STG (Sonar)

Melissa, my son's name did not have to be on the title for him to get the base sticker. It had to be on either the title or the insurance.

Debbie, we can't put his name on the title until it's paid off. He has another year or so before he's done paying for it. Thank you for the info, I think when he comes home next month we will call them and get it worked out, because currently his insurance costs more than his car payment!!

The base sticker requirements are different for Norfolk.

Melanie, that is awesome 6 1/2 years!! As for your son, let's hope he saw and learned from what you went through and he will be careful.

Good Morning Ladies, today is Donna's birthday and I hope you can send a little birthday wish her way.

Deb - the single guys stationed in SD and assigned to a ship usually stay in the barracks. They are very nice as my single nephew has been stationed in SD the last 3 years and we've been to visit him on base. I think some of the lower ranks may have to stay on the ship until something opens up but right now the goal of the Navy is to have EVERY Sailor off the ships where they are on shore duty.

Deb - my son lives on his ship in SD, he was told once he returns from his first deployment he can put in for base housing. He doesn't mind living on the ship, but I know he will be happy when he can sleep in a real bed everyday.

Deb, does your Sailor know if he ranks 1st in his "A"/"C" school, he gets first choice of orders?

My son wasn't #1 but he still got his pick...so I guess it depends on how many openings and how many are in your class.

Hi Laura!
Oh you're so lucky to have S. home! Glad to hear the car issue is resolved at least for awhile. Sorry about the tat, but you know how Sailors are.

Enjoy him while you can and YOU have a wonderful 4th of July also! M.

That really sux for those sailors! No AC in these temps, I hope they get it fixed soon!!

While my son was at ASW he phased up very quickly. He spent the weekend with us at our hotel on Shelter Island many times. Matt would trade with someone if he had watch. And I stayed at the Navy Lodge on ASW a few times also.

Melanie, as far as I heard our Sailors do not get leave between boot camp and "A" school. We have a Great Lakes "A" school instructor on this site and Hoppie has said that several times.

Donna: My Matt wanted SD so bad!! And of course he got VA. McFaul is a destroyer I think. You can join the Destroyer group and the Norfolk group. Matt doesn't complain to much about Norfolk. He'd never been to the east coast before.
So few of our sonar tech's go anywhere but VA. I guess since there are more destroyers there than anywhere else....it sorta makes sense.

Does your son know he has to submit a chit for leave? Are you very far from GL? There may be exceptions to that rule if you live close to GL. Either way, he'll get an answer once he submits his chit.

Melanie: He'll probably get leave between A and C schools.

Melanie and Donna, I'm glad your sailors got their orders!!

Carolyn: What ship did your son get orders for?

I attended my son's "A" school graduation and was the only "guest" there. It's VERY low key.

Carolyn: I know we have some Bainbridge moms on here.

Carolyn: Here's the Bainbridge group. You should be able to get all the info you want....

http://www.navyformoms.com/group/ussbainbridgenorfolk

Congrats Melanie!!

Chief! So glad your friend made the suggestion. What ship are you on? I'll have a million questions for you. My son's been on the Ramage since April. Still hasn't done much sonar, but finished cranking!! He's going to school for 2 weeks for a refresher course at Norfolk. I'm so glad you're here!!!

Carolyn: My son PIR'd 4/25/08. He arrived in Norfolk 10/1/08. His ship was already in the Gulf so he was flown via military transport to Bahrain and then 2 helicopters to his ship. His homecoming was 4/1/09 and I flew back to see him. It was amazing, got to meet his CO, tour his ship, tour the Truman and shop at the NEX. He moved into new barracks in May and is liking it.
Has your son contacted his sponser yet? Your son can request a "Welcome Aboard" packett with lots of info about Norfolk including base maps.
As far as Sailors living on ships, the Navy is making it a priority to get all Sailors into barracks. There may be barracks available to him but that can depend on the command and how many carriers are in port. I wouldn't send him anything until he asks for it unless it's just a 'goodie' box. My son had leave after 'Opps' so he had a chance to take some extra things. Space is very limited on a ship; a laptop; iPod; CD's; DVD's to start with. Once he deploys he'll let you know what he wants. If he has to fly out to catch up with his ship, just 1 or 2 sets of civilian clothes as he's limited to one seabag and MUST take everything the Navy has issued him so far. Also, you may want to join the Bainbrige group; the the "Destroyer Moms" group; and the Norfolk group. Lots of 'seasoned' moms in those groups! Hope this helps.

