A recruiting campaign or info to high schools is a good start, but the perception, rightly or wrongly, of the maritime trades is so muddled that selling it to the gatekeepers (read: HS guidance counselors) is a tough sell.
Back up about ten years and I would spend a week or so driving around to local schools to drop off admission and application material for GLMA here in Michigan. I would call in advance, schedule a time to visit, and show up in shirt and tie for a chat with the counselors. More often than not, things would go fine until they would start to question employment opportunities and, despite the KNOWN upcoming shortage of officers, they would quote some Dept of Labor study saying prospects were dim and wages low. Well, yeah, when you average in tour/dinner boats, etc the wages look low. I would tell them a new 3M/3AE could expect north of 70K their first year (starting mid-season on the Lakes) and they would not believe me. It got so I would bring redacted check stubsâŚno sale.
If I shifted to unlicensed opportunities and the entry level jobs they were even more adamant that âno one can make that amount of money without college in this areaâ despite my statements that a Mariner was not going to work âaround hereâ. To this day I have never observed a boat steaming across a bean field or winding up a narrow creek in a cedar swampâŚbut, if they wonât believe me and offer other options to their students, that remains on them.
To be fair, some of the rural schools were receptive and we had good conversations but the majority were pushing graduates to dump a $hi+ ton of money on the coveted âcollege experienceâ. Working in the âtradesâ for a good living did not have the pull it does (barely) in the post-Covid world.
Anyhow, the drive to push HS grads, whether or not they are capable of university level school work, continues and too many kids are saddled with massive debt and a relatively useless degree. To me, that is an almost insurmountable obstacle but the shortage of mariners is very real and the opportunities are there for the taking.
Would more money help? Money helps to overcome b.s. and being away, but a fair wage and regular schedule in addition to a wage that AT LEAST paces yearly inflation plus good benefits makes for a decent life.
She does an awesome job. Question is why donât the unions and shipping companies pitch in to get her gear, a professional video editor, and fly her out to meetings and ships?
Such a tiny investment of resources, put in her hands, could do real magic. But instead she has to do everything by herself.
If you want great content, then write check to the people who are already making solid content on their own dime.
My friend on an MSC ship near the shitshow happening in Israel sent me a pic of a missile trail in the sky close to their vessel. Honestly one has to wonder, if the relief timing is already bad, how bad will it be when thereâs a chance you can get sent to vessel near conflict like that?
Civmars canât be caught up in war, an early death would get in the way of eventually getting lung cancer and dying two weeks after retirement
The AOEs actually had the CIWS installed before the ships were transferred from the Navy to MSC manning. I remember the C/E having us torch cutting/grinding out some of the remaining infrastructure from the control closet so it could be used for storage or somethingâŚprobably not so easy to reinstall now!
Another issue is what is considered War Zone in accordance with the CMPI to entitle the mariner to war zone payment. Or Imminent Danger Pay for that matter. Does a âspecial military operationâ count? Just because you see a rocket trail doesnât mean youâre getting fairly compensated for it.
As far as MSC taking back control, I doubt the numbers work out for the same reason MSC took control in the first place. I think the AOEâs for example had Navy manning of like 500, MSC operated them with something like 150 or less if my fuzzy memory is correct.
The even bigger question is what does the family get when a mariner dies. According to the CFRs our families are all entitled to full veteranâs benefits if we die in a warâŚ. problem is Congress hasnât declared war since 1942
Fwiw I know a few OS folks and GMs from the Navy who said the CWIS was great when it worked. When being operative word. They were hugely maintenance intensive to keep up and running. Iâd worry more when the Iranians start supplying mines to the Houthis.
To be fair I wouldnât trust civmars to use CIWS either. Youâd need a navy detachment on board to maintain and operate. Which should be doable. All the ships in that AOR should have them.
I also worry about how many CIWS units we have in warehouses and how many trained navy detachments we have in the reserves? An oiler in Guam arguably doesnât need one installed right now (me being the person who argues that they do) but all the MSC ships in INDOPACOM are absolutely going to need to instal them quick if Taiwan is invaded.
I assume you know what CIWS stands for ? Capân(or Christ) It Wonât Shoot
There is a contingent in the Navy requirements shop that has determined that aux &/ supply ships are noncombatants and will not be in contested environments, so there is no need for them to be armed. No one in history has ever attacked the opposing forceâs supply line.
The AOE-6 class was an amazing triumph of engineering. In addition to CIWS, they also carried NATO Seasparrow missiles. They had the speed and size to hang with the strike group and credible point-defense systems. We really should have held on to them in commission instead of turning them over to MSC. But yes, they mustered over 550 men, so that wasnât going to happen. By my count there were 37 sailors (plus a few officers) that were working in combat systems (some operations specialists also do navigation work, so theyâre difficult to categorize) plus the ship carried 43 gunnerâs mates, most of which were working in the magazines but also manned the crew-served weapons.
Equipping all US shipping with CIWS sounds easy enough, and Iâm not saying itâs impossible, but thereâs way more to it than going down to the depot and bolting on a mount.
