Greenwood said Kowalske’s empowerment of the leading petty officers in the departments was a great contribution to the crew. During the patrol, Legare steamed over 12,000 nautical miles, interdicted one go-fast vessel off the coast of Cap- Haïtien, Haiti, and intercepted 20 migrants making a very dangerous journey. “The day we intercepted a migrant vessel that refused to heave-to when ordered by the boarding team, he really stepped up for what became a highly intricate surface use- of-force case involving live disabling fire,” said Greenwood. “That’s the time when the captain has a million things to manage, including briefing up to the appropriate chains of command and ensuring all of the policy requirements are met, so the XO has to step-up and remain hyper focused on the safety of the ship and the operation itself.” “Ryan was like a kid in a candy store,” he said. “He immediately went to the bridge and took over coaching the conning officer, put us right in line with the other vessel, got the small boats launched, issued warnings. Turns out, he’s an impeccable ship driver and operationally savvy. He hasn’t lost a beat.” Throughout the patrol, Kowalske watched the non-rates skillfully lower the small boats in heavy seas, encouraged the junior officers to try their hand at bringing the Legare alongside the pier for mooring evolutions, and gave the maritime enforcement specialists the responsibility of making the plan for embarking migrants. He said the crew appreciated the opportunity to take charge without dreading occasional mistakes. With issues from technology challenges to personnel policies, Greenwood and Kowalske worked with the crew to trust their own expertise. “So often the first classes picked up a challenge, ran with it, and presented a solution,” said Kowalske. “That’s what we want to get to—they’re already doing the work, so if we enable them to do some of the decision making, that’s a win-win.” Greenwood said that Kowalske’s use of technology was a highlight of the trip, especially in one instance. “The one thing that will outlive him is the major overhaul he did to the in-port watch rotation—it’s absolutely the worst part of being a cutterman, in-port overnight duty!” said Greenwood. “On Legare, we’ve rarely been better than a one in five rotation for our most junior people, but [Kowalske] revamped the entire process. He looked at the Atlantic Area’s in-port policies, double checked the manuals, identified some cross-qualifications Lt. Cmdr. Kowalske (right), points something out to a junior officer from the bridge wing aboard Legare. Photo courtesy Lt. Lydia Renfrow — WINTER 2024 16
