Naval

Littoral combat ship Montgomery conducts first land-attack missile exercise

The ship, cruising in the Pacific Ocean, launched three AGM-114L Longbow Hellfire missiles May 12 during a proof of concept exercise.

Navy creates Unmanned Surface Vessel Division to expedite integration of unmanned systems

The unit will manage unmanned surface vessel experimentation for medium and large unmanned surface vessels like the Sea Hunter and the Sea Hawk.

Lethal and survivable or irrelevant and vulnerable? Marine redesign debate rages

It's "not a custody fight. It’s a fight for the life of the child," said retired. Lt. Gen. Paul Van Riper.

Satellite photo shows possible new Chinese nuclear submarine able to launch cruise missiles

A submarine seen in a satellite photo of a Chinese shipyard shows what could be a new class or subtype of a nuclear-powered attack sub with a new stealthy propulsion system and launch tubes for cruise missiles.

India halts Ka-31 helicopter deal with Russia

India asked to buy Ka-31 helicopters from Russia in May 2019, but the acquisition program faced inordinate delays due to the coronavirus pandemic and the platform’s high price tag.

Navy effort to cancel LCS mission package triggers new cost breach

A decision to cancel the technically challenged ASW mission package raised the per-unit cost overall for the mission modules program, resulting in a Nunn-McCurdy breach the Navy reported to Congress May 13.

The Navy doesn’t want nukes on ships, despite interest from some combatant commanders

The Navy says forcing surface ships or attack submarines to haul around nuclear-tipped missiles would be feasible, but would be a burden in a time with many more pressing missions and no extra money to spare on lesser priorities.

Modern Day Marine

First-of-kind Marine littoral regiment plays with new concepts, weapons

The Marine Corps’ first unit designed specifically to carry out new concepts of operations has already conducted its first exercise in the Philippines and is preparing to start experimentation and training later this year.

Modern Day Marine

Marine Raiders tackle ‘influencing’ to disrupt adversaries before the fight

Strategic reconnaissance and irregular warfare are the future.

Senate confirms new Coast Guard commandant — the first uniformed woman to lead a service

Adm. Linda Fagan has served in the Coast Guard for 36 years.

Marines to update amphibious ops concept amid uncertainty over future ship count

The commandant wants a Concept for 21st Century Amphibious Operations by the end of the year, after earlier Force Design 2030 modernization efforts have focused on stand-in forces operating as smaller units on smaller vessels.

How digital natives will change the Marine Corps

The Marine of 2030 will be born into the age of the Internet of Things and raised with drones and virtual reality goggles at home — making the commandant comfortable they’ll be able to take on additional tasks and manage a battlefield swirling with information.

The littoral combat ship’s latest problem: Class-wide structural defects leading to hull cracks

The troubling revelations about the Independence-class littoral combat ships come as the Navy continues to grapple with a class-wide transmission issue in the Freedom-class variants.

The light amphibious warship is delayed, but the Marine Corps has a temporary solution

U.S. Marines want to move quickly and discreetly, but the crowded shipbuilding budget is in the way.

Marines’ Force Design 2030 update refocuses on reconnaissance

The modernization plan includes lethal effects like loitering munitions, but it now focuses on the sensing and communications needed to support these weapons without relying on outside targeting data.

Ukraine conflict reveals parallels to new Marine Corps war-fighting vision

Marines can look to the Ukraine conflict for real-world previews of how the Corps’ war-fighting concept might unfold.

Commentary

New Mideast task force can counter Iranian arms smuggling, but more capabilities are needed

U.S. Central Command must be able to to analyze and exploit intelligence, which requires a robust cadre of analysts.

Marine 3-star: Technology remade combined arms, the Corps must adjust

“Combined arms is more than towed cannon artillery, tanks and aviation,” Lt. Gen. Karsten Heckl said. “It’s information, cyber and space.”

First Navy submarine uses Portsmouth’s improved dry dock

The super flood basin is akin to a navigational lock that upgrades the shallowest of the shipyard’s dry docks, allowing submarines to enter independent of tides and without buoyancy.

First LCS deploys to European waters in 6th Fleet

The Florida-based Freedom-variant LCSs have only operated in local waters and in Central and South America until now, two years after an LCS was originally planned to deploy to 6th Fleet for the first time.

Anduril Industries in talks with Australia on autonomous undersea vehicle

The company billed the Extra Large Autonomous Undersea Vehicle as affordable, durable and capable of executing military and non-military missions.

General Dynamics names new Bath Iron Works president

A 10-year General Dynamics executive was named president of the company's Maine shipyard, after the former president resigned abruptly last month.

Delay hits Brazil’s $1.7 billion frigate program

Construction of the first of four Tamandaré-class frigates for the Brazilian Navy is delayed, with the shipbuilding timeline slipping from last month to this September, and commissioning potentially being pushed from 2025 to 2026.

Marine aviation plan invests heavily in digital glue to connect far-flung forces

The Marine Corps wants to create the capability for all aircraft types — manned and unmanned — to contribute to a network that can gather and disseminate everything from voice to target-quality data in real time to forces in the air, on the ground or at sea.

Commentary

Moskva’s sinking, the rise of anti-ship cruise missiles and what that means for the US Navy

If a relatively low-cost, short-range missile can destroy one of the largest warships in the Russian Navy, how do we ensure that ships in our fleet are not doomed to the same fate?