NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — As the nation grapples with striking a balance between competing with great power challenges and preparing for the possibility of conflict, the Indo-Pacific region poses perhaps the most significant challenge, Dr. Mara Karlin believes.

Karlin, director
of strategic studies at the Johns Hopkins School of International Studies, made
that observation as she introduced a panel of four military and civilian
government experts, each of whom plays a key role in formulating related
policies in the region. 

It stands to
reason that each panelist recognized the increasing threats posed by China and
Russia. Still, they noted that the matrix is considerably more complicated.
Eyes cannot be focused on the two large superpowers at the expense of other
friendly nations in the region. Also, while China and Russia loom as potential
adversaries, it is imperative that the U.S. and its partners work as closely
together with them on areas of common interest. 

Representing the
Coast Guard and Marine Corps, Vice Adm. Linda Fagan and Gayle Von Eckartsburg discussed
how each respective service shares a forward-deployed mission that makes their
presence essential in the Pacific. Both Fagan and Von Eckartsburg emphasized
that neither service is a “garrison force.”

“The Coast Guard
has never been more relevant,” said Fagan, the service’s Pacific Area
commander. “The demand for the signal we bring into the region has never been
higher.”

Besides watching
Chinese and Russian activities and fostering goodwill among allies, Fagan
placed equal importance in “modeling legitimate behavior,” so that “China can
see what a responsible Coast Guard looks like.” 

If the Chinese can
learn from the U.S. Coast Guard how to conduct, for example, more effective
search-and-rescue operations, so be it. 

Von Eckartsburg,
director of the Marine Corps Pacific Division office of Plans, Policy and
Operations, described a “persistent forward force.” Of the roughly 40,000
Marines now deployed around the world, the vast majority is west of the
International Dateline, she said. 

“We’re in a constant state of motion, leveraging presence to maintain readiness
at the same time,” Von Eckartsburg said. 

Joel Szabat the
Assistant Secretary of Transportation for Aviation and International Affairs,
discussed the three most important “pillars” of stability in the region –
economy, governance and security. 

“We need to
remember that this is not about containing or encircling any one country,”
Szabat said. “We want to help people, regardless of who our competitors are.”

Security commitments
with U.S. allies would assure the free flow of commerce, Szabat said. The
nation faces significant related challenges in this arena, he believes. U.S.
sealift is old and needs to be recapitalized, he said. The size of the U.S.
merchant fleet, which handles much of the military’s sealift capability, is
good enough for small-to-medium operations. 

“We don’t have
enough mariners, or U.S.-flagged merchant marine,” Szabat said.  

Walter Douglas,
who heads the State Department Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs, cited
an Asian Development Bank statistic that states the region needs an estimated
$1.7 trillion in investment to sustain healthy economic growth. 

“There’s nowhere
near that amount of money available in one state,” Szabat said. 

The emphasis,
then, would be to have “money centers” and corporations step in with
“transparent” investments. The government and private sectors would ensure that
such funding would not be subject to the troubles endemic to secret
deals. 

“That money gets
spent in the wrong places,” Szabat said. “We can’t have that. We need open
governance. We have to see [to it] that investment laws are transparent.”

Equally
imperative, Douglas said, is working to ensure that investments are evenly
distributed. While putting money into traditional stable partners like Japan,
Australia and Singapore would remain important, more could be done to help open
emerging economies. He said that Vietnam, for example, badly wants help
developing its infrastructure – from anywhere but China.  

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — Sea services leaders expressed unwavering support during a May 6 panel discussion for the nation’s future ventures in space — no matter whether the effort is split among the nation’s existing military branches or a new United States Space Force is created.

The panelists at Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space 2019 reiterated
the need to increase the nation’s space initiatives as rival nations such as
China, Russia, India and Japan build their push toward the stars.

“Space is no longer an uncontested environment,” said
Rear Adm. Christian Becker, commander, Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command.

As other countries stake their spots in space, the U.S.
needs to hold its “ground,” like when the maritime forces were first formed, Becker
explained.

“Space is very much akin to the maritime,” Becker said.
“We first went to sea to trade, and then we went to sea when we realized other
people could stop our trade. … Made sure we can maintain freedom at sea.”

Don’t expect the U.S. Space Force to appear overnight,
however. Services like the Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard are still evaluating
the personnel needed to staff an agency dedicated to the Final Frontier.

