At the age of 27, senior lieutenant Nguyen Tien Duy has become head of the maritime department of one of the most modern battleships of Vietnam.

In the childhood he watched TV and saw navy soldiers performing their duties.

He was born in Hai Hau, Nam Dinh, where the sea is just several kilometers from his house. He studied at Thinh Long High School, which is even nearer to the sea. This helped create his strong will and determination to work on ships and reach the sea and islands of the fatherland.

In September 2013, Duy joined the army and was trained at the Army Officer School No 2. Later, he studied at Naval Academy majoring in navigation. In August 2018, he graduated from the school and was awarded the rank of lieutenant, and became head of the maritime department of Ship 374, Squadron 414, Brigade 162, Naval Region 4.

In July 2019, he was appointed head of the maritime department of Ship 016 - Quang Trung, Brigade 162, Naval Region 4.

Working on a modern battleship when still young, Duy feels pressure, which is unavoidable. He needs to apply the knowledge he received from school, and command, manage and assign tasks to subordinates, including ones older than him, so that subordinates have confidence in his instructions. The initial pressure was tempered during the time working at Brigade162, or ‘Iron Brigade’.

The battleship is equipped with a lot of modern equipment, which requires him to master and proficiently to meet the requirements. “That gives me pressure but also motivates me to try my best to study well to master the equipment, along with further improving my political skill and spirit to fulfill my tasks," Duy said.

Regarding the construction of the revolutionary, regular, elite and modern Navy, Duy said this is no longer a pressure, but an opportunity for him in particular and young people in general to access modern equipment, and contribute to protection of the maritime sovereignty and the sacred continental shelf of the fatherland.

For Duy, every trip is memorable, from the trips when he studied at school to the ones to implement missions. He performed many important missions, including defence foreign affairs in Cambodia, Thailand and Russia, reconnaissance in Truong Sa (Spratly) Archipelago area, DK-I platforms, and joint drilling with Australian Royal Army.

In August 2021, Duy and his team of Quang Trung 016 Ship attended the Army Games in Russia.

When they were assigned the task, they had to think carefully and discuss to prepare and build a training plan to prepare for the games. Since March 2021, the team has had five concentrated training periods.

Duy and his team controlled the ship and together with it went through 5,000 nautical miles and territorial waters of many countries before reaching the waters of Vladivostok in Russia.

On August 26, 2021, the team took the navigation skill exam, the final exam subject of Vietnam’s Navy. Though the team members well prepared before the exam, they still felt tension. And finally, they successfully completed the mission with an implementation time of 25 minutes and 43 seconds.

This was the first time Vietnam’s Navy had attended the Army Games and competed in subjects which are the strength of military powerhouses. However, with the strong determination of Vietnamese officers, they won the silver medal. Meanwhile, Duy, Head of the Maritime Department, Ship 016 - Quang Trung (Brigade 162, Naval Region 4), was awarded the “Best Individual Maritime Leader Award” by the organizing committee.

Facing difficulties, Duy and his team made every effort to compete for Vietnam’s colors. The team and its ship vowed to compete well at the games to deserve the expectations put on them by the country and people. 

Tran Thuong

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