Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Stethem (DDG 63) transits the Western Pacific on Nov. 12, 2017. US Navy photo.
Two U.S. Navy ships passed through the Taiwan Strait today for the fourth time in recent months, in a move that is allowed under international law but usually provokes a negative reaction from China. 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
USNI News polled its writers, naval analysts and service members on what they consider the most important military and maritime stories in 2017.
The following is part of a series. Please also see Top Stories 2017: Navy Acquisition, International Acquisition, Marine Corps Operations, Marine Corps and Coast Guard Acquisition, International Operations and New Administration.
In 2017, the Navy and Marine Corps were active in nearly every corner of the globe. Some forces conducted land-attack and air warfare not seen by U.S. forces in years, while others provided desperately needed humanitarian aid.
Undated photo of Lt. Steven D. Hopkins, USN. He was identified as the sailor who went missing from USS Stethem (DDG-63) on Aug. 1, 2017. US Navy Photo
The sailor who went missing from guided-missile destroyer USS Stethem (DDG-63) earlier this week in the South China Sea has been identified as Lt. Steven D. Hopkins, according to a statement from U.S. 7th Fleet. Read More
Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Stethem (DDG 63), left, and USS Wayne E. Meyer (DDG 108) participate in a photo exercise during Exercise Foal Eagle on March 22, 2017. US Navy photo.
The Navy suspended its search for a missile sailor assigned to guided-missile destroyer USS Stethem (DDG-63) at 4 p.m. Japan Standard Time (3 a.m. EST) on Aug. 4, after more than three days of continuous search with U.S., Japanese and Chinese ships and aircraft. Read More
USS Stethem (DDG 63) is moored pier side at the Republic of Korea (ROK) Fleet base in Busan in 2016. US Navy Photo
More U.S. ships have joined the South China Sea search for the missing sailor who is missing from guided-missile destroyer USS Stethem (DDG-63), U.S. 7th Fleet said in an early Wednesday statement. Read More
USS Stethem (DDG-63) on March 22, 2017. US Navy
A sailor assigned to the guided-missile destroyer USS Stethem (DDG63) is missing in the South China Sea, Navy officials confirmed to USNI News on Tuesday. Read More
USS Stethem (DDG-63) operating in the Pacific on March 22, 2017. US Navy Photo
This post has been updated with a statement from U.S. Pacific Fleet.
A U.S. destroyer came within 12 nautical miles of a Chinese holding in the South China Sea, a U.S. defense official told USNI News on Sunday morning. Read More
A Sailor assigned to the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Stethem (DDG 63), stands watch while the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62), left, and USS McCampbell (DDG 85) steam nearby during MultiSail 17. US Navy photo.
The U.S. Navy and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) fleets took their interoperability to a new level this month, conducting two parts swaps to show their ability to logistically support one another. Read More
The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers USS Mustin (DDG 89), USS McCampbell (DDG 85), and USS Barry (DDG 52) maneuver near the USS Stethem (DDG 63) during a surface exercise in waters south of Japan on Feb. 27, 2017. The destroyers eventually sailed to Guam to participate in the Multisail 2017 exercise with Japanese forces. US Navy photo.
The U.S. Navy and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force began their annual bilateral training Multisail exercise today, which will this year include at-sea training hosted by the Naval Surface and Mine Warfighting Development Center. Read More
