Navy Nukes

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Comment by William in Nashua on November 28, 2011 at 12:22pm

I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving.  I spent the weekend cleaning up from the "October blizzard" we had 15 trees  with big branches downed on our property  or half the tree missing  in some cases (about 2.2 acres)  of course I live in the woods LOL.  I borrowed the neighbor's Ford F-150 extended bed pickup truck and moved TEN full truck loads of downed tree branches to the dump in one day.  That is not counting the stuff I just dragged to the brush pile on the back of our lot with my diesel tractor and will get a burn permit in the spring when it dries out.  

 

Today,  ONE MONTH after the storm and the Monday after Thanksgiving, right now it is 64 degrees in Nashua, New Hampshire.

Comment by Jim G. on November 27, 2011 at 10:18am

This is valuable perspective, Bubblehead, and from one fast boat sailor to another I can tell you that your experiences were very similar to mine (fast boats from '84 - '92).  I was an MM (SS) ELT, and my son is an MM (Target) non-ELT who has been at his command for nearly a year.  He has had NO time for anthing but watches, quals, maintenance and more quals.  But we know this will change as he completes his quals and has more free time on his hands.

There are a lot more options available today, including not only internet, but dvd and cd-rom courses for our young sailors.

I am just encouraging them not to waste time sitting around playing cribbage and watching movies, but to keep working hard while they are already used to it and knock out some easy (and affordable) college credits!

Comment by Bubblehead on November 27, 2011 at 7:15am

Some perspective from 40 years ago...  (I was an EM on a fast attack from 73-77.)

There's little time for anything other than watch standing, maintenance, repairs, watch station quals and boat (submarine) quals until those things are done.  (Those are basically in priority order.) Also, don't forget your rate (advancement) course work. You're a "non-qual puke" until you're qualified, and your shipmates keep the pressure up.  After all, their lives get better when there are more qualified watchstanders.  (You don't want a senior watchstander to be port & starboard watches because you are behind on your quals.)

Then there's the issue of availability...  I remember when a college rep came on board to tell us about the wonderful programs they had for sailors.  Then this lovely person learned about the schedules on fast attacks and admitted that it wouldn't work for us.  Gee, thanks.

I suspect that the situation has improved, due to computer-based teaching.  But even that is different from the rest of the world because your don't have the internet at see.  Perhaps they've worked on stand-alone training.  I hope so -- my son is in the program now, in nuke school since August.  (He's an EM also -- very weird how those things turn out.)

As far as nukes being a cut above -- that's true, big time.  All the way through my training, until in nuke school ("A" school was for all sailors, not separate for nukes then), I could see that the intellectual preparedness was very different than when I hit nuke school.

To some extent, the draft & Vietnam war chased many young men to the nuclear navy.  (I certainly was hoping to avoid getting shot in the jungle.)  Most of the nukes had some college, frequently in a science subject.  But still, my son, who I believe is very smart, talks about how hard he has to work to keep up with his classwork.

I do believe our sons will have a great, challenging, experience from the nuke program.  They learn to work, work hard and work to high (unforgiving) standards.

 

Comment by Jim G. on November 26, 2011 at 11:42pm

I agree that nukes tend to work harder than most other rates and also that there is little time for extra education...this absolutely true up until the time they qualify their senior in-rate watchstations and either SS or SW quals. 

Once that happens, there is a lot more time available for taking courses and most can at least make progress toward their degree.  Since I see resumes of lots of different candidates after they get out, I can assure you that a great many either complete their degree or make a LOT of progress toward it prior to getting out.  These are the ones that stand out, the others are seen as the ones who make excuses...

More important than the degree, though, is qualifying PPW or EWS as this shows the ability to master cross-rating knowledge and really goes a long way toward showing a desire to learn and master the entire propulsion plant.

In the past, when there have been cuts, they rarely affect nukes.  Even when they are widespread.  This next round may be different, but I really doubt it!  I would not put much energy into worrying about lack of retention for nukes...

Comment by NavyDads Admin (Paul) on November 26, 2011 at 4:28am

LalaH- that is not the case at all....at ANY time you can click SETTINGS and change your screen name:

 

 

Comment by Jim G. on November 26, 2011 at 12:08am

I agree and concur with the comments below, and want to confirm that former Navy Nukes are "highly sought after" in MANY job fields, mostly due to their demonstrated ability to learn and master complex tasks and problem-solving capabilities.

 

I am not aware of any direct changes to future U.S. Nuclear strategy as a result of Fukishima accident, but there will certainly be impacts felt by all plants and licensees.

I also know many friends that I served with working in non-nuclear industries, and across the board Nukes stand out in the workplace regardless of rating.

 

William, I moved from Newmarket NH to Arizona 10 years ago.  Never miss the winters, but would love to be back there this time of year!

 

For Laura: Regardless of the impacts from Fukishima, I would encourage all our sailors to finish their degree prior to completing their enlistment.  Thomas Edison, Excelsior, and many other schools offer distance classes and also provide credit for Navy  Nuclear training and qualifications.  This will make them even more emplyable, and also provide additional options once they start working at a plant or other company.

 

Comment by Mike K on November 26, 2011 at 12:02am

To all posting here it is always suggested that for OPSEC reasons, last names should not be used either of the sailor or of the person posting.  I don't mean to be rude but just passing on information.

Comment by Ward Baxter on November 24, 2011 at 12:15am

I'll echo what William stated about opportunities for ex-Nukes outside of the civilian nuclear industry. I work in semiconductor manufacturing as a supervisor of the maintenance technicians that repair our manufacturing equipment. There are always exceptions, but we love hiring ex-Nukes because of the breadth of knowledge they bring and the ability to think on their feet.

Comment by William in Nashua on November 23, 2011 at 6:31pm

That is terrible they are separating 3,000 sailors not nules of course. It was in Navy Times today.

Comment by William in Nashua on November 23, 2011 at 6:05pm

Nuke ET's have a lot of other job opportunities beyond just working in nuclear power plants as reactor operators or even working in the nuclear industry at all. There are plenty working in the electronics industry, petroleum and defense contractors due to training in fiber optics, controllers & sensors. That does not depend upon the future prospects of commercial nuclear power.

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