USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) as the ship transits the Strait of Gibraltar on Dec. 4, 2018. US Navy Photo
USNI News polled its writers, naval analysts and service members on what they consider the most important military and maritime stories in 2018. This story is part of a series; please also see U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Marine Corps Operations.
If 2018 made anything clear, it’s that the U.S. Navy noticed the increased Russian submarine activity in the Atlantic and won’t let it go unaddressed.
Photo of a sample page of the new Mariners Skills logbook for US Navy surface warfare officers. US Navy Photo
Surface warfare officers are borrowing a lesson from naval aviators and will now keep a logbook of their time underway throughout their career, according to a new Navy instruction obtained by USNI News. Read More
Capt. John F. Meier, then commanding officer USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), and Susan Ford Bales, ship’s sponsor, pin on Lt. j.g. Nicole Oliver’s surface warfare officer device, held inside the ship’s in-port cabin in 2016. US Navy Photo
This post has been updated to specify that there are no restrictions on who an individual ship commander could qualify as an officer of the deck.
The Navy is tightening up who can be qualified as a surface warfare officer and reserving time on the bridge for officers who are on a path to command warships, the commander of Naval Surface Force told USNI News this week. Read More
Ens. Samantha Rados stands watch as junior officer of the deck in the pilot house of the guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham (DDG-109) on June 26, 2018. US Navy Photo
NAVAL STATION NORFOLK – The Navy is asking Congress for a $64-million adjustment in its budget to begin work on a series of reforms to the surface force following the fatal collisions of two warships in 2017, Vice Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Bill Moran confirmed to USNI News on Monday. Read More
Secretary of the Navy Richard V. Spencer observes training in the littoral combat ship simulator during a visit to Surface Warfare Officers School (SWOS) Command June 12, 2018. US Navy Photo
The U.S. Navy is retooling the career path for surface warfare officers in the aftermath of last year’s fatal guided-missile destroyer collisions. The plan requires more school for new officers before they report to their first ships, institutes a new testing regime through major commands and shapes the career path so SWOs spend more time at sea. Read More
The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Stethem (DDG 63) and USS Curtis Wilbur (DDG 54) undergo routine maintenance at Fleet Activities (FLEACT) Yokosuka on June 16, 2017. Stethem is forward deployed to Yokosuka, Japan, in support of security and stability in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. US Navy photo.
The House Armed Services Committee debated how to balance ensuring that all forces throughout the Navy are equally ready for battle when they deploy versus ensuring the U.S. Pacific Fleet is nimble enough to respond to whatever military crisis or natural disaster may arise – with the majority of lawmakers ultimately deciding they wanted the Navy to enforce a single standard of readiness. Read More
USS Monterey (CG 61) fires a Tomahawk land attack missile April 13, 2018 against land targets in Syria. US Navy Photo
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Navy is studying its recent strikes on Syria to understand how the fleet performed well in a real-world event and how it may need to perform differently in a future higher-end engagement, the chief of naval operations said on Wednesday. Read More
Water is drained from a dry dock at U.S. Naval Ship Repair Facility and Japan Regional Maintenance Center (SRF JRMC) Yokosuka preparing the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Shiloh (CG-67) for a scheduled maintenance availability in July 2015. US Navy photo.
The Navy’s Japan-based ships are the pointed end of the spear and keeping them sharp falls to the recently created Naval Surface Group Western Pacific, CNSG WP that was just made a permanent command.
Quartermaster Seaman Diamond S. Copes uses a sextant to measure the distance between celestial bodies from the bridge wing of the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Preble (DDG-88) on March 14, 2018. US Navy Photo
ABOARD USS THEODORE ROOSEVELT AND USS BUNKER HILL, IN THE PERSIAN GULF – Even as top Navy and congressional leadership in Washington continue to negotiate a path forward for the surface fleet in the aftermath of last year’s two fatal destroyer collisions, some surface leaders are already taking action to ensure their crews are more ready and operating at a higher level of proficiency than the Navy requires.
Adm. Scott H. Swift, commander of U.S. Pacific Fleet, delivers remarks during a change of command and retirement ceremony as Vice Adm. Nora W. Tyson prepares to relinquish command of U.S. 3rd Fleet. US Navy Photo
SAN DIEGO, Calif. — The commander of U.S. Pacific Fleet pushed back against recent discussions that he shouldn’t both prepare and operate ready forces and that force-generation should be concentrated at U.S. Fleet Forces Command on the East Coast. Read More
