I know I have used this term a couple of other times, so now is the time to let everyone know what it is. A-school is the first primary school you attend in after you leave boot camp. During A-school you will attend training in your primary job, such as I was a gas turbine technician, mechanical. Therefore I attended a Gas Turbine A-school at Great Lakes Naval training center. Prior to starting A-school I also went through a short class called Propulsion Engineering Basics, peewees as we called it.

I and a fellow A-school class mate were the last two Gas Turbine students to attend peewees in the Navy. The first 2 weeks of gas turbine school were the same as the 6 weeks of peewees, so we had no trouble acing those weeks. A-school is designed to give you as much information possible in as little time as possible. It is written by experts in their own particular field and taught by the same.

Just prior to my discharge I was assigned to write two classes for A-school. Fuel quality and Waste heat boiler basics. The process was long and drawn out, but in the end the classes were added to the school and the new students had a better understanding of those two areas. It was strange I ended up in this situation because I was working in the C-school office and the curriculum development office need an extra person. So, since I was the junior NCO in the office I was “told” to report there the following morning.

A-school is the primary teaching tool for both new sailors and also those wanting to either switch rates or those whose rates are being done away with. A major influx of new gas turbine students during my time in school came from steam ships that were being decommissioned. Several boiler technicians and machinist mates were in my class. We called these sailors fleet returnees, since they had already been in the fleet and were returning to school. We had sailors from E3 to E6 in school for training from the fleet.

Another facet of A-school is learning routine. You are divided watch sections and duty sections. You stand watch similar to that onboard ship and spend days on duty. So along with a regular education you also receive your first taste of Naval routine.