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0699E1-E3

Communications Chief

E-1 to E-3 (Junior Enlisted) · Marines

E1–E3E-4E-5E-6E-7E8–E9
HEADS UP

0699 does not exist at the Pvt-to-LCpl level. You are in your primary 06xx MOS — 0612 wireman, 0627 SATCOM operator, 0631 network admin, 0671 data systems admin — and the chief designator is eight to twelve years away. This page tells you what the road looks like and what the Marines who earned 0699 were doing at your rank.

The Honest MOS Read
There is no 0699 Communications Chief at the E-1 to E-3 level. The designator does not exist in the Marine Corps Personnel Management System at this pay grade. You are a Pvt, PFC, or LCpl in one of the source 06xx MOS — 0612 (Wireman/Field Radio Operator), 0627 (SATCOM Operator), 0631 (Network Administrator), or 0671 (Data Systems Administrator) — and the communications chief career path begins with being excellent at the thing you were actually trained to do. This is not a technicality. The 0699 designator is the Marine Corps's way of recognizing that a senior communications NCO has grown past the boundaries of a single 06xx specialty and can lead, plan, and troubleshoot across the full communications capability spectrum: wire, radio, SATCOM, network, data systems, COMSEC. That breadth does not happen at the junior tier. It happens after years of section-level work, deployments, cross-training, and the kind of operational exposure that turns a wireman into someone who can diagnose a SATCOM outage or a network admin into someone who can lay a field wire plan. What matters at your rank is the foundation work in your primary MOS. Learn the gear. Hit the NAVMC 3500.44 individual task standards in your specialty. Handle COMSEC material under the two-person rule per MCO P2000.11 without ever being told twice. Understand the PACE (Primary, Alternate, Contingency, Emergency) concept well enough to explain why every communications plan has four layers. Run a 1st-Class PFT and CFT under MCO 6100.13 — the communications sections hump their equipment across the same terrain as the rifle companies, and a Marine who cannot carry the AN/PRC-117G and the crypto fill device uphill is a Marine who gets replaced on the manifest. The Marines who eventually earn 0699 were not thinking about the chief designator at this rank. They were the ones whose section chief trusted to set up a comms node alone, whose COMSEC accountability was never in question, and who asked the right questions during the AAR about why the alternate comm plan failed — not the ones who were planning career moves before they had earned the right to touch the CEOI unsupervised.
Career Arc
  • 01Complete MOS school in your primary 06xx specialty — Fort Eisenhower (formerly Fort Gordon) for 0631/0671, Camp Pendleton or Camp Lejeune comm schools for 0612/0627.
  • 02Join the communications platoon of an infantry or logistics battalion; learn the section's equipment and the section chief's expectations.
  • 03Pass NAVMC 3500.44 individual tasks in your primary 06xx MOS at the company-level evaluation.
  • 04Earn MCMAP Gray Belt, then Green Belt before Corporals Course.
  • 05Build the technical foundation — equipment operation, preventive maintenance, COMSEC handling — that the Cpl tier builds leadership on.
  • 06Begin watching the cross-capability picture: how does your specialty fit into the battalion's overall communications plan?
Common Screwups
  • ×Treating the communications field as a technical specialty that excuses you from Marine Corps fundamentals. The communications chief who cannot hump, shoot, or read a map is a liability — and the liability starts forming at the junior tier.
  • ×COMSEC violations. Handling keying material outside the two-person rule, leaving a fill device unsecured, or losing accountability of a controlled cryptographic item. At this rank a COMSEC violation ends in NJP and a closed clearance; at the senior ranks it ends the career.
  • ×NJP, DUI, or barracks misconduct that gets you flagged in the system before you have even started building a career. The SSgt selection board reads the full record — everything from PFC forward.
  • ×Ignoring the non-technical Marine Corps requirements (PFT/CFT, rifle qual, MCMAP) because 'I am a tech guy.' The SNCOs who pick future 0699s are looking for Marines, not technicians who happen to wear the uniform.

A Day in the Life

  • 0500Wake. PT gear on. Check the platoon group chat for overnight equipment alerts or accountability issues.
  • 0530PT formation. Report to the section chief for accountability. Fall in with the communications platoon.
  • 0545-0700Unit PT. Run, strength, or MCMAP day depending on the platoon schedule. The communications platoon humps with the battalion — the fitness standard is not academic.
  • 0700-0830Hygiene, chow, change into cammies. Check your equipment space before morning formation.
  • 0830Morning formation. Section chief gives the day's tasking. You receive your work assignment — equipment maintenance, training, working party, or field prep.
  • 0900-1130Work call. Could be equipment maintenance in the comm shop, NAVMC 3500.44 individual task training with the section, field wire installation practice, or motor-pool support. The variety depends on the training schedule and what the S6 needs done.
  • 1130-1300Chow.
  • 1300-1500Afternoon work. Continue the morning task, or shift to a different tasking — working party, PME study, barracks cleanup, armory duty, or section equipment inventory.
  • 1500-1630Final formation. Sensitive items check. Next-day brief from the section chief. Liberty call if the company is on normal schedule.
  • 1630-2200Personal time. Gym, PME study, barracks life. The good Marine uses the time: study for the Corporals Course, work on civilian college through Tuition Assistance, or do a second PT session.

