While the Navy’s Basic Military Training, known as boot camp, historically has spanned eight weeks, the service extended the program to 10 weeks in January 2022 to accommodate more life skills training to help sailors adjust from civilian to Navy life.

But now, the Navy is revamping its curriculum to “eliminate redundant training” and integrate those lessons instead throughout the program in a more intentional way, spokesman for Naval Service Training Command Lt. Cmdr. Mack Jamieson told Navy Times.

The Warrior Toughness Program, which seeks to educate sailors on how to perform in stressful situations, as well as some physical and professional development training, will now be condensed during recruits’ time at boot camp, Jamieson said.

“Our focus is on delivering a streamlined yet robust training experience that equips our sailors with the essential skills they need to succeed in the fleet,” Rear Adm. Craig Mattingly, commander of Naval Service Training Command, said in a Navy news release. “This change will help us achieve that, providing a rigorous curriculum that ensures readiness while enabling recruits to join the fleet faster.”

These changes, which were made following feedback from Recruit Training Command staff and training experts, align with Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti’s navigation plan, the Navy said.

“From the deckplate to the classroom, our team has worked hard to identify efficiencies that uphold our high standards while advancing the CNO’s vision for a capable and ready Navy,” Mattingly said. “This optimization doesn’t just shorten the time-to-train; it enhances our recruits’ ability to transition seamlessly into the fleet and contribute immediately.”

The updates come following challenges for the Navy when it comes to attracting new recruits and missing its accession targets for the first time ever in fiscal year 2023. However, the service announced in October it surpassed its recruiting training goals for fiscal year 2024.

According to Navy officials, the service accomplished this feat through “data-driven decision-making,” cutting down the time to process medical waivers and “expanding opportunities.”

Changes to expand the pool of eligible applicants include allowing those without a high school diploma or General Educational Development credential to enlist, as long as those applicants score a 50 or higher on the Armed Forces Qualification Test.

“The Navy is focused on thoughtfully increasing recruiting numbers while maintaining historically high retention rates,” Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro said in a statement in October. “We are doing this by improving the efficiency of our recruiting enterprise and expanding the pool of applicants who can join our team.”

The sea service last month announced the selection of Tobias, who has led the command since June 2023. He is expected to advance initiatives outlined in Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti’s Project 33, according to the service.

Priorities included in Project 33, released in September, include restoring and bolstering naval infrastructure.

“Our CNO laid it out for us in our Project 33 targets — to restore the shore, from which we project the fight. So, we have to get after it,” said Tobias, emphasizing the urgency of the mission. “The future needs involve us being able to truly assess our risk. We understand our infrastructure has risk associated with it. So, it’s our job to make sure that we understand and communicate those risks and mitigate them where possible.”

Additionally, NAVFAC Washington is focused on increasing retention rates and improving community engagement, the Navy said.

“These are big, audacious goals, and I love to achieve big, audacious goals,” Tobias said in a Navy release. “With the teammates we have — the officers, the enlisted, the civilians and all the families who support us — we have the best. And with that, we’re going to hit those targets and even more — exciting times.”

Tobias, originally from New York, graduated from the North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in 1998 before undergoing Officer Candidate School. He previously served as the executive assistant to the commander at Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command.

As the leader of NAVFAC Washington, Tobias said he focuses on teamwork and positivity to get results.

“Human beings function best when we work together as a team,” he said. “There might be a day where I come in and I’m not at my greatest, but you are, and you help pick me up, and there might be a day when you come in and you’re not at your greatest, but I am. And we pick each other up, and that’s how we achieve great things, working together.”

Starting next year, sailors who do not meet the BCA standards but do score an Excellent-Low or above on the Physical Readiness Test — completing the pushup, forearm plank and cardio portions of the test — will be exempt from undergoing the Fitness Enhancement Program, according to a new naval administrative message.

“The purpose of this exemption is to recognize that some sailors who do not meet the BCA standard are still able to maintain operational readiness,” the NAVADMIN said.

Those exempt must complete a nutritional educational program, such as the Navy’s official weight management program, known as ShipShape, or the Nutrition Self-Study Course found on the Official Navy PFA app.

Other approved nutrition programs include the Mission Nutrition Course, offered at Navy fitness centers, and the Navy Operational Fitness and Fueling System, which provides individualized meal plans.

The command fitness leader, or CFL, is in charge of overseeing a sailor’s enrollment status in these nutrition programs in the Physical Readiness Information Management System.

“Upon selecting a nutrition education option, sailors must inform their CFL of which option they choose and provide proof of completion or progression within 30 days of nutrition enrollment,” the NAVADMIN said. “The completed education option is only valid for one PFA cycle.”

Historically, those who have failed a portion of the PFA have been required to undergo the Fitness Enhancement Program, which also requires sailors to undergo nutrition education as well as additional fitness sessions.

