Category Archives: Iran

USS Makin Island, Marine F-35s Now in Persian Gulf

USS Makin Island, Marine F-35s Now in Persian Gulf

USS Makin Island (LHD-8) and the embarked 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) transit the Strait of Hormuz, Feb. 8, 2021. US Navy Photo

Amphibious warship USS Makin Island (LHD-8) , its Amphibious Ready Group and elements of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit transited the Strait of Hormuz and is now in the Persian Gulf, according to U.S. 5th Fleet. Read More

F-35s, 3 Amphib Warships, 2,500 Marines Operating Closer to Iran; Nimitz Reaches Edge of the South China Sea

F-35s, 3 Amphib Warships, 2,500 Marines Operating Closer to Iran; Nimitz Reaches Edge of the South China Sea

A U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Lightning II, assigned to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 164 (Reinforced), 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, prepares to receive fuel from a KC-10 Extender assigned to the 908th Expeditionary Aircraft Refueling Squadron, during an in-air refueling mission supporting Operation Octave Quartz with armed aerial patrols over Somalia, Jan. 5, 2021. US Air Force Photo

The three-ship Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, the 2,500 Marines of the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit and F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters have taken position in U.S. 5th Fleet in the North Arabian sea and are an easy sail to the Strait of Hormuz, USNI News has learned. Read More

USS Nimitz Heading to West Coast After SECDEF Orders Strike Group Home

USS Nimitz Heading to West Coast After SECDEF Orders Strike Group Home

USS Nimitz (CVN-68) steams in the Indian Ocean on Jan. 6. US Navy Photo

This post was updated to include additional details from U.S. Pacific Fleet.

Aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN-68) is headed to the West Coast after Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin over the weekend ordered the ship and its strike group back home after almost eight months deployed, two U.S. officials confirmed to USNI News. Read More

USNI News Fleet and Marine Tracker: Jan. 25, 2021

USNI News Fleet and Marine Tracker: Jan. 25, 2021

USNI News Graphic

These are the approximate positions of the U.S. Navy’s deployed carrier strike groups and amphibious ready groups throughout the world as of Jan. 25, 2021, based on Navy and public data. In cases where a CSG or ARG is conducting disaggregated operations, the chart reflects the location of the capital ship. Read More

New Counter-Drone Strategy Calls for 'Holistic' Approach Across Services

New Counter-Drone Strategy Calls for ‘Holistic’ Approach Across Services

A U.S. Marine assigned to Special Purpose Marine-Air Ground Task Force – Crisis Response – Central Command, operates a Battelle Drone Defender V2 during counter unmanned aircraft systems (C-UAS) training at the Baghdad Embassy Compound in Iraq, Oct. 9, 2020. US Marine Corps Photo

The Defense Department must employ an all-encompassing agency-wide approach to its strategy for buying and using small drones to combat future threats, according to a new Pentagon document. Read More

USNI News Fleet and Marine Tracker: Jan. 4, 2021

USNI News Fleet and Marine Tracker: Jan. 4, 2021

USNI News Graphic

These are the approximate positions of the U.S. Navy’s deployed carrier strike groups and amphibious ready groups throughout the world as of Jan. 4, 2021, based on Navy and public data. In cases where a CSG or ARG is conducting disaggregated operations, the chart reflects the location of the capital ship. Read More

Pentagon: Carrier USS Nimitz Will Stay in Middle East After Threats from Iran

Pentagon: Carrier USS Nimitz Will Stay in Middle East After Threats from Iran

USS Nimitz (CVN-68), the guided-missile destroyer USS John Paul Jones (DDG-53) sail in formation during a scheduled transit of the Strait of Hormuz on Nov. 9, 2020. US Navy Photo

Aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN-68) and its strike group will remain in the Middle East in the wake of threats from officials in the Iranian government on the one-year anniversary of the U.S. killing of Iranian military leader Qasem Soleimani, the Pentagon announced late Sunday. Read More