Welcome Chief, my son is on the USS Benfold and has not done his FSA yet. Is FSA the same as "cranking"? He has been on the ship since February. I'm guessing they only do it on deployment?

THANKS, Sonar Chief!!!

My son was in A school for 9 weeks, it ended right before Christmas so he was allowed to come home for the holidays!!

Kelly: If you need any info on Tiger Cruises, just do a search (upper right hand corner on every page). We've had lots of our Moms on Tiger Cruises and they've shared their experiences and pictures. Let us know how yours goes. Also, we have a group for destroyer moms, please come and join us! Where is the Roosevelt based at?

Welcome Kelly!!

CArolyn: What ship will your son be on?

Carolyn: Yes, he's been to the Gulf and back. I loved his homecoming. What an event that is, especially the first one. My son's on the USS Ramage. He'll be on a Med cruise early next year. Come join us in "Destroyer Moms". I know we have some Bainbridge moms in there.

I've only lived through one deployment so far but I do have A LOT of package info. If you CALL USPS at 1-800-610-8734 and ask for the 'military kit', the USPS will deliver to your home as many kits as you request. EACH kit contains 8 USPS International flat rate Priority Mail boxes, address labels, customs forms (which are very easy to fill out), plastic sleeve for the custom form and a HUGE roll of tape (enough for 20 boxes). This is all free. You will be given a reorder number when you call and when you need more kits, just call and order more. There are 2 or 3 different size boxes in each kit. It's very impressive. So when the Chief says add more tape, you will have a ton of tape to do just that!!

My son was on a destroyer on the Gulf on his last deployment and received his packages in about a week (except at Christmas). He would let me know what he wanted in his packages (sunflower seeds, new white tee shirts, energy drinks, cookies from Costco (mailed the whole package to him), beef jerky, DVD's, gum, mints, homemade chips & salsa, cake or pie in a jar, vitamins, memory card for his camera so he can send pictures home, nurf balls, cardboard b-ball set with nurf ball, I record his favorite TV/cable shows off the internet and mail them (Entourage, Simpsons, his favorite sports teams), gel inserts for their boots, Gillette makes a all in one product (shampoo & body soap), razor blades, deodorant, blue jeans. I try not to send him anything he doesn't need as space is limited. He also shares his food goodies with his division. I asked several times if there was anyone on his ship who did not receive care packages and there wasn't. His ship was 'adopted' by the New York City Sanitation Department. I think they receive a lot of care packages from them but most ships are not as lucky. When I send my son a care package I always go online to 'AnySailor.com' and find a Sailor in Afghanistan and mail that Sailor a package also. Also on this site we have the group 'Molly's Adopt a Sailor' - they pick a large group of Sailors and all 500+ moms mail care packages. Okay, enough for now!

Hey Chief, I have a question for you. Sailor son was 'pressured' into signing up for IA. Any insight as to where and what he'd be doing? I know where the corpsman end up, but does it matter what your rate is when you go IA?

Chief, a few issues back in NavyTimes, they listed all current IA's by rate. STG was WAY down there on the list. FC was way up there. I found out why FC's were needed in a war zone but why STG's?
What is the criteria for IA selection? I though it was volunteer, why the 'pressure'? I know the manning levels on my son's ship are already low, why ship out more crew? MCPON spends a lot of time talking IA. What's in store down the road?
Where do IA's ship besides Behrain, Kuwait, Iraq & Afghan?

I really appreciate the time you have taken to answer my many questions. Now I understand why Sailor son used the word "pressure". He doesn't seem to think he'll go but the moral is so bad on his ship right now he's seriously reconsidering it. I've pulled as much info out of NavyTimes to keep him abreast of current events regarding IA. (Oh, you'll enjoy this - he's the the Ramage, the destroyer that 'accidently' fired 3 rounds in the Polish port). Waiting to hear where the axe is going to fall. Where are you stationed?

I'd call the quarterdeck at ASW and ask what the holiday stand down schedule is. Hoppy posted the stand down schedule for GL yesterday.

