Navy officials said they were also working on alleviating “uncertainty” that extended deployments cause sailors and their families.

“Until I can grow the Navy we need … longer deployments are going to be probably part of that,” the Chief of Naval Operations told sailors this week

Navy sailors will no longer know how long they will be deployed for.

“When sailors know how long they’re going to be away from family, they go plan their lives to that, and they can get all those events that would necessarily be in their life — from attending weddings to childbirth to family events to vacations — they know how to go build that into the schedule,” Caudle said.

“But when I just basically extend in these small chunks a little bit time after time, that brings a lot of uncertainty to families,” Caudle added. “I’m working with that along with the other Joint Chiefs to try to get that more defined. I think that’ll improve going forward.”