Storekeepers (SK) in the US Navy...?

Question

I am feeling a bit lazy and besides it is too late in the day to talk to my recruiter now. So my question is what type of ships do a Store Keeper work on? I heard the bigger the ship the less ports it can visit. Can anyone just give me a good answer?

By the way, Store Keeper is my rate and I can't wait to serve in the USN...I leave for boot camp 20 FEB 2008...

The purpose of this question is I want to travel the world as much as possible...

Answer 1

SK's are on every kind of ship and submarine the Navy has as well as USNS ships. The rumor is wrong about carriers or large ships not getting to see any ports. In fact a lot of times it is the carrier folks that get to go in and the small boys get to keep cruising. Foreign people love the carriers and they love to have the Sailors come to see them and spend their money in their cities.

Answer 2

Storekeepers order parts. They have quite a few on every kind of ship. Subs have the fewest, and tend to break the most rules. They also often have much longer port visits.

Cruisers, Destroyers, and Frigates probably all have somewhere between 5-15 SKs, and you can expect to have port calls of about a week each. However, the supply department on these ships is pretty small, so you're likely to spend a lot of your time bringing in food, sodas, and mail for other divisions, instead of just doing your own job, and if the mail guy goes nuts, one of you may have to fill in there for a while. You never know what kind of missions you might be doing on these ships, and there's a pretty real risk of getting shot at during war times.

Aircraft carriers and Amphibious ships have quite a few SKs, probably about 50 at a guess. They'll have to do most everything by the book, except for getting aircraft parts, where anything goes so long as they get them on time. These larger ships are like cities, and I've been told that storekeepers can make quite a bit of money on the side by leaving store rooms unlocked so couples can have some alone time in them.

Minesweepers are tiny ships, where you're likely to do a little bit of everything. The only SK I knew that was on one loved it... but he was a real geek, so I don't know if it's for everyone.

Lastly, refueling ships, AOE and such need lots of SKS. They work closely with civilian crews, so there's often a constant stream of changing faces (many of them female) going through these ships, from what I hear. However, their job is moving fuel. All day is spent sorting parts for other ships in port, getting it off to other ships any way possible at sea, and quite a bit of pumping, spilling, and reeking of fuel.

SKs are also needed on smaller craft, as well as some civilian vessels, coast guard vessels, and oceanographic vessels.

It is true that the larger a ship is, the fewer ports they can pull into. This is partially made up for in the fact that larger ships can anchor out, and have a few boats bring you to shore. However, the bigger the boat is, the harder that gets. Large boats are sometimes limited to a few major ports, so if you've been around the world a few times, you may get to know the big cities pretty well, and have a fair chance of seeing them again.

Smaller ships can go to many more ports, but smaller ships get smaller officers, who have less influence over where they go, and sometimes going to more ports isn't so spectacular, especially if the more ports you can go to are all backwater holes in the ground.

Answer 3

They work on all size ships. Most warships deploy as a large group with a carrier on an extended deployment. But all ships visit numerous ports. I would recommend a carrier since it has the best facilities and freedom of movement. SKs also serve ashore - not sure what the sea/shore rotation schedule (# months at sea before serving ashore) is.

Congrats for chosing to join the military and thank you in advance for your service to our country. Best wishes to you!

Chief Petty Officer
U.S. Navy, Retired
1968-1990

Answer 4

As an SK you can go on any ship or submarine or an aviation command or you can be sent overseas somewhere. You are going to go where they need you. Except for submarines you do have to volunteer for that and undergo more schooling.

Yes Carriers & LHA/LHD do pull into ports in places like Singapore, Japan, Italy, Australia, etc...

Answer 5

every ship and Sub has at least one SK aboard. yes, the larger the ship( or nukes) the fewer ports it can visit.

you want to see the world: go small boys: DDGs.

Answer 6

If it floats, SK's are there (save some really small boats) SK's are also found in almost every unit from seabees to Air Wings and bases worlwide.