Navy Times | January 26, 2024
The Navy said Friday that it will allow those without a high school diploma to enlist as long as they score a 50 or higher on the Armed Forces Qualification Test that all prospects must take, the latest move to boost recruitment in the face of an historic recruiting crisis reverberating across the services.
Read Full Story HERE.
Heritage Foundation | January 24, 2024
Slouching tiger: For the second year running, Heritage’s Index of U.S. Military Strength has given the U.S. military an overall rating of “weak.” America’s response to the Chinese spy balloon is just one example of a military leadership that lacks the capability to ensure a strong national defense.
Retired Green Beret Joe Kent spoke at the launch of the Index and emphasized how the military has suffered under the Biden administration’s incompetence, which includes the blanket vaccine mandate that contributed to its recruitment crisis.
Read the military strength index here.
Hidden dragon: Heritage also released the 2024 China Transparency Report, which details the lack of transparency in Communist-controlled China and describes how this corruption poses a direct threat to the U.S.
Speaking at the launch of the report, Heritage President Dr. Kevin Roberts said “the Chinese Communist Party has become the number one adversary, not just for Americans, but for free people around the world.”
Read the transparency report here.
Pacific Fleet Submarine Museum | January 25, 2024
Happy Three-Year Anniversary to Our Renovated Museum
It’s hard to believe it has already been three years since we reopened the Pacific Fleet Submarine Museum following a two-year, $20 million renovation. Since then, nearly one million visitors have immersed themselves in the history of the United States Navy’s Submarine Force during World War II, the Cold War period, today, and into the future.
The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive:
“Great museum and an excellent submarine walk-through. Being able to actually walk the top deck of the sub was a cool experience. The museum itself was fun with interactive experiences and short films that provided a lot of good information. There is also a covered patio with tables and a food truck, which we ended up eating at. A great visit!” – The Laguna Chef
“Very interesting site and educational and well-done museum. Unbelievable how submariners lived and worked in WWII!” – Sandra K.
“This was extremely extraordinary. It was worth the money. Very informative. Lots to see and you get a feel of how the crew would have felt in close quarters.” – Darlene A.
Says Pacific Fleet Submarine Museum Executive Director Chuck Merkel, “While the Bowfin submarine is the main attraction, the museum adds another layer to the visitor experience. It provides an educational component that explains the story and sacrifice made by our submariners over the decades. Archive photos and interactive displays provide depth to our story, and we show the STEM connection on the science of how a submarine works and how technology has improved over the years.”
We’ve revamped our website to better tell the story of the Bowfin, the bravery of her crew, and the history of the U.S. Navy’s submarine force. With brighter, more attractive graphics and an enhanced user experience, our new website makes it easier to book museum tours and visit our online museum shop. Take a peek here at www.bowfin.org.
Honoring Our Bowfin Crew: Robert Beynon
Born in August 1924 in New Castle, Pennsylvania, Dr. Robert Beynon embarked on a remarkable journey to the USS Bowfin (SS-287), where he served as an electrician during Patrols 8-9.
After completing electrician school in New London, Connecticut, Beynon was given the choice between submarines and landing craft. Opting for the less-traveled path, he selected to work on submarines and went on to engage in nine successful patrols, playing a role in the sinking of 44 ships.
In his 2002 book, “The Pearl Harbor Avenger, U.S.S. Bowfin,” Beynon highlights the unwavering spirit of his crew and the achievements of the 220 men who manned the ship during its nine war patrols.
Beynon’s story is a testament to human resilience, the impact of education, and the enduring bonds of brotherhood in the face of adversity. His evolution from a young electrician to a decorated veteran and esteemed scholar inspires and shows that even challenging paths can lead to remarkable destinations.
Military Times | January 19, 2024
The first cadre of Royal Australian Navy officers to go through the U.S. Navy’s nuclear power pipeline hit another milestone last week when they graduated from the Navy’s Nuclear Power Training Unit, or NPTU.
Australian navy officers Lt. Cmdr. James Heydon, Lt. Cmdr. Adam Klyne and Lt. William Hall began the training unit education after graduating from the Navy’s Nuclear Power School in July.
The Jan. 12 graduation is the latest step in Australia’s plans to eventually operate its own conventionally armed, nuclear-powered attack submarine fleet under the auspices of the trilateral AUKUS agreement, which involves the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom.
Read Full Story HERE.
Dr. Joyce Brothers
The tragic loss of the submarine Thresher and 129 men had a special kind of impact on the nation …..a special kind of sadness, mixed with universal admiration for the men who choose this type of work. One could not mention the Thresher without observing, in the same breath how utterly final and alone the end is when a ship dies at the bottom of the sea….. and what a remarkable specimen of man it must be who accepts such a risk. Most of us might be moved to conclude, too, that a tragedy of this kind would have a damaging effect on the morale of the other men in the submarine service and tend to discourage future enlistment. Actually, there is no evidence that this is so. What is it then, that lures men to careers in which they spend so much of their time in cramped quarters, under great psychological stress, with danger lurking all about them?
Bond Among Them
Togetherness is an overworked term, but in no other branch of our military service is it given such full meaning as in the so called “silent service”. In an undersea craft, each man is totally dependent upon the skill of every other man in the crew, not only for top performance but for actual survival. Each knows that his very life depends on the others and because this is so, there is a bond among them that both challenges and comforts them. All of this gives the submariner a special feeling of pride, because he is indeed a member of an elite corps. The risks, then, are an inspiration rather than a deterrent. The challenge of masculinity is another factor which attracts men to serve on submarines. It certainly is a test of a man’s prowess and power to know he can qualify for this highly selective service. However, it should be emphasized that this desire to prove masculinity is not pathological, as it might be in certain dare-devil pursuits, such as driving a motorcycle through a flaming hoop.
Emotionally Healthy
There is nothing dare-devilish about motivations of the man who decides to dedicate his life to the submarine service. He does, indeed, take pride in demonstrating that he is quite a man, but he does not do so to practice a form of foolhardy brinkmanship, to see how close he can get to failure and still snatch victory from the jaws of defeat.
On the contrary, the aim in the submarine service is to battle the danger, to minimize the risk, to take every measure to make certain that safety rather danger, is maintained at all times.
Are the men in the submarine service braver than those in other pursuits where the possibility of sudden tragedy is constant? The glib answer would be to say they are. It is more accurate, from a psychological point of view, to say they are not necessarily braver, but that they are men who have a little more insight into themselves and their capabilities.
They know themselves a little better than the next man. This has to be so with men who have a healthy reason to volunteer for a risk. They are generally a cut healthier emotionally than others of the similar age and background because of their willingness to push themselves a little bit farther and not settle for an easier kind of existence.
We all have tremendous capabilities but are rarely straining at the upper level of what we can do, these men are.
The country can be proud and grateful that so many of its sound, young, eager men care enough about their own stature in life and the welfare of their country to pool their skills and match them collectively against the power of the sea.
USNI News | January 18, 2024
Lawmakers are warning the Biden administration not to disrupt the procurement plans for the Virginia-class attack boat program, arguing doing so will hobble the AUKUS partnership.
Read Full Story HERE.
Navy Times | January 17, 2024
Four days before he was relieved as commanding officer of the submarine Georgia’s blue crew, Capt. Geoffry Patterson was arrested and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol on January 8 by sheriff’s deputies in the county where the submarine is based, according to civilian records.
Read Full Story HERE.
TASK & PURPOSE | January 15, 2024
Navy Capt. Geoffry Patterson, who originally joined the service as an enlisted sailor, was fired as the commanding officer of the USS Georgia’s Blue Crew, due to “a loss of confidence in his ability to command.”
“On Jan. 12, 2024, commander, Submarine Group Ten, Rear Adm. Thomas “T.R.” Buchanan, relieved Capt. Geoffry Patterson as commanding officer of USS Georgia (SSGN 729) Blue Crew due to loss of confidence in his ability to command. As a matter of policy, the Navy does not comment on ongoing investigations and does not speculate on any administrative and/or disciplinary actions.”
Read Full Story HERE.
DOD News | January 9, 2024
Commander Stephen Bowen, a 1986 graduate of the Naval Academy, was chosen in 2000 to be the first submarine officer ever selected as a NASA astronaut. Between 2008 and 2011, he was part of three delivery missions to the International Space Station. It was on those missions that he learned the technology and environment of a space station were quite like that of a submarine.
“When they called me, I was a pre-commissioning unit executive officer for Virginia [class submarines], and it was so exciting to be a part of a crew establishing the initial operating capabilities of a submarine,” he explained. “For a moment, I almost thought, ‘I’ll say no,’ because we were looking forward to moving back up to Connecticut. But I’m very, very happy I said yes.”
Read Full Story HERE.
STARS AND STRIPES | January 10, 2024
The Navy’s wastewater treatment plant near Pearl Harbor dumped almost 2 million gallons of partially treated sewage into the ocean Monday due to an electrical failure, according to the service.
Heavy rain knocked out a transformer that provides power to an ultraviolet system used to treat wastewater in the plant on Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, the Navy said in a news release Tuesday.
Read Full Story HERE.
Bowfin Pearl Harbor Base 