Author: captain1610

Burn the boats

Hugh MacLeod’s great work available at http://www.gapingvoid.com

Naval Postgraduate School

Article By: Amanda D. Stein

Clouds of smoke billowed from the beaches of Veracruz as hundreds of men faced the uncertainty of their fate. Outnumbered 300 to one and facing a long, difficult battle with the Aztecs, Spanish explorer Hernán Cortés ordered his men to burn their ships. Eliminating any chance they had of retreat, Cortés had left his crew with only two options – succeed or die.
The year was 1518, and the battle to secure the territories of what is now Mexico waged vehemently. With a courageous, resolute leader and almost certain death if they were defeated, Cortés’ men accepted his challenge, and conquered the Aztecs against immeasurable odds.
Today, the U.S., if not the world, is facing a different kind of adversary – one that has no single identity and outnumbers us at equally staggering odds. It is the war over information and it requires bold leadership and an unwavering approach. The Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) has referenced Cortés’ brave mentality, even echoed it in his battle to secure and obtain information – a field that has come to be known as Information Dominance.

The Navy Believes. . .

“in putting a man in a position with a job to do, and let him do it – [and] give him hell if he does not perform . . . We . . . capitalize on the capabilities of our individual people rather than . . . make automatons [out] of them. This builds the essential pride of service and sense of accomplishment. [And] if it results in a certain amount of cockiness, I am [all] for it.”

Admiral Arleigh Burke

Change of command today in Hawaii

Captain Bill “Huggie” Dodge (Information Warfare Officer/1810) relieves Captain John MacMichael (Information Professional/1820) as Commanding Officer of NCTAMS Pacific in Hawaii.  Captain MacMichael is retiring.  CAPT John MacMichael, the son and grandson of Naval Officers, entered the Navy after graduating from the Virginia Military Institute (VMI) in 1988 with a degree in Economics.

Congratulations Captain Dodge.  Fair winds and following seas Captain MacMichael.

Captain James Mills to relieve Captain Justin F. Kershaw as Commanding Officer, Navy Information Operations Command Hawaii in July 2014

NIOC HAWAII
 Mission Statement
                    1. Provide qualified personnel to work the NSA Hawaii national mission.
                    2. Provide quality Information Warfare support to the fleet.
                    3. Develop and train all personnel to be the best Sailors in the Fleet.
Captain James Mills, an Information Professional (IP) Officer, is the prospective commanding officer of NIOC Hawaii (CTF 1070). He will be relieving Captain Justin F. Kershaw, an Information Warfare (IW) officer. Captain Mills’ IP background, however, is ideally suited to the command’s operations relative to the development of DoD’s Cyber Mission Force, the Navy’s pivot to the Pacific theater, and the rapid advances in information technology that are changing the dynamics of Naval warfare. His unique operational and technical experience includes several tours in the Pacific Fleet and extensive education in electrical engineering and computer science. He was one of CNO’s first Cyber Fellows, with significant experience in cyber defense and operations dating back to 1997’s Eligible Receiver – DoD’s first large scale evaluation of the impacts of cyber warfare on DoD and national infrastructure. Given the Information Dominance Corps’ cross-detailing approach, NIOC Hawaii stands to benefit heavily from his professional experience and knowledge.
Captain Mills points out, “Cross-detailing allows us to tackle the complex problems faced by IDC commands from a multi-discipline approach. Through cross-detailing, the IDC will create a cadre of leaders able to build strategies and plans with the benefit of the ‘whole of the IDC’ as opposed to just relying on a single specialty.”
 
Commander Rob Damsky (an Information Warfare officer) is slated to become the command’s Executive Officer after completing training this Spring.

Compiled from IDC News Clips and various news sources.  More about NIOC Hawaii HERE on their website.

Lessons learned from 3000 hours in the air with Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron ONE and another unit

While I never reached Malcolm Gladwell’s magical 10,000 hours of experience to master my skills as a COMEVAL, I did learn a few things in my years flying with VQ-1 and some other guys.  Here is a short list of a few things I learned (not listed in any particular order):

1.  Never break the code.

2.  Always pre-flight your parachute.

3.  Every Sailor has a job to do. Let him/her do it.

4.  Make sure your mission bags have all the tech manuals that you’ll need.

5.  Where you started may not be where you end up.

6.  Don’t ever mess with the Flight Engineer.  Payback can cost you more than you may be able to afford.

7.  Your Petty Officer in Charge doesn’t need to be the senior petty officer.  CTI3 Neil Gagnon proved that point about a dozen times.

8.  Not all Lab Ops are created equal.

9.  Malibu Al brought his surfboard along for a reason.

10.  Don’t use “Fire Feet” on a particularly cold flight unless you know how to put out the fire.

11.  Sometimes 5km means 50ft.

12.  “10.0 or we don’t go” isn’t my favorite slogan.

13.  Post mission reporting continues until the EWMC is completely exhausted, regardless of how tired the rest of you may be.

14.  “0200 show for 0400 go” gets old faster than you would imagine.

15.  Empty your flight suit pockets before you get home.  It’s a long way back to the base at midnight or 1 a.m.

From the Congressional Record a couple of days ago – the news we were waiting for – all part of the process

In the Senate
In the Committee on Armed Services

Jan 30, 14     PN1386     Navy

The following named officer for appointment in the United States Navy to the grade indicated while assigned to a position of importance and responsibility under title 10, U.S.C., section 601:

Vice Adm. Michael S. Rogers, to be Admiral