NAVAL SUPPORT ACTIVITY — At 14 years old, Brandon Kight knows he wants to be in the Navy and that the Sea Cadets is an ideal training ground.
Brandon’s preferred duty would be an operations marksman, or Special Warfare Combatant-Craft Crewman. His best shot so far was hitting a jalapeno pepper with a pellet gun from 20 yards away.
His grandfather and great-grandfather were both retired Air Force. While they are happy he’s interested in a military career, they would have preferred the Air Force.
Sam Bassett, 14, is Kight’s battle buddy, a mandatory assignment in the Sea Cadets. Bassett wants to be a Navy SEAL. His father is a Marine and that would be his branch of choice if the SEAL idea does not work out.
Kight and Bassett were two of 15 Sea Cadets at Naval Support Activity Panama City onSaturday morning. The group was made up of youngsters ages 14 to 18 who participated in a joint drill with the National Guard’s 144th Transportation Group from Marianna.
While joining the Sea Cadets is voluntary, the monthly marching, training and squad maneuvers are mandatory to continue in the program.
Other than providing a taste for military life, graduated Sea Cadets can enter the military as an E-3, which can shave off two years needed to advance.
“I think there are people who need it, who are into it,” said Sgt. Chris Gilley of the National Guard. “If you get into it just for school, there could be consequences.”
Kight and Bassett are certainly serious. The Sea Cadets dutifully listened to a presentation from Spc. James Knight about the light medium tactical vehicle (LMTV).
Knight is proud of his vehicle and happy to talk about the armor plating in the front or the messaging system laptop on the passenger side. He also said the LMTV is idiot-proof, designed to be easy to use because its driver can change daily.
The Guard uses LMTVs for stateside emergency responses. The 144th was deployed to Pensacola last spring to rescue people trapped in their homes because of flooding and to dispense supplies.
“Guard benefits are educational, and being able to be a citizen at the same time,” Capt. Robert Davis said.
For Sea Cadets interested in a full-time military career, the National Guard presentations might not be the most representative. Knight and Gilley train one weekend a month, and most Guardsmen have full-time jobs.
Then again, the Sea Cadets don’t really know what they want to do yet, which is the point of training with various military units.
“I’m just in middle school,” Bassett said.