Deployment already?!?!?!?

[NavyWife2013]

My sailor is still in A-school so when i asked him about moving, he said either he would be stationed on a base or he would be stationed on a ship and i would go to a port, or somthing like that, so when i talked to him last night he said he needed to make some things clear, that he has told me but he wasnt sure that i didnt understand, and one of those things he said was he could deploy after he is done with A-school , that that is wat he meant when he said he could be stationed on a ship. is this true he gets done with A-school, comes home on leave and then deploys? someone please explain this i am new at militairy in fact i wasnt very fond of it and now i cant even think straight with all the confusion! could he be killed? how dangerous are we talking? anyone know?

[Anti M]

I'll try to give you the basics.

They usually get two weeks or ten days after A school to come home on leave.  Some go to C school, some do not.  If they use up their leave at Christmas while they are in school, there is a chance they don't get to take take leave after school.  They earn 2.5 days of leave each month, and can borrow a bit of their unearned days, so you can figure out about how much leave your sailor has earned to use coming home.

After they finish school, and have had their time off, they go to their first command.  For many sailors, this is a ship.  Some ships are already at sea and he'd have to go join his ship, some ships are in port but scheduled to deploy soon, and some are in dry dock or have just finished their deployment.

I think where you are getting confused is the word "deployment".  I bet you're thinking "war zone".  Not always true.  When a ship goes to sea, on a "tour", they are deployed.  They visit many ports and work while at sea.  Yes, they do go into combat zones, but for the most part, a ship at sea is pretty safe.  Usual hazards of a sea-going war vessel, but they aren't constantly fighting.  A deployment lasts six to eight months or more, and they have shorter periods at sea called underways, where they test out their gear, drill, and support other ships.  A sailor on a ship is safer in many ways than a soldier on a ground base.  

Do sailors go to place such as Afghanistan?  Yes, especially corpsmen (medics) who have been trained to do so.  Also others, but they usually aren't assigned to a ship too; they are on a different type of assignment.  Most sailors go to ships (or subs or air squadrons).  Not directly into a ground combat situation.

He is in the military, it is a war machine, yes, he signed up for a job which could include sacrificing his life.  But honestly, unless he's sent into harm's way, don't worry about it this early on when you don't even know where he'll get orders.  The chances are slim he'll be killed.  Statistically, he's in more danger if he doesn't wear a seat belt.

[Anti M]

If your sailor goes to a ship, there will be a Family Readiness Group to help you, support you, and explain what's going on, what is safe to talk about and what has to be kept private.  If you are near a Navy base, you can take a COMPASS course, which teaches new wives about the Navy, their benefits, and what to expect, how things work.  You won't be alone even if he's gone.

[sailorwifenmom]

I know this is new, and new things can be scary, so I hope this helps explain things and make it a little less unknown and so a little less scary.

His rate (rate is job) will have a lot to do with the type of duty he goes to first, but a sea going or deploying unit is very likely (after all, this is what the military does). HOWEVER - just because you are on, say, a ship or at a shore command in a deploying billet, does NOT mean that they leave right away, and it does NOT mean that they are gone all the time.

The way it works is if he goes somewhere Stateside (overseas requires them to be a certain rank to take families), you can move there with him. Since you are already married and were before he got his orders (since he doean't have them yet), the Navy will pay to move you.

Then, depending on what you choose and your individual circumstances are, the Navy will either give you BAH to live out in town, or they will give you base (or privatized) housing. You will get to live there with your Sailor, except for when they deploy, or on the occasional duty day when he will have to sleep on the ship. When they do deploy, you are allowed (and even encouraged) to stay there, in the same home you were in, until he gets back.

There are lots of support groups and services available to help you with this,
especially while he's gone. To be honest, I've been doing this a long time, and in my opinion, the vast majority of the time, it ends up being better for the spouse / family to stay, as opposed to going "back home". (This is for a lot of reasons that I won't get into right now.)

If he's on a ship, in addition to his base pay and his BAS (which as a Madrid Sailor not living in the barracks, he will get, and will stop while he's deployed), and the BAH / housing (he gets, deployed or not), he will also get sea pay, and while deployed, if he's gone more than 30 days, family sep pay. There could be other pays, such as flight pay, tax free, etc, that he could be getting.

As far as the risk, there is always a risk involved with a deployment, and some deployments and some rates have a higher risk than others. BUT - that's why the Navy trains the way they do, why they are as strict as they are on the Sailors, and why they hold them to such high standards, with punishment when those standards and rules aren't met. It keeps them at their best (and safest) condition possible. The vast majority of the Sailors who are deployed come home safe and sound. At any given time, in any given week, there are literally THOUSANDS of Sailors deployed - most of them at sea. This past week, according to the Navy Times, I think there were less than 5 Sailors killed.

Your odds of coming home from a Navy deployment safe and sound are better than they are for coming home from driving across country safe and sound.

When you get to your first duty station, I would STRONGLY encourage you to take a COMPASS class. It can really help explain all of this, what's going on with your Sailor, and what is available to you as a spouse. It's free, provides free lunch, and also free child care. Not to mention it's a great program taught by experienced, trained spouses.

Hope this helps some!

[sailorwifenmom]

Anti M - great minds think alike :-)

[abbyblue]

he could get hurt standing on the dock joining the navy is danger job,he works 24/7 365 days  a year and anywhere in the world.

[Anti M]

Pssst... she's a wife.

She is talking to him, but he is a new sailor and likely doesn't know how to explain what's going on just yet. He probably doesn't know as much as we do, but he will, and she will.  No harm asking for others to help provide information in this early stage.

[BunkerQB]

Just remember he is going this to further his career and build a better life for the two of you. From what you have said, he loves you and you love him. That is the most important thing. You have no idea how much he values your support. So continue to be there for him.  And you will meet many other wives, fiancees, girlfriend who are going thru the same thing you are going thru and find support.  Hey, you found us, right?

[lemonelephant]

You have been given a lot of great info.  Since you are going to be married (if I understand your profile correctly), you may want to join the group, Girlfriends, Fiances,and Wives of Sailors (clickable link).  What is his rating (job)?  There are groups on here for most of the ratings and/or "A" Schools.

(To join a group, click on the group name and after the group page opens, click on "+ Join..." in the upper right.)

[NavyWife2013]

we are not married yet hoping to get married while he is on leave after A school but we have been together for almost 5 yrs. his rate is a GM (Gunners Mate)

what do u mean has to be a certain rank to take fammilies over sea? like on a ship or on a base in like cuba or somthing? if a base what rank does he need to be in order to take me?

and when he does "deploy" will there be an asigned port i can stay?

and i do think u r right in fact im 90% sure your right about him not knowing a whole lot and not knowing enough about it to explain to me, i get a response of "i dont know, let me ask a petty officer" quite a bit!

[lemonelephant]

Make sure that he puts in the chit so that the command knows that he plans to get married while on leave after "A" School because if he is not married then he could get orders, which are for at least a year, to a place where you would not be able to go.  A lot of the time, only those who are E-4 or above get accompanied orders overseas (Greece, Hawaii, Japan.....).  If he is assigned to a ship or other Naval vessel, then it will have a home port and if that port is in the US (many are), then you would be able to live nearby (there is a waiting list for on-base housing at most bases).

You may want to join the group, GM Mom's, and you will find out more about the GM rating, Since A School is at GL, check out Great Lakes A School Q&A and GL A-school moms.  You may also want to check out the Training-Support-Center-TSC-Great-Lakes Facebook Page.

(Group names and the fB site within this comment are clickable links.)

rate=rank and rating=job or specialty