Windjammer Articles

On hand to welcome Secretary of the Navy John Chafee to Bremerhaven were Oberbuergermeister Bodo Selge (left), lord mayor of Bremerhaven; Lt.Col. Robert Stamp (center), deputy commander of the U.S. Forces Support District Norddeutschland; Capt. Robert Rossell (second from right), commander of the Military Sealift Command, Eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean; and Capt. John Jennings, commanding officer of NSGA Bremerhaven.

During his three and one-half hour visit to Bremerhaven on Oct. 4, Secretary of the Navy John Chafee toured the facilities of NSGA Bremerhaven and the Military Sealift Command, Eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean, (MSCELM), and addressed the local Navy Community.

Despite the short duration of his visit, Secretary Chafee sought maximum contact with young enlisted sailors, asking their views on a variety of topics ranging from the quality of mess hall food to how easy it is to meet Bremerhaven girls.

Approximately 300 members of the Navy community turned out to hear Secretary Chafee's address. In his address, he discussed the reduction in naval forces that has taken place in recent years, advances in naval technology, and the great accent that has been placed on people in today's Navy.

Secretary Chafee stated in part: "Where do I see the Navy going in the next few years? Well, this is a time of transition, as you know. As the war is winding down in Southeast Asia, we are, in our country, going from a wartime economy to a peacetime economy. We are carrying out the Nixon Doctrine which requires a much lower profile of the United States Armed Forces overseas. It is less dependent on overseas bases. It wants the U.S. to withdraw, where possible, from the fixed bases that we have been so familiar with in the past.

"So this transition... has caused turbulence in the United States Navy, as it has in the other Armed Services. I have been Secretary now for two and one-half years, and during that time we have had to make very deep cuts in the number of ships, and in the number of men we have."

Secretary Chafee went on to say that the Navy is particularly well-suited for the Nixon Doctrine due to the fact that it increasingly depends on sea-based, rather than land-based defenses.

"Currently we have under construction," continued Secretary Chafee, "... two nuclear-powered aircraft carriers... Those ships are the Nimitz and the Eisenhower, both over 70,000 tons. We have under construction three nuclear-powered frigates. These will be similar to ... the Bainbridge and the Truxton. We also have under construction ... a new class of submarine, call the 688 submarine, which is very expensive, but which represents considerable advantages over those that we currently have."

He cited such aircraft developments such as the F-4 Phantom and the F-14 fighter aircraft, and the P3C and the S3A anti-submarine warfare aircraft. He also mentioned the development of the hydrofoil and the surface-affect craft (which travels at speeds of up to 80 knots) as projects to which the Navy will be looking in the future.

After mentioning these and other developments, Secretary Chafee said that "... you can have all this fancy equipment that I have talked about, ... but unless you have good people operating it, it is not worth having. So we are putting, as you know, a great accent on our people in the Navy. We are doing everything we can to make it a challenging and satisfying life, to ensure, to the greatest extent possible, that our people have job satisfaction; that they are doing a job that is worthwhile, with a minimum of harassment; and that they can obtain the satisfaction that they are entitled to."

Secretary Chafee also congratulated NSGA Bremerhaven on its 33 percent reenlistment rate, when that of the rest of the Navy is only 16 percent. He cited this as an indicator of a high level of job satisfaction at this activity.

In ending his address, Secretary Chafee said, "I extend my deep appreciation for the wonderful job that you have done, and bring thanks on behalf of our President, and on behalf of Mr. Laird and all those in the Defense department. Thank you very much, and it has been a treat to meet with you today."

The first "Sailor-Marine of the Quarter" for NSGA Bremerhaven is CT1 Serio Rossi of "E" Division, who was selected for the quarter ending Sept. 30. As the first recipient of this award, CT1 Rossi had the additional honor of officially receiving his letter of selection from Secretary of the Navy John Chafee, who visited this activity Oct. 4. CT1 Rossi's letter of selection stated in part:

"You have been selected as U.S. Naval Security Group Bremerhaven, 'Sailor-Marine of the Quarter' for the quarter ending 30 September 1971.

"Since your arrival at this command in March 1969, you have demonstrated a high degree of professional performance, a keen interest in al assignments, and a willingness to accept additional responsibilities. You were recently assigned to a position which required you to provide technical and supervisory assistance to four watch section supervisors. In this capacity you have been directly responsible for greater cooperation among the electronics maintenance personnel. In addition, your willingness and enthusiasm in instructing personnel in other divisions on technical subjects has greatly increased their understanding of new equipment.

"In addition to your professional accomplishments, you have greatly enhanced the morale of the men in the division by volunteering for the watches of other personnel when their personal needs interfered with the standing of their assigned watches.

"Your active participation in the Command Sports Program has helped to make this program a success,. Not one to rest on past performance, you have chosen to continue your education in electronics through correspondence courses.

"I commend you on your excellent performance: I am pleased to present you with a $75 U.S. Savings Bond and a plaque commemorating your selection as 'Sailor-Marine of the Quarter'. Well done!"