Mahan_Stephen@lanmail.ncsc.navy.mil (11/30/90)
From: Mahan_Stephen@lanmail.ncsc.navy.mil >Subject: Are Warships Over-Manned? >From: crowl@cs.rochester.edu (Lawrence Crowl) >Many of the descriptions of warships posted to this group read like: > > 2 engines, 4 missle launchers, 1 cannon, 1 radar, 1 sonar, 300 men > >I cannot see a need for more than 50 men on a ship, unless it carries >aircraft (including helicopters). The jobs I can imagine are: > > commander (whoever is in charge for the shift), helm, > weapons control (2), weapons loading (2), radar/sonar operators > (2), cook, and janitor > >This is 10 men, for 3 shifts, plus the captain, giving 31 men. I'll >add another 6 men per shift, just because I'm sure I'm missing >something. That gives 49 men. Make it 50, just because round numbers >are more scientific :-). >I'm still way below what the ships carry. > Lawrence Crowl 716-275-9499 University of Rochester Lawrence, You neglect the vast amount of maintenance and repair necessary on an active ship. The engine rooms require continuous watches, there are sailors assigned to electronics repair, machinery repair, ships machine shop, etc... There is a vast amount of machinery in addition to the propulsion plant including fire pumps, the electrical generation and distribution plants, the fresh water plant, the sewage system, the fuel storage/purification/delivery systems, the lube oil storage/ purification/analysis facility, and many others. On a ship of this size there will be sick bay facilities, with dedicated men to operate this. There will be a ships store, for purchases of personal and toilet articles. A single sonar operator or radio operator is not sufficient to maintain the HF, VHF, UHF, Satcom, and secure radio links simultaneously. There will be various radar units, with associated operators and technicians. There is also the work to maintain the topside, the paint, the housekeeping, and all the other tasks necessary to support the ship and crew during the mission. The Navy works very hard to REDUCE the workload of the ship so as to reduce the manning requirements for each vessel. At sea a crewmember can expect to work 12 hours/day, 7 days/week in peacetime. Stephen Mahan Mahan_Stephen@lanmail.ncsc.navy.mil Naval Coastal Systems Center Panama City, FL 32407