US Navy Recruit Training Command - Keel Yearbook (Great Lakes, IL)

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forces built around the present capital ship-of-the-line, the aircraft carrier. Fast carrier task forces composed of carriers, battleships, cruisers, destroyers and other combatant vessels, are the principal ele- ments of today,s offensive naval strength and, as such, comprise the Navy's main striking force. The Navy is no longer shackled by the historic barriers of the shoreline, nor by the range of its shipborn guns, but can strike blows deep in enemy territory, and can deliver at the target the atom bomb, when and if needed. Fast car- rier task forces are able, without resort- ing to diplomatic channels, to establish off- shore anywhere in the world airfields com- pletely equipped with machine shops, am- munition dumps, tank farms, warehouses, together with quarters and all types of ac- commodations for operating personnel. Such task forces are virtually as complete as any air base ever established ashore. They constitute the only air bases which can be made available at the enemy's fron- tier without assault and conquest. AMPHIBIOUS ASSAULT AND NAVAL BOMBARDMENT Whenever and Wherever assault and con- quest is deemed necessary, the accomplish- ment of an amphibious assault until a stable beachhead has been established is solely the responsibility of the Navy. The amphibious task forces are composed of all types of ships, naval aircraft, under-water demolition teams, reconnaissance facilities, and the specialized troops--the Marine Corps. Before, during, and after an initial assault naval guns and rocket launchers, in close coordination with naval aircraft, are able to devastatingly bombard enemy troops and installations, and lend close strategical and tactical support to our own ground forces in their advance to a desired objective. SUBMARINE AND ANTI-SUBMARINE WARFARE The Navy's submarine forces, with a history of outstanding performance in World War II, are ready to assume again their vital tasks of offense or defense in any mission assigned. And, as a defensive measure, the Navy's Hunter-Killerv task units, composed of escort carriers, blimps, and destroyers equipped with newly devel- oped electronic devices, are training to- gether as a team to track down and de- stroy any undersea craft of an aggressor nation. LOGISTICAL SUPPLY In addition to its function of denying the use of the sea to an enemy, the Navy now has the responsibility of lifting cargo CContinuedJ

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SM, ai.. J .Maw- ,' x,w- f , A ,f THE NAVY AND SEA POWER Early in the seventeenth century Sir Walter Raleigh observed that Whosoever commands the sea, commands the trade, whosoever commands the trade of the world, commands the riches of the world and, consequently, the world itself. That principle is as true today as it was centuries ago. Nothing of major import has occurred, not even the advent of the mod- ern aircraft, to lessen the importance of sea power and sea trade to our national defense and prosperity. The day has not been reached, nor ever will be reached, when control of the seas of the world can be exercised solely by shore-based aviation, guided missiles, and the atom bomb. Control of the sea can be exercised effectively only by forces which travel the sea and can remain at sea for long periods of time. Sea forces and sea-based air forces-in other words, sea power-furnishes the on- ly effective control of the sea. Sea power has a mobility which land power can never have. Whatever the weapons used, aircraft carriers fhighly mobile air fieldsj can be moved at high speed to the most favorable points for attack on enemy targets. What- ever the weapons used, large ground forces can be transported rapidly by naval means to selected coastal points and landed against opposition. The mere threat of such attacks at unpredictable points would im- mobilize large enemy forces held in reserve to meet them, thus forcing the enemy to effect a wide dispersion. Dominant sea pow- er, therefore, in the hands of the United States and its Allies, would deny to an en- emy the ability to attack us from the sea while conferring on us the ability to launch a seaborne attack at any selected point or time. The continued vital importance of sea power is clearly evident. When the oceans of the world are no longer required for the transport of men and goods, then and only then can the United States afford to dis- pense with a Navy. THE NAVY'S OFFENSIVE POWER Fulfilling an historic role the United States Navy today, as in the past, main- tains a vigilant guard over the freedom of the seas. Naval power, as exhibited throughout the struggles of World War II and as used in the United Nation's efforts in the Far East, is an indispensable part of modern defense upon which the security of our country ultimately rests. On the sea, under the sea, in the air above the sea, and in land operations where naval forces including the Marine Corps are committed, the Navy stands ready to meet any aggres- sive challenge whenever and wherever of- fered. The modern fleet includes many task

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