NR & NRRO

I know this will surprise most of you, but I'm actually very supportive of the concept of NRRO. The only reason, and I mean the ONLY reason, we haven't had a problem like TMI-2 or SL-1 is the fact there was an outside agency, one specifically not impressed by rank, that could step in with a sensibility check every now and again. You know as well as I how much pressure some SOB at squadron can put on the CO to meet operational commitments; what are the odds that they'll try to solve a problem with "suck it up and fix it at sea"? There were times on all three of my boats that the command was willing to go out with a potentially serious issue and the only thing that stopped them was an NRRO rep.

I only wish some of our other heavy industries (like maybe the railroads, who through the years have killed or injured more people than all the fatalities attributed to nuclear energy, including the bombs) had their own version. But that's not to say I haven't had "personality issues" with a few reps during my years as a nuclear janitor. On my first boat, there were two neckties stenciled on the underside of the RO's chair, representing the two we had fired for crossing the line.

The first was a rep who went into the RC without permission from the SRO, which was the policy at the time. Had he just contacted maneuvering, of course the SRO would have given him permission in an instant. But, even though the control point warned him, the NRRO rep disregarded procedures and entered anyways. The SRO didn't know he was in there until the control point told him, at which time he got on the 2MC and ordered everyone out. When the Eng found out the next day, he went ballistic and raised all kinds of hell about it at squadron. Everyone's got to follow the rules on a boat, not just the crew.

The second was a little more fun. One of the electricians was working in ERF when he overheard two NRRO reps talking in middle level. One of them was telling the other "It's time to give the Eng that old 'engine room's dirty' speech. It actually looks pretty good, but we can't tell him that". When the EDO started rounding people up to get busy cleaning, the electrician was still fuming and told the rest of us what he'd overheard. The EDO disappeared up forward with the electrician, and the squadron CO had a field day (no pun intended) when our CO called him with the story a few minutes later. The NRRO rep got fired, and the next day six others descended on our boat with a passion. We ended up with a cleaning hit list ten pages long, but it was worth it.