Board of Inspection and Survey

The Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV) is a United States Navy organization whose purpose is to inspect and assess the material condition of U.S. Navy vessels.

INSURV at work
An inspector assesses an anchorage test in the forecastle aboard the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70).
Cargo netting aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) is inspected.
Inspectors discuss the process of counting the 6000+ float coats aboard the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN-76).
Inspectors check USS Kitty Hawk's (CV-63) counter-measure wash-down system.
Sprinkler nozzles are inspected during a test of the flight deck's aqueous film forming foam system aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis (CVN-74).

The Board is currently headquartered at Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Virginia.

INSURV teams

The Board performs its tasks by sending out teams at intervals not to exceed 60 months per Naval Ship. These teams evaluate a ship's readiness to conduct combat operations at sea, through an extensive system of checks on installed equipment.

New construction

When a ship has been constructed by a shipyard and turned over to the U.S. Navy, an INSURV team must certify the vessel prior to declaring it operational.

History

The Board of Inspection and Survey was established by Congress to ensure that the ships of the United States Navy are properly equipped for prompt, reliable, sustained mission readiness at sea. Originally established in 1868 under Admiral David Farragut, the board was reconstituted in 1877 with Admiral David Porter as head of the board, expanding on the tasks he had assumed as duties under an instruction of November 16, 1870.

On August 5, 1882, Congress enacted legislation which established the Board of Inspection and Survey under statutory authority. Commodore Alexander A. Semmes was the first officer to assume the title as President, Board of Inspection and Survey. INSURV has been operating continuously under this authority since that date.

In 2008, six Navy ships, including the destroyer Stout, guided missile cruiser Chosin, and amphibious assault ship New Orleans, failed their INSURV inspections. More than two dozen other ships were found to have critical deficiencies. Parting from a past practice of publicly releasing INSURV inspection results, the Navy immediately classified the 2008 reports. In response, US Senator Jim Webb, in April 2009, asked the Senate Armed Services Committee to look into the Navy's decision. Said Representative Rob Wittman in support of Webb's action, "I am deeply concerned that a decision to classify these reports across the board would inhibit the Congress' ability to provide necessary and constitutionally mandated oversight."[1]

Mission

The Secretary of the Navy and the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) have designated the President, Board of Inspection and Survey (PRESINSURV) as their agent to perform the following statutory, regulatory and contractual requirements:

  • Develop and establish CNO policy and procedures for trials, material inspections, and surveys of ships and service craft consistent with law, regulations, and the terms of contract.
  • Examine Naval vessels periodically by a board of Naval officers to determine fitness for further service.
  • Conduct material inspections and surveys of ships and service craft and provide assessment of the material readiness of these vessels.
  • Provide independent verification of a newly constructed ship’s readiness for acceptance/delivery; and to determine if builder responsible equipment is operating satisfactorily during the guarantee period following acceptance.
  • Based on observations during Board of Inspection and Survey assessments, provide timely, candid, and accurate findings to Fleet Commanders, Type Commanders, NAVSEA, and appropriate OPNAV offices together with recommended actions where appropriate.
  • Conduct environmental protection and NAVOSH oversight inspection of Naval ships to include equipment, program compliance, and training. A combined NAVOSH/EP assessment will be conducted during non-MI Fleet Readiness Periods (FRPs), not to exceed 36 months.
  • Compile statistical information and analysis on material deficiencies, providing the CNO, Numbered Fleets, NAVSEA, and other higher authorities such information as they may require.

