Navy News Service 67/94 -- 16 Nov 94

[Navy News Service]

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NAVY NEWS SERVICE - 16 NOV 94 - NAVNEWS 067/94
TABLE OF CONTENTS FOR NAVNEWS 067/94
Top News and Policy Stories
NNS759. DOD Adds $2.7 Billion to Improve Quality of Life
NNS760. CREO/REGA Provides Latest Manning Picture
Personnel Notes
NNS761. Aviation Continuation Pay Offered to Some Pilots
NNS762. Medical Officer Detailers Visit Some East Coast Hospitals
NNS763. CNO Addresses Top Master Chiefs on Leadership
NNS764. Student Loans Offered By Retired Officers Association
Salute to Excellence
NNS765. Surface Action Group Supports Long Range Medevac
Around the Fleet
NNS766. Notable Quotable: William Perry, Secretary of Defense
NNS767. Sixth Fleet Breaks Flag on New Ship
NNS768. Carrier Crew Broadcasts to 50 States
NNS769. Quality Conscious Naval Station Rewarded
NNS770. Aircraft Trainers Receive Safety Upgrade
NNS771. NAVFAC Brawdy Begins Something Special
NNS772. This Week in the Navy: Nov. 16, 1914
Short Splices
NNS773. Naval Academy Honored by State of Maryland
NNS774. Women Veterans' Artifacts Needed
NNS775. NAS Norfolk Sailors Earn Double Recognition
NNS776. Navy-Marine Corps News
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Top News and Policy Stories
NNS759. DOD Adds $2.7 Billion to Improve Quality of Life
WASHINGTON (NNS) -- Secretary of Defense William J. Perry announced
plans Nov. 10 to add $2.7 billion to the defense budget over the
next six years for initiatives aimed directly at improving the
quality of life for service members and their families. The
funding for these initiatives, which is over and above money
already requested by the services for similar purposes, will begin
with $450 million in the FY96 defense budget.
"People are our most important resource," said Perry in a
Pentagon press conference. "No weapon system is better than the
people who operate and maintain it. It is crucial that we put our
people first in our priorities."
The additional funds will be used to improve compensation,
living accommodations, and community and family support. In the
area of compensation, the plan calls for a new cost of living
allowance (COLA) to aid military members living in "high-cost"
communities such as New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
The plan also call for an increase in the Basic Allowance for
Quarters (BAQ), upgrades in 10,000 homes currently threatened by
closure for lack of maintenance funds, improvements in privacy and
other amenities to 5,000 dormitory (barracks) spaces, and improved
child care support for an additional 38,000 families.
-USN-
NNS760. CREO/REGA Provides Latest Manning Picture
WASHINGTON (NNS) -- The latest Career Reenlistment Objectives
(CREO) and Rating Entry for General Apprentices (REGA) message that
provides Sailors an up-to-date manning picture in each rating was
issued this week.
The CREO/REGA message provides current reenlistment and
advancement opportunity information to all Sailors. First-term
Sailors in overmanned ratings can check for conversion
opportunities if they desire. Non-designated Sailors can receive
accurate guidance on ratings to select based on "A" school
availability.
The message provides information using CREO categories to
indicate the manning levels in each rating. Ratings with a CREO
category of 1 are undermanned, CREO 2 ratings are manned at desired
levels, and CREO 3 ratings are overmanned.
Advancement opportunities to third class petty officer also
are indicated for the March 1995 exam. Ratings categorized as
"excellent" have greater than 70 percent advancement opportunity;
"good" have 40 to 69 percent opportunity; and "fair" have less than
40 percent opportunity.
The publication of the message is linked to the exam cycle.
Normally, the NAVADMIN will be distributed four to five months
prior to the exam, October/November for the March exam, and
May/June for the September exam. That message will remain in
effect for the entire exam cycle.
More information is available in NAVADMIN 214/94.
By LT Dan Bates, BUPERS Public Affairs
-USN-
Personnel Notes
NNS761. Aviation Continuation Pay Offered to Some Pilots
WASHINGTON (NNS) -- To ensure it retains enough pilots in the
future, the Navy is offering Aviation Continuation Pay (ACP) to
selected aviation sub-communities.
To be eligible for the pay, officers must be qualified for
operational flying duty, in paygrades below Commander, and
entitled to Aviation Career Incentive Pay. In addition, officers
must be serving with a regular commission or be selected for
augmentation to the regular Navy and must remain on active duty to
complete 14 years of commissioned service.
