An added bonus for individuals attending the Pensacola-area Navy chief petty officer (CPO) pinning ceremony at the Naval Air Technical Training Center (NATTC) Sept. 16 will be a display of chief's uniforms dating back to World War II.

The uniform display is courtesy of a Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training (CNATT) civilian employee, Information Assurance manager Carter Granat, a 27-year Department of Defense employee.

Having a lifelong affinity with Navy and Marine Corps memorabilia, Granat has amassed a large collection. He said he was more than happy to have five of the uniforms he's collected throughout the years used for display during what will be a pivotal moment in these new chiefs' careers.

"This is an enormous milestone for these Sailors, to be selected for advancement to chief," Granat said. "Although I've never served in the military, my respect and admiration for those who do is something I can't even begin to describe. When I was approached about this year's new chiefs using some of these historic uniforms for presentation during their pinning ceremony, I was honored to contribute - they are the future of the enlisted Navy and if I can in some small way contribute to the monumental step they are taking, I'm more than happy to do so."

Granat loaned five chief petty officer uniforms to Pensacola-area pinning ceremony committee member Chief Aviation Machinist's Mate (AW) James Cunningham, training officer at Naval Air Technical Training Center (NATTC). Included in the five was a very rare gray uniform that was only used by the Navy from 1943-1949.

Cunningham said the uniforms - some of which are more than 75-years-old - represent a look into the past for the CPO selectees.

"For selectees about to be pinned, these are tangible links to the rich heritage that they are going to be a part of; a look at what their brothers wore during a time when the world was markedly different," he said.

The uniforms Granat loaned Cunningham were from the 1940s - CPO service dress blues; a working gray uniform; a service dress khaki uniform; service dress whites and a CPO aviation green uniform. He said his total collection includes numerous original uniforms, more than 3,000 Navy and Marine Corps unit patches and rockers and even a WWII-era ship's hammock.

"I've been working with the Navy since 1988 and my father was a World War II veteran," Granat added. "When I started working for the Navy, I began to realize that some of the younger Sailors and Marines weren't aware of some of the older historic uniforms and insignia and so I felt I could share some of this with them."

While at NATTC as the Information Systems Security Manager from 2004-2013, Granat decorated his spaces with Navy and Marine Corps uniform items and memorabilia and his office became affectionately known as 'the museum.' He said that service members with parents or grandparents visiting would often stop by to show them his collection.

The Naval Air Technical Training Center provides training and increases readiness within the Naval Aviation Enterprise (NAE). The facility graduates approximately 15,000 Navy, Marine and international students annually and is part of the Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training (CNATT), which provides single site management for Navy and Marine Corps aviation technical training.

CNATT is the technical training agent for the Naval Aviation Enterprise (NAE), an organization designed to advance and sustain naval aviation warfighting capabilities at an affordable cost, and is the largest training center under the Naval Education and Training Command.

For more news from Center for Naval Aviation Technical Training, visit www.navy.mil/.