ASTORIA, Ore. — A 26-foot Coast Guard trailerable aids to navigation boat capsized Jan. 4 with four crew members aboard near Pier 39 in Astoria, the Coast Guard 13th District said in a release. 

Four Coast Guardsmen were aboard the vessel conducting routine operations when the capsizing occurred. The vessel reportedly encountered a series of heavy wakes that came over the bow, which resulted in an unrecoverable starboard list that capsized the vessel. 

At 11:39 a.m., watchstanders at the 13th Coast Guard District command center in Seattle received four personal locator beacon alerts registered to Coast Guard Aids to Navigation Team Astoria. 

The beacons’ positions correlated with multiple good Samaritan reports of visual distress signals in the vicinity of Pier 39 in Astoria. Correlating reports were also received by Astoria 911 dispatch. 

At about 11:50 a.m., watchstanders at Coast Guard Sector Columbia River issued an urgent marine information broadcast (UMIB) and directed a Coast Guard Air Station Astoria MH-60 Jayhawk crew and a Coast Guard Station Cape Disappointment 47-foot motor lifeboat crew to respond. 

At 12:09 p.m., crew members aboard the Columbia Bar Pilot vessel Connor Foss contacted the Coast Guard reporting they had recovered the four Coast Guardsmen from the water after responding to the UMIB and were en route to awaiting medical personnel at the 17th Street pier. 

Clatsop County Sheriff Marine Unit assisted in the recovery by towing the capsized vessel to the 17th Street pier. 
 
All persons involved are reported to be in healthy condition after being evaluated at Columbia Memorial Hospital. The Coast Guard is overseeing salvage operations and has initiated the mishap board review process. 

SAN DIEGO — General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems (GA-EMS) announced that high cycle testing of its Advanced Arresting Gear (AAG) system for Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers was successfully completed over a two-day period in October at the Runway Arrested Landing Site (RALS) in Lakehurst, New Jersey.   

High cycle testing was conducted at RALS on a single AAG system that is identical to the three systems aboard the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78). Five F/A-18E/F Super Hornets were involved in the testing to simulate the operational tempo of carrier flight operations at sea. 

“Over and over again, in rapid succession, AAG sustained an aircraft arrestment rate of nearly one per minute, successfully testing the system’s capability to handle the recovery sequence required for combat readiness,” stated Scott Forney, president of GA-EMS. 

“Arresting aircraft at a high rate over a sustained period on the same wire is an aggressive test and shows the ability of the system to withstand extreme conditions. The Ford has the capability for an even higher operational tempo than demonstrated at the test site because it has three wires and clears aircraft from the flight path more efficiently.” 

High cycle testing is part of the verification and validation of AAG System requirements. The AAG system test program has completed more than 5,000 arrestments at the land-based test facilities at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, New Jersey, and 747 arrestments aboard CVN 78 during the ship’s initial sea trials. The Navy has also issued an Aircraft Recovery Bulletin for the fleet air wing, clearing the AAG system for use on all Ford-class carriers. 

“We look forward to CVN 78 getting back out to sea in early 2020 to conduct more robust flight operations,” Forney said. “We anticipate executing significantly more sorties during this phase, utilizing both jet and prop aircraft. AAG works as intended, and we will continue to collaborate with the Navy to ensure system readiness and reliability to meet operational objectives.” 

AAG is a turbo-electric system designed for controlled and reliable deceleration of aircraft.  AAG is installed on board Gerald R. Ford along with the GA-EMS Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS), which uses electromagnetic technology to launch aircraft from the deck of naval aircraft carriers. In addition to CVN 78, EMALS and AAG are being delivered for the future John F. Kennedy (CVN 79) and the Enterprise (CVN 80). 