Presidents of the board

NameDates
Adm. David Farragut1868
 ??18691877
Adm. David Dixon Porter1877
Comm. George H. Cooper18771880
 ??18801881
Comm. Alexander Alderman Semmes1882June 1883
Comm. J.C. DeKrafftAugust 1883October 1885
R.Adm. Edward SimpsonOctober 1885March 1886
R.Adm. James Edward JouettJune 1886February 1890
R.Adm. Lewis KimberlyMarch 1890April 1892
R.Adm. George BelknapApril 1892January 1894
Comm. Thomas O. Selfridge Jr.March 1894October 1895
Comm. George DeweyNovember 1895November 1897
R.Adm. Frederick RodgersOctober 1898February 1901
R.Adm. Robley Dunglison EvansFebruary 1901April 1902
Capt. Charles J. TrainJanuary 1903February 1904
Capt. James H. DaytonFebruary 1904February 1906
R.Adm. Charles StocktonFebruary 1906May 1906
Capt. Hugo OsterhausMay 1906September 1906
R.Adm. Joseph N. HemphillSeptember 1906May 1907
Capt. Richardson CloverMay 1907June 1908
R.Adm. Thomas C. McLeanJune 1908December 1909
Capt. Chauncey ThomasJanuary 1910October 1910
R.Adm. Thomas SnowdenOctober 1910November 1911
Capt. Augustus Francis FechtelerNovember 1911November 1913
Capt. Henry Braid WilsonNovember 1913May 1916
Capt. William A. GillMay 1916October 1918
Capt. George A. KlineOctober 1918July 1921
R.Adm. Charles Peshall PlunkettAugust 1921November 1922
R.Adm. N. A. McCulleyDecember 1922June 1923
R.Adm. Alexander S. HalsteadJune 1923August 1923
R.Adm. G. H. BurrageAugust 1923October 1926
R.Adm. Lucius A. BostwickOctober 1926October 1928
R.Adm. Frank H. BrumbyNovember 1928June 1929
R.Adm. George C. DayJuly 1929September 1929
R.Adm. Sumner Ely Wetmore KittelleSeptember 1929June 1931
R.Adm. George C. DayJune 1931October 1935
R.Adm. J. D. WainwrightOctober 1935May 1937
R.Adm. Harry L. BrinserJuly 1937September 1940
R.Adm. John W. Wilcox Jr.September 1940December 1941
R.Adm. David M. LeBretonDecember 1941November 1942
R.Adm. Walter Stratton AndersonNovember 1942June 1944
R.Adm. Arthur G. RobinsonJune 1944March 1945
R.Adm. Leigh NoyesMarch 1945June 1946
R.Adm. Frank A. BraistedJuly 1946March 1951
R.Adm. Calvin T. DurginMarch 1951September 1951
R.Adm. James H. DoyleSeptember 1951May 1952
R.Adm. John M. HigginsMay 1952May 1954
R.Adm. Richard F. StoutMay 1954June 1959
R.Adm. F. D. McCorkleJune 1959November 1960
R.Adm. Donald C. VarianDecember 1960July 1961
Capt. W.M. RyonAugust 1961November 1961
R.Adm. Eugene B. FluckeyNovember 1961March 1964
R.Adm. Harry L. ReiterMarch 1964June 1967
R.Adm. John D. BulkeleyJune 1967August 1988
Capt. David J. KlinkhamerAugust 1988September 1988
R.Adm. Theodore E. LewinSeptember 1988July 1992
R.Adm. Phillip R. OlsonJuly 1992July 1996
R.Adm. Henry F. HerreraJuly 1996December 1997
R.Adm. John T. Lyons IIIDecember 1997May 1999
R.Adm. William R. SchmidtMay 1999August 2002
R.Adm. Curtis A. KempAugust 2002July 2006
R.Adm. Michael P. NowakowskiJuly 2006April 2007
R.Adm. Raymond Michael KleinApril 2007November 2009
R.Adm. John N. ChristensonNovember 2009March 2011
R.Adm. Robert O. WrayMarch 2011October 2013
R.Adm. Jeffrey A. HarleyOctober 2013October 2014
R.Adm. Michael E. SmithOctober 2014August 2015
R.Adm. Samuel Perez Jr.August 2015July 2016
R.Adm. Jon C. KreitzJuly 2016September 2017
R.Adm. Erik M. RossJune 2017May 2019
R.Adm. Christopher EngdahlMay 2019April 2021
R.Adm. Randall PeckApril 2021Present

See also

References

This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.