Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy (MCPON) Mike Stevens had the opportunity to virtually tour and interact with the crew of littoral combat ship USS Fort Worth (LCS 3) during a video conference call placed from his office April 13.
MCPON received a virtual tour of the ship from Command Senior Chief Craig Cole, interacted with the ship’s junior Sailors, and had a Q&A session with Fort Worth’s chief petty officer mess, all while the ship operated in the South China Sea.
As part of the Q&A session, one chief asked MCPON for his perspective on LCS first class petty officer advancement rates when compared against other Sailors serving in larger commands.
MCPON explained that LCS is here to stay and the Sailors who serve on this platform are advancing up the ranks.
Fort Worth is the second LCS to deploy as part of an initiative for up to four rotational deployments of these ships simultaneously to U.S. 7th Fleet in the coming years. Fast, agile and mission focused, littoral combat ships are designed to operate in near-shore environments and employ modular mission packages that can be configured for surface warfare, mine countermeasures or anti-submarine warfare.
Image: US Navy