Tony

ROUTINE R 121527Z MAY 22 MID600051839731U FM CNO WASHINGTON DC TO NAVADMIN INFO CNO WASHINGTON DC BT UNCLAS NAVADMIN 112/22 PASS TO OFFICE CODES: FM CNO WASHINGTON DC//N1// INFO CNO WASHINGTON DC//N1// MSGID/GENADMIN/CNO WASHINGTON DC/N1/MAY// SUBJ/INITIATION OF NAVY SEABEE UNDERWATER CONSTRUCTION TECHNICIAN MASTER DIVER RETENTION BONUS PROGRAM// REF/A/MEMO/ASN WASHNGTON DC/31AUG21// REF/B/DOC/DODI/05NOV20// REF/C/DOC/USC/01JAN22// NARR/REF A IS MEMORANDUM FOR DEPUTY CHIEF OF NAVAL OPERATIONS, RETENTION BONUS SEABEE UNDERWATER CONSTRUCTION TECHNICIAN MASTER DIVER 31AUG2021. REF B IS DOD INSTRUCTION 1304.31, ENLISTED BONUS PROGRAM. REF C IS SECTION 331 OF TITLE 37 U.S. CODE, GENERAL BONUS AUTHORITY FOR ENLISTED MEMBERS.// RMKS/1. This NAVADMIN announces the Navy Seabee Underwater Construction Technician (UCT) Master Diver Retention Bonus (RB) Program. 2. Program Overview. This bonus is authorized under references (a) and (c). Specific critical Navy enlisted classifications (NEC) and approved award levels have been prescribed by Assistant Secretary of Navy (Manpower and Reserve Affairs) (ASN (M and RA)). The Navy Seabee Enlisted Community Manager (BUPERS-329) will act as the UCT RB Program Manager. All applications for this bonus will be submitted to the UCT RB program manager for processing and tracking. In line with reference (b), a Service Member (SM) may receive no more than 360,000 dollars in RB monies over a career. Selective reenlistment bonus awards are included in this cap. 3. Eligibility. In line with reference (c), UCT senior enlisted SMs with NEC B18A, in paygrades E-7 and above, who have between 20 and 27 years of active service, shall be eligible to apply for the UCT RB but must also meet the following eligibility criteria: a. Be serving on Active Duty in a regular component. b. Have the favorable recommendation of the commanding officer for receipt of UCT RB. c. Be assigned to a valid B18A billet throughout the duration of the RB period. d. Be fit for full duty. 4. Ineligibility a. SMs serving under an existing RB contract are not eligible to receive an additional RB for service outlined in the original contract agreement. b. SMs are not eligible for RB payments past their high year tenure (HYT) date. HYT waiver requests must be completed before submitting a UCT RB application. 5. Contract Terms. UCT RB contract lengths, payments and Active Duty service obligations are outlined below. a. SMs may sign a contract in their 20th year of service (YOS). RB payments begin at 20 YOS. Enlisted SMs may contract to their HYT mark. E-7s are eligible to contract to 24 YOS. E-8s are eligible to contract to 26 YOS. E-9s are eligible to contract to 30 YOS. If a SM serves a partial year, that year will be prorated. Specific bonus amounts are graduated pursuant to YOS. (1) 15,000 dollars per year for 3-year contracts. (2) 17,500 dollars per year for 4-year contracts. (3) 20,000 dollars per year for 5-year contracts. b. UCT RB contracts may be for a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 5 years. SMs under RB contract will not submit a request for retirement or tender a resignation with an effective date that is prior to completion of the agreement. Enlisted SMs must reenlist or extend their enlistment contract, soft end of active obligated service, for a period of at least 2 years. SMs are authorized early reenlistment in order to align RB and reenlistment contracts. Reenlistments and extensions may be combined to align service dates for maximum opportunity, up to a reenlistment of 6 years and extension of up to 12 months. 6. Program Execution a. SMs should submit requests for UCT RB to the program manager 60 to 180 days prior to entering into a UCT RB contract via their chain of command. If operational commitments limit the ability to submit RB applications via this manner, commands should submit requests through their immediate superior in the chain of command who can submit the request to the program manager. b. Upon acceptance of an agreement of the SM by the program manager, the amount of the bonus becomes fixed and the SM incurs a firm service obligation. c. SMs will receive the annual bonus amount in a lump sum payment, effective from the date of contract execution. d. RB requests for personnel who are being processed for disciplinary action, NEC removal or restoration will be held in abeyance pending final resolution. e. SMs unable to complete the service obligation specified in the RB agreement may be subjected to repayment of any unearned portion of the retention bonus. f. All payments must be made before the SM reaches their 28th year of service. Any payment that would be due to the SM past this point will be included in the final regular payment scheduled prior to reaching their 28th year. 7. Point of contact is BUPERS-329 at (901) 874-2037, DSN 882 or email at seabee_ecm.fct(at)navy.mil . 8. This message will remain in effect until superseded or canceled, whichever occurs first. 9. Released by Vice Admiral John B. Nowell, Jr, N1.// BT #0001 NNNN UNCLASSIFIED//

Former President Donald Trump liked to complain about "ugly" ships, and the US Navy's new aircraft carrier, USS Gerald R Ford, was often the target of his criticisms, according to former officials, including his former defense secretary. The $13 billion Ford is a first-in-class ship and is the world's largest aircraft carrier. It features a collection of new technologies, such as advanced weapons elevators, advanced arresting gear, and a electromagnetic aircraft launch system, among other upgrades over the Navy's older Nimitz-class carriers.

