USS Ronald Reagan Pins 66 Chiefs

Photo By Petty Officer 2nd Class Daniel Providakes | 230929-N-SI601-1069 PHILIPPINE SEA (Sept. 29, 2023) Sailors selected for promotion to chief petty officer stand at attention while in formation during a chief petty officer pinning ceremony in the hangar bay of the U.S. Navy’s only forward-deployed aircraft carrier, USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), in the Philippine Sea, Sept. 29. During the ceremony, 66 Sailors assigned to Ronald Reagan, Commander, Task Force 70, and Commander, Air Wing 5 advanced to the rank of chief petty officer. Ronald Reagan, the flagship of Carrier Strike Group 5, provides a combat-ready force that protects and defends the United States, and supports alliances, partnerships and collective maritime interests in the Indo-Pacific region. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Daniel G. Providakes)  

YOKOSUKA, KANAGAWA, JAPAN

09.29.2023

Story by Petty Officer 2nd Class Caroline Lui 

USS RONALD REAGAN (CVN 76)   

PHILLIPINE SEA -- Sixty-six Sailors assigned to the U.S. Navy’s only forward-deployed aircraft carrier, USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), Commander, Task Force 70, and Carrier Air Wing 5 were pinned to the rank of chief petty officer in the ship’s hangar bay during a chief petty officer pinning ceremony in the ship’s hangar bay, Sept. 29.

The ceremony kicked off with the new chief petty officers singing the Navy’s anthem, “Anchors Aweigh,” as the group marched through a crowd of Sailors into the hangar bay. Mentors and peers then joined the new chief petty officers in groups of four on the stage to place a combination cover on their heads and pin gold-fouled anchors on their collars, completing their new khaki uniforms and finalizing their achievement of the advancement to their rank.

During the ceremony, Capt. Daryle Cardone, commanding officer of Ronald Reagan, addressed the new chief petty officers as they stood in ranks across from those they would join, speaking of the significance of their new roles.

“To our selectees, it is on the shoulders of [prior and current chiefs] you will stand and raise this organization and its standards to even greater heights,” said Cardone. “Today is the day you should reaffirm yourself your personal commitment to joining this elite group of naval leaders.”

Although families were not able to be present, guest speaker at the ceremony, Command Master Chief Blake Schimmel, Commander, Task Force 70 command master chief, found the ceremony’s setting at sea relevant.

“While it’s a day honoring the hard work of our Sailors, it’s also a lot about our families, and we wish you could be here,” said Schimmel. “Yet there’s nothing more apt than pinning a chief petty officer out at sea, on a [aircraft] carrier while helos are flying overhead. It’s motivating.”

“The potential for conflict exists, and we will need leaders like our new chiefs throughout the next decade,” said Schimmel. “Our Navy needs chiefs that can lead in turbulent times and remain calm and poised in the face of challenge.”

To earn their anchors, the newly-pinned chief petty officers underwent a rigorous six-week initiation process designed to prepare them for the challenges of the next level of leadership. This initiation process is unique to the Navy, said Chief Aviation Ordnanceman Tawoneia Suggs, who was pinned during the ceremony.

“The Navy still has a deep-rooted level of tradition. We’re building on the legacy of the people who came before us,” said Suggs. “That’s why you can never forget your history, and Navy chiefs hold the traditions in our history, and I think that’s what definitely sets us apart from everyone else. It is a monumental jump from E-6 to chief petty officer.”

For some, the ceremony marked not only a milestone in their career, but a shift in perspective.

“What is means to be a chief, is paying it forward,” said newly-pinned Chief Logistics Specialist Aaron Justin Azuma. “It means giving our Sailors what was given to us tenfold. You have more responsibility now to your Sailors to take care of them, regardless of the situation. You have to open that path to success, but also be humble enough to ask for help, as chiefs.”

Ronald Reagan, the flagship of Carrier Strike Group 5, is deployed to the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations. 7th Fleet is the U.S. Navy’s largest forward-deployed numbered fleet, and routinely interacts and operated with 35 maritime nations in preserving a free and open Indo-Pacific Region.

• Date Taken: 09.29.2023
• Date Posted: 09.30.2023 08:20
• Story ID: 454771
• Location: YOKOSUKA, KANAGAWA, JP