Training at MUS: committed and practice-orientated

Anyone who has ever been on duty at the watch of a floating unit or a naval shore station will be familiar with them: large boards with lots of photos of all kinds of people hanging on them. If one of them comes across the Stelling, please leave everything behind and inform the watch commander. He would then be at the scene of the incident like lightning to blow the whistle and dutifully report it. Well, while the commander is known and, in the best case, appreciated, the commanders who are still to be found on these boards are rarely seen. After all, the savvy guard knows that the more stripes on the arm, the more important the wearer is. The problem arises with uniformed personnel from other branches of the armed forces. What is the name of the rank with the many pimples and the laurel wreath on the shoulder? And since faces in real life often differ from those in photos, it is said that people (m/f/d) have already received questioning looks.

So it's good for those who know their superiors. This is exactly where the Naval NCO School comes in, preparing future watch commanders for all eventualities. During today's (12 August) visit by Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer to Plön, she was able to see this for herself. The following short anecdote shows just how committed the instructors are:

Modern training

Lecture room 34 of the mates' training programme had general watch training. The troop instructor, Lieutenant Captain Michael Kröger, asked, among other things, who the watch commander of the watch on duty was. The correct answers were "OvWa" and "Kasernenkommandant". The subsequent question about the order of the other watch superiors was possibly a little too early for the lecture theatre. In any case, the instructor helped with the words "of course the school commander, Captain Heermeier, who is even attending this briefing in person today". He continued, "and while we're at it - followed of course by the Inspector of the Navy, Vice Admiral Schönbach, and the Inspector General of the Bundeswehr, General Zorn, and - as you can see, we've spared no expense or effort - I can even introduce you personally to your highest superior of the guard here and now - our Minister of Defence!" Whereupon she took a few steps towards the soldiers and sought a dialogue with them.

Text: mb, Achim Winkler; Photos: Bundeswehr/Marcel Kröncke