SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — The Coast Guard Cutter Winslow Griesser (WPC-1116) repatriated 18 Dominican migrants to a Dominican Navy patrol vessel June 11 near Samana, Dominican Republic, following the interdiction of an illegal migrant voyage Monday just off the…
Top HASC Republican Says His Vote Hinges on GOP’s 2020 Budget Add-Ons
The House Armed Services Committee’s ranking Republican says his vote to pass the fiscal 2020 National Defense Authorization Act will depend on whether the final bill continues the recent progress is preparing the military to confront Russia and China or…
Presidential Helicopter Program Approved for Production of 6 Aircraft
PATUXENT RIVER, Md. — The U.S. Navy’s presidential helicopter program awarded a $542 million contract to Sikorsky, a Lockheed Martin company, on June 10 to build six VH-92A aircraft, spares and support equipment, the Program Executive Office for Assault and…
Raytheon, United Technologies to Merge
ARLINGTON, Va. — The merger of the Raytheon Co. and United Technologies Corp. (UTC), announced June 9, will result in a defense company with a broad portfolio in weapons, sensors, mission systems, avionics and propulsion. In a joint announcement, Raytheon…
House Armed Services Chairman Downplays Party Differences Over 2020 Defense Spending
The House Armed Services Committee chairman downplayed the partisan differences over the fiscal 2020 National Defense Authorization but said the “biggest threat” to adequate defense funding was the failure to reach agreement on lifting punishing spending caps. Although the chairman’s…
Coast Guard Commissions New Fast-Response Cutter in San Juan
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — The Coast Guard Cutter Joseph Doyle (WPC-1133) was commissioned into service June 8 during a ceremony at U.S. Coast Guard Sector San Juan, Puerto Rico, the Coast Guard 7th District said in a release. The…
Navy Reduces Planned F/A-18C+ Hornet Conversions
ARLINGTON, Va. — The U.S. Navy has reduced the number of F/A-18C Hornet strike fighters it is modernizing to the F/A-18C+ configuration from 25 to 19, only enough to field one squadron for the U.S. Marine Corps, according to Michael…
HASC Subcommittee Budget Markups Bar USS Truman’s Early Retirement, Provide 3.1% Pay Raise, Fund Third Virginia-Class Sub
The House Armed Services Committee (HASC) took initial steps June 4-5 toward passing a fiscal 2020 National Defense Authorization, with the HASC’s six subcommittees approving the “chairmen’s marks.” But a partisan dispute broke out over the Strategic Forces panel’s language…
Navy Orders 34 ScanEagle UAVs for Partner Nations
ARLINGTON, Va. — The U.S. Navy has awarded a contract for 34 ScanEagle unmanned aerial vehicles for four partner nations adjacent to the South China Sea. The Naval Air Systems Command awarded a $47.9 million contract on May 31 to…
Queen Elizabeth Closer to Operations With Transatlantic Training
LONDON — HMS Queen Elizabeth, Britain’s future flagship, will deploy in late summer for the eastern seaboard of the United States, including a port visit in the Washington, D.C., area, where she will host the Atlantic Future Forum, the U.K….
