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- Thread starter MrSaturn
- Start date
phrogpilot73
Well-Known Member
Here's my $0.02 - My wife is a 1610 and we've thought about all of the above...
First - Stay away from the Fort! My wife is at NIOC MD (a.k.a. Fort Meade), and she's miserable. Too top heavy...
Second - We have orders to Kunia on hold, pending the results of the O-4 board. That was our first choice for PCS orders. C'mon, it's Hawaii!
Third - My wife has done training in Augusta and absolutely hated it. She's even from the south, and didn't enjoy it.
Fourth - San Antonio - this (among the four) would be our second choice. Haven't been to SA other than to visit, and it's always nice. I'll see if I can get my wife to provide some amplifying information when she gets home today.
I'm a 1640 at Kunia and the command is great! It's a good place to start your IW career and besides... it's Hawaii. However, if you're one of those guys who doesn't enjoy the outdoors and the beach and just stays home all day playing warcraft, don't take a good billet away from somebody else who would appreciate HI. There's quite a few "waste of a good billet" guys at Kunia. That's to be expected since it is the Crypto world though. I have a buddy at San Antonio who really likes it there too. In my opinion, the only bad station is probably Georgia.
Thank you for the input. The list is my order of preferences. I just wanted to make sure there wasn't something I didnt know about lurking in Hawaii. I also read something on Navy NPC about JOCCP which seems to lurk around the dreaded Fort Meade area and seems like a check in the box for advancement. So I was curious.
smustang51
Registered User
Well, I have never been to Meade or Augusta, but I do go to San Antonio a lot. Not a bad place, however be prepared for the heat. I have lived in Texas my entire life and am, personally, sick of it. About the end of July through mid September expect 95+ degree days with a decent amount of humidity for weeks on end. I always end up drenched in sweat walking from building to building. Don't have enough experience there to really say much about the city itself, I do have a friend, though, that is from there and he really doesn't like it that much. I would say go Hawaii!
I've never seen the weather in Hawaii suck. Can't say the same about any of the other stations. I had three years at Fort Meade and it was great regardless of the hot and cold, but I wasn't a cryppie (I was constantly reminding them of that). However, you need to be looking at your career progression, not the weather. Since you seem to be transitioning from SNA to IW, what will you be doing at these commands? (Don't answer that question here, just think about it).
The cryppies I worked with were all Direct Support and IMO that's the backbone of Navy IW -- the pointy end of the spear so to speak. I'd look at the job before the location.
The cryppies I worked with were all Direct Support and IMO that's the backbone of Navy IW -- the pointy end of the spear so to speak. I'd look at the job before the location.
I am at Meade now, was stationed in Augusta a couple of years ago. Both are good for different reasons. Meade=large command, good for exposure to varied operations. Augusta=more specified. I like both. Of course, I make a point to enjoy the place I am at. I have a first class in my shop who hated Hawaii, which is hard for me to imagine.
Is the detailer really giving you all four choices? If so, you are very lucky. I had one choice, Meade. Others I knew had two.
I visited Texas for a brief/class a couple of months ago. I like the set-up. Interesting programs. One thing you also need to consider is operational demands. Imagine what you might be doing at each place. The different commands are spaced far enough apart that you can understand each of them do not do the same thing. ie: local versus national. . . (I am being deliberately vague for obvious reasons. Research each command.)
Also, Maryland is hot in the summer, as is Augusta. I ould not shy away from Texas just because it is hot. Real estate is really cheap out that way.
Is the detailer really giving you all four choices? If so, you are very lucky. I had one choice, Meade. Others I knew had two.
I visited Texas for a brief/class a couple of months ago. I like the set-up. Interesting programs. One thing you also need to consider is operational demands. Imagine what you might be doing at each place. The different commands are spaced far enough apart that you can understand each of them do not do the same thing. ie: local versus national. . . (I am being deliberately vague for obvious reasons. Research each command.)
Also, Maryland is hot in the summer, as is Augusta. I ould not shy away from Texas just because it is hot. Real estate is really cheap out that way.
Well as with all things involving the Navy when they ask your preference.
Step 1: Submit Your Dream List
Step 2: ???
Step 3: Profit!!! or disaster...
Maybe im looking in the wrong place for IW info for what each base does.
www.npc.navy.mil (as my detailer gave me)
doesnt really describe what is local vs national... if it effects your career...
Add in the confusion of the Pers-44 to Pers 47 reorganization I felt it would be best to ask on the board.
All of those places the detailer sent you are the major commands. They're all good places to start your career. As you progress, you can be assigned pretty much anywhere in the world as well as smaller NIOCs. IW is a great community because you can pretty much be involved in every warfare aspect of the navy: air, subs, surface, and spec war doing something very important and significant for national security. Enjoy your time at IWBC. It's nothing like API and the exams are very well gouged.
Don't expect to find any details on an official unclas website. Ask your detailer what he can tell you about the job at each location over an open line. Understand that you may not have necessary the clearance -- yet. If it's the same job at each site, select on weather, housing costs and whatever other priorities you may have.
There are three (four if you count educational postings, ie NPS) types of postions for IWOs: shore, DIRSUP, and PCS to carrier/small boy/gator.
Shore: most likely to be sent to one of the big four mentioned earlier as a JO. As rank increases, there are some other possibilities. (Staff, R&D, smaller commands, etc.) I would not state that an IWO can go anywhere in the world. He/she can if aboard a ship/squadron, but there are fewer exotic postings than from times back.
DIRSUP: based with a team out of one of the shore commands and sent on an as-needed basis. Someone earlier had referred to them as the backbone of the IW community. I would probably have to disagree. They are very effective, but the work is pretty much carried equally with the others.
DIRSUP is also mission-specific. When they are not needed, they go home.
PCS: Usually two year rotation to ship/squadron from what I have seen.
And sometimes I see people do a mix of DIRSUP and shore jobs. Also with IAs, we often go forward to do a variety of in-job/out-of-job positions.
In terms of each individual location (TX, MD, HI, GA) don't worry too much about mission. I did, because I was a linguist and wanted to stay with what I had background in for my first tour as an officer.
Shore: most likely to be sent to one of the big four mentioned earlier as a JO. As rank increases, there are some other possibilities. (Staff, R&D, smaller commands, etc.) I would not state that an IWO can go anywhere in the world. He/she can if aboard a ship/squadron, but there are fewer exotic postings than from times back.
DIRSUP: based with a team out of one of the shore commands and sent on an as-needed basis. Someone earlier had referred to them as the backbone of the IW community. I would probably have to disagree. They are very effective, but the work is pretty much carried equally with the others.
DIRSUP is also mission-specific. When they are not needed, they go home.
PCS: Usually two year rotation to ship/squadron from what I have seen.
And sometimes I see people do a mix of DIRSUP and shore jobs. Also with IAs, we often go forward to do a variety of in-job/out-of-job positions.
In terms of each individual location (TX, MD, HI, GA) don't worry too much about mission. I did, because I was a linguist and wanted to stay with what I had background in for my first tour as an officer.
No, DIRSUP guys go out on an as-needed basis. A PCS guy would be assigned to the ship. Sometimes the DIRSUP guys go out all the time, sometimes they are down for awhile. Sounds confusing, but a PCS IWO would be the main contact for the skipper for all things cryppie. A DIRSUP team would come as needed from a shore command.