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. …
DARPA Working on New Unmanned Ship Concepts
ARLINGTON, Va. — The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is developing two concepts of operations for unmanned ships and other watercraft, the agency’s acting director said July 30. DARPA, which successfully developed what is called the Sea Hunter autonomous unmanned surface vessel, now operated…
Navy’s Expeditionary Warfare Capacity Abroad Expands With ESB’s Deployment
ARLINGTON, Va. — The U.S. Navy’s overseas expeditionary warfare capacity has expanded significantly with the deployment of the second expeditionary base ship USS Hershel “Woody” Williams. The ship is forward-deploying to the U.S. Naval Forces Africa area of operations. The…
Blue Angels Receive First Super Hornet
ARLINGTON, Va. — The Naval Flight Demonstration Squadron, the aeronautical team known as the Blue Angels, received its first F/A-18E Super Hornet strike fighter, marking the beginning of a new generation of aircraft for the world-renowned team. The Super Hornet…
Carrier Strike Groups Combining COMPTUEXes With Deployments
ARLINGTON, Va. — The aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) and its escorting ships arrived in the U.S. Central Command and U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility on July 24, where its strike group is relieving the USS Eisenhower carrier strike group (CSG). The…
