(Photo by Senior CPO Gary Ward)
A Miami native and 2015 Booker T. Washington High School graduate is serving in the U.S. Navy aboard the guided missile cruiser, USS Chancellorsville.
Seaman Joshua Jacquet is a quartermaster aboard the forward deployed Ti-conderoga-class guided missile cruiser operating out of Yokosuka, Japan. Chancellorsville is one of three cruisers forward-deployed in Yokosuka.
A Navy quartermaster is responsible for working on the bridge with the captain to help plot the course ensuring the safe navigation of the entire ship.
“Always working to your full capacity and knowing the right people can help get you anywhere in life,” Jacquet said. “I believe that building relationships with other sailors is not only important but meaningful.”
With more than 50 percent of the world’s shipping tonnage and a third of the world’s crude oil passing through the region, the United States has historic and enduring interests in this part of the world.
“Our alliance is rooted in shared interests and shared values,” said Adm. Harry Harris, Commander, U.S. Pacific Command. “It’s not hyperbole to say that the entire world has benefited from the U.S.-Japan alliance. While our alliance helped stabilize the region after the Second World War, it also enabled the Japanese people to bring about an era of unprecedented economic growth. And for the last six decades, our Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen have worked side by side with the Japan Self Defense Force to protect and advance peace and freedom.”
Approximately 300 men and women serve aboard the ship. Their jobs are highly specialized and keep each part of the cruiser running smoothly, according to Navy officials. They do everything from maintaining gas turbine engines and operating the highly sophisticated Aegis weapons system to driving the ship and operating small boats.
Forward-deployed sailors are crucial to the success of the global navy mission and earn high praise from their leaders.
“I have a cousin serving as a Marine in Okinawa and an uncle who retired from the Navy,” Jacquet said. “They both had a positive impact on me in my decision to join the Navy. Being a part of a forward-deployed ship is an accomplishment in itself, not many people get this opportunity.”
Sailors serving abroad in Japan are highly motivated and quickly adapt to changing conditions, explained Navy officials.
“Serving in the Navy means to protect those who can’t protect themselves from anything and everything,” Jacquet added. “I feel a sense of pride being the first to be called when a threat comes to my home country.”
A Navy cruiser is a multi-mission ship that can operate independently or as part of a larger group of ships at sea. The ship is equipped with a vertical launching system, tomahawk missiles, torpedoes, guns and Phalanx close-in weapons systems.
Sailors play a vital role in the overall military mission around the world.
“The U.S.-Japan alliance remains the cornerstone for peace and stability in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region,” Harris said.