Officers eligible for the aviation bonus include pilots in the
VFA (F/A-18), VAQ (EA-6), VS (S-3), VQ (E-6A and ES-3A), and VAW
(E-2) communities. Naval Flight Officers are not eligible for the
program.
If qualified, pilots can earn up to $12,000 per year. More
information is available in NAVADMIN 213/94.
By LT Dan Bates, BUPERS Public Affairs
-USN-
NNS762. Medical Officer Detailers Visit Some East Coast Hospitals
WASHINGTON (NNS) -- Four officer detailers and a placement officer
from the medical department officer detailing office will visit
some East Coast Navy hospitals beginning Dec. 5. Each of the
medical branches, Medical Corps (MC), Dental Corps (DC), Nurse
Corps (NC), and Medical Service Corps (MSC), will have
representatives available during the visits.
The medical officer detailers will begin their visits Dec. 5
at Naval Hospital, Jacksonville, Fla. From Jacksonville, the
detailers head to Naval Hospital, Beaufort, S.C., from Dec. 7 to 8;
Naval Hospital, Charleston, S.C., on Dec. 9; Naval Hospital, Camp
LeJeune, N.C., on Dec. 12; and Naval Hospital, Cherry Point, N.C.,
on Dec. 13.
The Dental Corps detailer will have a slightly different
schedule. The DC detailer will begin Dec. 5 at Naval Dental
Clinic, Jacksonville, Fla., followed by Naval Dental Clinic, Parris
Island, S.C., from Dec. 6 to 7 and finally Naval Dental Clinic,
Charleston, S.C., from Dec. 7 to 8.
Detailers will be available to meet with all specialties
within their corps, with priority given to officers transferring in
the next year. More information is available from LCDR Elliott, at
(703) 695-5836 or DSN 225-5836.
By LT Dan Bates, BUPERS Public Affairs
-USN-
NNS763. CNO Addresses Top Master Chiefs on Leadership
WASHINGTON (NNS) -- Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) ADM Mike Boorda
advocated a stronger leadership role for the Navy's senior enlisted
during an address to the members of the CNO and Master Chief Petty
Officer Advisory Panel when they met recently in Washington.
The advisory panel is held twice a year to provide key master
chiefs with current policy information, trends and insights from
the Navy's top uniformed and civilian leaders. It also serves as a
forum for exchanging ideas and concerns from the fleet.
Admiral Boorda told them to dispel the concept that command
master chiefs are only senior enlisted advisors. "I never liked
that term. It's time to kill it," he said. "You are leaders, and
as such, you must take action and solve problems. You must take
care of Sailors." The CNO advised them that, as leaders, they must
be concerned with solving, not merely identifying, problems.
"Talking about it, pontificating, advising, is not enough,"
said ADM Boorda. "You must be action-oriented; fix problems, stop
them from happening."
By JOCS Neil Guillebeau, MCPON PAO
-USN-
NNS764. Student Loans Offered By Retired Officers Association
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (NNS) -- During the 1994-95 school year, 800
students received $2,000 interest-free loans from The Retired
Officers Association (TROA) Educational Assistance Program. These
loans are awarded annually for up to five years of undergraduate
study to unmarried students, under the age of 24, who are dependent
children of active, reserve, and retired service personnel and
their surviving spouses.
Since students can obtain up to $10,000 of interest-free
support for five years of study with loan repayment after
graduation, the competition for these loans is keen.
Applications for the 1995-96 school year should be requested
before Feb. 15, 1995, and the completed application must be
postmarked on or before March 1. For applications and more
information, write to TROA Educational Assistance Program
Administrator (09D), 201 N. Washington St., Alexandria, Va.
22314-2539 or call 1-800-245-8762, Ext. 169.
-USN-
Salute to Excellence
NNS765. Surface Action Group Supports Long Range Medevac
ABOARD USS ESSEX (NNS) -- Four ships and two staffs collaborated on
a 36-hour, 850 mile, medical evacuation recently when a Sailor
aboard USS Honolulu (SSN 718) sustained a severe injury which
required complex surgery to save the use of his hand.
USS Honolulu conducted a small boat transfer of Interior
Communications Electrician Second Class Ronal Hesselbarth to USS
Essex (LHD 2), where a medical team determined a medevac was
required. USS David R. Ray's (DD 971) embarked helicopter was used
for the medevac.
