Six female Riverines to deploy
Ex-PH2 sends us a link to the Navy Times which reports that six women have completed training successfully for duty as Riverines and will be deploying with their unit, Delta Company, Coastal Riverine Squadron 2 at Portsmouth, VA.
They’re currently in Cherry Point, N.C., in the midst of pre-deployment training, according to a Navy Expeditionary Combat Command spokeswoman, waiting for the go-ahead.
“Since these women are already assigned to CRS 2 Delta and have completed the required riverine training, there will be no time lag between congressional approval and report dates,” Barbara Wilcox said.
The Navy’s two other riverine units — Squadron 4 in Virginia Beach, Va., and Squadron 3 in San Diego — are next, she said. Squadron 3 has a company deployed and Squadron 4 just returned from deployment. Once they’ve completed post-deployment procedures, they’ll begin integrating women.
Well, good for them. My complaint about women in combat arms units is that they must meet the same standards as the men with the standards being adjusted and that appears to be the case here, so more power to them.
Category: Military issues
I was happy to see that this program was started in 2012, ahead of Hagel’s pronouncements, and that there was no flack from the men they trained with.
what link?
Also, chicks on a boat isn’t something new.
Its cool. As noted though, as long as no standards (physical) are reduced to accommodate females. Anyone that can pass the tests is fine by me. Lowered standards aren’t good for anyone.
SWCCs are good folks. Worked with two detachments overseas, so if the ladies made the team, strongly suspect it was deserved.
These Sailors are NOT SWCC’s. NSW trains SWCC operators to deliver and support SEALs. There is no plan for females to go to SWCC or BUD/S. Females have been serving in the brown water Navy for years. EOD, MIUW, IBU and now Riverine. The Navy has just formalized their previous good service and provided capstone combat training so they can go kill the enemy just like their male counterparts.
Good luck Lady River Rats!
Go get em!
Oh one other thing. If they are smokin’ hot … That is even better as there are recruiting and morale issued at hand!
Just sayin’!
Best of luck to the newly-qualified, both male and female.
The feminization of the military continues…
Stop it right now. These women worked hard and earned their spots.
If you can’t handle that, it’s your curse.
Personally, I’d lay odds they can pound you into the ground head first.
Go Get Em!
Just an observation… if YOU can’t handle so be it.
“Personally, I’d lay odds they can pound you into the ground head first.”
Really?
Yea. Really.
And Ex-PH2 is a bit out of your league. Her hand-to-hand might be lacking these days, but her skillet-to-face is up to date.
You really don’t wanna go down this particular rabbit hole with that lady. Srsly.
Yeah, and I wear glasses, too. I’d have to take them off for this, sport.
I work at the Navy Riverine school house. So far the females that we have received have done an good job with no bitching and moaning. Their male counterparts have been accepting of having females training with them. The biggest problem we had when the females first showed up was the press coverage. Too much of it and trying to make the women into heroes before they had even set foot here. Our school house is broken down into 4 classes. The first one is called Riverine Combat Skills and is a pre-req for all follow on courses. We call it Marine Combat Training lite. 5 weeks long, focus on the fundamentals, shoot, move, communicate. Biggest problem for females here is wearing body armor and all associated gear. I actually watched a female try for several minutes to swing her body armor over her head to remove it with no success. She was dropped that afternoon. This is a fast paced course and EVERYONE, regardless of rank, who wants to go into the Riverine community and deploy as a Riverine has to come through RCS. The other three courses that we run are our boat Crewman Course, a Security Team Member Course and a course for junior officers and senior enlisted who are going to be Patrol Officers. We have had females in the boat and RSTM course with no issues. None have attended the Patrol Officer (actually called Riverine Unit Level Leaders) course as of yet. We have had no blow back from our higher HQ (Center for Security Forces) when we have dropped female students for failing to meet the standard. And we have dropped several, especially for lack of boat driving skills. Driving a 37 foot jet boat at night at high speed in a creek is not for the faint of heart and we have had females (along with LOTS of males) who cannot do it. So, so far so good. No negative trends to report. For an old Marine Corps grunt to say that, you can believe what I am saying. Nobody is more against… Read more »
Just a little history on women in the military: women were officially participating in the US military back in WWI. In WWII, the WAVES were women who did shore duty jobs to release sailors to shipboard duty. We weren’t cleaning floors and making beds. We were active in all the rates except those directly involved in combat on ships, such as Gunner’s Mate (GM). The Women’s Army Corps (WACs) and the Women’s Army Air Corps (WAAC) were also doing the same things. There were women as nurses in combat hospitals in WWII and Korea.
