PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii - Petty Officer 2nd Class Daniel Wade, a native of Lutz, Florida, serves aboard USS Fitzgerald, a U.S. Navy warship operating out of San Diego, California, and participating in the biennial Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise in and around the Hawaiian Islands.
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| Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Jerome Fjeld |
Wade graduated from George M. Steinbrenner High School in 2017.
The skills and values needed to succeed in the Navy are similar to those found in Lutz.
“My hometown taught me to build relationships and be more personable,” said Wade. “Even now, I still am close with friends that I grew up with.”
Wade joined the Navy three years ago. Today, Wade serves as a collection cryptologic technician.
“I joined the Navy because I’ve been around the military my whole life,” said Wade. “I had a friend in the delayed entry program and we worked out together. He motivated me to join.”
As the world’s largest international maritime exercise, approximately 29 nations, 40 surface ships, three submarines, 14 national land forces, over 150 aircraft and more than 25,000 personnel will participate in RIMPAC 2024. This exercise provides a unique training opportunity that helps participants foster and sustain cooperative relationships that are critical to ensuring safety at sea and security on the world’s oceans. RIMPAC 2024 marks the 29th exercise in a series that began in 1971.
The theme of RIMPAC 2024 is “Partners: Integrated and Prepared.” The participating nations and forces exercise a wide range of capabilities and demonstrate the inherent flexibility of maritime forces. These capabilities range from disaster relief and maritime security operations to sea control and complex warfighting. The relevant, realistic training program includes gunnery, missile, anti-submarine and air defense exercises, as well as amphibious, counter-piracy, mine clearance operations, explosive ordnance disposal and diving and salvage operations.
Wade plays an important role in the exercise.
“I work in the Information Warfare community so for me this is a regular underway,” said Wade.
Wade serves a Navy that operates far forward, around the world and around the clock, promoting the nation’s prosperity and security.
“Serving in the Navy is a tool for my own personal development,” said Wade.
Wade is grateful to others for helping make a Navy career possible.
“My stepdad, Emory Alger, is a retired chief collection cryptologic technician and he motivated me to join but didn’t force me to do it,” added Wade. “He helped me choose and learn my job. I want to thank Javel Sotomary, who I joined the Navy with. I also want to thank my first leading chief petty officer, Chief Leonard, who motivated me to be the leader that I wanted to become.”
Hosted by Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet, RIMPAC 2024 will be led by Commander, U.S. 3rd Fleet, Vice Adm. John Wade, who will serve as Combined Task Force (CTF) commander. For the first time in RIMPAC history, a member of the Chilean Navy, Commodore Alberto Guerrero, will serve as deputy commander of the CTF. Rear Adm. Kazushi Yokota of the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force will serve as vice commander. Other key leaders of the multinational force will include Commodore Kristjan Monaghan of Canada, who will command the maritime component, and Air Commodore Louise Desjardins of Australia, who will command the air component.
During RIMPAC, a network of capable, adaptive partners train and operate together in order to strengthen their collective forces and promote a free and open Indo-Pacific. RIMPAC 2024 contributes to the increased interoperability, resiliency and agility needed by the Joint and Combined Force to deter and defeat aggression by major powers across all domains and levels of conflict.
More information about RIMPAC is available here: https://www.cpf.navy.mil/RIMPAC/