Amphibious Group Five and Destroyer Squadron Five coordinated
the positioning of the ships, including USS Vandegrift (FFG 48) and
USS Jarrett (FFG 33), to allow the helicopter to leapfrog between
the ships to ensure safety of flight and to provide an emergency
landing pad, if needed.
Petty Officer Hesselbarth underwent surgery at Tripler Army
Medical Center in Hawaii, where surgeons predicted a full recovery.
By LCDR M.L. Vieira, USS Essex, and LTJG Michael Melin, USS
Vandegrift
-USN-
Around the Fleet
NNS766. Notable Quotable: "...Realistic training, quality
equipment, and meaningful missions. All of these things are
necessary to sustain the readiness of the forces, but sustaining
them over the longer term not only requires keeping those
foundations alive, but also has to take into account personnel
tempo and the quality of life we offer our men and women in the
armed forces." -- Secretary of Defense William Perry announcing a
new quality of life funding initiative, Nov. 10, at the Pentagon.
-USN-

NNS767. Sixth Fleet Breaks Flag on New Ship
GAETA, Italy (NNS) -- USS LaSalle (AGF 3) relieved USS Belknap (CG
26) as flagship for Commander, U.S. Sixth Fleet, on Nov. 8 in
Gaeta.
USS LaSalle previously served as flagship for Commander, U.S.
Naval Forces Central Command, in the Persian Gulf, where for 20
years she was known as the "Great White Ghost of the Arabian
Coast." Recent upgrades improved the ship's command and control
equipment to enhance her ability to host a combined joint task
force.
The turnover ended an eight-year tour for USS Belknap, the
longest of any Sixth Fleet flagship. Prior to departing for the
United States, Belknap had left the Mediterranean just twice during
her tenure, both times to pass through the Straits of Gibraltar to
conduct diplomatic visits in Morocco and Portugal.
USS Belknap, lead ship of the CG 26 class and the last in
service, will arrive in her former homeport of Norfolk on
Dec. 2 for inactivation and subsequent decommissioning.
-USN-
NNS768. Carrier Crew Broadcasts to 50 States
ABOARD USS GEORGE WASHINGTON (NNS) -- Crew members aboard USS
George Washington (CVN 73) recently phoned from the Red Sea and
Arabian Gulf to reach hometown radio stations in all 50 states.
Building on the success of early attempts at reaching
hometowns to publicize the Sailors' work in the Gulf, the goal
quickly became to reach all 50 states. A request by the commanding
officer over the ship's public address system to find someone from
Alaska was answered by Aviation Storekeeper Third Class Richard Dye
who made the final call to Nome, Alaska.
Aviation Boatswain's Mate (Aircraft Handling) Airman Brian
Weeks of Billings, Mont., joined a live talk show and found himself
talking with state Senator Conrad Burns.
In all, 131 interviews were conducted over eight days.
By JOC(SW) Gregg Snaza, USS George Washington Public Affairs
-USN-
NNS769. Quality Conscious Naval Station Rewarded
MAYPORT, Fla. (NNS) -- The Federal Quality Institute recently
selected Naval Station Mayport as one of 10 finalists for the
Presidential Quality Award.
The prestigious award is presented each year to the federal
organization which best practices quality management to improve
services and products for its customers. The Presidential Quality
Award is the federal government's equivalent of the private
sector's Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award for excellence in
quality management.
Naval Station Mayport was selected from hundreds of federal
applicants nationwide and is the first naval station to be selected
as a finalist for the award.
Over the past 18 months, Naval Station Mayport's quality
initiatives have saved more than $10 million and 1,400 days.
Efficiencies have been achieved across the board, but substantial
savings have been realized in aviation maintenance, hazardous waste
minimization and harbor services.
By LT John Wallach, Naval Station Mayport
-USN-
NNS770. Aircraft Trainers Receive Safety Upgrade
MILTON, Fla. (NNS) -- A new collision avoidance device designed to
make Naval aviation safer was unveiled recently at Naval Air
Station Whiting Field.
The Naval Air Collision Warning System (NACWS) is an aircraft-
based, mid-air collision warning system that detects and warns
pilots of all aircraft within 20 nautical miles of the trainer
aircraft.
During dedication ceremonies for the NACWS, CAPT Randall
Abshier, Commander, Training Air Wing Five, called the system "a
major achievement in naval aviation safety" with a real capacity
for saving lives.
The system has been installed in 70 of the Navy's 255 T-34
trainers with a projected completion date of September 1995 for the
remainder.