“We are assessing as part of the [Navy Department]
how we can meet the mission needs of the Space Force,” Becker said. “We’re not
there yet at our level of understanding, but that’s what we have to pursue.”

Finding and retaining the talent necessary to develop a
fully operational Space Force is a significant challenge, said Brig. Gen. Lorna
Mahlock, the Marine Corps’ chief information officer.

“It’s exciting to think about space … but we have to make
sure we develop the skill [to maintain a Space Force] and do it right,” Mahlock
said.

However, she emphasized that, no matter the
obstacles, the Marine Corps “embraces building the Space Force” and will offer its
full support.

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — The Arctic continues to present operational and logistical challenges for the agencies that operate there, but studies are providing a clearer picture of how they should be adjusting to climate change, service leaders said during a panel presentation at the Navy League’s annual Sea-Air-Space exposition here.

“We are working on how to better understand the Arctic,” said
Rear Adm. John Okon, commander, Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command, and
oceanographer and navigator of the Navy.

Noting that climate change is happening — and there are
undeniable changes in sea ice over the last decade— Okon said the use of
unmanned systems could be a force multiplier for missions in the Arctic.

“We know we are going to have to operate [in the Arctic] and
protect the homeland,” he said.

Vice Adm. Daniel Abel, the U.S. Coast Guard’s deputy
commandant for operations, said the risks presented in the polar region are
growing each year. 

“It is undeniable conditions are changing up there … the
change has happened, and the change is happening,” Abel said.

[climate

The Coast Guard’s annual Operation Artic Shield will once
again take place this summer. Arctic Shield’s goal is to increase knowledge of
operating in the region, as the service sends additional personnel and
resources to the area to see how they react.

The Coast Guard has no full-time base in the Arctic, as the
service operates there seasonally. Over the last several years, as sea ice has
melted sooner and shipping lanes have been opened for longer periods of time as
a result, the requirements for the Department of Homeland Security agency have
been more plentiful in the polar region.

Communicating with the Defense Department and allied nations
through automatic identification systems and other means has presented unique
challenges for the Coast Guard, given the harsh climate conditions.

“We are making sure that our requirements work with U.S.
Northern Command, and we have the abilities to communicate at the highest
latitudes,” Abel said.

Jeffrey Hutchinson, commissioner of the Canadian coast
guard, said he hopes the service continues to work closely with its counterpart
agency in the United States.

“We want to strengthen our partnership role,” he said.

Echoing comments from fellow panelist, Hutchinson said
climate change is an issue for the Arctic, and Canada needs to communicate to
get support from allies along with improving its relationship with other
nations that have a stake in the region.

U.S. Air Force Gen. Terrence O’Shaughnessy, commander, U.S.
Northern Command, said the department is working on a unified approach among
all agencies that operate in the polar region.

Noting that they all face common challenges, he said new
technology is important in the Arctic and that continuing to better study the
region will be a focal point going forward.

“The
[Arctic] is a critically important topic,” he said.

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — The Coast Guard’s foreign military sales program is fostering good relations with partner nations, increasing maritime governance and saving money, according to the program’s director, Tod Reinert.

Speaking before a show floor audience on May 6 during Sea-Air-Space 2019 at National Harbor, Maryland, Reinert also described how foreign sales of aging Coast Guard vessels is keeping U.S. vendors busy with replenishment and refurbishment contracts — all necessary to ensure that the new owners have hale platforms with which to pursue their missions.

The foreign
military sales program is “extending production lines, sharing overhead costs
and [sustaining] a robust vendor base,” Reinert said. 

The Coast Guard
has delivered more than 540 “assets,” worth more than $1 billion, to 75 partner
nations during the past 20 years. The list of benefactors is long. Bangladesh,
Vietnam, Yemen and Saudi Arabia got response boats. The Philippines received
riverine boats, and Tunisia got near-shore patrol boats. U.S. Central Command
stands to take possession of retired medium-response boats as well.

Recipient nations
stand to take ownership of decommissioned high-endurance cutters, Island-class
patrol boats, medium-endurance cutters and patrol boats — in a time frame
generally beginning sometime next year and spanning into 2024, Reinert
said. 

These countries
must rely upon their acquisitions to conduct search-and-rescue, maritime
safety, law enforcement and national defense missions akin to those the Coast
Guard performs every day — the cornerstones of its mission to protect the
nation’s 95,000 nautical miles of coastline, Reinert said.

