Captain’s Column

Adm. John Richardson, Chief of Naval Operations, U.S. Navy, is rolling out a new communication plan to articulate our maritime responsibilities as delineated in the National Defense Strategy. The primary objective is to communicate the country’s need for increased Naval Power and ultimately build support for “The Navy the Nation Needs” (NNN). As a nation to which the seas are directly linked to every aspect of our daily lives, the success of our Navy is crucial.

It should come as no surprise that today’s security environment is faster, more complex and very competitive as evidenced by a constantly growing China and a returning Russia among other areas of concern. The CNO highlights key areas to illustrate the enormity of the maritime domain; 400 percent increase in maritime traffic over the last 25 years; vast undersea resources; 99 percent intercontinental telecommunications via undersea cables; and receding polar ice caps offering new trade routes, and resources. All of these considerations are directly linked to the economic interests of the United States, our partner nations, and allies.

The CNO’s plan for increasing naval power is centered on a balance of six key areas. Those areas include building a bigger fleet, a better fleet, a networked fleet, a talented fleet, an agile fleet and a ready fleet. Each of those areas has its challenges, in terms of time and money, but a determined approach will enable us to achieve them in a balanced fashion.

How does this affect an installation like NASCC?

As stated in our mission statement, we will endeavor to provide the best customer service possible. Our primary Navy customer is Training Air Wing 4, who is a key component to the Navy’s pilot production efforts. In our efforts to provide efficient, safe, secure and reliable services, the training wing will be able to obtain its production requirements. Our efforts must look to maximize every dollar and take advantage of every second. Money and time are two commodities that can be wasted very quickly.

As we move forward building the fleet, our capabilities, and capacities, we’ll receive more guidance and course corrections from the CNO. In the short term, we must continue to strive constantly try to improve. It all starts by improving one’s self, then one’s team, command and base. As we discussed previously, we’ll start by ensuring we know the rules of the games and become brilliant at the basics. Take each procedure down to the basics steps and master them. As we improve we will make distinct additions in increasing our Naval Power…contributing to building “The Navy the Nation Needs.”