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CAMP KRUTKE, Afghanistan – A Petty Officer 3rd Class is seated
before a group of seniors. His hands clasp together and his brow
furrows as he strains to remember the answer to a question he has
been asked.
“Are we taking any crew-served weapons with us?
How many people are in the convoy? What happens if our
communications go down?”
The young petty officer who is the
convoy commander, strains to provide the answer, but he is
overwhelmed. He has no answer for his troops.
“These are
things you have to take into consideration,” cautions Steelworker
Chief Christina Greenwood. “You are in charge of this convoy. You
are the one who has to have the answers. Your people are going to
look to you for leadership!”
Greenwood looks at the Petty
Officer and asks him to think harder, but his blank expression says
it all: he is in over his head.
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Sailors assigned to Naval Mobile Construction Battalion (NMCB) 15, review the contents of a candidate's package during a Seabee Combat Warfare Specialist qualification board
on September 14, 2013. (U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 1st Class Daniel Garas)
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Greenwood asks the young man to take a break and leave
the room. As he does, she begins to furiously scribble
notes. There is no actual convoy. Instead, she is chairing a
board for a candidate seeking to earn his Seabee Combat
Warfare (SCW) qualification in Naval Mobile Construction
Battalion (NMCB) 15.
The SCW program serves as the
cornerstone for combat training in the Seabees. Completing
the program recognizes the training and qualifications of
those who serve in Construction Battalions of the Naval
Construction Forces (NCF). To earn the pin, service members
must complete Personal Qualification Standards (PQS) which
include Seabee Combat Warfare volume I and II, Naval
Construction Force 1&C, and Navy Safety Supervisor from the
Navy's Non-Resident Training Course (NRTC) website.
In addition, service members must be within physical
standards, qualified with the M-16 rifle or M-4 carbine and
currently assigned to a unit of the NCF in any rating
capacity. The lengthy prerequisites currently make it one of
the more challenging warfare devices to earn.
After
consulting with other members of the board they conclude
unanimously that the board can go no further. They have only
combed over the first part of the board and see problems.
“I think he still doesn't understand how a Final
Protective Line (FPL) and a Primary Direction of Fire (PDF)
work,” says one Petty Officer. “It's not a good spot, and
he's using the wrong symbol for it.”
“His sectors of
fire are too wide,” says another Petty Officer. “They're too
wide. They need to be narrower.”
“His landing zone
to medically evacuate casualties is too close to his
communication's tent,” says a third.
Fixing small
errors like these might be assigned after the board finishes
and are known as tasker's. But the consensus of the board is
that the candidate needs additional time to understand the
basic fundamentals.
After calling him back in,
Greenwood explains that the board will cease and he will
have to begin again in a few days. The candidate looks
disappointed, but Greenwood tells him to relax, breathe, and
to go over his basics. She explains that he now has a better
idea of what to expect. She also reminds him that he now
understands the expectation.
“He wasn't prepared. He
should have had a murder board first, so they know what we
expect,” said Greenwood. “We don't expect them to know
everything, but we do expect them to know the basics.”
Greenwood understands his disappointment, but has no
intention to pass people who do not qualify, nor does she
seek to fail people. That would defeat the purpose of a
board. She explains that earning a SCW pin is no easy task,
and it is not awarded lightly. Boards are meant to be as
much of a learning experience as they are a measure of
knowledge. Instead she says that she is giving him a second
opportunity.
“I look for the rate and pay grade to
get an idea of exactly what they should know,” Green says.
“They should have the knowledge of at least one pay grade
above their own.”
As the young petty officer leaves,
he states while he was initially daunted, he will try again.
Earning a SCW pin is crowning achievement in a young
Seabee's career and is essential to gaining greater
opportunities in the NCF.
As he walks down the hall,
Greenwood stops him to impart one final bit of information.
“Remember, this isn't just about earning a pin. What
you learn may save the life of one of your shipmates,” she
says.
The SCWS program dates back to 1992, after a
Master Chief's conference concluded that the Seabee
community should have a warfare designation to recognize the
Seabees' past accomplishments to the Navy. Seabees have
placed themselves into harm's way since their creation in
1942, often following the Marines ashore to construct
runways and field hospitals. Adopting the motto “We build,
We fight,” they would consistently find themselves acting as
de facto infantrymen to defend their projects from the
Japanese. Since then, Seabees have placed heavy emphasis on
tactical field training and basic combat skills.
“Tactical training is essential for us to function in an
expeditionary environment,” said Steelworker Chief Willis
Bowman, the SCW program coordinator for NMCB 15. “If we
can't survive in a tactical environment, we can't do our
job.”