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — The sudden order to send the Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group to the U.S. Central Command theater in response to threats from Iran is a great example of the value of the Navy’s dynamic deployment concept, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John M. Richardson said at the Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space 2019 exposition.

Although the
Lincoln’s deployment into the Mediterranean had been planned, “this is a great
demonstration of what we’ve been working on, dynamic deployment,” Richardson
said May 6. Naval maneuver forces are “dynamic by design,” but Richardson said
he found it encouraging that if the national command authority needed the
Lincoln strike group to go to the Middle East it can do so immediately.

At the opening
session of the Navy League’s annual Sea-Air-Space exposition, Richardson
responded to a question about National Security Advisor John Bolton’s
announcement that the administration had ordered the Lincoln and its escorts to
cut short its planned Mediterranean exercise and sail to the Persian Gulf
region after warnings that Iran may be planning attacks on U.S. forces. Bolton
said an Air Force bomber unit also was being sent to the region.

Asked how the
Navy would respond to President Donald Trump’s decision to reverse the 2020
budget proposal to skip the mid-life refueling of the aircraft carrier Harry S.
Truman, Richardson noted that he had told Congress, which has opposed the
decision, that the Truman’s early retirement was reversable. “Now we will have
to find the resources going forward,” to invest in the new technologies, such
as unmanned systems, that were to be funded with money saved from retiring
Truman.

Appearing on the
same panel, Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Robert B. Neller agreed with
Richardson that the challenge of effective leaders was to anticipate the need
to change their organizations and policies, rather than waiting to respond to a
disaster. Neller cited the changes the Marines are making to respond to the
growing threats of cyber and electronic warfare attacks from peer competitors
as an example. The first shot of a major conflict would be against the networks
and the U.S. forces must prepare to operate without the assured communications
they have become accustomed to, Neller said.

Also on the
panel, Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Karl Schultz said his service was engaging
in more national security operations, such as the recent freedom of navigation
transit of the Taiwan Straits, in addition to its heavy load of maritime
security and safety missions. Schultz said the Coast Guard was looking forward
to getting its first new Arctic icebreaker and hoped to get initial funding for
a second one in the fiscal 2021 budget.

Retired Rear Adm.
Mark Busby, administrator of the Maritime Administration, said the materiel
readiness of his 46 sealift vessels, which have an average age of 44 years, had
gotten a bit worse since his warnings last year. Busby was hopeful Congress
would fund the three-part program MARAD and the Navy have urged to modernize
his fleet by updating some ships, buying some newer commercial ships and
building a small number of vessels. Asked about the threat to global
shipbuilding industry from China’s rapidly growing ship production
capabilities, Busby said U.S. shipbuilding survived only due to Navy production
and commercial ships for the Jones Act, which required U.S. built ships for
commerce between U.S. ports.

VIENNA,
Austria — Norway’s Andøya Test Center selected Schiebel’s market-leading Camcopter
S-100 vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) unmanned air system (UAS) for
extensive search-and-rescue trials as part of the Arctic 2030 project, the
company said in a May 2 release.

In a typical
configuration, the Camcopter S-100 operates six hours continuously and is able
to simultaneously carry multiple payloads, offering significant payload
flexibility to the user. Therefore, the S-100’s missions deliver aerial views
that reach considerably farther than manned helicopters.

The S-100
also offers a number of key advantages for naval operations in the Arctic. As a
VTOL platform, the Camcopter does not require any additional start or recovery
equipment and its minimal footprint is perfect for offshore patrol vessels with
small deck sizes. The S-100 also distinguishes itself through its ability to
perform in the harshest weather conditions, flying at temperatures down to
-40°C. This has been proven in a series of intensive trials, such as the
Canadian icebreaker operations. In this particular case, the Camcopter S-100
was deployed 60 nautical miles north of Fogo Island, offshore Canada, providing
a wide-view image of the ice structure as well as identifying the boundaries
between flat and rough ice.

The goal of
the Andøy Municipality project is a demonstration of VTOL UAS use in the Arctic
region in an effort to increase maritime safety. For this purpose, the Camcopter
S-100 will be equipped with an electro-optical/infrared camera gimbal, an
Overwatch Imaging PT-8 Oceanwatch payload, an automatic identification system
receiver and a maritime broadband radio by Radionor. Such a combination of
payloads is intended to strengthen emergency preparedness in the region and
provide search and rescue mission support.

