ARLINGTON, Va. — The U.S. Navy has acknowledged that it has stood up a program office for the Next-Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) program and is maturing the acquisition approach for the carrier-based power projection concept. The Navy has taken a go-slow…
Navy’s Medium USV to Be Based on Commercial Vehicle
ARLINGTON, Va. — The Medium Unmanned Surface Vehicle (MUSV) being designed and built by L3Harris Technologies will be a purpose-built commercially derived vehicle, the company said in an Aug. 19 release. Although the Navy’s selection of Camden, New Jersey-based L3Harris was announced by the Defense…
MDA Considering Navy’s Aegis System for Homeland Missile Defense
WASHINGTON — The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) is investigating the feasibility of using the Navy’s Aegis Combat System and Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) Block IIA as segment of a layered defense of the U.S. homeland. “We are investigating the possibility of deploying…
Navy Awards $430 Million Contract for Operation of Undersea Test Range
ARLINGTON, Va. — The Navy has awarded $430 million contract to a Maryland-based company to operate and maintain one of the service’s most sophisticated test ranges. The Naval Undersea Warfare Center Newport Division awarded the contract to Amentum Services Inc. of…
Navy Orders 24 Harpoon Cruise Missiles from Boeing
ARLINGTON, Va. — The U.S. Navy has ordered 24 Harpoon Block II+ Harpoon cruise missiles from Boeing Defense, Space & Security, the Defense Department said in an August 12 announcement. The Naval Air Systems Command has awarded Boeing a $15.6…
Navy Program Review: Columbia SSBN On Track
ARLINGTON, Va. — The U.S. Navy’s top acquisition official said the Columbia ballistic-missile submarine is on track and ready for a fiscal 2021 official construction start. Speaking Aug. 12 in a teleconference with reporters, James F. Geurts, assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development and acquisition,…
T-45C Engine Shortages Force Waivers for Some Student Aviators
ARLINGTON, Va. — Training of some U.S. Marine Corps student aviators in carrier qualifications temporarily has been waived because of a shortage of engines for T-45C Goshawk jet training aircraft, a U.S. Navy spokeswoman said. The shortage also is forcing a reduction in part of the syllabus…
Admiral Cool to Notion of Separate Arctic Fleet
ARLINGTON, Va. — The commander of the U.S. 2nd Fleet, whose ships have operated four times in the Arctic since the fleet was re-established two years ago, says that, on initial examination, there is no need for a numbered fleet in the region, but an Arctic naval component…
STRATCOM Commander: Number of SSBNs Needed Depends on Threat
ARLINGTON, Va. — The U.S. Navy is planning to build 12 Columbia-class ballistic-missile submarines (SSBNs) to replace its 14 legacy Ohio-class SSBNs, but the number could change if the threat to the United States changes. With the increasing concern about…
Geurts: Navy Focused on Preserving Shipbuilding Industrial Base
ARLINGTON, Va. — The U.S. Navy’s top acquisition official said the service is focused on sustaining its shipbuilding industrial base and the shipyard workers, critical to avoiding the pain of losing the services of any yard and its highly trained work force. …