By JO1 Pat Lauderdale, NAS Whiting Field Public Affairs
-USN-
NNS771. NAVFAC Brawdy Begins Something Special
BRAWDY, Wales (NNS) -- The men and women of Naval Facility
(NAVFAC) Brawdy, Wales, raised over $1,500 and helped usher in the
debut of Special Olympics in nearby Pembrokeshire.
"I simply enjoy doing this," said Electrician's Mate Second
Class (Surface Warfare) Rhonda DeCrescentis, the Special Olympics
organizer. "It was heart-warming and a complete success."
The command constructed a torch and an archway for the
athletes' entrance. Enthusiasm was contagious, with about 150
Sailors and their families contributing to make it a special event.
The Sailors who started the event also concluded it by presenting
gold medals to the 94 athletes at the closing ceremony.
-USN-
NNS772. This Week in the Navy: Nov. 16, 1914 -- Naval Aeronautical
Station Pensacola, Fla., was dedicated. The command, now Naval Air
Station Pensacola, celebrated its 80th anniversary with an air show
featuring the hometown Blue Angels demonstration team.
-USN-
Short Splices
NNS773. Naval Academy Honored by State of Maryland
ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- Maryland Governor William Schaefer announced
during a Veterans Day dedication ceremony that the new 2,835-foot
bridge over the Severn River in Annapolis will be called the
"United States Naval Academy Bridge." The bridge is scheduled to
be completed in 1995.
"We at the Naval Academy are truly honored by this
recognition," said ADM Charles Larson, U.S. Naval Academy
Superintendent. "The naming of the bridge is a tribute to every
one of the more than 61,000 midshipmen who have graduated from this
prestigious institution and to every staff and faculty member who
has ever served here."
By U.S. Naval Academy Public Affairs
-USN-
NNS774. Women Veterans' Artifacts Needed
WASHINGTON (NNS) -- The Women in Military Service for America
Memorial Foundation, Inc. (WIMSA) is mounting a nationwide search
for artifacts to include in the Memorial's permanent collection.
Women veterans are asked to send artifacts distinctive of their
service branch and era to create the Memorial's exhibit gallery.
The foundation is actively seeking uniforms, medals,
insignias, photographs, military issue personal items, diaries,
medical equipment and other appropriate items from both war and
peacetime periods in U.S. history. Items that depict the type of
work women performed in the military and prisoner of war
experiences also are desired.
For more information, contact Kathryn Sheldon, WIMSA Curator,
at (800) 222-2294.
-USN-
NNS775. NAS Norfolk Sailors Earn Double Recognition
NORFOLK, VA. (NNS) -- The volunteer efforts of 75 Naval Air Station
Norfolk Sailors received dual recognition recently for their eight-
year partnership with local Willoughby Elementary School.
Commander, Naval Base Norfolk and the state of Virginia
Governor's Partnerships in Education both presented awards for the
NAS Norfolk Personal Excellence initiative. Command volunteers
contributed over 1,600 hours last year.
By Gayle Lemieux, NAS Norfolk Public Affairs
-USN-
NNS776. Navy-Marine Corps News
The Nov. 18 edition of Navy-Marine Corps News -- a videotaped
newscast generated for broadcast to Navy-Marine Corps fleet and
shore units -- includes the following stories:
-- USS George Washington on Maiden Voyage, Ready on Arrival
-- Marines Gather for 50th Anniversary of Iwo Jima Battle
-- Master Chiefs Bring Fleet Concerns to Navy Leadership
-- Chicago Schools Prepare for Influx of Sailors to Great Lakes
-- Defense Department Delivers Anti-drug Message
-- Physical Fitness Tips to Make Your Workout More Effective
-- Human Research Volunteers Put it on the Line for Science
-- Subase Pearl Harbor Shows Off its Recipe for Holiday Cooking
-- USS Enterprise Hosts Star Trek Crew Members in Norfolk
We need your input on the show, so call our HOTLINE
at (202) 433-6108 or DSN 288-6108 and leave a message or send us an
E-Mail at: kane%med...@nbs-onet.navy.mil
If you have distribution questions contact Mr. John Morrissey
at (202) 433-5844 or DSN 288-5844, or write him at the address
mentioned below. Navy/Marine Corps News tapes must be returned each
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Input from Fleet units ensures our most complete coverage of
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Navy/Marine Corps News
Naval Media Center, Bldg. 168
2701 South Capitol St., S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20374-5081
(202) 433-6252, DSN 288-6252
E-Mail: Kane%med...@nbs-one.navy.mil
-USN-
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