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Undated photo of Leonard Francis
This post has been updated to include the letters of censure for Wren, Conroy and Johnson.
Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer has issued letters of censure to a retired admiral and two other senior officers who the service says accepted gifts and had an inappropriate relationship with Leonard ‘Fat Leonard’ Francis and the Glenn Defense Marine Asia company, USNI News has learned. Read More
Last year’s fatal collisions of guided-missile destroyers USS Fitzgerald (DDG-62) and USS John S. McCain (DDG-56) began a chain of investigations, accountability actions and reform efforts. The following is a summary of the major events that have occurred since the early morning June 17, 2018, incident between Fitzgerald and the merchant ship ACX Crystal. Read More
USS Farragut (DDG-99) passes under the Great Belt Fixed Link during its transit through the Danish Straits on April 26, 2018. US Navy Photo
A comprehensive test of seamanship skills of 164 junior surface warfare officers found an alarming lack of basic navigation and ship handling knowledge, according to a message sent from the head of U.S. Navy surface forces and obtained by USNI News. Read More
Students at Surface Warfare Officers School (SWOS) train on the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) Full Mission Bridge (FMB) simulator in 2016. US Navy Photo
Rep. Rob Wittman (R-Va.) is pushing a trio of legislative reform efforts to professionalize surface warfare officer training and simplify command and control for forward forces in an effort to prevent avoidable mishaps like the two fatal collisions the U.S. Navy suffered in 2017. Read More
The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) arrives in Da Nang, Vietnam, for a scheduled port visit on March 5, 2018. US Navy photo.
More than 5,000 members of the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70) reunited with family and friends Thursday morning as the aircraft carrier returned home to San Diego after a short deployment to the western Pacific region. Read More
Guided-missile destroyer USS Mustin (DDG-89) transits the Philippine Sea on March 14, 2018. US Navy photo.
This post has been updated to indicate that the freedom of navigation operation past Mischief Reef was the second, not the first FON op this year. A January mission past Scarborough Shoal was considered a freedom of navigation operation.
A U.S. guided-missile destroyer conducted a freedom of navigation operation past an artificial island controlled by China on Friday, a U.S. defense official confirmed to USNI News. Read More
A U.S. Marine fires an M777-A2 Howitzer in the early morning in Syria, June 3, 2017. US Marine Corps
Senators pressed the nation’s top commander in the Middle East on what’s next for the United States by keeping its forces in Syria after the ISIS forces in the region are in decline. Read More
Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer tours the inactive Oliver Hazard Perry-class frigate Ex-USS Elrod (FFG-55) during a visit to the Inactive Ships Maintenance Facility at The Navy Yard in Philadelphia. US Navy Photo
WASHINGTON, D.C. — An audit accounting for where Navy dollars are spent — long a lawmaker talking point — is now underway, said Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer on Monday.
Aircrew members stand by as an F-35B Lightning II with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 121 flies above the amphibious assault ship USS Wasp (LHD-1) on March 5, 2018. US Navy Photo
Streamers mix with falling snow during the christening of guided-missile destroyer Thomas Hudner (DDG 116) at the Bath Iron Works shipyard on April 1, 2017 in Bath, Maine. US Navy Photo
WASHINGTON, D.C. – If Congress is willing to pay for it, Navy leaders think they could get to a 355-ship Navy by the 2030s. Read More
