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NAVY ENGINEERING BULLETIN MARCH 2003 73 HMAS CERBERUS DIVISIONS AND RMIT PASSING OUT PARADE 6 DECEMBER 2002 VADM C.A. RITCHIE CHIEF OF NAVY CAPT Thomas, Graduating class, Distinguished Guests, CERBERUS staff, Trainees, Ladies and Gentlemen. I am delighted to be here today to review CERBERUS Ceremonial Divisions and the Passing Out Parade for these Officers who have completed their training at the Royal Melbourne Institute Of Technology. The general turnout today was very smart, well done! I am particularly pleased to see so many family members and friends of the graduates with us. You should all be very proud of the achievements of those here today. I thank you for your contribution over the past four, or in some cases five years - I know that your support, most often unheard and unseen, helps to keep our people going when things get tough. The course that the graduating class has just completed is very challenging. For over twenty years, the RMIT Officer Entry Scheme has been very successful, producing Naval Engineers of the highest quality in all the necessary engineering disciplines that the Navy needs to complete its mission. This scheme provides an opportunity for sailors from any specialisation to nominate, with successful selection for the scheme becoming more competitive each year. It is an intense and rewarding course, culminating in the awarding of a Bachelor of Engineering. I understand that the results for this graduating class have been excellent. Well done to you all. To the RMIT platoons on parade, I commend you on all of your achievements to date and I take this opportunity to wish you similar success as your studies continue. To the graduating class, you have successfully completed a major component of your education, further challenges lay ahead. Extensive application courses here at CERBERUS and also at HMAS ALBATROSS will provide you with both the Naval Engineering and Leadership skills needed in your future roles as the Officers and Engineers within the Royal Australian Navy. It is essential to understand the importance that you as Engineers play in supporting Navy objectives. As Engineers you have an important role to play at sea and ashore. During operations such as Slipper and Relex, it is the equipments and the men and women that you are responsible for that allow the Command to achieved its operational objectives. Also your expertise in logistic support, and repair and maintenance is vital. Safety is another area where the skills you have as an Engineer are needed, with tragic accidents such as WESTRALIA emphasising to us the dangers of our profession. And finally, the future of the Navy is in your engineering hands. Projects for new Ships, aircraft and systems are where your engineering expertise combines with operational requirements to ensure that a workable affordable solution is achieved. Successful achievement of all of these elements: operations, logistics, safety and development is essential if Navy is to continue to fulfil its mission, now and into the future. Be assured that I understand the critical importance to our Navy of a competent and professional uniformed engineering corps. To look more widely at Navy, in a broader sense, the importance of what we do has been highlighted firstly in the aftermath of the September 11 terrorism attacks last year, and more recently, the Bali bombing much closer to home. The security environment in which we live and serve has changed. The operational commitments of the RAN will continue to be high, with Ships deployed in the War Against Terror in the Gulf, and others continuing patrol operations for border and fisheries protection. Today, our Ships and Aircraft are working much harder than they were 18 months ago, and it is the Engineers and their technical sailors that are putting in enormous efforts to sustain those operations and keep our Ships running safely. We should be under no illusions - service at sea, particularly at the current levels of operational
74 NAVY ENGINEERING BULLETIN MARCH 2003 tempo is very demanding. It is demanding not only on the equipment, it is also very demanding on the people. At times it can be monotonous, uncomfortable and exhausting. On occasion, it can also be dangerous. It requires you, the men and women of our Navy to set aside, for a time at least, many of the privileges that those in the wider Australian community take for granted - simple but important privileges like privacy, or the company of family and friends. But it is also very rewarding and the Australian community appreciates Navy’s contribution to Australia. The nation is both grateful and proud that Australians like yourselves on parade here today are willing to make these sorts of sacrifices to serve your country in the Royal Australian Navy. If I can turn to CERBERUS for a few minutes, Divisions today is probably one of the largest seen at CERBERUS for some years. That is a direct result of improvements in recruiting which is in part due to our excellent reputation within the wider Australian community. These recruits are flowing through to the Category Schools and eventually out into the Fleet. The increase in numbers has meant that 2002 was another busy year. I would say to CERBERUS staff, both uniformed and civilian, your job here is critical to the success of our Navy. CERBERUS continues to deliver training which is vital to the fleet, and with increased numbers your ability to maintain the quality and throughput is a credit to you all. I appreciate your hard work, and I compliment your efforts and commitment. CERBERUS has been instrumental in the implementation of the Sea Eagle program which aims at instilling our Naval culture and values in our new shipmates. I consider the development of Navy values embodied in Sea Eagle a necessary augmentation to the curriculum of Category Schools. The staff within those schools are the role models for our future sailors. Your approach and knowledge is critical in the development of navy’s culture and values. Thank you all for your efforts. In closing, to those passing out today well done, you have shown you have what it takes, but there is still much to learn - build on the grounding you have received, maintain your enthusiasm, and most importantly, enjoy what you do. To all, it is of paramount importance in these challenging times and uncertain future that you all make the most of your training and the values and knowledge it instills. All the very best for the remainder of the year and your service with the RAN. And finally, to those so often forgotten, and without whom no one here can succeed, to the families and friends. I thank you on behalf of all those here on parade today, for your patience and your support in the past, today, and into the future. Thank You.
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