Chief:
Let's see, are you referring to X-Boxs (and tournaments), Laptops with portable hard drives loaded with 200 movies; iPods, digital cameras, weekly Texas Hold 'Em Poker tournaments, satellite TV so the little dears don't miss a football, basketball or any televised sport!!??? My son was in the ship's sonar room and discovered a new poker table tucked away in a closet.
Yes, this generation has no idea what hard work is or what hard times are. Sailor son was complaining of the 'dangerous' situation the CO put them in when he ordered a UNREP during a storm with high winds and swells. I listened to the little sweetheart complain for about an hour and then reminded him of the 30+ years his father drove those locomotives and the 'dangerous' situations he was in. I also reminded him of my father who was serving in the Navy during the attack on Pearl Harbor.
Sailor went in as an E-3; made E-4 in less than a year. His first duty station was Norfolk and the ship was in the Gulf so he flew there to catch up with it. His first homecoming was April and he slept at a friend's house until his barrack was assigned (about 3 weeks).

My friend Mary has a sailor who reported to the Chung Hoon about 2 months ago. That sailor is an FC. He hasn't been out on the ship anywhere yet. Marys husband retired from the Navy as a chief after 10 years and he can't believe most Sailors are not sleeping on ships anymore. It's a new Navy!

Morale was awful before the Poland incident. Lots of reports about Sailors doing things they are not qualified for yet. I've meet the CO & XO and they were so welcoming and concerned about my sailor.

So, how long does it take to get a reservation at the Navy Lodge in HI??? lol (sorta)

I'm in my mid fifties and Sailor son is my youngest. He was 25 when he enlisted so he's almost an "older" sailor. While your still laughing let me share my experiences at sailors first homecoming last April: Not only were the young sailors carrying their precious electronics BUT a lot of the officers were too! I posted all the video on YouTube.....it was quite an experience.
The CO and XO out of NRD-Phx that I volunteer for are both young enough to relate to this new generation. (You may know the XO, Darryl Toppin, he was stationed at ASW for 8 years).

As soon as I tell Mary about you and your visit to the Chung Hoon, she'll be your new best friend. She already has a challenge coin from MCPON. She organized the Navy Moms dinner with him in Chattanooga. I had to drive to Albuquerque for Navy Week just to get a challenge coin from a RADM so Mary stop commenting on my little coin from the CO!
One more serious question: How long does it take a destroyer to go from England to Norfolk?? My guess is about a week but I have no proof.

Naval Mine and Anti Submarine Warfare Training Center:

Click Here

NavyTimes reported this week that ship fuel is $5 gallon. I know each ship has a budget but who would have to give the CO orders to conserve or has all that become a general order?

Why does it seem like there are too many STG's on a ship?

My son requested a battery operated alarm clock for this rack.

LOL! Our kids probably don't even know wind-up alarm clocks exist?? Are you doing maintenance on the destroyers in Pearl? Shore duty?

Sounds like you may have the best of both worlds??!!

tmsy: There is lots of invaluable info right above this in the "Discussion Forum" :)

My so was grad n go and flew to San Diego 3 hours after PIR. You will find that some procedures change often in the Navy! Relax and to with the flow as we don't have any control over when/where/how our kids start A-school.

Julie, come join "Destroyer Moms". Hopefully you can connect with other Mom's with Sailors on the Hamilton. And I believe there is an "Hawaii Mom's" group also!

My very good friend, Mary mom of Nick, has a sailor stationed in HI on the Chung Hoon. She's in the HI group and DDG group. She can answer all your questions!! Her hubby is retired Navy. When you join the HI group let her know your Sailors an STG....us twidgetts stick together! lol

http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=50876
New Stamps!!

AshNicole,
When my son graduated from boot camp, he was Grad and Go. Since he had electronics school at GL, he said they jokingly called it Grad and Go Across the Street. Enjoy PIR! It is very impressive!

Congratulations Bev! My son really enjoyed his time at Point Loma for school. The best thing is that you can talk to her more often since she is out of BC. Be sure and go visit. There is so much to see and do. And the weather is so nice. Tell your daughter to study hard. If she finishes top in her class, she can get first pick of her ship.
There is a Navy Gateway Inn at Point Loma where you can sometimes get a room and at a great rate, if you get to go visit her. It is so convenient! Best of luck!

There are different sonar systems. It is my understanding that depending on where the need is determines what system they learn. Different systems go to different C and Ops schools.
Sonar Chief, does that sound correct?
My son was on hold at various stages of STG school. The good thing is that they keep them busy during the hold time. But, before you know it, she will be through school and going to her ship!

We stayed at the Admiral Kidd Inn right on base. Not too bad and the price is great. The sailor needs to make the reservation since it is on base. Once we even got a suite!