1EQQ8ZzGD

machine shops, carpentry shops, automatic teller systems,
recreation facilities, chapels, libraries, athletic facilities, and
the list goes on.
The captain leads a cadre of senior naval officers in the
operation of the ship. These very experienced officers, called
department heads, lead the various departments providing
products and services required to complete the ship’s mission.
each of the department heads is an expert in one of the major
ship departmental functions: Ship operations, Intelligence,
Propulsion, engineering, Combat Systems, Weapons, Supply,
Air operations, Aircraft Maintenance, Safety, Training,
navigation, Religious Ministries, and Medical. If the Captain
is the mayor, the ship’s executive officer is the city manager.
With a background similar to the captain’s and heir apparent
for his job, he provides the day-to-day leadership necessary to
keep all the departments operating efficiently and effectively.
As a naval line officer, the commanding officer of a carrier
is given broad responsibility for his ship. He is accountable
for all aspects of his ship’s performance, and that of the
crew, and is given broad authority commensurate with those
responsibilities. He is ultimately the final decision authority
for his command. The concept of a ship’s captain having such
broad responsibilities and ultimate accountability goes back
to the earliest days of command-at-sea where the ship and
its crew were largely cut off from any higher authority for
long periods of time, and the ship’s captain was singularly
charged with the safety and success of his command. Today’s
technology allows a modern carrier to be closely connected
with higher authority, but the captain’s responsibilities for his
crew, the ship, and the mission have changed little.
Carriers never sleep, and therefore carrier captains seldom
do either. Important activities go on throughout the day
and night. Moving, assembling, and testing ordnance, purifying
and storing fuel, organizing the flight deck, mission
planning, safely navigating the ship, preparing food, training
and performing maintenance on important ship and aircraft
systems go on around the clock. During flight operations, the
captain can normally be found on the bridge directly involved
in the mechanics of positioning and preparing the ship for
launch and recovery of aircraft, ensuring the safe navigation
179