Tests are
scheduled to commence in the fall of 2019 with the UAS being deployed from
Norwegian Coast Guard vessels in Andfjorden, Northern Norway. More operations
are planned in Spitsbergen in the spring of 2020.

“This is
clearly an important milestone in the project,” said Gunnar Jan Olsen, general manager
of the Andøya Test Center. “We have already gained some experience with the
Schiebel Camcopter S-100 UAS during an impressive demonstration in 2017. We
believe that these current, more extensive S-100 trials will demonstrate that
maritime safety in the Arctic can effectively be increased with the help of
VTOL UAS.”

SAN DIEGO —
The Coast Guard commissioned the newest California-based 154-foot Fast Response
Cutter in San Diego, May 1, the Coast Guard 11^th District said in a
release of the same date.

The Benjamin
Bottoms is the fourth Sentinel-Class Fast Response Cutter (FRC) to be
homeported at Base Los Angeles-Long Beach.

While these
ships will be based in San Pedro, they will operate throughout the 11th Coast
Guard District, which includes all of California and international waters off
of Mexico and Central America. 

“Radioman
First Class Benjamin Bottoms is a Coast Guard hero,” said Adm. Charles
Ray, the Coast Guard vice commandant. “He was the embodiment of honor,
commitment and sacrifice — the motto of this new cutter.”

FRC’s are
154-foot multimission ships designed to conduct drug and migrant interdictions;
ports, waterways and coastal security operations; fisheries and environmental
protection patrols; national defense missions; and search and rescue.

To date, the
Coast Guard has accepted delivery of more than 30 FRCs. Each ship is designed
for a crew of 24, has a range of 2,500 miles and is equipped for patrols up to
five days. The FRCs are part of the Coast Guard’s overall fleet modernization
initiative.

FRCs feature
advanced command, control, communications, computers, intelligence,
surveillance and reconnaissance equipment as well as over-the-horizon response
boat deployment capability and improved habitability for the crew. The ships
can reach speeds of 28 knots and are equipped to coordinate operations with
partner agencies and long-range Coast Guard assets such as the Coast Guard’s
National Security Cutters.

FRCs are
named in honor of Coast Guard enlisted leaders, trailblazers and heroes. The
four California-based FRCs are:

Forrest Rednour (WPC-1129): Rednour aided in the rescue of 133
people during the sinking of the U.S.A.T. Dorchester, Feb. 3, 1943. He was
awarded the Purple Heart and Navy and Marine Corps Medal for his actions.
Rednour lost his life in the sinking of the Coast Guard Cutter Escanaba in June
1943.

Robert Ward (WPC-1130): Ward operated beach-landing boats
during the Normandy invasion. He landed his craft on the Cotentin Peninsula and
rescued two stranded boat crews in the face of a heavily fortified enemy
assault.

Terrell Horne III (WPC-1131): Horne was murdered by suspected drug
smugglers who intentionally rammed the boat he and fellow Coast Guardsmen were
aboard during law enforcement operations near Santa Cruz Island off the
Southern California coast in December 2012. Horne pushed one of his shipmates
out of the way of the oncoming vessel attack and sustained fatal injuries.

Benjamin Bottoms (WPC-1132): Bottoms was part the Coast Guard
aircrew that rescued an Army aircrew from a downed B-17 off the east coast of Greenland
in 1942. Bottoms and the pilot conducted the first landing of a cutter plane on
an icecap and commenced a two-day rescue over a rugged arctic terrain that
required multiple flights. During the second day of rescue operations, radio
contact with Bottoms’ plane was lost and he was declared missing in
action. 

PASCAGOULA, Mississippi — Huntington Ingalls Industries’ Ingalls Shipbuilding division delivered the National Security Cutter Midgett (WMSL 757) to the U.S. Coast Guard on May 1, the company said in a release. Midgett is scheduled to sail away in June and will be commissioned later this year.

“We have a mission statement in the NSC program that says
during the construction of each NSC we will provide the men and women of the
United States Coast Guard with the finest ship in their fleet,” said Derek
Murphy, NSC program manager. “This excellence will be provided by our
shipbuilders through working safely, attention to detail and ownership of work.
Since the beginning of construction on NSC 8, we’ve seen an amazing
transformation, made possible by the thousands of people who poured their heart
and soul into this ship.”

