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So at MEPS today i reenlisted as 89B! Sadly i couldn't get a 92Y slot like i wanted, but 89B was high on my job list so im happy! Anyway, i ship out in December and I'm curious if anyone has some general advice? Thanks!
Posted >1 y ago
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The biggest variable that will affect your experience as an 89B will be your unit of assignment. 89B is a dying MOS. We are a fraction the size we used to be, and we have 1/5th the senior billets we used to have.
Approximately 15 years ago we gave up the bulk of the ASP's to "free up Soldiers to deploy". All the positions went to civilians. Well, you can't just get rid of the civilians, so they remain and our numbers were slashed.
In some ASP's you'll occasionally get to see 89B's ( Korea and Carson are good examples),but even there, the civilians run the show, and 89's only do 1/10th of what the MOS actually entails. The civilians are responsible for everything, so they just give 89's the monkey work, nothing requiring a brain.
If you were to look at our MOS tasks by grade, you'd be surprised just how involved our MOS actually is. We have tasks and responsibilities most of our NCO's have never even heard of, much less performed. The civilians don't trust us to do it.
Honestly, my son is six, turning seven. By the time he is eligible to enlist, I'll be surprised if ammo is still an independent CMF....
When I worked in Ordnance proponent, this topic came up a LOT (mostly from me, I've been ammo over 20 years, clearly I love my abused ammo mistress).
The logic from the Chief of Ordnance and CSM behind keeping the ASP's in civilian control was simple. "The civilians HAVE to run the ASP's, because 89's are not capable".
And they're not wrong. We don't have the numbers. The CMF would have to be expanded approximately 70% to be able to man all ASP's. Almost double that to fill all non ASP billets simultaneously.
And holistically, we dont have the knowledge. It's a vicious circle. We're not in the ASP's working ammo, so we don't know how to do our jobs. We don't know how to do our jobs, because we're not in the ASP's working ammo.
It's a self licking ice cream cone of ignorance and incompetence.
Approximately 15 years ago we gave up the bulk of the ASP's to "free up Soldiers to deploy". All the positions went to civilians. Well, you can't just get rid of the civilians, so they remain and our numbers were slashed.
In some ASP's you'll occasionally get to see 89B's ( Korea and Carson are good examples),but even there, the civilians run the show, and 89's only do 1/10th of what the MOS actually entails. The civilians are responsible for everything, so they just give 89's the monkey work, nothing requiring a brain.
If you were to look at our MOS tasks by grade, you'd be surprised just how involved our MOS actually is. We have tasks and responsibilities most of our NCO's have never even heard of, much less performed. The civilians don't trust us to do it.
Honestly, my son is six, turning seven. By the time he is eligible to enlist, I'll be surprised if ammo is still an independent CMF....
When I worked in Ordnance proponent, this topic came up a LOT (mostly from me, I've been ammo over 20 years, clearly I love my abused ammo mistress).
The logic from the Chief of Ordnance and CSM behind keeping the ASP's in civilian control was simple. "The civilians HAVE to run the ASP's, because 89's are not capable".
And they're not wrong. We don't have the numbers. The CMF would have to be expanded approximately 70% to be able to man all ASP's. Almost double that to fill all non ASP billets simultaneously.
And holistically, we dont have the knowledge. It's a vicious circle. We're not in the ASP's working ammo, so we don't know how to do our jobs. We don't know how to do our jobs, because we're not in the ASP's working ammo.
It's a self licking ice cream cone of ignorance and incompetence.
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SPC Austin Wilson
Did i make a mistake then? Don't get me wrong, im still excited, but now i feel like i shouldve asked the availability of other jobs haha. Thanks for the comment!
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SFC Michael Hasbun
SPC Austin Wilson - Not at all. The opportunities for post military certifications and employment are there. Definitely better than wasting your time in Combat Arms. Be familiar with cool.army.mil Learn TAMIS. Learn SAAS. Take every HAZMAT and OSHA course you can. Do your Lean Six Sigma, Your Project Management certification. Get licensed on every vehicle you can. If you can take the RTCH course, DO IT! Don't think of yourself as "ammo", remember you are part of a larger logistics Corps. You're a logistician. The world runs on logistics. If you're smart, the opportunities abound.
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SPC Austin Wilson
SFC Michael Hasbun thanks! You've been immensely helpful. Clmbat arms isn't awaste by the way ;). But seriously, i really want to be the soldie ri should've been when i went through my first contract, take more ocirses, go to schools, and work to be a good leader. Thanks again!
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