The ship arrived at Yokosuka Naval Base on Friday after operating in South America as part of a Southern Seas deployment to boost maritime partnerships and counter threats in the region. The deployment marked the first for the carrier in nearly a decade.

“A U.S. carrier represents the most advanced maritime capability we have, and it’s the most advanced investment we can make in the security of Japan and of the Western Pacific,” Vice Adm. Fred Kacher, commander of U.S. 7th Fleet, said in a statement. “The George Washington returns with modernized, cutting-edge technology that represents our investment in deterrence and security in this region.”

The carrier is outfitted with Carrier Air Wing 5, which includes the first F-35C Lightning II squadron to join forward-deployed naval forces in Japan.

Yokosuka previously served as the homeport for the George Washington from 2008 to 2015. The ship kicked off its midlife refueling and complex overhaul maintenance, known as an RCOH, in 2017 in Virginia.

Maintenance originally was slated to wrap up in 2021 under a four-year timeline, but delays postponed it until May 2023.

The GW replaced the carrier Ronald Reagan in Japan so the latter can undergo maintenance work in Bremerton, Washington.

Cmdr. Charles Diehl was removed from his leadership role due to a “loss of confidence in his ability to command,” according to the service.

Diehl will be temporarily reassigned to Airborne Command & Control Logistics Wing based in Pt. Mugu, California, while Cmdr. Randall Fields, the former commanding officer of Airborne Command & Control Squadron 116, will temporarily take over leadership responsibilities for Airborne Command & Control Squadron 115.

Earlier this month, the Navy also removed the commanding officers of the Navy Leadership and Ethics Command San Diego, Capt. Lester Brown, Jr., and the Naval Information Warfare Training Group San Diego, Cmdr. Cayanne McFarlane.

Diehl became the commanding officer of the squadron, also based out of Pt. Mugu, in May. As a naval flight officer flying the E-2 Hawkeye, he previously attended the Navy Fighter Weapons School, known as Top Gun. He also conducted deployments in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation New Dawn and Operation Tomodachi.

No other details were immediately provided regarding Diehl’s removal. The Navy rarely provides any insight into the firing of commanding officers beyond the “loss of confidence” statement.

“The Navy maintains the highest standards for commanding officers and holds them accountable when those standards are not met,” the service said in a statement Friday.

That afternoon, the 29-year-old executed air-to-ground strafe and slow-speed basic maneuvers when he is believed to have suffered a bout of gravity-induced loss of consciousness, or GLOC, a condition where a pilot goes unconscious due to a lack of blood flow to the brain, according to an internal investigation obtained by Navy Times.

Bullock was “incapacitated” when his jet quickly descended from 7,300 feet and crashed near Trona at 2:07 p.m. local time. His ejection seat was properly installed and the investigation found that Bullock did not attempt to initiate an ejection.

“Due to the relatively low altitude that this maneuver was executed, the pilot did not have enough time to regain consciousness before impacting the ground,” the investigation states.

Now, two-and-a-half years after the young aviator’s death, questions have emerged about why a system that keeps a jet airborne if a pilot loses consciousness was never installed in Navy Super Hornets, and if such a system might have prevented Bullock’s death.

The system is known as Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance System, or Auto-GCAS, and it’s designed to temporarily take control of a jet for short periods of time if the pilot blacks out or gets distracted, military aviators who reviewed the Bullock investigation told Navy Times.

But for reasons the Navy has declined to explain, Auto-GCAS has not been installed in the sea service’s Super Hornet fleet.

The Air Force installed Auto-GCAS on its F-16 and F-22 fighter jets, and credits the system with saving the lives of 16 aviators since 2014.

The Marine Corps’ legacy Hornets are also slated to receive Auto-GCAS next year, according to Naval Air Forces, and the software is already installed on all F-35 jets, according to that platform’s Joint Program Office.

Despite repeated queries by Navy Times, the Navy has refused to explain why Auto-GCAS is not in Super Hornets, or whether the service believes a lack of Auto-GCAS played a role in Bullock’s death.

Auto-GCAS “remains an area that the team continually assesses during safety review boards and provides annual updates to the fleet, as safety is our number one priority,” Naval Air Forces spokesperson Cmdr. Beth Teach said in an email to Navy Times.

The Naval Safety Command, which conducts its own investigations into such mishaps, declined to say whether its investigation found a lack of Auto-GCAS to have been a factor in Bullock’s death.

While the Navy remains mum to such questions, some aviators with direct Auto-GCAS experience believe the system would have prevented Bullock’s fatal crash.

Lt. Col. Billie Flynn is a retired pilot with the Royal Canadian Air Force.

Flynn also served as a test pilot with Lockheed Martin who flew with the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force, and has tested out three different Auto-GCAS systems.

