An undated photo of a Watson-class LMSR. MSC Photo
House lawmakers are calling on U.S. Transportation Command and the U.S. Maritime Administration to create a sealift strategy amid decades of concerns over the capacity of the sealift fleet. Read More
The portside anchor of the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN-77) is lowered into a dry dock for maintenance. GHWB is currently in Norfolk Naval Shipyard, Va. US Navy Photo
The Navy is evaluating how it can speed up the timeline for its initiative to renovate aging public shipyards amid concern from lawmakers that the current 20-year timeframe is too long. Read More
Rendering of Block V Virginia-class submarine with Virginia Payload Module. General Dynamics Electric Boat Image
The Navy today awarded a construction contract for a second Virginia-class attack submarine this fiscal year, which the Trump administration had cut from its FY 2021 budget request and the House Armed Services Committee fought to have included in the final spending and defense bills. Read More
Maintainers from Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 1 (VX-1) analyze diagnostics from the MQ-8C Fire Scout on the flight deck of the Independence variant littoral combat ship USS Coronado (LCS 4) on June 21, 2018. US Navy photo.
When the Navy moved from a conventionally powered fleet to a nuclear one, Adm. Hyman Rickover oversaw the transitions for decades, remaining in uniform until the age of 82 as the “Father of the Nuclear Navy” to ensure the sea service adopted the new technology in a precise and controlled way. Read More
Flag of the U.S. Secretary of the Navy
Two members of the House Armed Services Committee today called for the Biden administration to hurry and nominate someone to serve as the next Navy secretary, as the sea service faces tough decisions about how to modernize the force and potentially a budget showdown with the other services competing for funding. Read More
USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) and the Arleigh-burke class guided-missile destroyer USS Russell (DDG-59) transit the Pacific Ocean on Dec. 18, 2020. US Navy Photo
The top lawmakers overseeing Navy policy are optimistic the service can continue on its current trajectory of building a bigger fleet to take on threats in the Pacific under the Biden administration.
Read More
NASA Photo
The Senate voted 81 to 13 to override President Donald Trump’s veto of the Fiscal Year 2021 National Defense Authorization Act in a rare New Year’s Day session. Read More
Virginia-class submarine Delaware (SSN-791) was moved out of a construction facility into a floating dry dock using a transfer car system in 2018. HII Photo
This post has been updated to include more information about the conference report and NDAA timeline.
Congressional authorizers have worked out a deal that would approve funding for two Virginia-class submarines, both the House and Senate Armed Services Committees announced Thursday. Read More
Sailors aboard USS Delaware (SSN-791) on Nov. 5, 2019. US Navy Photo
Senate appropriators are proposing $21.35 billion for Navy shipbuilding that would fund nine battleforce ships, according to the text of the legislation that was released on Tuesday.
USS Boise (SSN 764) arrived at Huntington Ingalls Industries’ Newport News Shipbuilding division to begin its 25-month extended engineering overhaul on June 18, 2018, but ultimately had to return to Naval Station Norfolk to continue awaiting maintenance because there was no room at Newport News for the sub amid two other boats’ maintenance overruns. Huntington Ingalls Industries’ photo.
The Navy is moving into the next phase of a wholesale revision of its ship maintenance infrastructure. Last week, the service announced it had started to digitally map the layout of its centuries-old Norfolk Naval Shipyard as it seeks to bring new technology and a more efficient workflow to the public yards. Read More
