An MH-60S Sea Hawk assigned to the Eightballers of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron (HSC) 8 flies next to the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) and the amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA-6) while they transit the Pacific Ocean, Feb. 15, 2020. US Navy photo.
The Navy and the Department of Defense haven’t finished their homework needed to inform how the Navy builds its future fleet, a panel of naval experts told a House panel on Thursday. Read More
Secretary of Defense Mark Esper delivers a speech to students and faculty of the U.S. Naval War College on Aug. 27, 2019. US Navy Photo
Release of the Navy’s long-range shipbuilding plan and service’s plan to grow to at least 355 ships is on indefinite hold on orders from Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, USNI News has learned. Read More
The Honorable Thomas Modly, acting Secretary of the Navy, talks with Capt. John J. Cummings, USS Gerald R. Ford'(CVN 78) commanding officer, in the ship’s pilothouse. Modly embarked Ford after the ship successfully completed Aircraft Compatibility Testing to discuss Ford’s progress and to see the ship operate at sea. US Navy photo.
The Navy’s plans to get to 355 manned ships by 2030 will rely on new classes of ships that don’t exist yet – including new kinds of amphibious and supply ships as well as “lightly manned” ships – the acting Navy secretary told USNI News. Read More
USS America (LHA-6) transits the Pacific Ocean near Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) in 2018. US Navy
THE PENTAGON – Though the Navy had already advertised it was updating its desired fleet size and composition, after a 2016 effort pegged the future fleet at 355 ships, the service is now taking an even bigger step: working on an Integrated Naval Force Structure Assessment that also includes emerging unmanned and expeditionary platforms to support new concepts of warfare, according to a memo signed by the chief of naval operations and commandant of the Marine Corps. Read More
The Sea Hunter, a Medium Displacement Unmanned Surface Vehicle (MDUSV). US Navy Photo
WASHINGTON NAVY YARD – The Navy has a more straightforward path to developing and fielding unmanned surface vessels than many critics realize, according to the admiral in charge of building them. Read More
U.S. Marine Corps AAV-P7/A1 assault amphibious vehicles assigned to Combat Assault Company, 3rd Marine Regiment, unload service members during an amphibious landing demonstration as part of Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise at Pyramid Rock Beach on Marine Corps Base Hawaii July 29, 2018. US Marine Corps photo.
New Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. David Berger outlined his largely naval priorities for the Marine Corps, and he’s willing to shed some key tenets of the Marines’ amphibious force planning in recent years – including the demand for 38 amphibious warships to support a 2 Marine Expeditionary Brigade-sized forcible entry force. Read More
The Ohio-class guided-missile submarine USS Michigan (SSGN-727) arrives in Busan for a regularly scheduled port visit while conducting routine patrols throughout the Western Pacific. US Navy Photo
This post was updated to show the committee passed the draft version of the Fiscal Year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act.
The House Armed Services Committee added several provisions to its annual defense authorization bill, but the among most contentious was if the Pentagon should develop a low-yield nuclear weapon to deploy on nuclear ballistic missile submarines (SSBNs). Read More