ARLINGTON, Va. — Even though the Seapower staff was on liberty ashore over the holidays, the world kept turning and things kept happening. Below is a summary of significant events since Dec. 19: 

• Acting Navy Secretary Thomas B. Modly announced on Dec. 23 the names selected for the first two Block V Virginia-class attack submarines. The boats, SSN 602 and SSN 603, were named USS Oklahoma and USS Arizona, respectively. The submarines’ names will memorialize two battleships sunk in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, by Japanese aircraft on Dec. 7, 1941. Unlike the other battleships sunk or damaged during the attack, the Oklahoma and Arizona never served again. The Arizona is a submerged memorial at the site where it was sunk in the harbor. The Oklahoma was raised but later sank in the eastern Pacific Ocean while under tow for planned repairs. 
• The U.S. 2nd Fleet has reached full operational capability (FOC), the fleet commander announced Dec. 31. “The achievement of FOC signifies 2nd Fleet has reached sufficient capacity to sustain command and control over assigned forces using the operational functions and processes of the Maritime Operations Center and Maritime Headquarters, in accordance with Navy Doctrine. [The fleet] will primarily focus on forward operations and the employment of combat ready naval forces in the Atlantic and Arctic, and to a smaller extent, on force generation and the final training and certification of forces preparing for operations around the globe,” the release said.
• Huntington Ingalls Industries announced Dec. 20 that its Ingalls Shipbuilding division has been awarded a contract with a potential total value of $453.4 million for planning yard services in support of in-service Ticonderoga–class cruisers and Spruance-class destroyers. The contract includes options over a five-year period. 
• Raytheon Missile Systems has been awarded $1 billion multiyear (2019-2023) contract for full-rate production requirements, spares and round design agent for the Standard Missile-6 (SM-6). This contract provides all up rounds, flight test rounds, spares and round design agent.  
• The first CMV-22B version of the Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft made its first flight on Dec. 19, according to a Facebook post by a photographer outside the Bell facility. The CMV-22B will replace the C-2A Greyhound as the Navy’s carrier-onboard-delivery aircraft.   
• Northrop Grumman Systems Corp. has been awarded a $251.6 contract modification for three Low-Rate Initial Production Lot 4 MQ-4C Triton high-altitude, long-endurance unmanned surveillance aircraft plus ground stations, trade studies, tooling and associated support equipment.
• Raytheon announced on Dec. 20 that the Navy awarded a $250 million contract for additional SPY-6 radars, bringing the total ordered to nine. The SPY-6 Air and Missile Defense Radars will be installed on Flight III Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers. 
• The Naval Sea Systems Command awarded Lockheed Martin a $1.6 billion Foreign Military Sales contract to build four Multi-Mission Surface Combatants for the navy of Saudi Arabia. The frigate design is based on the company’s Freedom-class littoral combat ship. The ships will be built at Fincantieri’s shipyard in Marinette, Wisconsin, and will be equipped with the Mk41 Vertical launch system for the Evolved Sea Sparrow Missile, RGM-84 Harpoon Block II+ missiles and a 4D air-search radar.  
• Teledyne Brown Engineering Inc. was awarded a $27.2 million contract modification to exercise the Year One option for one Mk11 Shallow-Water Combat Submersibles.   
• BAE Systems’ AGR-20A Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System has been used to down an aerial target. The laser-guided air-ground rocket was used in a demonstration by a U.S. Air Force F-16 fighter as an inexpensive way to shoot down aircraft and cruise missiles. 
• Metal Shark is engaged in the Operational Test and Evaluation of its 40-foot Defiant patrol boat that is designed under the PB-X program to replace the Navy’s 160 coastal patrol boats.
• The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Bertholf (WMSL-750) completed an 82-day patrol in the eastern Pacific and offloaded more than 18,000 pounds of cocaine in San Diego on Dec. 23. The cocaine, worth an estimated $312 million, was seized by five cutters in seven separate actions between mid-October and early December.  
• About 100 Marines were deployed on Dec. 31 to the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, to strengthen the embassy’s defenses against crowds of protesters who destroyed the embassy’s gatehouse. The agitation began after U. S. Air Force F-15E aircraft struck Iranian-backed militia sites in retaliation for the death in a rocket attack of an American contractor and wounding of four U.S. soldiers. 

The U.S. defense secretary and its top military officer
rejected the premise of the recently published “Afghanistan Papers” in The
Washington Post — that defense leaders engaged in a deliberate effort to
deceive the public on the lack of progress in the 18-year-long war. And Joint
Chiefs Chairman Army Gen. Mark A. Milley, who repeatedly led forces there,
emotionally insisted that none of the troops killed in Afghanistan died in
vain.

