The following is the Dec. 10, 2020 Congressional Research Service report, Navy Force Structure and Shipbuilding Plans: Background and Issues for Congress. Read More
Category Archives: Surface Forces
Makin Island ARG, 15th MEU Operating in the Indian Ocean, Likely Headed to the Middle East
U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Christopher Tenney, an aerial observer with Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 164 (Reinforced), 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit, observes U.S. Navy Landing Craft, Air Cushions 39 and 79 assigned to Assault Craft Unit 5 return to the amphibious transport dock ship USS Somerset (LPD-25) during Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) Singapore on Dec. 11, 2020. US Marine Corps Photo
The Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group and the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit are now operating in the Indian Ocean after spending some time in the South China Sea, USNI News has learned. Read More
USNI News Fleet and Marine Tracker: Dec. 14, 2020
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 Dec. 14, 2020, 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
UPDATED: Search Ends for Missing USS Theodore Roosevelt Sailor
Aviation Ordnanceman Airman Apprentice Ethan Garrett Goolsby. viation Ordnanceman Airman Apprentice Ethan Garrett Goolsby Family Photo
The Navy and Coast Guard have ended the search for a sailor believed to have gone overboard from aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) on Thursday, U.S. 3rd Fleet announced. Read More
Marines Demonstrate Ability to Include Carrier-Based F-35Cs in Expeditionary Base Plans
U.S. Marines with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 314 and Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 352, Marine Aircraft Group 11, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, conduct a new expeditionary landing demonstration with M-31 arresting gear Interim Flight Clearance (IFC), on Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, Calif., on Dec. 3, 2020. US Marine Corps Photo
SAN DIEGO, Calif., – The Marine Corps’ first carrier-capable F-35C Lightning II squadron demonstrated, for the first time, the capability to quickly rearm and refuel at expeditionary land bases, a mission key for future island-hopping operations that top leaders envision the U.S. military will face. Read More
UPDATED: White House-Led Navy Shipbuilding Plan Set to Push Boundaries of Pentagon Budgets, Industry Capacity
Island of the aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) is landed onto the flight deck during a mast-stepping ceremony at Huntington Ingalls Industries Newport News Shipbuilding in Newport News, Va., on May 29, 2019. US Navy Photo
This post has been updated with additional information from the Navy, the Office of Management and Budget and reaction from Congress.
The administration today released a long-range Navy shipbuilding plan that is likely to set up a fight for resources between the Navy and its sister services and between the Pentagon and Congress over how quickly to pursue these changes. Read More
Report to Congress on Coast Guard Polar Security Cutter
The following is the Dec. 9, 2020 Congressional Research Service report, Coast Guard Polar Security Cutter (Polar Icebreaker) Program: Background and Issues for Congress. Read More
Makin Island ARG Operating in the South China Sea While Beijing Claims U.S. ‘Muscle Flexing’
Amphibious assault ship USS Makin Island (LHD-8) underway in the eastern Pacific on April 20, 2020. US Navy Photo
Chinese reports accuse the U.S. of “muscle-flexing” after an American amphibious ready group quietly deployed to the South China Sea earlier this week.
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President Macron Announces Start of New French Nuclear Aircraft Carrier Program
An artist’s impression of PANG (Porte Avion Nouvelle Generation, or next-generation aircraft carrier).
French President Emmanuel Macron today officially green-lighted the construction of a new nuclear-powered aircraft carrier as part of the PANG program. The future flagship of the French Navy is intended to replace the existing FS Charles de Gaulle (R91) aircraft carrier around 2038. Read More
Report to Congress on Chinese Naval Modernization
The following is the Dec. 3, 2020, Congressional Research Service Report, China Naval Modernization: Implications for U.S. Navy Capabilities—Background and Issues for Congress. Read More
