Sgt. Maj. Troy E. Black has been selected to be the 19th Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, the Corps announced in a release.

Black is the current Sergeant Major of Manpower and Reserve Affairs and will replace the current Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps, Sgt. Maj. Ronald L. Green, during a post and relief ceremony later this year.

Following the ceremony, Green will retire after 35 years of service.

Since his enlistment in 1988, Black has, among other billets, served as Sergeant Major of Officer Candidates School, the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit, and 1st Marine Logistics Group. He has deployed extensively, including in support of Operation Desert Storm/Desert Shield, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation Enduring Freedom as well as numerous MEU and Fleet Anti-Terrorism Security Team Company deployments.

His personal awards include the Legion of Merit with Gold Star, Bronze Star with Combat Distinguishing Device, Meritorious Service Medal with two Gold Stars, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with Combat Distinguishing Device and three Gold Stars, Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal with Gold Star and the Combat Action Ribbon with two Gold Stars.

The post of Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps was established in 1957 as the senior enlisted adviser to the commandant of the Marine Corps, the first such post in any of the branches of U.S. military. The Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps is selected by the commandant and typically serves a four-year term.

WASHINGTON — The Navy will christen its newest high-speed transport vessel, the future USNS Guam (T-HST 1), during a 10 a.m. Japan Standard Time ceremony Saturday, April 27, in Okinawa, Japan, the Navy’s Office of Information said in a release.

USNS Guam is named to honor the long-standing historical and military relationship between Guam and the United States. She will be the fourth ship to bear the name Guam.

Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to the Republic of Korea Harry B. Harris Jr. will be the principal speaker, and Bruni Bradley, a 25-year Navy veteran and wife of Harris, will serve as the ship’s sponsor. In a time-honored Navy tradition, she will christen the ship by breaking a bottle of sparkling wine across the bow.

“This ship honors the island of Guam and the important contributions Guamanians have made to our nation and our Navy and Marine Corps team,” Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer said. “For decades to come, USNS Guam and its crew will carry on the Guamanian tradition of service by providing our commanders with much needed high-speed sealift mobility and agility.”

Long before Guam joined the U.S. as a territory, the island had a military relationship with the United States. The long-standing historical and military relationship began in 1898, when the U.S. acquired the island from Spain as a result of the Treaty of Paris that ended the Spanish-American War. Shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the Japanese captured Guam, and they occupied it until U.S. troops retook the island July 21, 1944, commemorated in Guam every year as “Liberation Day.” Guam continues to host many critical U.S. military installations.

USNS Guam is an aluminum catamaran designed to be fast, flexible and maneuverable, even in austere port conditions, making the vessel ideal for transporting troops and equipment quickly. USNS Guam’s 25,000-square-foot mission-bay areas can be quickly reconfigured for any cargo requirement, from supporting disaster relief to transporting troops and equipment.

The ship is preceded in service by the patrol gunboat USS Guam (PG 43), which was renamed Wake in 1941 and captured by the Japanese later that year, the Alaska-class large cruiser USS Guam (CB 2) in service 1944-1947, and the Iwo Jima-class amphibious assault ship USS Guam (LPH 9) in service 1965-1998.

WASHINGTON — The U.S. Navy will christen its newest Zumwalt-class guided missile destroyer, the future USS Lyndon B. Johnson (DDG 1002), during a 10 a.m. EST ceremony Saturday, April 27, at General Dynamics-Bath Iron Works shipyard in Bath, Maine, the Navy’s Office of Information said in a release.

The third ship in the Zumwalt class, DDG 1002 is named in honor of late President Lyndon B. Johnson, who served in office from 1963 to 1969 and will be the first ship to bear his name.

Lynda Johnson Robb and Luci Johnson, the two daughters of the former president, will serve as the ship’s sponsors. In a time-honored Navy tradition, the sisters will christen the ship by breaking a bottle of sparkling wine across the bow. Robb will also serve as the principal speaker.