In a Dec. 20 media briefing at the Pentagon, Defense
Secretary Mark T. Esper and Milley also defended the prolonged military
engagements in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria as necessary to protect the nation
from terrorists and said U.S. forces would be there until that mission was
completed.

But Esper, citing the new National Defense Strategy’s
recognition of “great power competition” with Russia and China, said his aim is
to determine “how can we reduce our presence in other parts of the world to
either return troops home to retrain and equip for those bigger missions or to
allocate to the Indo-Pacific.” Esper has said he is considering removing about 5,000
of the 13,000 U.S. troops now in Afghanistan.

And Milley, speaking for the military, said “none of us want
forever wars. It has to do with the national interests.”

The two leaders were asked several times about the week-long
series of stories in The Washington Post that extensively quoted senior
military and diplomatic officials as privately expressing strong doubts about
the way the Afghanistan conflict was going, while giving more positive views in
public.

“I know there is an assertion out there of some sort of
coordinated lie over the course of 18 years,” but that was “more than a stretch.
I find that a mischaracterization,” Milley said. With hundreds of general
officers, State Department officials and other involved, “I just don’t think you
can get that level of coordination on a lie.” He said the assessments he and
others gave were “based on facts that we knew at the time, and those were
honest assessments and were never intended to deceive either the Congress or
the American people.”

Milley contrasted the Post’s expose on Afghanistan with the
1970s “Pentagon Papers,” which revealed secret documents on the government’s consistently
gloom views on Vietnam. He said those were “contemporary papers written in
advance of decision making. These, the Afghan papers, were an attempt by SIGAR
in about 2,000 pages to do post-facto interviews, looking back, to determine
lessons learned,” he said, referring to the reports of the special investigator
general for Afghanistan.

“For years, we were clear there
is not a reasonable chance of a military victory against the Taliban or the
insurgency… and that remains true today.” Milley said. “There is only one way
this is going to end, in a negotiated solution.” Milley conceded that
Afghanistan has been “a strategic stalemate,” where the Taliban cannot win as
long as the Unites States provides some degree of military support, but cannot
defeat the Taliban “so long as they have sanctuary in Pakistan and some degree
of popularity with the people.”

And, with evident emotion, Milley
said: “Our soldiers, sailors, airman and Marines who have given their lives in
Afghanistan did not give their lives in vain.”

Esper pointed out that some of the reporters in
the audience had been to Afghanistan as had many members of Congress and the SIGAR
investigators. “This has been very transparent. It’s not like this war was
hiding somewhere. For all the folks who have been in this conflict over the
years, some insinuation there’s been some kind of conspiracy, is ridiculous.”

SAN DIEGO — The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Bertholf offloaded about 18,000 pounds of cocaine on Dec. 18 seized from known drug-transit zones of the eastern Pacific Ocean worth approximately $312 million. 

The interdictions were made between mid-October and early December by the joint efforts of the following five separate Coast Guard cutter crews: 

•        Northland was responsible for one case, or 3,328 pounds 

•        James was responsible for one case, or 1,609 pounds 

•        Harriet Lane was responsible for one case, or 5,037 pounds 

•        Thetis was responsible for one case, or 2,394 pounds 

•        Bertholf was responsible for three cases, or 5,851 pounds 

“This offload demonstrates another successful example of the ‘cycle of justice,’ said Vice Adm. Linda L. Fagan, Coast Guard Pacific Area commander. 

“This cycle begins with intelligence-driven detection and monitoring of illicit activities that then cue the interdiction and apprehension of smugglers and contraband, and ultimately leads to criminal prosecution. This ‘cycle of justice’ disrupts a ‘cycle of crime,’ which left unchecked, fuels violence and instability that corrodes our Hemisphere’s social and economic fabric, and directly contributes to historically high drug-related deaths in neighborhoods across North America.” 

Also in attendance for the offload was Preston Grubbs, the principal deputy administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration, and Robert Brewer, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of California. 

“One of our key missions is stopping dangerous drugs before they reach our shores,” Brewer said. “Succeeding in that mission would not be possible without the tireless efforts of the United States Coast Guard.” 

Numerous U.S. agencies from the Departments of Defense, Justice and Homeland Security cooperated in the effort to combat transnational organized crime. The Coast Guard, Navy, Customs and Border Protection, FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, along with allied and international partner agencies, play a role in counter-drug operations. 

The fight against drug cartels in the eastern Pacific requires unity of effort in all phases from detection, monitoring and interdictions, to criminal prosecutions by U.S. Attorneys in districts across the nation.

The commander of U.S. and allied naval forces in Europe and
Africa said he is dealing with increased activities by both Russia and China in
his vast area of responsibility — which stretches from the Arctic to the
southern tip of Africa — despite a shortage of resources.

“We do the best we can with what we have,” Adm. James G. Foggo III, commander, U.S. Forces Europe and Africa, and commander, Allied Joint Forces Command Naples, said Dec. 18.

“It’s an extremely large tactical area” and “setting
priorities is the biggest challenge — where do you go,” Foggo said. He must
look at the entire theater, which covers all of Europe, the Mediterranean and
Black seas, the Baltics, the Arctic and Eastern Atlantic, down to the Cape of
Good Hope.

“When there are tensions, you try to go where the tensions
are” or respond to something that might threaten allies. “You have to be
flexible, agile.”

A career submariner, Foggo said the Russians are operating
some very capable submarines in the Black Sea and the Mediterranean, including
new Kilo-class diesel-electric boats, which are very quiet. “It’s important we
know where they are because they have Kalibr (cruise) missiles that can reach
anywhere in Europe.” He said Russia also is building anti-access, area-denial
capabilities in Crimea, installing anti-ship cruise missiles and S-300 and
S-400 advanced air- and missile-defense weapons.

Although he seldom gets a carrier strike group in his
theater, due to the focus on the Persian Gulf and the Pacific, Foggo praised
the Virginia-class fast attack subs he gets, which “move very fast” so he can
put them where he needs them.

“We’re very, very busy in the undersea domain, busiest I’ve
ever seen,” he said. “We are challenged by resources,” although the nation has
been “very generous” in defense funding. “But we’re in a great power
competition,” he added, citing Russia and China. “We still maintain the
competitive edge and need to do so.”

Although Russia is operating frequently all around his AOR,
China is mainly active in Africa, buying access and support with loans and
construction projects that frequently come with demands for long-term access to
ports, such as in Djibouti, where it has a large military facility next door to
the U.S. base.

China also is increasingly active in the Arctic, where
Russia is trying to create dominance as the polar ice cap shrinks, Foggo said.
“We’ve seen much more Chinese activity up there than before,” and Russia and
China “are collaborating in the Arctic.”

Foggo noted the value of the allied and partner nations that
contribute to security in his command area, the increased defense spending by
NATO nations and the recent re-establishment of the U.S. 2nd Fleet in Norfolk
and the Joint Forces command in Naples in response to the Russian threat.

While noting the lack of unprofessional or unsafe activities
by Russian forces for several months, Foggo cited the “unsafe” activities of a
Russian spy vessel currently operating close to the U.S. Atlantic coast and
refusing to respond to radio contact and sailing without running lights at
night.

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The U.S. Navy awarded a contract to General Dynamics Mission Systems that continues a broad scope of work for fire control systems and subsystems aboard U.S. Navy and United Kingdom’s Royal Navy nuclear ballistic-missile submarines (SSBN), the company said in a release. 

The contract has a total potential value of $299.9 million over the next four years.  The omnibus contract is a follow-on to a contract awarded to General Dynamics in December 2015 for the development, production, installation and deployed-systems support of U.S. and U.K. Trident II submarine strategic weapons systems and subsystems. 

General Dynamics Mission Systems’ Maritime and Strategic Systems line of business will deliver support and modernization of the existing SSBN strategic weapon system including fire control subsystem installation, maintenance, sustainment, training and repairs to navigation and launch subsystems. 

The company also will continue development of the fire control system for the U.S Navy’s Columbia class submarine and the Royal Navy’s Dreadnought class ballistic-missile submarine. Work on the development and sustainment of the Navy’s Ohio-class guided-missile submarine attack weapon control system is also part of the contract. Most of the work in support of this contract will take place here. 

