Yep, sounds like a gung ho zero to me. Probably made Lt Cmdr by now.

I had little use of zeros (officers) during my tour. Basically they were around to make a mundane job truly dreary. Imagine being told how to paint a gray ship with more gray paint.

Your story reminds me of a Cheech and Chong movie line referring to code name "Hard Hat"..."Do you know who is this is???"