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[No. 31]

THE NUMBER OF LINE OFFICERS IN THE UNITED STATES NAVY, THE GRADE AND RANK IN WHICH SERVING, AND THEIR PRESENT DUTIES, AS OF JUNE 30, 1926, AND OCTOBER 30, 1926

NAVY DEPARTMENT, Washington, December 7, 1926.

MY DEAR MR. BUTLER: In accordance with your request of July 17, 1926, the department furnishes herewith the number of line officers in the United States Navy, the grade and rank in which serving, and their present duties, as of June 30, 1926, and October 30,

1926.

You further requested whether or not, in my judgment, the number of these officers could be reduced without impairing the efficiency of the naval service. I am definitely convinced that the full authorized strength, 5,499, is the minimum that should be considered. My reasons for this, in brief, are as follows:

In time of peace naval personnel has two principal tasks: First, the maintenance of our fleet and shore establishment in readiness of war; and second, its own training for both peace and war operations. Before the World War less thought was given to maintaining our fleet and shore establishment ready for war than to carry out the usual peace-time routine. Now, on the other hand, we know that a great and rapid expansion of the fleet and the shore establishment will be necessary upon a declaration of war and have endeavored, in so far as possible, to perfect our peace-time organization so that it may be readily expanded. In other words, we have tried to form small nuclei, to which reserve and retired officers may be added in large numbers at mobilization. In all cases these nuclei perform valuable, if not always absolutely essential, peace-time functions, and in every case they would be indispensable in war time, for without a few officers thoroughly versed in their duties chaos would be a sure result.

The development of war plans is a peace function which requires the service of a considerable number of highly trained officers. The number of officers who can now be spared for such duties is inadequate and could be increased to great advantage. The Army is able to detail many more officers than we are to this important duty. The Navy now has many naval vessels which have been placed out of commission because personnel is not now available to man them. These vessels must be recommissioned at mobilization, and if they are to be effective units at least a few regular officers must be assigned to each vessel. These officers should be transferred, in so far as possible, from vessels of the same type now in commission so that they will be thoroughly qualified for their war duties. This transfer of officers would alone reduce our active vessels far below their war complements, which in their revised form have been cut to an absolute minimum, so that it has been necessary to plan for providing for about half of the officers required from the shore establishment. The proportion of regular to reserve officers on ships to be mobilized (117)

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has been kept as low as is consistent with reasonable efficiency. Thus on a destroyer or light mine layer there will be but 2 regulars to 4 reservists; on a mine layer, 5 to 11; on a mine sweeper, 2 to 3; on a destroyer tender, 8 to 24; on a repair ship, 8 to 30; on an oiler, 3 to 9; and on an ammunition ship, 3 to 12.

In addition, there will be many merchant vessels to be commissioned by the Navy during war time and a few regular officers must be placed on each vessel These officers must come from the shore establishment, and, after utilizing all those who are taking courses of instruction ashore, it has been necessary to provide for detaching from the Navy Department alone no less than 29 commanders or captains, despite the fact that the department organization would be greatly expanded. To show that we have kept the regular officers for these merchant vessels to a minimum, we provide for only 8 regulars to 24 reservists on a destroyer tender; 6 to 24 on a repair ship; 3 to 21 on an aircraft tender; 5 to 23 on a submarine tender; 3 to 21 on a transport; 1 to 14 on a storeship or ammunition ship; zero to 4 on a mine sweeper. Further than this many vessels must be used with their merchant crews, because we have no regular or other personnel with which to commission them in the Navy.

We have no regular officers on active duty available for any expansion of the shore establishment and, as has been stated, the number of such officers on shore duty will have to be greatly reduced. We have counted on utilizing retired and reserve officers to the greatest degree practicable, both ashore and afloat, in order to avoid building up an excessive number of regular officers.

The second peace-time function of our officer personnel is its own training. This is necessary for both peace and war in these days when the naval officer's profession is growing more and more complex and intricate. It is necessary that considerable numbers of officers be detached from their operating and administrative duties to attend courses of instruction at the Naval War College, Submarine School, Naval Air Station, Postgraduate School and many other courses of shorter duration. Many more officers could very advantageously attend these schools, as our school system is small compared with that of the Army. The schools require a corresponding number of instructors and this creates a further drain upon our officer personnel. The schools are a great war asset, for the regular officers under instruction can immediately be detached to naval or merchant vessels being commissioned, as well as a large proportion of their instructors, and the schools then will be utilized for the training of reserve officers.

Our young officers upon graduation from the Naval Academy are really under training for a period of several years and that is why certain vessels appear to be above their complements. Upon mobilization these officers, though but partly trained, will be required to relieve the more experienced officers on their vessels who are detached to serve as nuclei on the naval vessels being commissioned. The training of all these young officers in aviation at San Diego and Hampton Roads is a recent addition to their training which renders a considerable number at all times unavailable for duty on their ships. The organization, administration, and training of the Naval Reserve is another function which the Navy has only recently taken up in real earnest. At present only about 20 regular officers are so employed, and many more are required for this purpose who can not

be spared under present conditions. The Army has a large number of officers assigned to duty with units of the National Guard and Organized Reserve, but we have not been able to utilize any regular officers in this way, except recruiting and hydrographic officers in addition to their other duties.

It is hoped that the Naval Reserve Officers' Training Corps system may be extended beyond the six universities in which it is now established. This is a very effective and cheap measure of naval preparedness, but more officers will be required to make its expansion effective.

It has been necessary in this brief résumé of the officer-personnel situation to discuss it in very general terms. Should you desire to examine our war-time needs in detail, I would be pleased to show you the Navy's confidential personnel plans, which contain this information.

For the reasons above stated, in my judgment the full authorized strength of line officers-5,499-is the minimum number required for the efficiency of the naval service.

Very truly yours,

Hon. THOMAS S. BUTLER,

CURTIS D. WILBUR.

Chairman Committee on Naval Affairs,
House of Representatives, Washington, D. C.

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Seagull, mother ship to submarines at Pearl Harbor.

Quail, mother ship to submarines at Coco Solo.

Chewink, mother ship to submarines at New London submarine base.

'Rigel, destroyer tender at San Diego.

Line officers on sea duty as of June 30, 1926-Continued

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