Jon Kaskin Retiring

From Maritime Memos:

Anybody who's been involved with T-ships over the past 30-something years knows Jon Kaskin, the Navy's Director of Strategic Mobility and Combat Logistics, who retires tomorrow. The picture at the right shows him getting the Distinguished Civilian Service Award yesterday from Under-Secretary Bob Work. Read the story in the Bangor Daily News here. Jon understood both the technical issues and the business issues, knew how to handle politicians, admirals and shipbuilders, and never seemed to lose his cool. This is a rare opportunity to say "He'll be missed" and mean it. The Navy could use a few more like him. June 28, 2012.

Jon is one of those extraordinarily rare individuals who never spoke behind others' backs. Consequently, he well and truly pissed off virtually everyone. Those that got mad at him rarely acknowledged that the Navy -- hell, all of the bluidy flippin' government needs someone to say: "OK, we need to buy this; can we buy it cheaper? Do we need this number?

USNS Guam Towed Out

On Saturday, MSC towed the USNS Guam, (ex-Huakai) from its lay-berth in Norfolk. Towed? She won't operate on her own power? What does that mean? They are taking her to Detyens, in Charleston, to modify her for service with III MEF in the Western Pacific. July 2, 2012. P.S.: Apparently the Navy had to tow her to Charleston because our incompetent MARitime ADministration had allowed her documentation to expire. Detyens' primary task is to renew her USCG and ABS paperwork: the mods for her operation with the Marine Corps come later. July 6, 2012.