Some questions about modern Naval chain of command

Yukinara

The Exile
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Mar 13, 2012
Messages
255
Reaction score
15
I'm writing a novel which has warship. In modern warship, do the captains/commanders yell "Fire" every time they shot something or launch a missile? What is the process of launching a missile from a warship? Is there any special authorization?

In the navy, who actually gives order and brief SEAL before each mission? Also, who is in charge of SEAL? I know the President is the Commander in Chief, but there has to be some guys down the line who select the team and send them out. So who is that guy? (Title only, no names needed)

How many missiles a typical destroyer and cruiser carry? I don't know if 100 is too much or too little.
 

Trebor1415

practical experience, FTW
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jan 3, 2009
Messages
653
Reaction score
82
Location
Michigan
Wow. To be honest, I think you need to do more research than just asking questions here.

There are plenty of non-fiction books on the SEALS, from Vietnam to present day. They can help you with understanding the SEAL chain of command, how missions are assigned, etc. There's a couple out now just on the raid to kill Bin Laden.

The authorization to fire weapons depends on the type of weapon and the circumstances. There's a huge difference say, between a ship firing a weapon in times of peace to defend itself against an unexpected attack and firing weapons in times of war.

In general, yes, there is authorization required to fire any weapon on or off a ship. But, the authorization may be such as to allow the relevant person (watch officer, etc) to fire on their own discretion if not enough time is available to seek permission from a higher officer or the authorization may be extremely strict. (Permission to fire Nukes comes from the Commander in Chief, then down the chain of command, for example).

Read up about the attack on the U.S. Stark and also read about how the Viccenes (I think?) accidently shot down a Iranian airliner for some insight into how the decision to fire weapons is made.

As to "how many missles does a cruiser or destroyer carry." Figure out what time period and country. WWII US would be different from modern U.S, for example. Once you know that just start with wikipedia to see what ship types are appopriate for that time and setting and dig into their wiki pages and then dig deeper into the sources cited in wiki. You should find some publicly available info on weapons loads and capabilities of various ships and ship types, at least in general, even if some specifics are classified.
 

thothguard51

A Gentleman of a refined age...
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Oct 16, 2009
Messages
9,316
Reaction score
1,064
Age
72
Location
Out side the beltway...
I will say one thing about your questions. If you have not done extensive research to use in your story, it is going to show to anyone who has military experience, or has researched the military. That is a lot of readers...
 

Cranky1

practical experience, FTW
Super Member
Registered
Joined
May 23, 2013
Messages
422
Reaction score
25
When you say modern, do you mean 2013 or within the last several decades? I don't know much about the Navy, but I think after the Iran hostage situation, Special Forces units were consolidated under the command of the Special Operations Command. You'll have to do a bit more research on that, but I remember seeing a documentary about Delta Force discussing how each branch operated their own Special Operations. Do you have access to the Military Channel? They frequently show documentaries about Special Operations teams.
 

ShayneTWright

Registered
Joined
Jul 22, 2013
Messages
36
Reaction score
0
Location
Australia
I'm writing a novel which has warship. In modern warship, do the captains/commanders yell "Fire" every time they shot something or launch a missile? What is the process of launching a missile from a warship? Is there any special authorization?

In the navy, who actually gives order and brief SEAL before each mission? Also, who is in charge of SEAL? I know the President is the Commander in Chief, but there has to be some guys down the line who select the team and send them out. So who is that guy? (Title only, no names needed)

How many missiles a typical destroyer and cruiser carry? I don't know if 100 is too much or too little.

These basic questions could be answered with an hour or two on the web and if your writing a story without even these basics, then your in for a hard time.

Good Luck.

My advice, figure out the settings time peroid to the decade as this provides the basic fundamental capabilities and streucture of the fleet operations in question such as armament and operation methodologies.
 

thothguard51

A Gentleman of a refined age...
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Oct 16, 2009
Messages
9,316
Reaction score
1,064
Age
72
Location
Out side the beltway...

The link is about the make of the US Special Operations Command and not about Navy Seals specifically. The Special Forces Command is made up from highly trained and skilled members from all branches of the service, Air Force, Army, Marines, and Navy personal. But not all Navy personal in Special Forces are Seals...

Navy Seals are a seperate force unto themselves, thought they may train with, and operate with Special Forces for specific missions. But, not all Special Forces members will operate with a Navy Seal unit.

The same can be said for the Army's Delta Force.
 
Last edited:

Yukinara

The Exile
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Mar 13, 2012
Messages
255
Reaction score
15
interesting, thanks for all of your comments, I kinda figure out how to do research on this topic. I read a lot on Wiki, but sometimes I got lost. Anyway, I did find my answers since I post this topic.
 

JoeHill

Registered
Joined
Jul 19, 2013
Messages
36
Reaction score
2
I agree with those who say that you're really going to need to get a lot of non-fiction books on those subjects(like SEALs) first, then ask questions about the details which don't appear in the books.
 

jkenton

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Apr 3, 2013
Messages
150
Reaction score
19
interesting, thanks for all of your comments, I kinda figure out how to do research on this topic. I read a lot on Wiki, but sometimes I got lost. Anyway, I did find my answers since I post this topic.

Some quick and dirty research, to at least get a feel for procedures, watch "The Hunt for Red October" to get a feel for naval combat procedures, and "Act of Valor" to get a feel for SEAL team's interaction with the Navy and other forces.