The USMC started recruting women for the Marines in 1918. In 1967 Master Sergeant Barbara Jean Dulinsky first woman Marine to serve in a combat zone in Vietnam. She was assigned to U.S. Military Assistance Command Vietnam combat operations center in Saigon.
And it has simply continued since then.
So much for beretverde’s disgruntled comment.
BV, if you ever gruntled, please let me know. I’ll send you some nice pink roses with baby’s breath, in a pink vase with a pink bow.
Really?
A statement based on FACTs and the “Keyboard Konmmandings” hop and pop!
If you don’t like the fact based statement- tough. I’m not making excuses, but try to leave the “way out there stuff” where it needs to be…out there!
REALLY!
http://www.amnation.com/vfr/archives/022361.html
http://smallwarsjournal.com/jrnl/art/to-wreck-a-military
http://www.amazon.com/Weak-Link-Feminization-American-Military/dp/0895265559
So you are dismissing a fact-based, eye-witness statement by MSygtRet who is working there in the program and gave a firsthand account? Apparently, you either can’t read or choose to ignore what is right in front of you.
If you expect me or anyone else to listen to you or take YOU seriously, you can get over your butthurt, stuckup attitude and admit that you are wrong.
And since you used the term ‘way out there stuff’, you should be clear about what you mean by that, because I’ll take a firsthand account over your mysogynistic sniping and grumbling about wimmin in your clubhouse any day of the week.
REALLY?
Yes. Really.
And find someone else to bait, amateur.
Name calling via “Keyboard Kommandoing’ does no one any good. Calm down and reread the thread… I believe you are makindmg a lit of interferences. Sorry
Name calling via “Keyboard Kommandoing’ does no one any good. Calm down and reread the thread… I believe you are making some baseless interferences.
Okay, try this statement, stupid.
“Nobody is more against females in the combat arms than I am, but as long as we can hold them to a standard and they can meet it, I am going to keep my big mouth shut and get with the program.”
A quote from the post by MSgytRet, who is working in that program, here: http://valorguardians.com/blog/?p=40117&cpage=1#comment-1150759
I think what he has to say has more weight than anything you have to offer, because he is there and you are not. However, if you choose to blow off what he said because it doesn’t fit your meme, it is not my problem. You clearly do have issues with women.
And just remember, you started this with your uncalled-for and snide remark, “The feminization of the military continues…”
You CLEARLY have issues with women.
It is obvious you have the issues and not only not re-read the thread but the links I included. Your baseless inferences are getting old and along with the name calling can be construed as red herrings. The feminization of the military is a FACT..You see it as a snide comment. You then have the problem of that statement and have a hard time dealing with it. Maybe I am at the level of inference…but I do realize it.
I did not infer anything. So there are women in the military. So what? We’ve been part of it longer than you’ve been alive, going back to World War I.
There was no reason at all for you to post a comment clearly aimed at deriding the accomplishments of these women, yet you did just that.
If you didn’t have issues with women, you would not have made that remark in the first place.
Really? More inferences AND baseless conclusions. Again-reread the WHOLE thread. You are a “reacher” (ok now I’m infering?). Just the FACTS please!
Beretverde, as I stated earlier, I am no fan of women in the combat arms. I think they will be a detriment to combat readiness for several reasons. Over time I think this will be borne out. But we are tasked with training them. And I would be a fucking asshole and the lowest of scum if I did not make sure that these women that go through our program are not trained and qualified.
The standard has not been lowered here. Women are here, it is a fact of life. I can no more deny it than I can deny that birds can fly. So like I said, I am shutting my mouth and getting with the program.
If I see our standard being lowered or any other underhanded shit going on where the females are concerned, I will let you know. But they must be trained. They are deploying and have to be full up Riverines. The women deserve it and so do their male counterparts that are going to count on them when they get into whatever theater they end up in.
MGySgtRet-
I respect your position and professionalism AND your keen insight. I only made a FACTUAL comment of the feminization of the military continues (see above attached links). After this comment was made- I was to be sent flowers, told that these women can beat me up-head first, deriding these women etc. I did NOT comment on their physical or sexual makeup (e.g. “smoking hot”).
Again thank you for your insight and service.
BTW- could they muster with the “Frozen Chosin” or Bataan Death March?
does anyone know what rate these female where before going into training. I am currently enlisted and would like an opportunity to get into a program like this. Although, i am not an MA or any Special Warefare rate currently.