Artist’s rendering of the Columbia-class SSBN submarine. US Navy Image
This post has been updated to include additional comments on the contract award.
The Navy today awarded a $9.47 billion contract modification to General Dynamics Electric Boat to officially start construction on the first ballistic-missile submarine in the Columbia class of SSBNs. Read More
The following is the Nov. 4, 2019, Congressional Research Service report, Changes in the Arctic: Background and Issues for Congress. Read More
Hull Technician 2nd Class Ronald Bell, from Bronx, N.Y., left, and Hull Technician 3rd Class Shaughnessy O’Day, from Columbus, Ind., weld a light fixture aboard the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Lassen (DDG-82) during a sustainment exercise in 2019. US Navy Photo
A recent Navy report on ship maintenance looked at how factors like yard capacity affect on-time ship repairs but didn’t consider more operational factors such as how well a ship’s crew can contribute to the maintenance work, according to a recent government watchdog report. Read More
The following is the Oct. 29, 2020 Government Accountability Office report, Navy Maintenace: Navy Report Did Not Fully Address Causes of Delays or Results-Oriented Elements. Read More
The following is the Oct. 29, 2020 report, Renewed Great Power Competition: Implications for Defense—Issues for Congress. Read More
Virginia-class fast-attack submarine USS Missouri (SSN-780) on May 31, 2018. US Navy Photo
The Navy’s next attack submarine will feature technology in the Columbia-class program and be significantly larger than the current class of the Virginia-class attack submarines, the chief executive of BWX Technologies said on Monday as part of the company’s third-quarter earnings call. Read More
USS Nimitz (CVN-68) from the pier during a port visit in Duqm, Oman on Sept. 10, 2020. US Navy Photo
The co-chairs of the bipartisan congressional Future of Defense Task Force said America will lose the advanced technology race — from artificial intelligence to biotechnology — with China unless the Pentagon “makes room for new investment” by discarding legacy systems. Read More
Secretary of the Navy Kenneth Braithwaite speaks with U.S. sailors and Marines while visiting HMS Queen Elizabeth at sea off the coast of Flamborough, United Kingdom on Oct. 1, 2020. UK Royal Navy Photo
Navy Secretary Kenneth Braithwaite made a full-throated call for U.S. naval expansion, citing the growing Chinese Navy as the prime driver of the need for a larger fleet. Read More
Virginia-class submarine Delaware (SSN-791) was moved out of a construction facility into a floating dry dock using a transfer car system in 2018. HII Photo
While the Pentagon is calling for the Navy to buy three attack submarines on an annual basis, sub builder General Dynamics Electric Boat isn’t preparing for an increase in production just yet. Read More
This week, the Navy released the second 300 pages of a previously classified investigation into the April 10, 1963 loss of USS Thresher and its crew of 129 sailors off the coast of New England.
A freedom of information lawsuit from retired Navy Capt. James Bryant, a former Thresher-class submarine commander, compelled the Navy to release the documents on a rolling basis starting today. Read More
