SASEBO, Japan – An Indiana, Pennsylvania, native and 2017 Penns Manor High School graduate is serving in the U.S. Navy with the forward-deployed unit, Naval Beach Unit 7.
Constructionman Recruit Brandin Robinson is a constructionman mechanic operating in Sasebo, Japan.
A Navy constructionman mechanic is responsible for tasks involved in maintenance, repair and overhaul of automotive, materials handling and construction equipment; assign and supervise activities of assistants.
Robinson is proud to serve in the Pacific and fondly recalls memories of Indiana.
“I grew up in a very diverse area and it made me well equipped with the diversity in the Navy and working well with other people, I am blessed with the ability to talk with people,” said Robinson.
Robinson's greatest accomplishment is manning his station and experiencing things from a higher perspective.
“I like to try and leave an impact wherever I go,” said Robinson.
Moments like that makes it worth serving around the world ready at all times to defend America’s interests. 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. The Navy's presence in Sasebo is part of that long-standing commitment, explained Navy officials.
Commissioned in August of 2012, Naval Beach Unit 7 was formed to combine the three forward deployed naval forces detachments in Japan.
Personnel from the command are responsible manning and operating either the landing craft—such as the landing craft air cushion or the landing craft utility—or manage landing operations from the beach.
NBU 7 landing craft serve an important function for the Amphibious Force 7th Fleet in being able to move personnel and equipment from ship to shore.
“I’m very excited about being forward deployed because I want to see as much of the world as I can," said Robinson. "This is a very good opportunity for me. The Navy has forced me to see different perspectives and that benefits me greatly. I grew up in a very narrow path but now I know there is more than one way of doing things.”
As a member of one of the U.S. Navy’s most relied-upon assets, Robinson and other sailors know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes providing the Navy the nation needs.
“Serving in the Navy means I can do something that is bigger than myself and potentially be something," said Robinson. "I know joining the Navy is something I am not going to regret doing.”
Seventh Fleet, which is celebrating its 75th year in 2018, spans more than 124 million square kilometers, stretching from the International Date Line to the India/Pakistan border; and from the Kuril Islands in the North to the Antarctic in the South. Seventh Fleet's area of operation encompasses 36 maritime countries and 50 percent of the world’s population with between 50-70 U.S. ships and submarines, 140 aircraft, and approximately 20,000 sailors in the 7th Fleet.