If you've joined
the Navy because of your love for the sea, you'll be excited to learn that your
new accommodations will be on board a ship. This will be immediately followed
by disappointment when you learn it's only a pretend-ship. You'll be assigned
to a Division, consisting of about 80 men and women. The Divisions are housed
in gigantic 1,000 person dormitories, which are called "ships" in
the Navy Recruit Training Command. While men and women train together, they
obviously don't room together (sorry, kids!). I won't bother repeating what
was said in the sections on Air Force and Army Basic Training, just leave it
to say, 
that your "ship" will be shipshape
at all times, or you will experience the wrath of a RDC scorned.
During "P Week," you'll be asked if you have any experience (or interest) in drill, musical instruments, or singing. If so, you may be assigned to a "900 Division." These special recruits get to do pretty much everything the other recruits in boot camp get to do during their nine weeks, but also practice to put on shows at events such as parades, and recruit graduation ceremonies. 1992MSSN1995, a member of our Message Forum, briefly describes his experience as a member of a "900 Division:"
Things may have changed since I went through, but probably not that much. I was in a "Triple Threat Company" as part of the 900 Division. We had the recruit Band, Choir, and Drill Team. We did the same things everyone else did, plus we had practices on top of it all. As far as special priveledges you don't really see anything with exception of at times you may be escorted off of the base to perform in parades, and or concerts on occassion. We performed at the German Fest in Milwaukee and a couple of parades, plus we performed at a couple of graduations past week 4.
In the Air Force, it's called "Dorm Guard." In the Army, it's called "Fire Guard." In the Navy, it's called "Standing Watches." Regardless, it's all the same. It means that you get to spend significant amounts of time (which could otherwise be used for sleeping) guarding the barracks (excuse me, "ship") to make sure someone doesn't steal it. You get to entertain yourself by listening to people snore or talk in their sleep ("Oh, Margaret, do that, again!"). You also catch people sleeping at attention, back straight, hands at their sides, "money tight", feet at a forty-five degree angle. They never believe you when you tell them in the morning.
In addition to the "Security Watch," if you're unlucky enough to attend boot camp during the winter months, you can look forward to "Snow Watch," in which you will be woken up in the middle of the night to shovel snow if it gets to a certain depth.
After observing
the recruits for a few days, the RDCs will select "recruit leaders," known
as "Recruit Petty Officers" in various areas of responsibility. How these
"student leaders" are selected is entirely up to whatever process the specific
RDC wants to use. The RDC may select you as an RPO because you're tall, or
because you're short, or because you have green eyes, or because you have
blue eyes, or because you're older than most recruits there, or because you're
younger than most recruits there, or because you volunteered, or because
you didn't volunteer, or because you like gravy on your mashed potatoes.
In actuality, the RDC will probably select those recruits who, during the
first few days showed that they were "on the ball."
Recruit Petty Officers have authority over other recruits in the division within the scope of the duties to which they are assigned. Orders issued by Recruit Petty Officers, acting within their authority, have the full weight of those orders issued by an RDC. Recruit Petty Officers are responsible to RDCs for the proper execution of any orders they receive.
Recruit Petty Officers are charged with preserving good order, discipline, and security within their respective division. Any violation of good order, discipline and security will be reported by the Recruit Petty Officer to the chain of command for disposition.
In order to distinguish recruits placed in a position of responsibility, Recruit Petty Offcers will wear an appropriate collar device.
The standard Recruit Petty Officer Positions are:
Port and Starboard Watch Section Leaders
Division Laundry Petty Officer
Recruit Education Petty Officer
Recruit Athletic Petty Officer
During the remainder
of P week, while learning from your RDC the correct way to make your bed and
fold your underwear, you'll also complete your processing, which includes medical
and dental exams (shots, shots, and more shots!), partial uniform issue (you'll
learn the correct way to stencil your underwear!), and the all-popular military
boot camp standard haircut. You'll 
also
get some classroom time, learning the basics of grooming and uniform wear, the
Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ), standards of conduct, discrimination,
and a few hours with the chaplain about values. Additionally, your RDC will
introduce you to a couple of sessions of physical training.
Week 1. After P. week, the real Navy training begins, and if you think your RDC was tough during the first couple of days, wait until the first week officially begins. The first three weeks of Navy Boot Camp are clearly the toughest (physically, and stressfully). Get through the first three weeks, and you'll almost assuredly graduate. As with Army and Air Force Basic Training, during the first couple of weeks, you'll find that no one can seem to do anything right.
During the first
week, you'll be required to take your initial swim qualifications. Before you
graduate boot camp, you'll be required to pass the requirements for 3rd
class swim qualifications. Also during this first week, your RDC will
introduce you 
to the complexities of military
drill (marching). Classroom learning during week one will be about rank/rate
recognition, rape awareness, equal opportunities, sexual
harassment and fraternization, and core values. The first week is also
your most intensive week of physical conditioning.
Week 2. During the second week, you'll receive your dress uniforms (yea! More clothes to stencil!). You don't get to keep your dress uniforms, however. Just as soon as you stencil them, you'll take them over to the tailor's to be fitted correctly. Your classroom work will consist of a course on professionalism, test taking, Navy chain of command, watch standing, and customs and courtesies. You'll also take your first written test, covering all the subjects that you've learned so far. Of course, physical training, drill, and general getting yelled at will continue through this week.
The week wraps
up with your first visit to the confidence course. If you're in any kind
of
shape at all, you'll enjoy this part of the course. To my knowledge, this is
the only indoor confidence course in the military. The Navy Boot Camp Confidence
Course is designed to simulate obstacles one may have to encounter during
a
shipboard emergency. Recruits don OBAs (Oxygen Breathing
Apparatus, standard equipment for shipboard fire-fighting) carry sandbags,
toss life rings, and climb through a scuttle (a small circular door) with
full seabags.
As with the Army Confidence Course, this is not an "individual" event.
It's a team effort. Recruits complete the course in groups of four. The object
is to cross the finish line as a team, not as individuals.
|Prev Page| 1 2 3 4 5 |Next Page|
Photos are official Navy Photos