A Navy captain was arrested May 4 in Virginia after he was charged with “unlawful maiming,” a felony, according to police and Navy officials. But few details were available this week regarding the circumstances around Capt. Dennis J. Turner’s arrest.

WASHINGTON — House lawmakers on Wednesday raised alarm over the string of suicides on the USS George Washington and the readiness of the Navy overall as the Pentagon’s top official acknowledged shortcomings with how sailors are housed on ships undergoing repairs.

Just in case you haven't seen this page -> AVO WO Procurement Program

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — Officials say a Navy Sailor has died after sustaining injuries when a helicopter made a “hard landing” at Fort Story in Virginia Beach. The Naval Special Warfare Command confirmed with 10 On Your Side that the Sailor, who was assigned to an East Coast-based Naval Special Warfare unit, died the afternoon of Monday, May 9 at a local hospital.

Try this email, ldocwoocm.fct@navy.mil, which was found on the LDO/CWO Community Manager page. Might be worth a try.

A 91-year-old Korean War Navy veteran is hoping to find his first love, who he met during his time as a second class petty officer in Japan in 1953. Duane Mann, 91, wrote a Facebook post on May 1 hoping to find someone who recognizes the woman in a photo he took in 1953, whose name he says is Peggy Yamaguchi. In the post, Mann explains that while he was stationed in Japan from 1953 to 1954 at age 23, he met Yamaguchi at an Air Force NCO Club, where he worked as a slot machine repairman in his spare time and Yamaguchi worked as the “hat check girl.”

When the U.S. Navy called for a new light attack aircraft to replace the Douglas A-4 Skyhawk in the early 1960s, the competition that followed was stiff. Top players including Douglas, North American, Vought, and Grumman were all in the running, with Grumman’s pint-sized A-6 Intruder derivative, in particular, being something of a historical aviation oddity.

YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE, Japan — The Navy is investigating a Friday-night brawl in Yokosuka’s Honcho district after a video surfaced showing five men fighting as uniformed sailors, likely shore patrol members, looked on. In the approximately 50-second clip posted to Instagram by bar owner Kram Azonim on Friday, five men presumed to be U.S. service members throw punches outside the New Yokosuka Hotel just two blocks from the naval base’s main gate.

Service members of all branches now have the option to keep their guns in their in-home storage without cutting into their household goods weight allowance during moves, the Defense Department announced. The Joint Travel Regulations were amended last week to allow empty gun safes up to 500 pounds in combined weight at no personal cost to military members going through a permanent change of station.

Navy separations due to continued refusal of the COVID-19 vaccine rose by nearly 70 sailors over the past week. Approved separations, which do not necessarily mean the sailor has yet left the service, are now at 884, according to the Navy’s weekly COVID-19 update. The Navy has the second highest number of separations, behind the Marine Corps, which has now separated 2,117 Marines, according to the service’s monthly COVID-19 update.

