By 1928 the Naval Staff College at Greenwich was engaged in turning out year by year officers trained for duty on admirals' staffs at sea or for the lower staff appointments at the Admiralty, and already this training is beginning to make itself felt as Staff College graduates are beginning to reach more senior rank.
The old antipathy towards a naval staff has died down, and most flag officers to-day make use of their staffs as a matter of course in the same way that general officers in the army have done for many years past. At the Admiralty (q.v.) there is a fully equipped staff, the head of which is the First Sea Lord (Chief of the Naval Staff), whose business it is to study the problems of defence and to prepare in advance for any emergencies which may arise. This staff also forms the nucleus of the far larger organi sation which the World War proved to be necessary on the out break of hostilities. Incidentally, too, it provides the necessary machinery for close co-operation with the staffs of the other two fighting Services. The three professional heads of those Services meet from time to time as a Chief of Staffs Committee, where matters are discussed and joint proposals formulated in prepara tion, if need be, for meetings of the Committee of Imperial De fence (see NAVAL STRATEGY AND TACTICS).
Apart from its other advantages, the staff system, as it works to-day at the Admiralty, provides a body of officers whose energies are not absorbed by questions of material and supplies, these being dealt with by other departments. Nevertheless, even here there is the necessary co-ordination to ensure that plans, prepa rations, construction and supplies should march hand in hand.
(E. A.) United States.—An act of Congress of Feb. 14, 1903, created a General Staff Corps and provided for the appointment of a Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army. No similar corps or Naval Staff has ever been authorized for the U.S. Navy, but an act of Con gress of March 3, 1915, provided for the appointment of a Chief of Naval Operations specifically charged, under the direction of the Secretary of the Navy, with the operations of the fleet and with the preparation and readiness of plans for its use in war. In a general way the Chief of Naval Operations holds a position in the naval establishment corresponding to that of the Chief of Staff of the Army, but there are many and important differences in the duties and responsibilities of these two officers. The Chief
of Naval Operations is appointed by the President by and with the consent of the Senate for a term of four years. The position carries with it the rank of admiral and precedence over all other officers in the naval service.
The Chief of Naval Operations is charged under the Secretary of the Navy with the organization, operation and training of the fleet and its readiness for war. He co-ordinates matters relating to repairs, alterations, docking, manning and outfitting of ships, and determines their military characteristics. He prepares war plans, drill books, signal codes and naval regulations. He directs movements, manoeuvres, strategical and tactical matters, drills and exercises. He advises on the position, capacity and protection of navy yards, naval stations, fuel reserves, radio stations and other reserves and supplies. He handles naval matters touching on foreign relations and performs other duties as set forth by naval regulations, or as directed by the Secretary of the Navy In order to carry on the varied and detailed duties imposed on the Chief of Naval Operations his office is divided into a number of divisions or sections whose functions are indicated in a general way by their designations as follows : policy and liaison, war plans, naval intelligence, naval districts, fleet training, ma terial, ships' movements, inspection, naval communications and secretarial. Each of these sections or divisions is headed by a flag officer or captain of the line of the Navy except the Secretarial Division which is in charge of the Chief Clerk of Naval Opera tions. A flag officer is detailed as Assistant Chief of Naval Opera tions. In addition to the immediate activities outlined above, the Chief of Naval Operations has general cognizance over the Naval War College at Newport, R.I., and is a member of the Joint Army and Navy Board, the Advisory Council of the Secretary of the Navy, and senior member of the General Board.