“The future USS Lyndon B. Johnson will serve for decades as a reminder of President Johnson’s service to our nation and support of a strong Navy and Marine Corps team,” Navy Secretary Richard V. Spencer said. “This ship honors not only President Johnson’s service, but also the service of our industry partners who are vital in making the Navy the nation needs.”

Johnson served as a U.S. Navy Reserve officer before being called to active duty after the attack on Pearl Harbor. He requested a combat assignment and served in the Pacific theater. After returning from active duty, Johnson reported to Navy leaders and Congress what he believed were deplorable living conditions for the warfighters. He continued to fight for better standards for all military members.

Johnson’s time as president was marked by the passage of programs that greatly influenced and affected education, health care and civil rights for generations to come. He signed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 into law, enacting comprehensive provisions protecting the right to vote and prohibiting racial discrimination by employers. His work on civil rights continued with the passage of the Voting Rights Act, which guaranteed voting rights for all people, regardless of race.

The multimission Zumwalt-class destroyers will be capable of performing a range of deterrence, power projection, sea control, and command and control missions while allowing the Navy to evolve with new systems and missions. Zumwalt ships are 610 feet long, have a beam of 80.7 feet, displace almost 16,000 tons and can reach 30 knots.

ARLINGTON, Va.— The transfer of the new amphibious assault ship USS America to the Forward-Deployed Naval Force (FDNF) next fiscal year will bring a change in capabilities to the 7th Fleet’s amphibious ready group, but the Marines that will go on patrol on America will be able to adjust to the changes and maintain a similar level of combat capability.

America (LHA 6) is scheduled to replace USS Wasp (LHD 1) as the “bog-deck” amphib deployed to Sasebo, Japan. The major difference in the two ships is that America lacks a well deck, a feature on all earlier LHAs and LHDs that can float landing craft and amphibious assault vehicles.

The America and its soon-to-be commissioned sister ship Tripoli were designed to be more aviation-centric. The trend was reversed with the third ship of the class, the future Bougainville, which will have a well deck.

The Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU), the 31st MEU, which deploys on the ships of the Sasebo-based amphibious ships, differs from other MEUs in that it does not include M1A1 tanks in its load-out.

“I do not possess tanks, because we don’t have tanks on Okinawa,” said Col. Robert Brodie, commander of the 31st MEU, speaking April 23 to the Potomac Institute in Arlington of the 31st MEU’s patrol in the Western Pacific in early 2019.

With somewhat of a lighter load, the 31st MEU will have less of a problem handling the unit’s equipment of the America-centric amphibious ready group (ARG).

Brodie said his staff already is looking at the optimum way to configure the MEU’s equipment load-out to best operate from the America. The ship’s lack of a well deck means that three fewer landing craft — LCACs or LCUs — would be carried by the ships of the ARG.

Brodie is optimistic that the increased aviation capacity of the America could make up for the loss of a well deck. The America would more easily accommodate 12 MV-22B Osprey tiltrotor aircraft rather than the 10 that the Wasp typically carried. The two additional Ospreys would add to the overall airlift capability that could make up for some of the loss of lift by landing craft, especially without the requirement to accommodate tanks.

The America’s increased aviation capacity also would enable the America to deploy with perhaps as many as eight F-35C Lightning II strike fighters instead of six as on the Wasp. The additional MV-22Bs also would make the eventual installation of an aerial refueling hose on one or more of the MV-22Bs a plus for the range and endurance of the F-35.

The air combat element of the 31st MEU also normally deploys with four CH-53E Super Stallion heavy-lift helicopters on board the Wasp, in addition to the three Navy MH-60S armed helicopters. The four AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters and three UH-1Y Venom utility helicopters are normally staged on the amphibious platform dock ship and dock landing ship of the ARG.

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.

MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Virginia —The Marine Corps plans to begin replacing its legacy Light Armored Vehicle with a modern Armored Reconnaissance Vehicle late in the next decade, Marine Corps Systems Command (MCSC) said in a release.

The ARV will be highly mobile, networked, transportable, protected and lethal. The capability will provide, sensors, communication systems and lethality options to overmatch threats that have historically been addressed with more heavily armored systems.