Bowman sits behind his desk in a small tent,
working continuously. He reviews and completes the packets
of candidates before he submits them to the Command Master
Chief for approval. Next to his computer is a mountain of
packets. He points to them and notes the sheer volume.
“End of deployment rush,” he says.
As the end of
deployment looms, more and more people who started the
program at the beginning are completing it. For a reserve
battalion especially, there is no better time to become SCW
qualified than on a deployment. Access to materials, subject
matter experts and hands-on training is available. It will
be far more difficult at home on drill weekends.
But
Bowman is glad many people are finishing the program. He
says that it shows a strong desire amongst Seabees to become
qualified and will provide a wealth of experience in the
years to come when deployments may not be so frequent.
“Earning your SCW pin demonstrates motivation and a
desire to learn the basic skills of our warfare specialty,”
said Bowman. “For many it earns you respect because you've
been through the process and you can relate to your
juniors.”
Other Seabees echo Bowman's statement.
“Getting your SCW pin means you are stepping up. Going
through the program gives you a better understanding of the
basics,” said Builder 2nd Class Jarrod Powell. “It also
gives you a better understanding of our heritage and where
we came from.”
Powell added that during his time in
the course he learned an extensive amount of knowledge. As a
former Marine, it's something he takes seriously. “What you
learn could save one of your shipmates,” he says.
That same day, another board is convening. A Petty Officer
2nd Class has just completed her package and has presented
it to a board for review. If the board finds the packet to
be satisfactory they will begin the second phase and ask a
battery of questions to assess the fluency of her knowledge.
After she turns it in, the board asks her to step
outside and wait. As soon as she steps out the board pours
over the contents of her package and begins to evaluate it.
Geometries of fire are calculated, camp layouts are
measured. No detail is left unchecked.
After careful
review and only finding a few minor issues, they conclude
the packet demonstrates competent knowledge. The candidate
is brought back in.
The candidate finds herself
sitting before a board of several Petty Officers and one
Chief. They begin to immediately ask her questions on
everything from naval history to contingency operations.
“Who was the father of the Seabees? What is the maximum
effective range of the M-240 B machine gun? What are the 10
classes of supply?
The candidate answers the
questions in rapid succession, but stumbles on a few. When
pressed on how many pressure points are on the human body,
she hesitates.
Rolling her eyes upward, she searches
her memory to remember the answer.
“Twenty?” she
asks nervously. “Eighteen?”
She is guessing and the
board does not approve. They know that she has the answer,
but it is in there somewhere.
“Forget that,” says
one of her inquisitors. “How many rings are on a 463L
pallet?”
“It's twenty-two. Didn't you already ask me
that?” she replies in a confused tone.
The two lock
eyes, and he gives her an intentional look. A smile
stretches across her face as she gets the hint.
“There are twenty-two!” She says excitedly.
Her
inquisitor and the rest of the board members nod
approvingly.
“Confidence is what we look for,” says
Equipment Operator 1st Class Sergio Zamora. “If they say
things like ‘I guess that's it' or ‘I think so,' that's
going to open up more questions. If they know it, we'll help
them a little to see if we can pull it out.”
Zamora
feels that boards are a way to measure confidence and gauge
potential leadership. He mentions that knowledge in the
subjects is important because potentially any service member
that is SCW qualified might put into a position of
leadership.
“We want somebody that is willing to
have a briefing in front of whatever troops they're leading
and do it with confidence,” Zamora says. “No matter what
their rate is.”
After three and half more hours of
grueling questions the board ends. The candidate is asked to
step outside and wait. Afterwards, board members discuss
amongst themselves and will decide the results. After a few
more minutes, they ask the candidate to re-enter.
The Chief Petty Officer chairing the board asks her how she
thinks she performed.
“I've learned so much, but I
feel like I missed a lot,” she says.
“That's normal,”
he replies.
At that moment, all members on the board
stand up in unison. The Chief walks over to the seated
candidate, his eyes casting a doubtful glance. After a terse
moment he sticks out his hand, a smile stretching across his
face.
“Congratulations,” he says.
A visible
burden is lifted off of the candidate's shoulders and she
smiles in relief. She reaches out and shakes the Chief's
hand.
Soon, the board surrounds her and a frenzy of
congratulations and back-slapping ensues. The board members
begin recalling their own experiences.
Through the
buzz of activity in the background, the Chief takes the
candidate aside and quietly tells her a phrase that has been
uttered numerous times at the conclusion of countless
boards.
“Remember, this isn't just about earning a
pin. What you learned in this course may save the life of
one of your shipmates.”
NMCB 15 is currently deployed
to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and
is an expeditionary engineering element of U.S. Naval forces
supporting units worldwide through national force readiness,
humanitarian assistance, and building and maintaining
infrastructure.
By U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Daniel Garas
Provided
through DVIDS
Copyright 2013
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