“Our support for the Navy’s strategic deterrent program spans nearly six decades and forms the foundation of our U.S. Navy business,” said Carlo Zaffanella, vice president and general manager of General Dynamics Mission Systems’ maritime and strategic systems business. “Continuing the work we have done on existing Ohio SSBN fire control systems and the development of the fire control system for the Navy’s newest fleet of submarines demonstrates our ongoing relationship, built on trust, partnership and innovation, with the U.S. and U.K. naval forces.” 

HUDSON, N.H. — BAE Systems announced that the U.S. Navy has signed a $2.68 billion contract for the purchase of thousands of additional APKWS laser-guided rockets, the company said in a release. 

“Our armed forces customers are looking to apply just the right amount of force at the right location to execute their missions without unnecessary damage,” said Marc Casseres, director of precision guidance and sensing solutions at BAE. “APKWS rockets provide warfighters with the unique ability to precisely engage targets without excessive force, reducing the risk to nearby forces, civilians and assets. It’s the driving force behind growing global demand.” 

APKWS rockets fill the gap between unguided rockets and large precision munitions and are the U.S. government’s only program of record for 2.75-inch laser-guided rockets. APKWS guidance kits are compatible with new inventories of rocket motors, warheads and launchers and easily transform unguided rockets into precision munitions with little training. 

The indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contract enables the Navy to purchase APKWS guidance kits over a five-year period, representing full-rate production lots 8 through 12. To meet growing demand, BAE Systems has ramped up production at its advanced manufacturing facilities in Hudson, New Hampshire, and Austin, Texas, and established a robust supply chain. 

The APKWS laser-guided rocket is used by the Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, Air Force and U.S. Army and is available to allied nations via foreign military sales.

OSHKOSH, Wis. — U.S. Army Contracting Command-Warren has placed an $803.9 million order to Oshkosh Defense for 2,721 Joint Light Tactical Vehicles (JLTVs). 

Additional orders from the U.S. Army Contracting Command are anticipated within this fiscal year. 

This order includes JLTVs for the U.S. Army, Marine Corps, Air Force and Navy. It also includes vehicles for the country of Montenegro via foreign military sale. The distribution of JLTVs ensures that multiple branches of the U.S. military have the light tactical vehicle they need to perform missions that support the National Defense Strategy.  

“As the threats on today’s modern battlefield continue to evolve, our warfighters need a highly capable light tactical vehicle that is uniquely suited for mission adaptability,” said George Mansfield, vice president and general manager of joint programs for Oshkosh Defense. “The JLTV can accommodate over 100 different mission package configurations without sacrificing mobility or transportability.” 

NEW ORLEANS — Textron Systems announced in a Dec. 17 release the successful completion by its first next-generation landing craft, Ship-to-Shore Connector (SSC), Craft 100 of the U.S. Navy’s acceptance trials after completing a series of in-port and underway demonstrations on Dec. 6. 

“Our customers depend on our products to take them ashore and sustain the landing forces until the job is done,” said Henry Finneral, senior vice president and general manager of Textron Systems. 

“We are proud to support the United States Marine Corps and United States Navy in producing this next generation of landing vehicles, designed to cover a broad spectrum of missions with rapid transport of material and personnel into combat zones or assisting with critical humanitarian aid missions.” 

During the trials, Craft 100 underwent integrated testing to demonstrate the capability of the fly-by-wire steering, electrical and propulsion systems to successfully meet its basic requirements as a test asset for Program Executive Office-Ships. 

As the replacement for the existing fleet of Landing Craft, Air Cushion (LCAC) vehicles, follow-on SSCs will primarily transport weapon systems, equipment, cargo, and personnel of the assault elements through tough environmental conditions from the amphibious ships to the beach. 

The craft can travel at a sustained 35 knots, transport Marines and shares less than 1% of legacy LCAC original parts, representing a true upgrade for the LCAC forces at Assault Craft Units 4 and 5 and Naval Beach Unit 7. The SSC also has an increased service life of 30 years. 

The SSC is constructed at Textron Systems Marine and Land Systems operating unit in New Orleans and are built with similar configurations, dimensions and clearances to existing LCAC, ensuring the compatibility of this next-generation air cushion vehicle with existing well deck equipped amphibious ships, as well as Expeditionary Transfer Dock and Expeditionary Sea Bases. 

Textron Systems expects to deliver SSC Craft 100 in January 2020. There are several SSCs in various states of production.