News
Navy offers select special warfare officers up to six-figure bonuses to stay in uniform
The Navy announced financial incentives to keep specialized senior officers in the service that can pay up to $100,000. Chief warrant officers with 7151 and 7171 designators, otherwise known as SEALs and crewmen aboard special warfare combatant-craft, with between four and 16 years of commissioned service are encouraged to apply for the bonus. “CWOs will receive the bonus in a lump sum payment, ef...[Read More]
Navy offers voluntary extensions to sailors separating during shutdown
The U.S. Navy is granting service members the opportunity to extend their enlistment amid a government shutdown and lapse in appropriations, according to a Nov. 6 memo from the Navy Pay and Personnel Support Center. Sailors with a soft expiration of active obligated service — a date for separation that was extended past their original one — on Dec. 5 or earlier are allowed to execute a voluntary e...[Read More]
Navy officer pleads guilty to murdering wife at Japanese hotel
A senior U.S. Navy officer has pleaded guilty to killing his wife, nearly a year after her body was found in a Japanese hotel, and now faces decades in prison. Lt. Cmdr. Christopher Olsen pleaded guilty to the unpremeditated murder of his wife, Jessica Olsen, 37, at a Navy legal hearing Wednesday in San Diego, California, according to Navy spokesperson Cmdr. Paul Macapagal. Christopher Olsen will ...[Read More]
Navy officer pleads guilty to murdering wife at Japanese hotel
A senior U.S. Navy officer has pleaded guilty to killing his wife, nearly a year after her body was found in a Japanese hotel, and now faces decades in prison. Lt. Cmdr. Christopher Olsen pleaded guilty to the unpremeditated murder of his wife, Jessica Olsen, 37, at a Navy legal hearing Wednesday in San Diego, California, according to Navy spokesperson Cmdr. Paul Macapagal. Christopher Olsen will ...[Read More]
Navy officer, 67, becomes oldest on record to earn Fleet Marine Force pin
Navy Lt. Cmdr. David Westerberg knows how to grin and bear it. After a successful 38-year career in dentistry in Southern California, Westerberg wasn’t quite ready to put down his scalers. Watching his son graduate as a U.S. Navy officer inspired Westerberg in 2022 — at the age of 64 — to also pursue a commission in the sea service. Now, at the age of 67, the naval officer has become the oldest re...[Read More]
Navy orders commands to submit monthly facial hair waiver accountability reports
The Navy last week announced its latest round of guidance regarding facial hair grooming requirements and religious and medical accommodations. Commands are now instructed to produce monthly facial hair accountability reports, specifically for those service members diagnosed with skin conditions such as Pseudofolliculitis Barbae, or razor bumps, according to the July 31 NavAdmin. Commanding office...[Read More]
Navy orders new fixed-wing pilot helmets
The U.S. Navy purchased a new contract for helmets meant to replace ones that have been around for decades and improve the safety aboard all fixed-wing jets, a Navy release announced. The service awarded a $22.6 million contract to Gentex Corporation for more than 5,000 Next-Generation Fixed Wing Helmet, or NGFWH, systems to be utilized inside all Navy fixed wing aircraft. “By utilizing a lighter,...[Read More]
Navy outlines guidelines for government travel charge card use
A U.S. Navy memo released this month outlines guidelines for sailors’ mandatory use of government travel charge cards. The instruction was announced through a NAVADMIN message directed toward service members traveling for a permanent change-of-station. They are required to use the card for travel expenses such as lodging, meals, and transportation, according to the memo. Pentagon policy stipulates...[Read More]
Navy Partners With Palantir for $448 Million AI Submarine Shipbuilding Deal
“The Department of War is unleashing a new era of operational dominance, where every warfighter wields frontier AI as a force multiplier,” a Navy spokesperson told Military.com.
Navy pays homage to USS Constitution for this year’s Army-Navy uniform
The U.S. Naval Academy’s uniform for Saturday’s Army-Navy game pay homage to the U.S. Navy’s original six frigates from the service’s 250-year history. The Under Armour-made football jerseys and helmets include elements that honor the USS Chesapeake, USS Congress, USS Constellation, USS President, USS United States and USS Constitution, the only remaining frigate of them all and the world’s oldest...[Read More]
Navy Public Affairs Renames, Realigns to Deliver More Capable Forces
Marking a significant reorganization of expeditionary public affairs forces, the Navy redesignated Navy Public Affairs Support Element (NPASE) Headquarters as Navy Public Affairs Command (NPAC) and renamed all subordinate units Fleet Public Affairs Centers (FLTPACENs) Jan. 9.