Weekly Cadence

The weekly rhythm at the junior 06xx tier depends heavily on the unit's training cycle. In garrison, Monday through Friday is a mix of equipment maintenance, section training against NAVMC 3500.44 individual tasks, working parties, motor-pool details, and whatever the S6 needs done that week. The training schedule rotates through communications-specific work (equipment setup and teardown drills, COMSEC handling practice, field wire installation, network configuration labs) and Marine Corps fundamentals (PT, rifle range, MCMAP, PME). Field exercises compress the week entirely. During a battalion field exercise or MEU PTP event, you are setting up and tearing down communications nodes, running cable, operating equipment under the section chief's direction, pulling watch in the comm center, and sleeping when the section chief rotates you out. The ITX rotation at Twentynine Palms or the MEU workup cycle are the events that define the year — everything else is preparation for them. The administrative rhythm — proficiency and conduct marks, MCMAP belt scheduling, Corporals Course prerequisites, PFT/CFT dates — runs in the background. The section chief tracks it for you at this rank; by the Cpl tier you are expected to track it yourself.

Key Skills — How to Drill Each

  1. 01
    Master the technical fundamentals of your primary 06xx MOS to the NAVMC 3500.44 individual task standard.
    This is the only thing that matters at this rank. Whether you are terminating CAT-5 runs, configuring a SATCOM terminal, building a VLAN on a Cisco switch, or managing a Windows Server environment, the section chief evaluates you against the T&R manual. Print the individual tasks for your MOS from NAVMC 3500.44. Walk each one with the senior LCpl in the section. Practice the ones you are weakest on during the dead hours. The Marine who passes the company-level evaluation on the first attempt is the Marine the section chief stops checking on.
  2. 02
    Handle COMSEC material under the two-person rule per MCO P2000.11 without exception.
    COMSEC accountability is the non-negotiable. Two persons, two signatures, every time — keying material, fill devices, controlled cryptographic items. There is no 'the section chief was busy' exception. There is no 'I was just moving it ten feet' exception. The investigation paperwork does not care about your reasons. Practice the handling procedures until they are reflexive. If the other person is not present, the material does not move.
  3. 03
    Understand the PACE planning concept well enough to explain it to a non-communications Marine.
    PACE — Primary, Alternate, Contingency, Emergency — is the backbone of every communications plan in the Marine Corps. At this rank you do not write the PACE plan; you execute the pieces of it your section chief assigns. But understanding why the plan has four layers, and what happens when each one fails, is the difference between a technician who follows checklists and a communications Marine who understands the mission. Ask the section chief to walk you through the battalion's PACE plan after the next field exercise.
  4. 04
    Execute preventive maintenance on section equipment and complete the maintenance log accurately.
    The maintenance log is the section chief's read on whether the equipment is mission-ready. An incomplete log — missing a check, missing a date, missing a signature — is a grounded piece of equipment waiting to happen. Complete the log before returning gear to the rack. Check the log against the actual equipment condition. The section chief who walks in Monday morning and finds clean, accurate logs is the section chief who trusts you with more.

Manuals & References — What Chapters Matter

  • NAVMC 3500.44 — Communications Training and Readiness Manual
    The T&R manual contains the individual task standards your section chief evaluates you against. At the junior tier, you are being evaluated on the basic operator-level tasks for your primary 06xx MOS. Print the individual tasks chapter for your specialty and keep it accessible. The section chief quotes it; the platoon sergeant grades against it.
  • MCWP 6-10 — Marine Corps Communications
    The doctrinal framework for how all 06xx capabilities integrate into a MAGTF communications plan. At this rank you are not expected to master it — but reading the overview chapter gives you context for why your section exists and how your primary MOS fits into the bigger picture. The Marines who eventually become communications chiefs started reading this early.
  • MCO P2000.11 — Marine Corps COMSEC Policy
    Every 06xx Marine handles COMSEC material. This order governs the two-person rule, the handling procedures, the accountability chain, and the destruction requirements. At this rank, you follow it; at the senior ranks, you enforce it. Know the two-person rule and the controlled-item handling procedures cold.
  • MCO 6100.13 — Marine Corps Physical Fitness Program
    Your PFT and CFT standard. The communications sections hump their equipment across the same terrain as the rifle companies. A 1st-Class PFT is the bar, not the goal.

