Pack This for Navy Deployments

Just a list of things that are must haves for me on deployment. What would you add to this list? Hooyah Navy!
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#deployment #navy #military

[@KingRamiel]

Important item(s) to have: cruise box. If you talk with the LS's early, especially ones within your det, they could hook you up with the collapsible gray cruise box or a short red footlocker. Load it up with all your essentials (toilet paper, shampoos, snacks, coffee, etc.) onto a pallet with everyone else's cruise box, it'll be stowed away in a particular area that you can access to from time to time without having to take a trip to the ship store. Initially it's a heavy investment for your supplies, but it'll pay off in the long run - Especially if you're sent out in a contested area with ZERO port stops. Any extra space left, you can also help out your fellow shipmates (particularly protein powder since it's a large jug). Exercise restraint and conserve your resources for the long haul.
Wet wipes: Although it'll be frowned upon since you can't flush it down the toilet. It is, however, useful to have a pack to wipe down your hotspots when water is secured for maintenance.
Ziploc bags: 1 gallon ziploc bags (without the slider) is useful in containing and keeping your clothing, undergarments, and even items completely dry. It doubles as a small vacuum storage bag. Just ranger roll your clothes, stuff'em in, and squeeze out as much air out before sealing it closed. Use the Homebase brand as it's easier on your budget and works just as well as the popular name brands. You'll be surprised how much more items you can squeeze inside your seabag.
Shower caddy: I got a small one that has suction cups to carry shampoo, body wash, and wash cloth. Since some showers don't have a shelf to hold your bottles, sticking the caddy to the bulkhead is better than having your bottles sit on the floor 🤢
JBL Xtreme 3: Music can set the mood for the rest of the shop. It performs well, much easier to carry than the JBL partybox, and you can also wirelessly link other JBL speakers together to create surround sound. If bluetooth is secured, it has an aux jack input to plug your phone into.
Toilet paper: Never liked the single ply tp to begin with. Stock up on your go-to brand, remove the cardboard tube, and squeeze it flat for compact storage. You can fit 1 in a 1 quart ziploc bag for your daily use or 2 in a 1 gallon ziploc for bulk storage.
Walker's Razor slim ear muffs: Useful if you get the opportunity to do a gun shoot, work in a noisy environment, or don't like wearing the ear foam plugs. Uses 2 AAA batteries for the noise canceling feature. Bought mine at a discount at an outdoors box retailer.
Streamlight Sidewinder: You can buy the multi color (white, blue, red, and IR) or you can opt for the sidewinder boot that has a sliding red filter. Red for low light conditions for traversing after taps
Travel storage bags: Particularly the medium-size ones for civilian clothes (you don't need a lot anyway). Some brands also have a mini vacuum to buy separately to help compress items quicker. I also keep a large one to store my dirty laundry. Better to keep the funk contained than having it seep out like a curse from your rack.

[@whenhen]

Some things that I think are worth considering bringing:
1. Microfiber camp/ gym towels instead of normal cotton ones. They take up way less space and dry very quickly.
2. A folding backpack instead of just a smaller one. They don’t have rigidity but they can pack down into less space than a brown tshirt and are awesome for day trips.
3. 100 mg caffeine pills (2 packs of 250). Take up no space, one or two can be stored in a pocket to stay up during long watches. Also nice if the ship store is closed.
4. Kindle paperwhite if you’re a reader.

[@WriggleNB]

Cigarettes and/or dip. Even if you don't smoke or chew, bring them with you. Because the ship store is going to run out eventually, and those are your bargaining chips. And hey, if you do smoke or chew, you have a reserve just in case the store runs out.
I also liked bringing a big hard drive rather than a flash drive since I was in a shop full of ITs, so we all brought our own laptops, but I held most of our TV shows, anime, movies, etc, so if we wanted to watch something in the shop, we had the "Tower of Heaven" as we called it.
If you can manage it, a sleeping bag and a pillow. I'm not a big fan of the linen and blankets the ship gives out, so I just set up my rack, put the linens on, laid out my sleeping bag then slept inside of it.
Lastly, a light that you can stick onto surfaces for your locker and your coffin rack, if you can manage it, get one that can be a red light or one that can change brightness.

[@trebailey4195]

Nice!

[@photosbycain8919]

so informative and helpful. Excellent video!! What's the best care package you received? What are some ideas of things to include in a care package. Also I'm curious how the FPO works? Keep up the good work.

[@askardc]

Glad to help! Best care package I received was one with a bunch of different hot sauces my family sent me. Most people, including myself, go on diets and workout like crazy. And condiments usually run out quickly on deployment. A good hot sauce goes a long way. As far as FPO, its just a way for mail services to reach the ship no matter where it is.

[@SolemGod]

Video dropped at the perfect time

[@askardc]

about to go underway? stay safe!

[@edmendoza552]

Whats your rate?

[@alex4863]

I would really appreciate a response, I plan on doing a lot of meditation somewhere a lot on a ship, and I like to burn incense while I meditate is that hypothetically possible on deployments?

[@14arma]

I wouldn't count on that. They may allow it on the smoke deck, but that likely wont be a very quiet place, and depending on your job, you may stay more busy than others. You may be able to use non burning air fresheners in certain spaces as long as it doesn't bother anyone, but open flames or embers are generally speaking going to be not too ideal. If there was some sort of a leak of flammable substance, you probably don't want to become the first detector of that leak, it may distract you from your meditation.
On a side note, when I was on a ship on my first deployment, privacy was a rarity unfortunately. The closest I would come to such a thing was in my coffin rack or on aft lookout. Aft lookout may be lonely, but its also a place you want to be vigilant on. Not only are you the rear security of the ship, but you're the last hope for any of your shipmates who may have fallen overboard. Luckily that was never put to the test for me, but regardless of the time, none of my shipmates were going to get left behind and I was constantly scanning for just that, it would be an awful way to go, getting left behind in the middle of the ocean in the darkness of night.

[@alex4863]

@@14arma I appreciate the response, and I will definitely get a smokeless sent. I’m going for MA rate, so I know I’ll be busier than others. That’s why depending on the context of my situation if I’m good there’s nothing wrong with stepping aside 5 mins to keep myself mentally centered and focused. It’s long term so I know I gotta stay cool n effective at all times. Scared and excited but that’s normal, all I can do is my best.

[@askardc]

Depending on your duties, your station, and your routines, it could be possible. Hard to tell. If in the morning, during lunch, and after work is enough for your routine, then it should be fine. But in the middle of performing duties, standing watch, or even using actual incense with burning smoke, that would be a problem. Difficult to answer without knowing the full facts of the situation, but if people can go on smoke breaks, i do not see whey you couldn't do the same.

[@Coinz8]

Is there a way we can contact you? I need some advice on the navy

[@askardc]

[e-mail]