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

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INTRODUCTION A KEEL, as defined in Bluejackets Manual, is Hthe back- bone of a ship. In the Navy of today, as in the past, the enlisted man and 'his shipmates form the backbone of the NAVY. Recruit Training Command assumes the respon- sibility of transforming the young men of America into the earnest and dedicated sailors needed to man the fleets of the UNITED STATES NAVY. This book is a pictorial representation of the training received by every recruit as he is indoctrinated in the du- ties and responsibilities he must take up in the billet of a man-o'-warsman, and so it is called THE KEEL. In future years, THE KEEL should prove a pleasant re- minder of one of the most formative and important periods in a man's life whether he is a career Navy man or a civilian reminiscing over his hitch in the naval service. The weeks and months served in Recruit Training Com- mand are not easy, but, of necessity, are rigorous and de- manding. This training is diligently planned and admin- istered in order to develop the strength of character, loyal- ty, and patriotism in every trai11ee so as to prepare him to defend his country, its ideals and people, against any foreign aggressor. ALBERT LOVE ENTERPRISES ATLANTA, GEORGIA All Rights Reserved

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The Navy and Sea Power Early in the seventeenth century Sir Walter Raleigh observed that HWhosoever commands the sea, commands the tradeg who- soever commands thetrade. 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 modern 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 only effective control of the sea. Sea power has a mobility which land power can never have. What- ever the weapons used, aircraft carriers fhighly mobile air fieldsl can be moved at high speed to the most favorable points for attack on enemy targets. Whatever 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 power. therefore, in the hands of the United States and its Allies, would deny to an enemy 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 evi- dent. 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 dispense with a Navy. The Navy's Offensive Power Fulfilling an historic role the United States Navy today, as in the past, maintains a vigilant guard over the freedom ofthe seas. Naval power, as exhibited throughout the struggles of World War ll and as used in the United Nations, 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 lVlarine Corps are committed, the Navy stands ready to meet any aggressive challenge when- ever and wherever offered.