will have for a while. Also keep in mind that you will have only a limited amount of space to store your personal belongings, so bringing large items like computers, and even oversized luggage, can cause you problems.
Hand your orders to the watch, either at the main gate or the quarterdeck, so that they can be endorsed and stamped with the time and date of reporting, and you can be logged in.
As soon as is practical, deliver your original orders and records to the personnel office. You certainly want to be paid on time, so turn in a copy of your orders to the disbursing office.
Whether you are going to a destroyer, an aircraft carrier, a submarine, a naval air station, a supply depot, or a Navy medical facility, you will be a vital part of the world’s greatest navy. Whether you plan on making the Navy your career or are just trying it out for one enlistment, your performance of duty at this first duty station will have an important effect on the rest of your life. And keep in mind that it will also have an important effect on the effectiveness of this greatest of all navies and on the defense of your nation.