Standards — How to Hit Each

  • 1st-Class PFT and CFT under MCO 6100.13.
    The communications platoon displaces with equipment — radios, terminals, server racks, cable drums, crypto — across the same terrain as the infantry. A Marine who cannot carry the load is a Marine who gets replaced on the manifest. PT five days a week: three strength, two cardio. Ruck once a week with the section if the platoon schedule allows.
  • MCMAP Gray Belt before LCpl; Green Belt before Corporals Course board.
    Belt progression signals self-discipline. The section chief and platoon sergeant track it. Schedule the Gray Belt with the company MCMAP instructor within your first 90 days. Green Belt before you sit the Corporals Course board — the cutting-score composite counts it.
  • Pass NAVMC 3500.44 individual tasks in your primary 06xx MOS at the first company-level evaluation.
    The individual tasks are the technical gate. Study them with the senior LCpl. Practice the hands-on tasks until you can do them without a cheat sheet. One re-run is recoverable. Two re-runs and the section chief is writing it into your proficiency marks.
  • Zero COMSEC discrepancies on any keying material or controlled cryptographic item you handle.
    Two persons, two signatures, every time. No exceptions. The investigation does not care about your reasons.

Technical Mistakes — Concrete Consequences

  • Handling COMSEC material outside the two-person rule because the section chief was not available.
    The COMSEC investigation is automatic. NJP is the minimum. Your clearance is reviewed. The section chief who trusted you with the material writes you out of the section's COMSEC handling list, and the trust takes a year to rebuild if it rebuilds at all.
  • Skipping the preventive maintenance log because the equipment worked fine when you returned it.
    The section chief walks in Monday morning, the equipment fails on power-up, and the last maintenance log entry is three weeks old with your name on it. The investigation is short: you signed for it, you returned it, you did not log the condition. The platoon sergeant knows your name now.
  • Posting information about communications infrastructure, equipment capabilities, or network architecture on social media.
    The ISSM and S2 run social media sweeps. A photo of a SATCOM terminal with a visible frequency, a network diagram on a whiteboard behind your selfie, or a geotagged image from a field communications node is an OPSEC violation that reaches the company commander within 48 hours. The communications field handles classified and sensitive infrastructure by definition — the social media rules are tighter than they are for most MOS.

Career Decisions at This Rank

  • Which primary 06xx MOS to focus on (if you have any choice in the assignment pipeline).
    In practice you do not choose your primary MOS — the assignment pipeline chooses for you based on ASVAB scores, training seat availability, and the needs of the Marine Corps. But understanding the four primary source MOS for 0699 matters: 0612 (wireman/field radio) is the most physically demanding and the closest to the infantry operating environment; 0627 (SATCOM) is technically specialized and relatively small; 0631 (network admin) is the largest community and the most directly translatable to civilian IT; 0671 (data systems admin) is server and system-level work. All four feed into the 0699 pipeline at the senior NCO level. Your primary MOS shapes your early career; the communications chief designator eventually transcends it.
  • Reenlistment at first EAS — stay in the 06xx field or ETS.
    The first reenlistment decision at the LCpl or Cpl tier is the gate to the senior-NCO pipeline. ETSing with one contract of 06xx experience puts you in the civilian IT or telecommunications market at the entry level — the certifications and clearance have value, but the experience is junior. Reenlisting opens the Sgt timeline, the section chief billet, and the path toward 0699 — but the path is eight to twelve years from here. The SRB tier and bonus for your primary 06xx MOS are published in current MARADMIN messages; pull the current numbers before you sit with the career planner.
  • Civilian certifications through Tuition Assistance and credentialing programs.
    The Marine Corps Credentialing Opportunities Online (COOL) program and Tuition Assistance fund certifications that are directly relevant to 06xx work and to the post-service market: CompTIA Security+, Network+, CCNA, Microsoft certifications, and ITIL. Start early. The certifications compound — both for the post-service market and for the composite score that feeds the Sgt cutting score. The Marines who earn 0699 later typically had civilian certifications stacking from the LCpl tier forward.

How the Seat Varies by Unit Type

  • Infantry battalion communications platoon (1st/2d/3d MarDiv)
    The default 06xx junior assignment. You are in the battalion S6's communications platoon supporting rifle companies. The work is physically demanding — you hump equipment to the same field positions the rifle companies occupy. The OPTEMPO follows the MEU rotation cycle. You are closest to the tactical edge and the furthest from a comfortable server room.
  • Communications battalion (Marine Corps Communication-Electronics School at Twentynine Palms)
    Larger communications unit with more specialization. You work more deeply in your primary 06xx MOS with more equipment and more senior technical supervision. The training environment is more structured. The drawback: you may not see the tactical integration with the rifle companies until your next assignment.
  • MEU communications element (afloat)
    Forward-deployed on the MEU with the amphibious shipping. The communications element supports the MEU command element and the BLT. Space is tight, equipment is limited, and the operational tempo during contingency response windows is high. The upside: the MEU deployment is the formative operational experience for 06xx Marines.
  • Wing communications support (MAW units)
    Supporting Marine Aircraft Wing operations. The communications work skews more toward network and data systems than field wire and tactical radio. The environment is more garrison-stable. You see less fieldwork but more complex network architecture.

