Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Claire Alfaro | NAVAL BASE SAN DIEGO (March 31, 2023) Graduates of the Basic Division Officer Course...... read more read more
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SAN DIEGO – Mariner Skills Training Center Pacific (MSTCPAC) hosted a graduation of 32 Basic Division Officer Course (BDOC) students at the MSTCPAC auditorium, March 31.
BDOC is a nine-week course focused on division officer leadership and is the initial training career path for surface warfare officers (SWO). The course provides practical instruction in navigation, seamanship, and shiphandling both in the classroom and in simulators. The curriculum serves as the first training milestone in the SWO career path and serves as a stepping stone for future assignments as division officers, advancement to department head, and with additional training and experience, consideration for command at sea.
Vice Adm. Roy Kitchener, Commander, Naval Surface Forces served as the guest speaker.
“Our sailors will rise to any challenge, but they need the right leadership, the right training and the right tools,” said Kitchener. “Your charter is to enable your Sailors’ success as well as your own, and our Navy's success will follow. All of you come from different backgrounds, some from different parts of the world. Each of you now has the great opportunity to be the leaders of our men and women.”
The BDOC curriculum includes shipboard navigation and maritime law, division officer administration, shiphandling, and damage control. Students also receive practical training in the Conning Officer Virtual Environment (COVE) simulator, weapon fundamentals, damage control, and shipboard training. COVE is a virtual-reality technology that provides an immersive experience for students to practice shipboard navigation and shiphandling in a realistic, safe environment.
Ens. Calvin Burnett was recognized at the graduation for being the honor student of the graduating class and Ens. Wyatt Ebner was announced as the class’ top shiphandler.
“BDOC provides us JOs with the base foundation for building efficient, lethal warfighters on naval ships,” said Ens. Jermaine Wells, a graduate of the class.
The new BDOC graduates will attend Officer of the Deck (OOD) Phase I next. OOD Phase I focuses on building bridge resource management and shiphandling skills. Before the new officers arrive at their ships, they will have completed 15 weeks, or 550 hours of training at BDOC and OOD Phase I. These two courses ensure that graduates are confident and competent when they arrive to their ships for the first time. Following completion of these two courses, each ensign will report to their first warship, where they will focus on qualifying as OOD and earning their SWO qualification pin.
Mariner Skills Training Center Pacific (MSTCPAC) was established in October 2020 to conduct hands-on seamanship and navigation training as part of the revamped SWO training pipeline. MSTCPAC is located at Naval Base San Diego (NBSD), San Diego, California and its mission is “to ready sea-bound warriors to serve on surface combatants possessing the shiphandling and navigation skills to fulfill the Navy’s mission of maintaining global maritime superiority.”
| Date Taken: | 03.31.2023 |
| Date Posted: | 04.04.2023 16:43 |
| Story ID: | 441988 |
| Location: | SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 940 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
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