Postal Clerk (PC) — Discontinued

RATING EVOLUTION

1. // Decommissioned · 2009
   PC
   Postal Clerk
   1948–2009
2. // Active Today · Successor
   LS
   Logistics Specialist
   View active rating →

WHY THE RATING WAS DISCONTINUED

Merged with Storekeeper (SK) and Aviation Storekeeper (AK) into the new Logistics Specialist (LS) rating in 2009.

OVERVIEW

Postal Clerk (PC) was the U.S. Navy's enlisted military-postal rating. PCs operated the Military Postal Service Agency (MPSA) post offices aboard every deployed Navy ship and at every overseas Fleet Post Office (FPO), processing official and personal mail to and from Sailors and Marines. The PC was a small but mission-critical rating: every deployed sailor's link to family, every command's official correspondence, and every overseas operational unit's logistics tail depended on PC postal services.

The rating was disestablished on 1 October 2009 in the SK/AK/PC merger that created the Logistics Specialist (LS) rating. Active-duty PCs converted to LS and the postal mission survives as a specialized LS skill set.

WHAT THEY DID

Postal Clerks operated the ship's or shore command's post office: receiving and dispatching official and personal mail, selling stamps and money orders, processing registered and certified mail, maintaining custody of accountable postal stock, supporting Customs declarations on overseas mail, and providing the deployed crew's primary tangible link home. Senior PCs ran shore FPO facilities and afloat postal divisions.

NOTABLE FOR

• Operated Military Postal Service Agency (MPSA) postal facilities aboard every deployed Navy ship and at every overseas FPO
• Maintained the Navy's official postal lifeline to deployed Sailors for sixty years
• Source rating for the postal-specialty LS NEC pipeline

HISTORY

Postal Clerk was established in 1948. Throughout the Cold War, PCs operated afloat post offices on every deployed combatant, processed Free Mail during Vietnam-era operations, and ran FPO postal facilities at every overseas Navy installation. The PC was bonded under the Postal Inspection Service to handle U.S. Mail and accountable for stamp stock, money orders, and registered mail.

By the late 2000s, with email and digital communications reducing personal-mail volume and with consolidation pressure across the supply community, the Navy chose to merge PC into the new Logistics Specialist rating on 1 October 2009. Postal-specialty work continues today as an LS NEC.

TYPICAL PLATFORMS & UNITS

• Post office aboard every deployed Navy ship
• Fleet Post Offices (FPOs) overseas — Yokosuka, Naples, Bahrain, Rota, Sigonella
• Military Postal Service Agency joint postal activities

HISTORICAL CAREER PATH

1. E-1/E-3
   Apprentice PC
   Recruit Training followed by PC A-school at Defense Information School, Fort Meade, MD; later NTTC Meridian, MS; first tour with a fleet unit.
2. E-4/E-6
   Petty Officer PC
   Lead a PC work-center, qualify in core watchstations, and serve as the rating's section leader.
3. E-7+
   Chief Postal Clerk
   Senior PC leader — Leading Chief Petty Officer of a PC division, instructor at the rating's A-school, or detailer at BUPERS until rating disestablishment in 2009.

SUCCESSOR RATINGS (ACTIVE TODAY)

• LS · Admin & Logistics
  Logistics Specialist

FOR VETERANS & FAMILIES

If a DD-214, retirement order, or family-history document lists the rating PC (Postal Clerk), that is a legitimate U.S. Navy enlisted rating that was disestablished in 2009. Sailors who held this rating served in the admin & logistics community during 1948–2009.

The mission of PC is performed today by Logistics Specialist (LS). For VA benefits, MOS/rating-translator services, or transcript-of-service requests, reference both the historical PC rating code and the modern successor.

Official records: National Personnel Records Center (St. Louis, MO) holds U.S. Navy enlisted service records for veterans separated more than 62 years ago; later records are held by Navy Personnel Command in Millington, TN.

RELATED HISTORICAL RATINGS

Other decommissioned ratings whose mission was absorbed by the same active rating(s) as PC:

• DK · Decom 2005
  Disbursing Clerk
• SK · Decom 2009
  Storekeeper
• AK · Decom 2009
  Aviation Storekeeper

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

• When was the Postal Clerk (PC) rating disestablished?
  The PC rating was disestablished in 2009. Merged with Storekeeper (SK) and Aviation Storekeeper (AK) into the new Logistics Specialist (LS) rating in 2009.
• What rating did Postal Clerk (PC) become?
  The successor rating is logistics specialist. Active-duty PCs converted to the new rating(s) at disestablishment.
• What did a Navy Postal Clerk (PC) do?
  Postal Clerks operated the ship's or shore command's post office: receiving and dispatching official and personal mail, selling stamps and money orders, processing registered and certified mail, maintaining custody of accountable postal stock, supporting Customs declarations on overseas mail, and providing the deployed crew's primary tangible link home. Senior PCs ran shore FPO facilities and afloat postal divisions.
• Can I still claim the PC rating on my record?
  Yes — your DD-214 and Navy service record reflect the rating you held. The PC rating was a valid U.S. Navy enlisted rating from 1948 until 2009, and veterans who served in PC continue to use the rating designation in records, reunions, and veteran-affairs paperwork.

SOURCES

• Naval History and Heritage Command — U.S. Navy Ratings History
• NAVADMIN / OPNAV historical-rating disestablishment notices
• U.S. Navy Enlisted Career Path Reference — Postal Clerk