What Good Looks Like at This Rank

The good junior Marine on the 0699 track does not know he is on the 0699 track. He is the LCpl the section chief trusts to set up a communications node with one other Marine and come back with the node up, the maintenance log completed, and the COMSEC accounted for. His primary MOS tasks are passed on the first evaluation. His PFT is 1st-Class. His rifle qual is Expert. His MCMAP belt is on schedule. He does not talk about becoming a communications chief. He asks questions during the AAR about why the alternate comm plan failed. He reads the PACE plan on the company's white board and notices when the contingency frequency changed. He helps the Cpl run the PCC/PCI without being told. The section chief has already mentioned his name to the platoon sergeant as someone who might be worth tracking — and the platoon sergeant has filed it away for the Corporals Course slate.

Preview — The Next Rank

The Cpl tier is where you transition from technician to NCO. You will own a small team — two to four Marines — and a segment of the communications plan. You will run PCC/PCIs, write proficiency and conduct marks, train junior Marines against NAVMC 3500.44 individual tasks, and troubleshoot when the section chief is not in the room. The jump is the same in the communications field as it is everywhere else in the Corps: it is not enough to be the best technician. You have to make the Marines under you better technicians while continuing to perform. The Corporals Course is gated and the Sgt cutting score moves whether you are watching it or not. The good Cpl on the 0699 track is the NCO who starts looking past the boundaries of his primary MOS — who asks the SATCOM Cpl how the link works, who watches the network admin configure the switch, who reads the battalion communications order instead of just the section tasking. The communications chief identity begins forming here, even though the designator is years away.
FAQ

0699 E1-E3 — Frequently Asked Questions

Q01What does a E1-E3 0699 (Communications Chief) actually do?
The 0699 designator is awarded at senior NCO grades to Marines who have proven themselves across the 06xx communications field — 0612 wiremen, 0627 SATCOM operators, 0631 network admins, 0671 data systems admins — and who are taking on communications chief billets that span the full spectrum of those capabilities.
Q02What's the most important thing to know as a E1-E3 0699?
0699 does not exist at the Pvt-to-LCpl level.
Q03What does a typical day look like for a E1-E3 0699?
Time-blocked day at the E1-E3 0699 rank tier: 0500 Wake. PT gear on. Check the platoon group chat for overnight equipment alerts or accountability issues, 0530 PT formation. Report to the section chief for accountability. Fall in with the communications platoon, 0545-0700 Unit PT. Run, strength, or MCMAP day depending on the platoon schedule. The communications platoon humps with the battalion — the fitness standard is not academic, 0700-0830 Hygiene, chow, change into cammies. Check your equipment space before morning formation, 0830 Morning formation. Section chief gives the day's tasking.…
Q04What mistakes get E1-E3 0699 soldiers fired or relieved?
Treating the communications field as a technical specialty that excuses you from Marine Corps fundamentals. The communications chief who cannot hump, shoot, or read a map is a liability — and the liability starts forming at the junior tier; COMSEC violations. Handling keying material outside the two-person rule, leaving a fill device unsecured, or losing accountability of a controlled cryptographic item. At this rank a COMSEC violation ends in NJP and a closed clearance;…
Q05What career decisions matter most at the E1-E3 0699 rank tier?
Which primary 06xx MOS to focus on (if you have any choice in the assignment pipeline) — In practice you do not choose your primary MOS — the assignment pipeline chooses for you based on ASVAB scores, training seat availability, and the needs of the Marine Corps. But understanding the four primary source MOS for 0699 matters: 0612 (wireman/field radio) is the most physically demanding and the closest to the infantry operating environment; 0627 (SATCOM) is technically specialized and relatively small;…
Q06What's next after E1-E3 for a 0699 (Communications Chief) in the Marines?
The Cpl tier is where you transition from technician to NCO.
Q07What manuals and regulations does a E1-E3 0699 need to know cold?
NAVMC 3500.44 — Communications Training and Readiness Manual (the individual task standard for every 06xx Marine at the junior tier; your section chief evaluates against this).; MCWP 6-10 — Marine Corps Communications (the doctrinal framework for how all 06xx capabilities fit together into an integrated MAGTF communications plan).; MCO P2000.11 — Marine Corps COMSEC policy (you handle keying material and controlled cryptographic items across every 06xx specialty; know the two-person rule cold).

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Published by the Honest MOS Editorial DeskVerified against DoD/.gov sourcesUpdated May 2026Editorial standards