“The ARV will be an advanced combat vehicle system, capable of fighting for information that balances competing capability demands to sense, shoot, move, communicate and remain transportable as part of the naval expeditionary force,” said John “Steve” Myers, program manager for MCSC’s LAV portfolio.

Since the 1980s, the LAV has supported Marine Air-Ground Task Force missions on the battlefield. While the LAV remains operationally effective, the life cycle of this system is set to expire in the mid-2030s. The Corps aims to replace the vehicle before then.

Marine Corps Systems Command has been tasked with replacing the vehicle with a next-generation, more capable ground combat vehicle system. In June 2016, the Corps established an LAV Way-Ahead, which included the option to initiate an LAV Replacement Program to field a next-generation capability in the 2030s.

Preliminary planning, successful resourcing in the program objectives memorandum and the creation of an Office of Naval Research science and technology program have set the conditions to begin replacing the legacy LAV with the ARV in the late-2020s.

“The Marine Corps is examining different threats,” said Kimberly Bowen, deputy program manager of Light Armored Vehicles. “The ARV helps the Corps maintain an overmatched peer-to-peer capability.”

The Office of Naval Research (ONR) has begun researching advanced technologies to inform requirements, technology readiness assessments and competitive prototyping efforts for the next-generation ARV.

The office is amid a science and technology phase that allows them to conduct advanced technology research and development, modeling and simulation, whole system trade studies and a full-scale technology demonstrator fabrication and evaluation.

These efforts will inform the requirements development process, jump-start industry and reduce risk in the acquisition program.

The office is also supporting the Ground Combat Element Division of the Capabilities Development Directorate by performing a trade study through the U.S. Army Ground Vehicle Systems Center in Michigan. This work will help to ensure ARV requirements are feasible and to highlight the capability trade space.

ONR has partnered with industry to build two technology demonstrator vehicles for evaluation. The first is a base platform that will be made up of current and state-of-the-art technologies and standard weapons systems designed around a notional price point. The second is an “at-the-edge” vehicle that demonstrates advanced capabilities.

“The purpose of those vehicles is to understand the technology and the trades,” Myers said.

In support of acquisition activities, PM LAV anticipates the release of an acquisition program Request for Information in May 2019 and an Industry Day later in the year to support a competitive prototyping effort. The Corps expects a Material Development Decision before fiscal year 2020.

“We will take what we’ve learned in competitive prototyping,” Myers said. “Prior to a Milestone B decision, we’ll be working to inform trade space, inform requirements and reduce risk.”

The Corps believes the ARV will support the capability demands of the next generation of armored reconnaissance.

“This vehicle will equip the Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion within the Marine Divisions to perform combined arms, all-weather, sustained reconnaissance and security missions in support of the ground combat element,” Myers said. “It’s expected to be a transformational capability for the Marine Corps.”

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.

MIAMI — The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Raymond Evans (WPC-1110) offloaded about 970 pounds of cocaine and 550 pounds of marijuana April 18 at Coast Guard Base Miami Beach worth an estimated total of $13.5 million wholesale seized in international waters, the Coast Guard 7th District said.

This featured Raymond Evans’ first-ever stop, interdiction and seizure of a vessel trafficking illicit narcotics on April 8 while on patrol in the central Caribbean Sea.

The contraband offloaded was interdicted off the coasts of Jamaica, Haiti and Colombia and represented three separate cases involving suspected drug smuggling vessel interdictions by the U.S. Coast Guard.

The cutter Raymond Evans was responsible for one case, seizing an estimated 550 pounds of marijuana.

The Coast Guard Cutter Spencer (WMEC-905) was responsible for receiving about 970 pounds of cocaine from a case off the coast of Colombia. The Spencer also interdicted small amounts of marijuana and amphetamines in another case. The contraband from these cases was transferred to the Raymond Evans.

“This was our first deployment outside of the Florida Straits in 18 months, and I’m extremely proud of my crew for the work they did over the past few weeks to make this patrol successful,” said Lt. Patrick Frost, commanding officer of the Raymond Evans. “It was exciting to exercise the capabilities of the fast response cutter in the Caribbean counter-drug narcotics mission, and we’re honored to have played a role in the first drug interdiction for Raymond Evans.”

