A bit of a predicament ...

[bighit8]

Originally Posted by Blue Rat

LCAC = Landing Craft Air Cushion. Yup ... a bad ass 20,000 HP air hocky puck.

I heard they can hit close to 60 knots!

[Blue Rat]

Originally Posted by bighit8

I heard they can hit close to 60 knots!

We have an imposed speed limit of 50 knots ... however, we have the ability to FAR surpass that.

[SAR_boats]

Originally Posted by Blue Rat

I'm an LCAC Craftmaster getting ready to retire after 26 years.

I always wanted to get my craftmaster's pin. Never could swing the orders tho. Congrats to you on your upcoming retirement.

So if you are a craftmaster that would make you a BM or QM right?

[Blue Rat]

Originally Posted by SAR_boats

I always wanted to get my craftmaster's pin. Never could swing the orders tho. Congrats to you on your upcoming retirement.

So if you are a craftmaster that would make you a BM or QM right?

Naw, that's the way the program was originally set up, but in the last 10 years or so we opened it up to any Chief or above.

I spent my first 18 years fixing submarines ... once the navy stopped it's nuclear welding program, I jumped ship and went LCAC.

I'm a "Turd Chaser." HTCS ...

[bighit8]

I dont recall the Navy s rank structure ( i should, being a department of the navy) but a BM/QM is that like an E-8 Master Sgt/First sgt?

[Blue Rat]

Originally Posted by bighit8

I dont recall the Navy s rank structure ( i should, being a department of the navy) but a BM/QM is that like an E-8 Master Sgt/First sgt?

The "rating" BM/QM is like the Marine's MOS. It describes your job not your rank. The navy has a metric butt ton on ratings that specializes what we're trained at.

So for instance to use SAR-Boats ... a BM2 would be an E-5 boatswains mate. Usually one of the baddest mo-fo's on the ship.

[un-kola]

Originally Posted by SAR_boats

Its Hoo-Yah. Youre doing it wrong.

Hump past us? And they call us squids ghey.

The Navy already knows how to shoot like the Marines. It is called CIWS. Fire enough bullets and eventually you'll hit the target.

In Viet Nam we got ambushed and called for a fire mission.First round that came in sounded like a freight train,next 7-8 rounds came in and we thought it was a B-52 arc-light(bombing)strike.Turned out it was a battleship 15 miles off the coast.(Wisconson or Missouri)They dropped around 20-25 rounds.Accurate to beat all hell.All the rounds landed within 25 meters of the target coordinates.Total devestation,and much better then an Air Force or Navy bombing run from a fast mover.When we policed up the area we sent out a bag of weapons(AKs,SKSs,RPKs,etc.)as trophys.Big-hit8 I was also trained on mortars.When I got incountry a remf handed me orders to an infantry company.When I told him I was mortars he said"I don't cut 'em,I just pass 'em out breeze".Never fired a mortar again for the rest of my 6yr.Army career!- Lloyd,Viet Nam '71-'72

[SAR_boats]

Originally Posted by Blue Rat

Naw, that's the way the program was originally set up, but in the last 10 years or so we opened it up to any Chief or above.

I spent my first 18 years fixing submarines ... once the navy stopped it's nuclear welding program, I jumped ship and went LCAC.

I'm a "Turd Chaser." HTCS ...

Sweet. I had the good fortune to have some good HTs and MRs on the Howard who taught me how to weld and use mills/lathes etc. I've only know one guy who welded nuclear reactors his name was Dave Randall. That guy was one helluva welder.

Originally Posted by bighit8

I dont recall the Navy s rank structure ( i should, being a department of the navy) but a BM/QM is that like an E-8 Master Sgt/First sgt?

And then to make matters worse we has NECs which are specialties that are collateral duties. Like Craftmaster, SAR swimmer, Aircrew, EOD, etc

[bighit8]

Originally Posted by un-kola

In Viet Nam we got ambushed and called for a fire mission.First round that came in sounded like a freight train,next 7-8 rounds came in and we thought it was a B-52 arc-light(bombing)strike.Turned out it was a battleship 15 miles off the coast.(Wisconson or Missouri)They dropped around 20-25 rounds.Accurate to beat all hell.All the rounds landed within 25 meters of the target coordinates.Total devestation,and much better then an Air Force or Navy bombing run from a fast mover.When we policed up the area we sent out a bag of weapons(AKs,SKSs,RPKs,etc.)as trophys.Big-hit8 I was also trained on mortars.When I got incountry a remf handed me orders to an infantry company.When I told him I was mortars he said"I don't cut 'em,I just pass 'em out breeze".Never fired a mortar again for the rest of my 6yr.Army career!- Lloyd,Viet Nam '71-'72

Thanks for serving loyyd, much respect here!

Originally Posted by SAR_boats

Sweet. I had the good fortune to have some good HTs and MRs on the Howard who taught me how to weld and use mills/lathes etc. I've only know one guy who welded nuclear reactors his name was Dave Randall. That guy was one helluva welder.



And then to make matters worse we has NECs which are specialties that are collateral duties. Like Craftmaster, SAR swimmer, Aircrew, EOD, etc

Marine corps structure is simple,MOS and rank. You can specialize and hold different titles but it never has another name attached to rank.That is unless You are A chief Warnat Officer.Not many of them in the corps.

[bighit8]

Just as a rehash. A chief Warrant Officer is specialized in almost every weapon system in the Corps( generally speaking) or specialized in some area.The same as the Navy or Army.They are warranted the right to command without going through OCS..They are a special breed.You can be a Wo-1 then CWO2 through 4.

[Blue Rat]

Originally Posted by bighit8

Just as a rehash. A chief Warrant Officer is specialized in almost every weapon system in the Corps( generally speaking) or specialized in some area.The same as the Navy or Army.They are warranted the right to command without going through OCS..They are a special breed.You can be a Wo-1 then CWO2 through 4.

The Navy Warrant Officers are the "Technical Experts" in their fields. They would not hold command of a ship, but they could serve as a division officer or maybe a department head.

[Zippy]

Originally Posted by un-kola

In Viet Nam we got ambushed and called for a fire mission.First round that came in sounded like a freight train,next 7-8 rounds came in and we thought it was a B-52 arc-light(bombing)strike.Turned out it was a battleship 15 miles off the coast.(Wisconson or Missouri)They dropped around 20-25 rounds.Accurate to beat all hell.All the rounds landed within 25 meters of the target coordinates.Total devestation,and much better then an Air Force or Navy bombing run from a fast mover.When we policed up the area we sent out a bag of weapons(AKs,SKSs,RPKs,etc.)as trophys.Big-hit8 I was also trained on mortars.When I got incountry a remf handed me orders to an infantry company.When I told him I was mortars he said"I don't cut 'em,I just pass 'em out breeze".Never fired a mortar again for the rest of my 6yr.Army career!- Lloyd,Viet Nam '71-'72

My High School History teacher told a similar story: the punch line was the reply that came back when his unit called in the fire order: "Ok, duck your head!"

He also said the sound was something else.

I have an uncle that was on a swift boat, Dad was a Boatswain's Mate on the Ranger 68-72, Grampa was in from 44-66 and retired out as a Lt. Commander. He wound up as Ex-O of the Excelsior and even worked for the CNO during the height of the Cold War in Photo Intelligence.

Grampa has the BEST stories!

Thanks to all you peeps that served.

[L8 APEKS]

Oh man, that's funny sh1t...no pun intended!

You seen the video of the dudes in Iraq that knock over the Porta-Potty while their buddy is inside doing his business? Oh man, friggin HILARIOUS!