By Mass Communication Specialist (SW/AW/IW) Lawrence Davis, Navy Reserve Region Readiness and Mobilization Command Fort Worth Public Affairs Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth – Navy Reserve Region Readiness and Mobilization Command Fort Worth (REDCOM FW) Commander Capt. Mark Hofmann recently announced his region’s selections for the 2021 Large, Medium, and Small Navy Reserve Centers (NRC) of the Year. NRCs are considered large, medium, or small based upon the number of Reserve Sailors assigned to them. NRCs with up to 200 Reservists assigned to them are categorized as a small NRC. Medium NRCs are those with between 201 and 499 Reserve personnel, and large NRCs are responsible for 500 or more Reserve Sailors. Of REDCOM FW’s 19 NRCs, four are categorized as large, seven as medium, and eight as small. To deliver the news of their selection results, Capt. Hofmann and Command Master Chief Darrin Lowe visited each category’s winning NRC to present trophies and congratulate the commanding officers and their staffs. “There was solid competition in all three categories, but each had a clear winner” said Hofmann. “I would like to congratulate the 2021 REDCOM Fort Worth NRCs of the Year.” NRC St. Louis, Missouri emerged victorious with REDCOM FW’s selection as the region’s “Large NRC of the Year.” NRC Austin, Texas received the award for “Medium NRC of the Year.” And, NRC Springfield, Missouri won as the region’s “Small NRC of the Year.” REDCOM FW’s front office leadership team evaluated multiple categories of annual performance data for each NRC during the selection process. These areas included but were not limited to: operational execution; command climate; command assessment performance scores; funeral honors execution; and contingency response. “None of our NRCs of the Year won simply by earning high grades on a scorecard,” said Hofmann. “Yes, they are all top performers, but the difference is that these commands have achieved top performance through their culture.” “They have a culture of deeply engaged leaders,” Hofmann continued. “They have a culture of tapping into the technical expertise of every member of the team, regardless of paygrade or seniority; everyone pulls hard on the rope. And, they have a culture of welcoming challenge because these Sailors recognize challenge as an opportunity to show the world how well they’ve mastered their craft.” NRC St. Louis Commanding Officer Cmdr. Ryan Carmichael echoed the REDCOM FW commander’s sentiments in his remarks regarding his NRC’s selection for the award. “Excellence is a culture that requires constant effort by all hands,” said Carmichael. “Our selection provides both validation and motivation as we continue our journey towards excellence. Words cannot express how proud I am of our NRC St. Louis team and their accomplishments.” NRC Austin Commanding Officer Cmdr. Jonathan Thompson expressed gratitude for his NRC’s selection and attributed much of his command’s success to his team’s hard work and dedication. “I am absolutely thrilled and honored to have my command recognized this way,” said Thompson. “It’s a testament to my great staff, our triad, and Reserve team. We will display the trophy proudly and continue to strive for higher levels of achievement.” NRC Springfield Commanding Officer Cmdr. Jason Moody spoke about the importance of resisting complacency through a continuous cycle of honest self-assessment. “My team is incredibly talented and diligent in their pursuit of mission excellence,” said Moody. “I am completely humbled and honored that our command was selected as the 2021 Small NRC of the Year. I have always told my staff we are the best because they’ve proven that time and again. The challenge now is to maintain that success. We do that by not resting on our past success. We have to continually ask ourselves ‘how can best be better?’” Assistant Chief of Staff Mr. Christopher Bownds also congratulated each of the three NRCs on their accomplishments and encouraged all of REDCOM FW’s NRCs as they continue to raise the standard of excellence across the region. “You don’t get the NRC of the Year award by winning a sprint,” said Bownds. “You do it by winning a marathon, excelling every day and representing the best of REDCOM FW to the entire Reserve Force.” Navy Reserve Centers ensure Reserve Sailors are administratively, medically and operationally ready to deploy at a moment’s notice. NRC’s provide training, equipment, career management and family resources to help Reserve Sailors and their families meet the challenges and obligations of military service.

Former President Trump complained about America’s “ugly” Navy ships while in office and said Russia’s looked better, former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper reportedly wrote in his new book.

Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa published a letter to the Department of Veterans Affairs Friday demanding data to ensure servicemen are not being unfairly stripped of their Second Amendment rights. Grassley wrote the letter to request insight and data on veterans who are reported to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).

After a stunning live-fire demonstration in the Gulf of Mexico, America’s new “QUICKSINK” bomb, a fast-moving Joint Capability Technology Demonstration, is ready to target China’s vast armada of aggressive civilian and lightly-armed military craft.

The Navy is investigating the death of a junior sailor who died aboard the amphibious assault ship Bataan last month, officials confirmed this week. Aviation Ordnanceman Airman Amare Long was found dead on the ship April 18, according to Naval Surface Force Atlantic spokesman Lt. Cmdr. Jason Fischer.

Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Mike Gilday released an update to the CNO Professional Reading Program, May 6.

The string of deaths of sailors assigned to carrier USS George Washington (CVN-73) are prompting Navy leaders to rethink manning for longer ship maintenance periods, the head of the service’s East Coast carrier force said on Tuesday. George Washington entered Newport News Shipbuilding, in Newport News, Va., in 2017. It was supposed to finish its mid-life overhaul by the end of 2021, but the Navy estimates it will now wrap up in March of next year, more than a year-and-a-half late, USNI News reported this week.

CORONADO, Calif. (KGTV) - A Navy Master Chief in Coronado is under investigation after he was allegedly caught on-camera in a child sex sting.

A Navy officer accused of shoving his drugged wife out the window of their seventh-floor apartment in Belgium in late 2015 has been convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison. A U.S. military court in Belgium sentenced Lt. Craig R. Becker on Saturday after finding him guilty of premeditated murder, assault consummated by a battery and two counts of conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman, said Lt. Cmdr. Matthew Comer, a spokesman for Navy Region Europe Africa Central.

The parents of a sailor who died by suicide while on board the USS George Washington – one of the seven crew members who have died in the past year, including four by suicide – on Wednesday blasted the Navy’s response to the crisis as “ridiculous.” John Sandor and Mary Graft, the parents of Master at Arms Seaman Recruit Xavier Hunter Mitchell Sandor, told CNN’s Brianna Keilar on “New Day” that their son did not provide much detail about the conditions on the carrier but said the experience was “awful.”

PORTSMOUTH, N.H. — The U.S. Navy is investigating a case of vandalism involving a submarine at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard.

THE PENTAGON – The mid-life repair and refueling of carrier USS George Washington (CVN-73) will extend into 2023 and last well over five and half years, according to Navy budget documents. The service now estimates the refueling and refurbishment will finish in March of 2023, almost 19 months later than the expected August 2021 initial delivery, the service said in its recently released Fiscal Year 2023 budget material.