Posted on 02/26/2010 4:44:12 PM PST by SandRat
WASHINGTON, Feb. 26, 2010 – Female sailors will begin serving on submarines by the end of next year, with Naval Academy graduates leading the way, Navy leaders told a Senate committee yesterday.
Navy Secretary Ray Mabus told the Senate Armed Services Committee that the Navy is in a good position to move forward with integrating women onto submarines.
“We think we learned a lot about integrating women in the services years ago, and those lessons are relevant today,” Mabus said. Those lessons, he said, include having a “critical mass” of female candidates, having senior women to serve as mentors, and having submarines that don’t require modifications: the SSBN ballistic missile and SSGN guided-missile subs.
Finally, Mabus said, “We have the lesson learned to make sure any questions are answered, … and we’re very open and transparent on how we’ll do this. We think this is a great idea that will enhance our warfighting capabilities.”
Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates notified Congress on Feb. 19 of the intended change to Navy policy. Mabus had pushed for the change since taking office in May. Adm. Gary Roughead, chief of naval operations, endorsed the change, saying in a statement released in September that his experience commanding a mixed-gender surface-combatant ship makes him “very comfortable” integrating women into the submarine force. The Navy changed its policy to allow women to serve on combatant ships in 1993.
“We have a great plan, and we’re ready to go for the first women to come aboard in late 2011,” Roughead told the Senate committee yesterday. In a prepared statement to the committee, he said the change would enable the submarine force “to leverage the tremendous talent and potential of our female officers and enlisted personnel.”
Besides the incoming officers from the academy, the first women submariners will include female supply corps officers at the department head level, Roughead said. The change will be phased in over time to include enlisted female sailors on the SSBN and SSGNs, he said. Women will be added to the Navy’s SSN fast-attack submarines after necessary modifications can be determined, he said.
“This initiative has my personal attention, and I will continue to keep you informed as we integrate these highly motivated and capable officers into our submarine force,” Roughead told the committee.
In all your certainty, you are clueless. My father does not share your opinion of me, not even close. All is right in my world and you are satisfied with yours. I am not concerned with your opinion of me, because it matters not.
I kinda like that traditional stuff.
So, if they were taped down, it would be OK to “miss” as long as you cleaned it off? LOL! Don’t think there were any seats on fleet diesel boats ww2 era.
Ive never been on a WWII boat.
They had seats on 637s
Nawww son, it’s sashaaaaying.... shugah! LOL
We have a Harley and we are not dentists.
No one is gonna clean up after you.
dats right! LoL
We were talking about a real Navy, the US Navy, RAN drivers need not join in.
Now, son, thats TWO! You are goin on report!! LOL!
I tried to emigrate to Oz and had a job lined up working on the design of the Collins class.
I figured it was a big country with lots of shared values. I was wrong and now yall have a second class sub and no guns.
The beer aint that great either.
Shandy.... The original light beer
Ever had a RAN boat relieve you?
Never saw a RAN vessel as I was MED ATLANTIC the whole time.
We have 3 Harley's. No dentist in my house either. Nor am I disrepected by the bikers who come to my home. What they do is their business. I wouldn't stick my nose into what they do...
They was pissin around with social engineering for 25 years
We appreciate help with the heavy lifting and I am sure that running ESM on the Collins is a great job.
Dont mind my mouth
Well said, as usual.
The only crime your parents committed against the US was only having one daughter.
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