global naval battle
Lt. Andrew Rice of Nebraska, aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73), signals for launch of an aircraft on the flight deck during a flight in the Atlantic Ocean, August 8, 2023. (U.S. Navy photo by media expert) Private 2nd Class Nicholas A. Russell)
PARIS — Discussions about the future of the navy may be dominated by artificial intelligence, unmanned surface vessels or human-machine teamwork, but top French naval leaders say another element is being overlooked: the sailor. He said there were too many.
“There it will be [still] If you're a sailor, you get seasick,'' French Chief of Naval Staff Nicolas Vaudjour quipped at a press conference on Wednesday.n.d. The Paris Naval Conference was held on Thursday.
Mr. Vaudjour's joke was a light-hearted remark on a serious topic that was fatal to the U.S., British, French, Italian and Indian naval leaders who attended the meeting. In other words, as much as an adversary's embrace of future technology, poor recruitment and retention of personnel is jeopardizing future operations.
In his opening remarks, French military chief of staff General Thierry Burckhardt reminded attendees: “There are men and women in the boats, and we must not forget that they are at the heart of our problem.”
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Notably, different navies do not have exactly the same problems. India and France, for example, generally do not suffer from talent shortages. The Indian Naval Academy normally receives one million applicants each year for its 300-person capacity, a senior Indian officer told Breaking Defense. Meanwhile, France recruits 3,600 naval personnel each year.
But training new employees is an issue in the U.S., U.K. and Italy, executives at those services say. Enrico Crendino, head of the Italian Navy, said this was a “huge” problem for Italy. “We are competing for talent.”
U.S. Chief of Naval Operations Lisa Franchetti said the U.S. is doing “a very good job of recruiting talent,” but there are problems with talent retention.
“We're talking to parents and teachers, explaining that we can develop skills that will last a lifetime, and launching a broad education campaign that emphasizes how important it is to serve our country,” Franchetti told reporters. I'm doing it,” he said. At a press conference after the event, recruiters said they were targeting “sea-blind” areas, areas far from the ocean where young people had never considered the Navy as a career.
Earlier, British First Sea Lord Admiral Ben Key echoed Mr Burckhardt's remarks, stressing that “the navy needs to keep pace with today's concerns so we can recruit young people”, adding that the navy needs to keep pace with the concerns of today, He said we must pay attention to change and climate change. The reason we reduce carbon emissions is because society demands that we show that we are working on such things.
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Mr. Key added: “We will expect the young men and women who will join and crew our systems in the future to demonstrate a commitment to protecting the planet on which we operate.” Looking at his French counterpart, he quipped: “If you're operating a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, it's convenient because you leak less carbon dioxide than we do, but that's not all.”
Asked what the Navy's priorities are for the next 10 years, Vojour said that educating, training and qualifying personnel “from pilots to engine room personnel” is a very long process. , said it would “strengthen everything we do” over the next 10 years. It could help simplify and speed up the acquisition of skills and know-how, such as automatic landing systems and easier decision-making processes within the engineering complex, and could lead to more resilient onboard ships in the future. It is a ship that helps to develop human resources. ”
And while recruitment and retention was a top priority on Thursday, when asked what will change in the Navy over the next 10 years, Key agreed with Franchetti that they are a balance between manned and unmanned systems. He said that both of the latter are issues. And a chance. If AI and data are available, especially condition-based maintenance, “we'll be able to fly more things.” And with additive manufacturing, parts can now be printed on board.
That is, if there are enough people to operate the machines.