After reviewing the Bullock crash investigation, Flynn unequivocally stated that Bullock would still be alive if Auto-GCAS was installed in his aircraft.

“Auto-GCAS would have saved Lt. Bullock, period,” Flynn told Navy Times.

He isn’t the only member of the aviator community to reach that conclusion. An active duty Air Force aviator familiar with Auto-GCAS who reviewed the investigation and was granted anonymity also told Navy Times that he believes the technology would have saved Bullock’s life.

“What’s the price of a very talented young naval aviator?” Flynn said. “I would submit there is no price for that. You can’t replace Lt. Bullock, and how do you explain to his parents, his family, that you could have implemented this at some point and chose not to, because it wasn’t a value to Navy leadership. I don’t think you can answer that question.”

‘Instantaneous G’

To decrease the likelihood of suffering GLOC, pilots undergo specific centrifuge training to better equip their bodies to tolerate strong G-forces.

But pilots still carry risks with them in the cockpit, and Auto-GCAS helps mitigate that risk, according to Flynn.

“In a Super Hornet, the instantaneous G is so sudden that if you are not perfectly prepared, then your body might not be ready for the G that you’re about to experience, and that historically, has contributed to pilots blacking themselves out,” he said.

Pilots typically regain “useful consciousness” between 45-60 seconds after blacking out, according to Flynn.

Flynn said he thinks the Navy and NAVAIR understand the benefits of Auto-GCAS, but have opted to not spend the money and time installing the system in the Super Hornet fleet because “it’s never been important enough for Navy leaders.”

“Navy leadership, including the leadership at NAVAIR, have all been briefed and are keenly aware of the capabilities that Auto-GCAS brings and the potential to save aircraft and lives,” Flynn said.

Flynn added that GLOC isn’t as common now as it once was in aviators due to advancements in training and ensuring G-suits fit properly, and therefore, leadership isn’t as inclined to believe installing the technology is worth the effort.

Teach, of Naval Air Forces, told Navy Times that no other naval aviators have suffered injury or death due to GLOC-related incidents in the past five years, according to the service’s Risk Management Information mishap reporting system.

‘Max was genuine’

Assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron 113 at the time, Bullock was remembered as a young man who “packed more into 29 years than most could ever imagine.”

“When asked how he would want to be celebrated, Lt. TJ Hall, Max’s wingman, said, ‘Fast, loud and awesome!’” Bullock’s obituary states. “While he’ll be celebrated this way, he’ll be remembered as generous beyond belief, a genuine friend, passionate and relentlessly positive, and fearless.”

Bullock’s parents, Bill and Robin Bullock, said their son described himself as a “possibilitarian” who believed anything was possible, and loved his country and fellow service members deeply. They said the family honors his memory by thinking about what he would do when making choices in life now.

“Whenever we would question whether or not we should do something or to go forward with it, one of the kids, or one of the parents says, ‘You know, what would Max do?’ And the automatic answer is, he would go for it. He would try it, he would be the first one to be in line to do something, and reach out to help others,” Robin Bullock told Navy Times.

Bullock conducted a “thorough brief” prior to take off on the day of his death, outlining the training rules for basic fighter maneuvers, air-to-ground strafe and low-level training.

The investigation also found that Bullock was prepared for the mission, and that human factors did not play a role in the mishap.

It determined the aircraft safe for flight and that no malfunctions occurred, and that environmental factors such as weather did not contribute to the mishap.

The case did not warrant any disciplinary action within the squadron, and the investigation determined the squadron’s command climate didn’t factor into the mishap.

Specifically, the report said that no one interviewed for the investigation voiced knowledge of procedure violations, rule-breaking or flat-hatting by any members of the squadron — Bullock included.

Flat-hatting is the practice of conducting maneuvers at low altitude or high speed “for thrill purposes,” according to the Federal Aviation Administration.

“I have directed that the findings of this investigation will be widely shared with all units under my cognizance to underscore the unforgiving and inherently dangerous nature of naval aviation, which requires the finest sense of judgment and control,” a command endorsement of the investigation states.

Bullock’s obituary recalls him as someone who would “start every day with the intent on figuring out how to make the world a better place.”

“Max was genuine. He would strike up a conversation and build a friendship with everyone crossing his path; he would listen with interest and appreciation to any story,” Bullock’s obituary said. “He gave the gift of long-term friendship openly and without reservation.”

Cmdr. Cayanne McFarlane was ousted from her leadership role due to a “loss of confidence in her ability to command,” according to the service. She has been temporarily reassigned to Naval Information Forces.

McFarlane is the second commanding officer the Navy has fired this week. On Wednesday, the service announced the relief of Capt. Lester Brown, Jr., the commanding officer of Navy Leadership and Ethics Command San Diego.

