F/A-18E Super Hornet, attached to the Tomcatters of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 31, launches from the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77) on July 31, 2014. US Navy Photo
The House Armed Services tactical air and land subcommittee supports filling the Navy’s and Marine Corps’ unfunded requirements for additional Boeing F-18E/F Super Hornets and Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters (JSF), committee aids told reporters on Wednesday. Read More
U.S. Marines with Special-Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force Crisis Response-Africa board an MV-22 Osprey during an alert force drill on Moron Air Base, Spain, March 13, 2015. US Marine Corps photo.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — As much as the Marine Corps wants to increase its deployment-to-dwell ratio from the current 1:2 to the more sustainable 1:3, Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. John Paxton said that some high-demand units are operating on an even tighter schedule. Read More
Vice Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Michelle Howard and Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps Gen. John Paxton testified at the Senate Armed Services Committee on Wednesday, March 25 and the House Armed Services Committee on Thursday, March 26 to discuss the readiness of the force. US Navy photo.
The House of Representatives may attempt to fund military at the Defense Department’s requested overall level but shift about $20.5 billion to the Overseas Contingency Operations account to get around sequestration-level spending caps – a move that the four service vice chiefs say will not help them improve readiness. Read More
House Armed Services Committee chairman Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Texas)
House Armed Services Committee (HASC) chairman Rep. Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) will file a bill on Wednesday with a slew of proposals meant to smooth out the acquisition process – from helping put the right personnel in place, to simplifying the chain of decision-making, to thinning out regulations and reporting requirements. Read More
A Standard Missile-3 Block 1B interceptor launches from USS Lake Erie in this photo from the record-setting test on Sept. 18, 2013. (Missile Defense Agency photo)
WASHINGTON, D.C. – As demand for regional ballistic missile defense (BMD) capabilities sharply increases, the BMD forces’ operational tempo is trying to keep pace while funding is not – leading defense officials to question if a new BMD strategy is needed. Read More
As the House Armed Services Committee begins its work on the defense authorization bill this year, one in six committee members will have a head start understanding some of the complex issues facing the Navy – 10 of the 63 members served in the Navy or Marine Corps. This first-hand knowledge will prove helpful in figuring out how to balance the military’s needs with the tight budgets they’re given to work with. Read More
A unit for the future aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) rests on the assembly platen at Newport News Shipbuilding on March 5, 2014. US Navy Photo
In their first budget hearing of the year with the House Armed Services Committee (HASC), Navy officials described their Fiscal Year 2016 plans that include speeding up construction of the aircraft carrier USS John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) without changing its delivery date, hurrying to start the USS George Washington (CVN-73) Refueling and Complex Overhaul (RCOH) planning to avoid problems down the road, and abandoning hopes of procuring a third Afloat Forward Staging Base early. Read More
Virginia-class attack submarine Minnesota (SSN-783) under construction in 2012. US Navy Photo
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Navy is looking into the feasibility of accelerating design and development work on the Virginia Payload Module (VPM) in case the service decides to begin production earlier than the 2019 planned start, Navy acquisition chief Sean Stackley said Wednesday at a House Armed Services Committee (HASC) hearing. Read More
The Navy is looking to compete the detail design and construction work for the T-AO(X) class, meant to replace the fleet replenishment oilers, such as the USNS Henry J. Kaiser (T-AO-187) above. US Navy Photo.
The Navy plans to open a limited competition between General Dynamics NASSCO and Huntington Ingalls Industries’ (HII) Ingalls Shipbuilding for work on the LHA-8 amphibious assault ship, the T-AO(X) fleet oiler replacement and the next generation LX(R) dock landing ship replacement – meant to introduce competition as well as more evenly distribute work in the shipbuilding industry, the service told USNI News. Read More
When a quartet of defense budget experts was asked how it would spend the Pentagon’s money now versus last year, they all recognized that “creeping aggression” in Eastern Europe, across the Middle East and into the waters off China is causing them to re-evaluate their positions. Read More
