Tag Archives: Naval Aviation Warfighting Development Center

Mission Capable: How More Ready Jets Is Helping the Navy Create Deadlier Pilots

Mission Capable: How More Ready Jets Is Helping the Navy Create Deadlier Pilots

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Sailors inspect an F/A-18E Super Hornet, assigned to the ‘Blue Diamonds’ of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 146, on the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) on March 23, 2020. US Navy Photo

This post is the second in a two-part series on the naval aviation community’s effort to build better readiness and how that is changing the future of naval aviation.

“It was, quite frankly, a little scary.”

In 2015, Rear Adm. Rich Brophy was a captain who had just taken command of Carrier Air Wing 9 and was trying to usher the unit through pre-deployment training, while sitting at the bottom of a bathtub in naval aviation readiness. Read More →

New Simulators Give Naval Aviators an Edge in Training for High-End Fight

New Simulators Give Naval Aviators an Edge in Training for High-End Fight

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Aircraft from Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 11 fly in close formation during a flight demonstration as part of Tiger Cruise 2017 aboard the aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) in November 2017. US Navy photo.

NAVAL AIR STATION FALLON, Nev. — The future of naval aviation is complex: aircraft are growing more technologically advanced, pilots face a proliferation of high-end and low-end threats, military budgets are squeezed and demand for U.S. Navy forces around the globe is growing.

So how will naval aviation training keep up? In part, with increasingly sophisticated simulators. Read More →

Navy Seeking Ways to Boost Interoperability Between Warfare Domains

Navy Seeking Ways to Boost Interoperability Between Warfare Domains

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USS Ronald Reagan is underway off the coast of the Korean peninsula during exercise Invincible Spirit on Oct. 11, 2016. US Navy Photo

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. – The Navy is discussing where to invest in increased interoperability between planes, ships and submarines, seeking opportunities to boost areas with the least capability today or the biggest potential return on investment, several warfare directors said on Wednesday. Read More →

New Advanced Surface Navy Training Seeks to Fill Critical Gaps

New Advanced Surface Navy Training Seeks to Fill Critical Gaps

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Lt. Damon Goodrich-Houska (center), a warfare tactics instructor (WTI) of the Naval Surface and Mine Warfighting Development Center (SMWDC), instructs the anti-submarine warfare team on tactical maneuvers onboard USS Chafee (DDG 90) during a Surface Warfare Advanced Tactical Training (SWATT) anti-submarine maneuvering exercise in the Southern California operating area. US Navy photo.

This post has been updated to include additional information from the Naval Surface and Mine Warfighting Development Center.

When Lt. Cmdr. Katie Whitman deployed on USS Mobile Bay (CG-53) five years ago, she was expected to support the cruiser in its air defense commander role but wasn’t guaranteed much individual training for that mission.

As it happened, leadership in the John C. Stennis Carrier Strike Group was “forward-leaning” when it came to pursuing additional pre-deployment training opportunities, she told USNI News, but another lieutenant on another cruiser may have deployed overseas without much knowledge of advanced tactics for that mission set or practice handling complex air warfare scenarios. Read More →

Warfighting Development Centers, Better Virtual Tools Give Fleet Training a Boost

Warfighting Development Centers, Better Virtual Tools Give Fleet Training a Boost

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USS Chafee (DDG 90) fires its Mark 45 5-inch lightweight gun off the starboard side during a Surface Warfare Advanced Tactical Training (SWATT) live-fire exercise with USS Princeton (CG 59) and USS Shoup (DDG 86) in the Southern California operating area on Oct. 2, 2016. US Navy photo.

USS Chafee (DDG-90) fires its Mark 45 5-inch lightweight gun off the starboard side during a Surface Warfare Advanced Tactical Training (SWATT) live-fire exercise with USS Princeton (CG-59) and USS Shoup (DDG-86) in the Southern California operating area on Oct. 2, 2016. US Navy photo.

This post has been updated to correct the title of the Information Warfighting Development Center.

SAN DIEGO, Calif. – The Navy has taken steps to improve the pre-deployment training pipeline for carrier strike groups over the past two years, and while the sea service could use more resources to support this training, the commander of U.S. Fleet Forces Command said the changes are already proving effective. Read More →

More Room For Top Gun: Navy Wants to Triple Nevada Training Ranges

More Room For Top Gun: Navy Wants to Triple Nevada Training Ranges

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An F/A-18E Super Hornet assigned to the Knighthawks of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 136 takes off from a runway on Naval Air Station Fallon on April 11, 2014. US Navy Photo

An F/A-18E Super Hornet assigned to the Knighthawks of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 136 takes off from a runway on Naval Air Station Fallon on April 11, 2014. US Navy Photo

As the fleet evolves with more high-tech tactical aircraft and longer-range strike weapons, the Navy’s air training ranges in the Nevada desert have become too small to accommodate realistic training. So Navy officials want more room to train Navy and Marine Corps pilots and aircrews more like they’d fight and sharpen their air warfare skills at the existing expansive range complex near Naval Air Station Fallon. Read More →