McFarlane assumed command of Naval Information Warfare Training Group San Diego in April 2023, and previously served as the executive officer of Naval Computer and Telecommunications Station Sicily, according to her official Navy biography.

“The Navy maintains the highest standards for commanding officers and holds them accountable when those standards are not met,” the Navy said in a statement Thursday.

Meanwhile, Cmdr. Dominic DiMaggio, the executive officer of Fleet Weather Center San Diego, is temporarily stepping in to fulfill leadership responsibilities at Naval Information Warfare Training Group San Diego until a permanent replacement is found.

No other details were immediately provided. The Navy rarely provides any insight into the firing of commanding officers beyond the “loss of confidence” statement.

Naval Information Warfare Training Group San Diego falls under Naval Information Warfare Training Group based out of Virginia.

The service announced Monday that the Gettysburg, Chosin, and Cape St. George will now remain in service up until fiscal year 2029, rather than 2026.

These cruisers have received modernization updates including “extensive hull,” mechanical and engineering, and combat system upgrades, according to the Navy. The Gettysburg and Chosin wrapped up these modifications in fiscal years 2023 and 2025, and the Cape. St. George is slated to conclude its modernization this year.

The Navy’s announcement comes as the Navy and Congress have been at odds over how fast cruisers should be phased out of the fleet. The Navy has sought to decommission more cruisers to free up money for new ships and maintenance, while lawmakers have urged to keep them around longer to satisfy capability gaps.

Meanwhile, the service decommissioned three cruisers in recent months: the Leyte Gulf, the Cowpens, and the Antietam.

“As a former cruiser Sailor, I know the incredible value these highly-capable warships bring to the Fleet and I am proud of their many decades of service,” Del Toro said in a statement. “After learning hard lessons from the cruiser modernization program, we are only extending ships that have completed modernization and have the material readiness needed to continue advancing our Navy’s mission.”

On Thursday, the Navy revealed it would keep 12 additional destroyers in service longer, from 2028 to 2035. The ships selected underwent a hull-by-hull evaluation, and the Navy is now including a service life extension update to the FY26 budget request to accommodate these modifications.

These efforts to keep more ships in service will “bolster the Fleet as new ships are built,” according to a Navy news release.

“Today’s budget constrained environment requires the Navy to make prioritized investments to keep more ready players on the field,” Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti said in a statement. “The Navy is actively pulling the right levers to maintain and grow its Battle Force Inventory to support the United States’s global interests in peace and to win decisively in conflict.”

Capt. Lester Brown, Jr., was removed from his position due to a “loss of confidence in his ability to command,” the Navy said in a statement Wednesday.

Brown took the helm of Navy Leadership and Ethics Command San Diego in 2022, and previously served as the executive and commanding officer of the destroyer McFaul, according to his official Navy biography, which has since been removed.

Brown is now reassigned to Naval Surface Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet, while Capt. Richard Zeber from Navy Leadership and Ethics Newport will temporarily fulfill commanding officer duties at Navy Leadership and Ethic Command San Diego.

No additional details were immediately available, and the Navy rarely shares any insight regarding firing commanding officers apart from the “loss of confidence” statement.

Navy Leadership and Ethics Command San Diego is responsible for spearheading training for officers who have yet to take command, as well as training for the Navy’s enlisted leader development program.

The service failed to meet its accession targets for the first time ever in FY23, amid recruitment challenges military leaders blamed on a variety of factors, from more thorough medical screenings for applicants, fewer Americans eligible to serve and low civilian unemployment.

The Navy’s FY25 accessions target, the same as last year’s goal, comes as the service announced it brought in a total of 40,978 new recruits in FY24. The service attributes its success last year to “data-driven decision-making,” cutting down the time to process medical waivers and “expanding opportunities.”

Among these changes are installing a two-star admiral to head recruiting stations and centers, adjusting recruiting goals from monthly to annual, and creating a Recruiting Operations Center in October 2023 to address recruitment issues and streamline the entire recruiting process.

“We are building on the foundation of success from FY24 while tackling new challenges head-on,” Rear Adm. James Waters, Commander of Navy Recruiting Command, said in a statement. “With the strategies we’ve implemented, the talent we have in place, and the support from leadership, I’m confident that we’ll meet our goals and continue to bring in the best and brightest to serve our nation.”

Likewise, the Navy has incorporated multiple reforms in recent years to address recruiting challenges. For example, the service started allowing those without a high school diploma or General Educational Development credential to enlist this year, if they score a 50 or higher on the Armed Forces Qualification Test.

The Navy also started a pilot program in December 2022 allowing sailors who scored lower on the Armed Forces Qualification Test to still enlist in the Navy. The shift meant potential sailors who scored between the 10th and 30th percentile on the AFQT were eligible to join if their ASVAB individual line scores qualified for a Navy rating.