ARLINGTON, Va. — The U.S. Navy has issued a draft Request for Proposals for its planned Large Unmanned Surface Vessel (LUSV), one of the vessels planned for its future surface fleet. “The LUSV will be a high-endurance, reconfigurable ship able…
VCNO Bullish on Strike Fighter Readiness Goal
ARLINGTON, Va. — The vice chief of naval operations has praised the progress made by the naval aviation F/A-18 Super Hornet strike fighter community in improving its readiness and is optimistic that a readiness goal of 80% will be reached…
Navy Confirms Pilot Died in F/A-18E Crash
ARLINGTON, Va. — The commander of Naval Air Forces confirmed that the pilot of the F/A-18E Super Hornet strike fighter that crashed July 31 in Southern California died in the crash. “At approximately 10 a.m. PST on July 31, a…
F/A-18E Loss Only Fourth Navy Crash This Fiscal Year
ARLINGTON, Va. — The U.S. Navy jet that crashed July 31 in Southern California is only the fourth Navy aircraft to be lost in a crash so far in fiscal 2019, according to records. The F/A-18E Super Hornet strike fighter,…
CNO Nominee Gilday: Ford Weapons Elevator Problems a ‘Navy Failure’
WASHINGTON — The nominee for the next chief of naval operations said the U.S. Navy is ultimately to blame for the ongoing problems with the weapons elevators on the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford. “Ultimately, sir, that’s a Navy…
CNO Nominee Gilday Names AI as Top Tech Priority
WASHINGTON — The newest nominee for chief of naval operations listed his top three technology priorities to the Senate Armed Services Committee during his July 31 confirmation hearing, with artificial intelligence coming in as No. 1. “On the top of…
Latent Lethality: Offensive Mine Warfare Sees Renewed Focus in Era of ‘Great Power Competition’
The focus of the U.S. Navy’s efforts in mine warfare over the last two decades has been mine countermeasures (MCM) — locating and neutralizing hostile mines. New airborne systems such as the Airborne Laser Mine-Detection System and the Airborne Mine…
Former PACFLEET Commander: FONOPs Should Be Consistent, Not Unique to China
WASHINGTON — The previous commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet said the United States should conduct more freedom-of-navigation operations (FONOPs) and not limit them to Chinese claims but include sailings through the disputed claims of other nations as well. “Specific…
Navy Awards Billion-Dollar Sonobuoy Contract
Arlington, Va. — The U.S. Navy’s increasing focus on anti-submarine warfare is reflected in a recent mega-contract award for its primary air-dropped sensor, the sonobuoy. Naval Air Systems Command has awarded to ERAPSCO, a joint venture of Sparton and USSI…
Iranian Drone Downed by Marine Corps Electronic Attack System
ARLINGTON, Va. — An Iranian fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicle downed by U.S. naval forces July 18 was brought down not by missiles or guns but by a vehicle-mounted electronic attack system. The Iranian UAV had flown within 1,000 yards of…
