MERCHANT MARINE
Op-Ed: Time to Appoint an Alum to Run USMMA
There are five United States Federal Academies - the United States Military Academy at West Point, The United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, The United States Coast Guard Academy at New London, The United States Air Force Academy at Colorado Springs, and The United States Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point (USMMA). Of the five, four typically have one of their own graduates serving as academy superintendent. Only USMMA sends its midshipmen into war zones - on ships laden with beans, bullets and bunker oil for our military - yet it most often has someone other than one of its own grads as superintendent.
142 of our cadets were lost at sea during World War Two. We are the only one of the academies authorized to have a battle standard replete with pennants from the battles in which we participated. We are the only academy whose graduates are licensed to serve as officers and who graduate with reserve officer commissions in the USNR, USMCR, USAR, USAFR or USCGR.
Unfortunately, we are also the one academy whose superintendent is most often not chosen from among its own graduates. This is unfair to the brave men and women who will serve as cadets or as officers aboard our ships in the next war's battle zone.
We, the undersigned, ask that you please take an active part in promoting a Kings Point graduate to be our next USMMA Superintendent. Our midshipmen deserve a leader who has sailed on his/her license, who knows our traditions and understands the future needs of our nation.
Respectfully,
Kings Point Class of 1975, co-signatories, family and friends
Kevin Coulson
Mike Morris
Mark G. Baranello
Larry Kelly
Russ Bauer
Neal McCraw
Steve Ackley
Robert C. Baldwin
Larry Cosgriff
Thomas Heffernan
Joseph Dixon
Nick Weltmann
Peter DeChadenedes
Warren Heidt
Michael Masciale
John ReShore
Don Fogel
Bill Vallaster
Richard Bense
Mark Brannigan
Jeffrey Hakala
Frederick Leo Ebers
Skip Dubrin
Donald Pastor
Eddie G. Maxwell
Robert Baldwin
Keene Little
Clifford Jagoe
Frank Atcheson
Kenneth Nelson
Chris Nelson
Mike Corney
Robert Herman
Jim Knoepffler
Donal L. Staples Jr.
Stuart Pitts
Charlie Cheatom
Thomas A. Fedoration
Frederick C. Berg III
Thomas A. King
James Brodt
Peter Wishart
Eric Schiller
Steve Meyers
Kathleen Tanton
Mark Brannigan
Francis X. (Biff) Broderick
Alan Pelletier
Gregg Runkel
Kennett Backus
Jim Shettig
Dave Petty
William Leigh
Charles Anthony Nunez
Alexander Barry Williams
Ken and Debbie Halsall
The opinions expressed herein are the author's and not necessarily those of The Maritime Executive.
Report: US Navy May Cut Vice Admiral Posts in Acquisitions Programs
Following Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's order to cut the number of four-star officers across the military by 20 percent, the Navy is considering a plan to eliminate the three-star positions atop its acquisitions bureaucracy, according to Politico. The reported plan would remove the vice admirals in charge of buying and maintaining everything the Navy uses to fight - aircraft, ships, information warfare systems, supplies and facilities - and allow civilian appointees.
The proposal would affect all five of the Navy's systems commands, including Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA). The department is the buyer and maintainer of America's warships and subs, making it the world's largest shipowner when measured by vessel value. In recent years, NAVSEA has come under scrutiny because of the ballooning costs and timetables of U.S. Navy shipbuilding programs. The command's design requirements and change orders have received a share of the blame for setbacks in building frigates, carriers and submarines - though there are other causes, like the intractable workforce shortage facing shipbuilders and other manufacturing employers.
Under the revised organizational chart that Politico reported, the navy would eliminate the position of the vice admiral in charge of NAVSEA, along with the equivalent posts at the systems commands for Naval Air, Naval Information Warfare, Naval Facilities Engineering, and Naval Supply. This would have the knock-on effect of cutting the staff posts within the vice admiral's office, reducing head count by a much larger amount.
A spokesperson for Navy Secretary John Phelan denied that such a plan exists. Separately, a spokesperson for the Navy told Politico that the plan is not yet finalized.
The decision would align with Defense Secretary Hegseth's proposal to reduce "excess general and flag officer positions" across the military. Hegseth has called for all services to eliminate 20 percent of all four-star positions and at least 10 percent of all other general and flag officers across the military. The objective, Hegseth said in a memo issued in early May, is to cut "unnecessary bureaucratic layers that hinder . . . growth and effectiveness."
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