This is the preface to Volume 2, Naval Fire Control and Gunnery Organization, of the three-volume 1958 edition of Naval Ordnance and Gunnery. Where Volume 1 covers the weapons themselves, Volume 2 turns to the systems and organization that aim and control them — rangekeepers, directors, radar, and the gunnery organization of the ship. The Volume 2 table of contents lists every chapter; its index also serves as the master index for both unclassified volumes. See also the preface to Volume 1.
Naval Ordnance and Gunnery (1958) is a basic textbook on the subject of naval weapons and their control. Prepared for use primarily as a classroom text for midshipmen at the United States Naval Academy and in the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps, it will also serve to support other officer and officer candidate training programs and will have general use as a reference book.
This text is limited to a treatment of fundamental concepts and principles of ordnance, with enough data on typical weapons and control systems for the purposes of the training programs for which it is intended. It is not intended to replace technical and doctrine publications of the Bureau of Ordnance and the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations.
The present edition is a revision of Naval Ordnance and Gunnery (1950), originally a Restricted book. Because of the cancellation of the Restricted security classification, the present edition is issued in three volumes: I, Naval Ordnance; II, Naval Fire Control and Gunnery Organization; and III, Confidential Supplement. These are all subtitles, appearing in conjunction with the general title, Naval Ordnance and Gunnery. It is considered that the present organization is likely to be more convenient to the users of the book.
The index for Volume II is a master index for both unclassified volumes, with the purpose of facilitating cross reference between weapons and control systems. Volumes I and III have indexes keyed only to those individual volumes.
The new material in this publication, and the revision of the book as a whole, were accomplished by officers attached to the Department of Ordnance and Gunnery, U. S. Naval Academy, and by representatives of the departments of Naval Science of four selected NROTC universities, working in conjunction with the Training Division, Bureau of Naval Personnel, and the U. S. Navy Training Publications Center, Washington, D. C.
Purpose
The United States Navy — Guardian of Our Country
The United States Navy is responsible for maintaining control of the sea and is a ready force on watch at home and overseas, capable of strong action to preserve the peace or of instant offensive action to win in war.
It is upon the maintenance of this control that our country’s glorious future depends; the United States Navy exists to make it so.
We Serve With Honor
Tradition, valor, and victory are the Navy’s heritage from the past. To these may be added dedication, discipline, and vigilance as the watchwords of the present and the future.
At home or on distant stations we serve with pride, confident in the respect of our country, our shipmates, and our families.
Our responsibilities sober us; our adversities strengthen us. Service to God and Country is our special privilege. We serve with honor.
The Future of the Navy
The Navy will always employ new weapons, new techniques, and greater power to protect and defend the United States on the sea, under the sea, and in the air.
Now and in the future, control of the sea gives the United States her greatest advantage for the maintenance of peace and for victory in war.
Mobility, surprise, dispersal, and offensive power are the keynotes of the new Navy. The roots of the Navy lie in a strong belief in the future, in continued dedication to our tasks, and in reflection on our heritage from the past.
Never have our opportunities and our responsibilities been greater.
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