The interdiction completed by the cutter’s crew was part of a recent interagency operation to increase intelligence and targeting capabilities in order to disrupt criminal organizations in the Caribbean Sea and secure approaches to the U.S. along the southern border. The cutter’s crew collaborated with Department of Homeland Security components to interdict suspected drug smugglers off the coast of Jamaica.

Raymond Evans is a 154-foot fast-response cutter homeported in Key West, Florida. Spencer is a 270-foot medium endurance cutter homeported in Boston.

ALAMEDA, California — The crew of Coast Guard Cutter Waesche (WMSL-751) returned April 8 to the ship’s homeport of Alameda following a 95-day counter-narcotics patrol in the eastern Pacific Ocean, the Coast Guard Pacific Area said.

Waesche’s deployment supported Joint Interagency Task Force-South, with the ship operating in international waters off the coast of Central and South America, resulting in the seizure of more than 14,000 pounds of cocaine with an estimated wholesale value of $193 million.

The drugs were seized during six separate interdictions by the Coast Guard Cutters Active (WMEC-618), Steadfast (WMEC-623) and Waesche, with the assistance of a helicopter interdiction squadron of pilots, aircrew and trained helicopter marksmen embarked aboard Waesche.

The contraband and 10 suspected drug traffickers were transferred April 5 from Waesche and turned over to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency in San Diego.

“This offload represents a successful example of the cycle of justice,” said Rear Adm. Nathan Moore, deputy commander of Coast Guard Pacific Area. “This cycle of justice disrupts the cycle of crime, which, left unchecked, fuels violence and instability that erodes our hemisphere’s social and economic fabric and directly contributes to historically high numbers of drug-related deaths in North America.”

As part of its Western Hemisphere Strategy, the Coast Guard increased its presence in known drug transit zones in the eastern Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea. During at-sea interdictions in international waters, suspect vessels are initially located and tracked by military or law-enforcement personnel from the U.S. and its allies. The interdictions, including boardings, are conducted by U.S. Coast Guard members.

Waesche’s commanding officer, Capt. Patrick Dougan, said the ship, among the Coast Guard’s most sophisticated and technologically advanced assets, is well-suited to the task.

“[The ship] would be ineffective without the men and women who serve aboard,” Dougan said. “Everyone on board plays an important role, and manning these ships requires everyone to contribute. This crew, as well as those of our other Coast Guard assets, are relentless in their pursuit of improving their professional excellence.”

The Waesche is one of four 418-foot national security cutters homeported in Alameda. The ship and its normal compliment of 148 crew members perform deployments lasting about 100 days, carrying out missions such as law enforcement, search and rescue, fisheries management and drug interdictions from the Bering Sea to the eastern Pacific.

Fort Worth, Texas — Bell Helicopter, a Textron Inc. company, announced in an April 18 release that, should the Bell 407GXi be selected for the U.S. Navy Advanced Helicopter Trainer program, the company plans to conduct final assembly of the aircraft in Ozark, Alabama.

Bell submitted its proposal to the Navy on April 2. The Navy is seeking to acquire 130 aircraft to replace the fleet of Bell TH-57 helicopters.

“Bell is proud to be the only U.S.-based manufacturer to participate in the Navy Advanced Helicopter Trainer competition,” said Mitch Snyder, president and CEO. “Our Ozark team has proven their capabilities delivering Bell 407s to the Navy through the Fire Scout program. We look forward to providing a safe, technologically advanced aircraft for the next generation of Naval aviators.”

The Bell 407GXi is outfitted with the new Rolls-Royce M250-C47E/4 dual channel FADEC turbine engine, delivering exceptional hot and high performance, fuel efficiency and the ability to cruise at 133 knots/246 kilometers per hour.

The aircraft also features Garmin’s G1000H NXi Integrated Flight Deck, which delivers enhanced situational awareness and reduces pilot workload by delivering information at a glance, such as Helicopter Synthetic Vision Technology with Terrain and Obstacle Warning, improving safety for the future of naval flight training.