An Oshkosh-built Remotely Operated Ground Unit for Expeditionary (ROGUE) Fires vehicle with a Naval Strike Missile attached during a November 2020 test at Point Mugu, Calif. US Navy Photo
The Marines added two different types of anti-ship missiles for $153.8 million to the top of their $2.95 billion Unfunded Priorities List to Congress, USNI News has learned. Read More
A U.S. Marine with Marine Rotational Force-Europe 20.1, Marine Forces Europe and Africa, adjusts his pack after before a hike near Sorreisa, Norway, March 12, 2020. US Marine Corps Photo
The head of NATO’s maritime force says amphibious operations will play a big role in any future combat or crisis response scenario – but he wants to move beyond old notions of what an amphibious operation really is. Read More
U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Tyrell Lewis, a student in the Detachment Hawaii Enhanced Squad Leader Course, aims a dummy rocket launcher at the rocket station, one of twelve stations in the initial performance assessment portion of the course, Marine Corps Base Hawaii, April 8, 2021. The course is an experimental proof of concept, with the intent of modernizing training and providing squad leaders with new capabilities. US Marine Corps photo.
The chief of naval operations and commandant of the Marine Corps say they are increasingly clear on how they’d want to fight a peer adversary, what attributes would make their forces successful and what platforms they need to equip that force. Now, they just need help from Congress turning that into a budget everyone can agree upon, they say. Read More
U.S. Marines with 3d Battalion, 8th Marine Regiment, 3d Marine Division, load CH-53E Super Stallions with 1st Marine Aircraft Wing during Castaway 21.1 on Ie Shima, Okinawa, Japan, March 16, 2021. US Marine Corps Photo
After honing naval integration and then exercising in the Indo-Pacific with the joint force, the Marine Corps is ready to take its new island-hopping campaign concept to the next level by drilling with international allies and partners. Read More
Austal USA rendering of steel facility at its Alabama shipyard. Austal USA Image
The Austal USA shipyard in Alabama that specializes in aluminum ship construction is officially on its way to also offering steel ships, breaking ground on a new facility on Friday meant to open up new business opportunities with the Navy and Coast Guard in the short term. Read More
Terrance Wells, from San Diego, ties straps for a containment project on the flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) on Oct. 26, 2020. US Navy Photo
A panel of Navy experts is hopeful that discussions around the future naval fleet will focus on big-picture questions – how will the Navy and the nation pay for modernizing the sealift fleet, do unmanned craft count as ships, and how does the sea service balance the needs of small and large shipyards as it builds and maintains the fleet – instead of getting stuck on debates over exactly how many ships of each class the Navy needs for its future force design. Read More
USS Arlington (LPD-24) transits the Mediterranean Sea on Feb. 1, 2019. US Navy Photo
As the Navy looks to smaller and cheaper manned and unmanned ships to fill out its future fleet, a larger amphibious warship program is positioning itself to remain in shipbuilding plans by highlighting the ability to continue bringing costs down – including through a potential first-ever multi-ship buy – and adding capability. Read More
The guided-missile destroyer USS Bainbridge (DDG 96) sails in the Arabian Sea. Bainbridge is deployed to the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations in support of naval operations to ensure maritime stability and security in the Central Region. US Navy photo.
The Program Executive Office for Ships is bracing for a range of new ship classes to join the fleet in the coming years and is taking steps to ensure the requirements and acquisition communities, and the industrial base, are ready for all the new work. Read More
Sea Transport Solutions Image
The Navy and Marine Corps are quickly seeking new ideas that allow Marines to support the Navy in sea control and other maritime missions, including the rapid acquisition of a light amphibious ship and a movement toward using Marine weapons while at sea. Read More
Attack boat Vermont (SSN-792) float-off on March 29, 2019. General Dynamics Electric Boats Photo
This post is part of a series of stories looking back at the top naval news from 2020.
2020 may be among the most consequential years for Navy acquisition in recent memory, with the service making big moves in support of its Distributed Maritime Operations operating concept. Read More