Ingalls has now delivered eight Legend-class NSCs and has one more under construction and two more under contract. Stone (WMSL 758) is scheduled for delivery in 2020. In December of 2018, Ingalls received two fixed-price incentive contracts with a combined value of $931 million to build NSCs 10 and 11.

“From a homeland security and defense perspective, this ship provides unmatched command and control,” said Cmdr. Brian Smicklas, Midgett’s executive officer and acting commanding officer.

“We’ve reached a number of accomplishments and milestones up to this point. However, there’s more work to do on the water. We have record drug flows in the eastern Pacific, and there are traditional Western Hemisphere missions that our Coast Guard brothers and sisters are conducting on the water every day. We also see a large increase in demand for the geographic combatant commanders for this specific National Security Cutter capability, and we’re excited to fill that and be a part of the national fleet.”

NSC 8 is named to honor the hundreds of members of the Midgett family who have served in the U.S. Coast Guard and its predecessor services. At least 10 members of the family earned high honors from the Coast Guard for their heroic lifesaving deeds. Seven Midgett family members were awarded the Gold Lifesaving Medal, the Coast Guard’s highest award for saving a life, and three were awarded the Silver Lifesaving Medal.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Coast Guard and Navy have awarded VT Halter Marine Inc. of Pascagoula, Mississippi, a contract for the detail, design and construction of the Coast Guard’s first polar security cutter (PSC), which will replace the nation’s aging fleet of icebreakers.

The award is valued at $745.9 million and supports nonrecurring engineering and detail design of the PSC class as well as procurement of long lead-time materials and construction of the first ship, an April 23 Coast Guard release said.

The fixed price incentive (firm) contract also includes options for construction of two additional PSCs. If all options are exercised, the total contract value is $1.9 billion. PSCs support a range of Coast Guard missions such as search and rescue, maritime law enforcement, environmental response and national defense.

“Against the backdrop of ‘Great Power Competition,’ the [PSC] is key to our nation’s presence in the polar regions,” Coast Guard Commandant Adm. Karl L. Schultz said. “With the strong support of both the Trump administration and the United States Congress, this contract award marks an important step towards building the nation’s full complement of six polar icebreakers to meet the unique mission demands that have emerged from increased commerce, tourism, research, and international activities in the Arctic and Antarctic.”

The Naval Sea Systems Command is the lead contracting authority.

“This contract award reflects the great benefit achieved by integrating the incredible talents of Coast Guard and Navy acquisition and shipbuilding professionals to deliver best value at speed,” said James Geurts, assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development and acquisition.

“Working with our industry partners, the team identified approximately $300 million in cost avoidances and accelerated the schedule for delivery of this capability to the nation by almost three years. This reflects the urgency in which we are operating to ensure we deliver capabilities necessary to support the Coast Guard and the nation’s missions in the polar regions.”

Construction on the first PSC is planned to begin in 2021 with delivery planned for 2024. However, the contract includes financial incentives for earlier delivery.

SAN PEDRO, California — Coast Guard members from San Pedro-based Port Security Unit 311 returned home April 11 following a nine-month deployment to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, the Coast Guard Pacific Area said in a release.

During the deployment, PSU 311 members maintained a continuous maritime anti-terrorism and force protection presence in the Naval Defensive Sea Area of Guantanamo Bay, directly supporting the commander of Joint Task Force Guantanamo.

The unit coordinated operations and conducted joint training with elements of JTF Guantanamo, the Naval Station Guantanamo Bay Harbor Protection Unit and the Marine Corps Security Force Company. The units are jointly responsible for providing anti-terrorism and force protection of Guantanamo Bay Naval reservation and adjoining waters.

“I am extraordinarily proud of the men and women of PSU 311 and their professionalism, diligence and devotion to duty while deployed to Guantanamo Bay,” said Cmdr. Laila Grassley, PSU 311’s commanding officer. “They gave their all to the mission at hand — standing a vigilant watch while conducting their maritime security and force protection mission.”

Established in May 1995 as a Coast Guard Reserve unit, PSU 311 is an expeditionary warfare unit specializing in maritime anti-terrorism, force protection and port security in support of military or humanitarian operations worldwide. The unit has an operational heritage, including deployments to Bahrain, Kuwait and Iraq, providing force protection for critical infrastructure and U.S. and coalition vessels in support of Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom.