A crane moves the lower stern into place on the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) at Huntington Ingalls Shipbuilding in Newport News, Va. on June 22, 2017. HII Photo
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Spending more money now to increase the Navy’s fleet size will signal to potential adversaries their victory at sea is not possible, but accomplishing this is neither cheap nor quick, a quartet of experts told a Senate panel on Tuesday. Read More
Sailors assigned to the Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate USS Elrod (FFG-55) pose for a photo in front of the ship before her decommissioning ceremony at Naval Station Norfolk in 2015. US Navy Photo
WASHINGTON, D.C. – While all options are on the table in the Navy’s push to field a 355-ship fleet, when it comes to reactivating ships in the inactive fleet, the service is realistically only looking at seven decommissioned Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigates (FFG-7), Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson told USNI News on Thursday. Read More
USS Kauffman (FFG 59) decommissioning ceremony in 2015. US Navy Photo
Studies are underway to “take a hard look” at putting eight mothballed Oliver Hazard Perry frigates back into service as well as extending the life of existing Arleigh Burke guided-missile destroyers to help the Navy reach its goal of a 355-ship fleet, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson said on Tuesday. Read More
USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70), left, transits the East China Sea with the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Takanami-class destroyer JS Sazanami (DD-113), the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Murasame-class destroyer JS Samidare (DD-106) and the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Wayne E. Meyer (DDG-108) on March 9, 2017. US Navy Photo
A panel of lawmakers heard a preview of the debate the Navy will soon face, regarding whether its future fleet will be made up of today’s staples – the aircraft carrier, surface combatants and nuclear-powered attack submarines – or whether those proven systems could be swapped for new platforms. Read More
US Army paratroopers from the 173rd Airborne Brigade embark aboard the Royal Navy amphibious helicopter carrier HMS Ocean during exercise Baltic Operations (BALTOPS) 2015 on June 9, 2015. US Navy Photo
Stationing more U.S. forces forward is key to reshaping the American military to deter future Russian and Chinese ambitions in Europe and the Pacific and it can be done now, four defense experts told the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday. Read More
Cryptologic Technician (Technical) 2nd Class Jonathan Morel, assigned to USS Michael Murphy (DDG-112), uses a radar tracking system to track surface contacts on Jan. 30, 2017. US Navy Photo
Three congressionally mandated studies outline what the Navy of 2030 could look like and present three very different takes on how the service could tackle its roles and responsibilities in the future. Read More
Lance Cpl. Nick Cox, a powerliner assigned to Marine All Weather Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA(AW)) 242 performs maintenance on an F/A-18D Hornet. US Marine Corps Photo
Three budget experts told the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday future defense budget priorities must be focused on readiness and modernization. Read More
Ralph Johnson (DDG-114) launching at the Huntington Ingalls Industries shipyard on Dec. 12, 2015. HII Photo
An ongoing force structure assessment and the goals of the next presidential administration will likely give the service’s latest long-range shipbuilding plan an unusually short shelf life. Read More
A Jan. 24, 2016 image of Cuarteron Reef in the South China Sea with what is likely a high frequency radar array. CSIS Asian Maritime Transparency Initiative, DigitalGlobe Image used with permission.
This post has been updated to include additional comments from the Department of Defense.
A possible new Chinese radar installation in the South China Sea could put American and allied stealth aircraft at risk as part of a wider detection network similar to U.S. efforts to find Russian bombers in the Cold War. Read More
U.S. Capitol on July 31, 2015, NASA Photo
Rethinking the role of the regional combatant commands, cutting the Pentagon’s support structure and putting the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff back in the operational chain of command structure were ideas offered to the Senate Armed Services Committee Tuesday as it revisited the almost 30-year-old Goldwater-Nichols Act. Read More
