What are submarine qualifications?

Answer 1

A member of MyNavyOnline.com had signed up for sub duty but wasn't really told much about the process, I sent the to him so he would have at least a slight clue as to what to expect. http://www.navy.mil/navydata/cno/n87/to ... ining.html

http://www.jcs-group.com/military/allyn ... phins.html

http://www.submarinesailor.com/Stories/Qualifying.asp

Above are a couple of links to some information. The second one talk about John (C), he is known in my SubVets group as "Gumba." His writing is very accurate, but you may not truly understand what is written there until you have your fish on your chest.

Once you are through with your rate schools you'll go off to Basic Enlisted Submarine School [BESS] where you will begin to learn the most basic information about the boat. When I was going through school, they were training on the Los Angeles Class; I would imagine at this point they are training on the Virginia Class.

In any event, many of the basics you will be taught will be able to understood from boat-to-boat.

The schedule in BESS is VERY rigorous and there is a specific reason for that; we take ONLY the best of the Breed. Every Submariner on the Pond to make sure that ONLY those who are worthy make it to a boat TRUSTS the Instructors. If the Instructors don't think you can make it, then you won't make it. YOU have to make the Instructors believe you are worthy to be one of their Shipmates.

Once you graduate from BESS and make it to your boat…THAT's when the real trials begin; those are your qualifications.

Essentially, the qualifications were traditionally written by the Plankowners of the boat while it is being built. There may be additions later when new equipment is installed, but the basic format is set upon each boat. Your qual card mat look similar to mine but there are always slight differences.

The qual card is kind of an instruction manual for learning about the boat. You will be required to have a basic knowledge in EVERY SYSTEM on the submarine, this is part of what sets Submariner's qualifications apart from the others [AW, SW, etc.] Being part of a submarine crew has little to do with your "job", but it has everything to do with the boat.

As a Fast-Attack Submariner, I was EXPECTED to know enough about every area of the boat to be able to start and stand a watch in any compartment.

Your knowledge MUST be sufficient to satisfy the person who is authorized to sign-off that particular system.

You will be EXPECTED to state and physically show where EVERY valve on the boat is located, this is because there is no time in an emergency to look-up a boat schematic. You will be EXPECTED to cross-connect systems as necessary to bring a system on-line and keep the boat functional.

This is HARD, and there will most likely be times when you wonder if it is all worth it…IT IS.

Your best friend on the boat will be your "SeaDaddy." He is generally someone from your division who is assigned to you to ensure that you complete your qualifications and he is VITAL to your survival. He may seem pretty cruel quite often, but you must ALWAYS remember that he is there to help you to be a successful Submariner. He will be on your back for the entire time you are trying to qualify, usually 12-14 months [that may have changed.] You will not get a lot of sleep during that time as this is also part of a test to see if you can handle the stress and pressure of being on a boat. For a very long time I was allowed 4 hours of sleep a day [this is the Navy's minimum while not at war.] This does not mean 4 consecutive hours, you may get 2 hours then be woken up for a while then get another hour, etc.

The secret to not being caught-up in this mess is not going Dinq [dink], which means "delinquent in qualifications."

When you start your qualification process, you are assigned a time-table by the Qualifications Coordinator. If at any point you do not received the amount of sign-offs he has assigned you for the week, you "go dinq." Life as a dinq IS NOT PLEASANT and it reflects poorly on your SeaDaddy. Your qual card is set-up to bee attainable if you follow the order of the areas to be qualified. Some require a lot less work and are really easy to get, but try not to do the areas out of order; it will most likely come back to bite you in the end.

Once you have completed your qual card, there is a process you will have to go through before you go before the boat's "Qualification Review Board."

The process traditionally is:

A Review by your SeaDaddy

A Review by your LPO

A Review by your Division Officer

A Review by your Department Head

Then you go before the "Qualification Review Board." My Board was roughly 4 hours [I believe] and they go over EVERY aspect of the boat; In-Port, Underway, Emergency Underway, Duty Stations/Sections. Then they go over the various systems of the boat [you will be expected to give valves name and numbers as well as locations.] My Board was sat by; a 2nd Class Auxiliaryman, the Navigator, the Weapons LCPO, The Weapons Officer, a 2nd Class QuarterMaster and the XO [no pressure there. LOL.]

After the initial Q&A session, mine went a bit different as I was told; "You are a drop of seawater, make the dive planes take a 10* down angle." [This wound up being the normal process after the Board liked the results of this format. They just changed the initial question.]

Basically what this required was for me to be brought into the boat, be transferred from seawater to air, become pressured air, then High pressure air, then work my way to the accumulators [which were air over oil], pressurize the oil, move the oil into the headers and back to the actuation valves and then throttle myself to only give sufficient pressure to move them 10*.

During this whole time, the Board is throwing questions at me to see if I could keep my mind straight enough to follow the actual path.

It sounds harder than it really is after you've lived with all these systems for over a year.

My first set of Dolphins [fish] were given to me by my SeaDaddy, as his SeaDaddy had before him [and yes, I still have them.] I bought my SeaPup's first set of dolphins, as well as the other 3 I was SeaDaddy to.

It is a major tradition…this means that you have gained the TRUST of the Captain, Officers and crew. The ceremony is very simple, but it is the meaning of the Dolphins that only a Qualified Submariner can ever understand.

And remember, these fish don't have an expiration date on the back…Once you are Qualified, ALWAYS will you be Qualified.

To this day, those who ride the boats now will do whatever is necessary to ensure that those who rode the boats before them the utmost respect. If you have further questions, please feel free to ask. Remember, this life path is not for the week of heart or the week of strength. It's a very difficult career path, but it is well worth the trip to get to the destination. Submitted 09-Apr-09, 0832 Rob [Mongo] Lester (SS) rlester1967@sbcglobal.net