Naval

Defense News offers premier news and analysis of global naval warfare programs and technologies to keep military and industry decision-makers informed.

With blade issues resolved, Navy seeking four Ship to Shore Connectors a year

After technical challenges in 2020, the Navy says it can get the SSC production line moving and craft fielded to operational units this year, ahead of IOC next year.

3 days ago

Evolution of Aegis Weapon System could underpin joint all-domain operations

Steps Lockheed Martin is taking today to virtualize its Aegis Weapon System are helping to underpin the U.S. Navy’s integrated combat system and the Pentagon’s vision for joint all-domain warfare.

4 days ago

Naval

Israel inks $3.4 billion submarine deal with Germany

The Dakar-class diesel-electric submarines will be produced by German manufacturer ThyssenKrupp and are expected to be delivered within nine years.

Amphib ship requirements study could spell bad news for Marines, industry

The Navy's amphibious ship requirements study isn't quite done yet. But all the signs are pointing to a smaller fleet for the Marine Corps.

5 days ago

Inflation and unpredictable funding are straining Navy readiness, says top officer

Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday said the Navy’s funding levels have remained “flat relative to inflation for over a decade."

9 days ago

Taiwan adds minelaying ships to defenses against China

Such technologies are part of a strategy to deter any possible invasion from China, with its huge military and vast superiority in numbers of aircraft, ships and other weaponry.

10 days ago

US Navy works to speed up damage assessments, ship repairs

The Navy won't just assume that battle damage assessments and repairs happen during war games and live exercises. It wants to actually practice these skills on ships.

11 days ago

First Marine F-35C squadron deploys on an aircraft carrier

The Marine Corps hopes the F-35C’s long range fires and electronic warfare capabilities will increase its ability to operate in the Pacific.

11 days ago

Navy should be ‘offended’ by its own maintenance and manning faults, admiral says

Adm. Daryl Caudle, commander of U.S. Fleet Forces Command, said the Navy does not have the “luxury to do more with less.”

11 days ago

US Navy official says service is going ‘head to head with our adversaries’ all over the world

Vice Adm. Roy Kitchener shared how the guided missile destroyer Mustin shadowed a Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning in the South China Sea in April 2021.

11 days ago

Wanted: New missions for the littoral combat ship

Even as the Navy tries to wrap up testing of two LCS mission packages years after their original fielding dates, service leadership is also polling fleet commanders on alternate mission ideas for the LCS ships.

12 days ago

Surface warfare boss unveils strategy to create ‘more ready ships,’ better trained sailors

Here are the five lines of effort that could see the U.S. Navy's surface fleet become larger and more capable.

12 days ago

Navy reports improved ship maintenance, but is still falling short of CNO’s goals

On-time deliveries from repair periods has improved from 29% in 2018 to a projected 59% for 2021 -- but that's still short of the CNO's goal to reach no lost days to maintenance overruns by now.

14 days ago

Freedom LCS community to tackle mine warfare, grow its footprint in 2022

LCSs in Mayport have been limited to surface warfare operations in 4th Fleet since they kicked off deployment activity two years ago. In 2022, the community is looking to expand beyond that.

14 days ago

Iran seeks to grow naval power as it prioritizes asymmetric warfare

Experts say the buildup of naval forces in Iran represents a rising threat to its neighboring countries.

14 days ago

India’s Navy, private shipyards flounder as government gives preference to state-owned firms

The Indian Navy is unlikely to meet its goal of having a 175-ship fleet in the next five years due to a lack of funds and the government’s preference to award contracts to state-owned shipyards over private businesses, service officials have told Defense News.

2 weeks ago

Marine amphibious combat vehicles to return to waterborne operations

The Sept. 3, 2021, safety notice had identified a problem with the ACV’s towing mechanism.

2 weeks ago

UK documentary shows Russian submarine dinging British warship in 2020

A towed array sonar deployed by a Royal Navy frigate hit a Russian submarine during operations in the North Atlantic in 2020, the British Ministry of Defence has confirmed.

2 weeks ago

Navy says it ensured sub safety after fake strength tests surfaced, but won’t detail how

The Navy's actions came after a Washington state metallurgist admitted to falsifying sub steel strength test results for decades.

3 weeks ago

Workforce development, process improvements will make or break the Virginia-class submarine program

The submarine-industrial base is facing an increased workload even as it's already behind in deliveries, making it all the more important to get new processes and well-trained new recruits in place quickly.

3 weeks ago

US Navy avoided a 2022 ‘trough’ in submarine fleet size, but industry challenges threaten future growth

The Navy avoided a shortfall of attack submarines by extending the lives of older Los Angeles-class boats. Growing the force, though, will depend on industry's ability to continue building two -- if not more -- Virginia-class SSNs a year on top of the Columbia-class boomers.

3 weeks ago

New in 2022: These cannon-cockers are testing the Corps’ new ship-sinking missile

The Marines of the 11th Regiment are learning how best to employ the system.

3 weeks ago

China transfers secondhand submarine to Myanmar

China has transferred a former People’s Liberation Army Navy diesel-electric attack submarine to Myanmar, marking the first transfer of such equipment between the two countries.

4 weeks ago

Turkey opens bidding for three new frigates

Only local shipyards or foreign subsystem suppliers partnered with a local shipyard are allowed to bid, according to the request for proposals.

4 weeks ago

This company’s drone set flight-time records. But what it really wants is more work with the Pentagon.

The drone has flown anti-trafficking missions for the Navy and ice-measuring missions for NASA, and it's in the research phase of a possible anti-submarine warfare role, too.

4 weeks ago

With first shipboard radar now running, Raytheon looks to upgrade SPY-6 for distributed operations

Raytheon is already working with the Navy on a tool to net radars together for distributed operations, even before the first radar has hit the fleet.

4 weeks ago

US Navy completes final weapons elevator on aircraft carrier Gerald R. Ford

The 11th and final advanced weapons elevator has been turned over to the crew, after the Navy has struggled to get them designed, built and tested for several years now.

5 weeks ago

Aircraft carrier Bush conducts first at-sea MQ-25 unmanned tanker demo

The MQ-25A Stingray tanking drone conducted shipboard maneuvers for the first time on a carrier, giving sailors a first peek at the vehicle as well as its handheld controller and shipboard ground control station.

5 weeks ago