Storekeeper (SK) — Discontinued

RATING EVOLUTION

1. // Decommissioned · 2009
   SK
   Storekeeper
   1797–2009
2. // Active Today · Successor
   LS
   Logistics Specialist
   View active rating →

WHY THE RATING WAS DISCONTINUED

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

OVERVIEW

Storekeeper (SK) was one of the oldest U.S. Navy enlisted ratings, traceable to 1797 when the first storekeepers were appointed to manage shipboard provisions and stores. For more than two centuries the SK operated the ship's Supply Department: requisitioning parts and consumables, maintaining the shipboard inventory, issuing repair-part stock to maintenance ratings, and running the storeroom and supply-issue windows aboard every Navy ship and at every shore supply activity.

The rating was disestablished on 1 October 2009 when the Navy consolidated its surface-supply (SK), aviation-supply (AK), and postal (PC) ratings into a single Logistics Specialist (LS) rating. The merger was the largest single consolidation in modern Navy enlisted history and produced the current LS — the Navy's primary supply, logistics, and postal rating.

WHAT THEY DID

Storekeepers managed the ship's repair-parts inventory and consumable stores; requisitioned and received material; issued parts to maintenance ratings; maintained the COSAL and shipboard inventory records in supply-management systems; ran the Hazardous Material (HAZMAT) program; processed surveys and turn-ins; and supported wholesale and retail supply at shore commands. Senior SKs ran the supply department's S-1 stockroom or S-8 supply-and-fiscal divisions.

NOTABLE FOR

• One of the oldest enlisted ratings in the U.S. Navy, dating to the founding of the service
• Operated every ship's supply department for over two centuries
• Source rating for the modern Logistics Specialist (LS) — the Navy's largest supply rating

HISTORY

Storekeepers have served in the U.S. Navy since the earliest frigate era of 1797, originally appointed to manage powder, provisions, and stores aboard the Continental and early U.S. Navy ships. The rating evolved through the age of sail, the steam era, and both World Wars as the Navy's central inventory-control specialty. By the Cold War, SKs ran the entire afloat supply department — managing the shipboard repair-parts inventory under the Coordinated Shipboard Allowance List (COSAL), processing requisitions through the Uniform Automated Data Processing System (UADPS), and supporting deployed operational logistics.

The rating was disestablished on 1 October 2009 as part of a Chief of Naval Operations directive consolidating supply ratings: SK + AK + PC merged into the new Logistics Specialist (LS). The convergence eliminated parallel surface and aviation supply pipelines and produced a single cross-trained logistics force.

TYPICAL PLATFORMS & UNITS

• Supply department aboard every Navy ship
• Naval Supply Systems Command (NAVSUP) field activities
• Forward Logistics Sites and Defense Logistics Agency depots

HISTORICAL CAREER PATH

1. E-1/E-3
   Apprentice SK
   Recruit Training followed by SK A-school at Naval Technical Training Center, Meridian, MS; first tour with a fleet unit.
2. E-4/E-6
   Petty Officer SK
   Lead a SK work-center, qualify in core watchstations, and serve as the rating's section leader.
3. E-7+
   Chief Storekeeper
   Senior SK leader — Leading Chief Petty Officer of a SK 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 SK (Storekeeper), 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 1797–2009.

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

• DK · Decom 2005
  Disbursing Clerk
• AK · Decom 2009
  Aviation Storekeeper
• PC · Decom 2009
  Postal Clerk

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

• When was the Storekeeper (SK) rating disestablished?
  The SK rating was disestablished in 2009. Merged with Aviation Storekeeper (AK) and Postal Clerk (PC) into the new Logistics Specialist (LS) rating in 2009.
• What rating did Storekeeper (SK) become?
  The successor rating is logistics specialist. Active-duty SKs converted to the new rating(s) at disestablishment.
• What did a Navy Storekeeper (SK) do?
  Storekeepers managed the ship's repair-parts inventory and consumable stores; requisitioned and received material; issued parts to maintenance ratings; maintained the COSAL and shipboard inventory records in supply-management systems; ran the Hazardous Material (HAZMAT) program; processed surveys and turn-ins; and supported wholesale and retail supply at shore commands. Senior SKs ran the supply department's S-1 stockroom or S-8 supply-and-fiscal divisions.
• Can I still claim the SK rating on my record?
  Yes — your DD-214 and Navy service record reflect the rating you held. The SK rating was a valid U.S. Navy enlisted rating from 1797 until 2009, and veterans who served in SK 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 — Storekeeper