ARLINGTON, Va. — Ceremonies and a flyaway May 23 at Eglin Air
Force Base, Florida, marked the deactivation of the Navy’s first F-35C fleet
replacement squadron and its consolidation with the second F-35C FRS as the
service moves to conduct all F-35C flight training at one base.

Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 101, the “Grim Reapers,” officially
will be deactivated on July 1, but the deactivation ceremonies were held May
23. The squadron flew out its last F-35Cs on that date to Naval Air Station Lemoore,
California, the home of VFA-125, the FRS that is training future F-35C pilots
and conducting transition training of VFA squadrons to the F-35C.

Reactivated in 2012 at Eglin AFB, VFA-101 has been training
instructor and test pilots to fly the F-35C Lightning II strike fighter. The
Navy decided to reactivate VFA-125 at NAS Lemoore to become an F-35C FRS.
VF-125 conducted the transition of the first fleet F-35C squadron, VFA-147,
which took the F-35C to Initial Operational Capability in February. VFA-147 is
scheduled to deploy on board USS Carl Vinson in 2021.

Although it is not of the lineage of World War II’s Fighter
Squadron 10 (VF-10), VFA-101 adopted the Grim Reaper traditions of the famous
squadron. VF-10 flew the F4F Wildcat and later F6F-3 Hellcat off USS Enterprise
(CV-6) in the Pacific during WWII. The squadron later deployed twice into
combat on board USS Intrepid (CV-11) in 1945, first with F4U-1D and later F4U-4
Corsair fighters. VF-10 was deactivated in 1945.

VF-101 was activated in 1952 at NAS Cecil Field, Florida, and took
on the nickname and traditions of VF-10 “Grim Reapers.” VF-101 flew F4U-4 Corsairs
in the Korean War and went on to operate the F2H Banshee, F4D Skyray, F3H
Demon, F-4 Phantom II and the F-14 Tomcat. VF-101 was deactivated in September
2005.

The squadron was reactivated in May 2012 as the F-35C FRS.
According to a May 23 release from the Joint Strike Fighter Wing, VFA-101 trained
more than 75 Navy and Marine Corps F-35C pilots, accepted more than 30
aircraft, trained more than 1,200 F-35C maintainers and flew nearly 11,000
flight hours.

“The contributions that VFA-101 has made to the F-35C community
will not diminish as this program grows,” VFA-101’s commanding officer, Cmdr.
Adan Covarrubias, said in the release. “The original cadre of maintainers and
pilots have left a legacy that is evidenced in all aspects of this community. Their
influence will continue long after the squadron’s doors are closed.”

KEY WEST,
Fla.— The Coast Guard interdicted 10 Cuban migrants and two suspected smugglers
on May 21 about 12 miles off Villa Clara Province, Cuba, the Coast Guard 7th
District said in a release.

Coast Guard
7th District watchstanders received notification of an illegal departure of a
30-foot go-fast vessel with 12 people aboard in the vicinity of Villa Clara
Province.

A Coast Guard
Air Station Miami HC-144 Ocean Sentry aircraft crew located the vessel and
vectored the Coast Guard Cutter Raymond Evans (WPC-1110) crew to the location,
where the crew embarked 10 males and two females. The Evans crew repatriated
the 10 Cuban migrants back to their home. The two suspected smugglers were
transferred into Homeland Security Investigations custody.

“The
Coast Guard maintains a focused and coordinated effort with multiple agency
assets to interdict any attempt to unlawfully immigrate by sea to the United
States,” said Rear Adm. Peter J. Brown, commander of Coast Guard 7th District.

The 7th
District, based in Miami, Florida, oversees all Coast Guard operations in South
Carolina, Georgia and Florida as well as Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin
Islands.

Brown is also
the director of Homeland Security Task Force Southeast, a standing multiagency
team that unifies the whole of government effort to monitor, identify, mitigate
and respond to large-scale migration events.

About 290
Cuban migrants have tried to illegally enter the U.S. by sea in fiscal year
2019 compared to 384 in fiscal 2018. These numbers represent the total number
of at-sea interdictions, landings and disruptions in the Florida Straits, the
Caribbean and Atlantic.

Once aboard a
Coast Guard cutter, all migrants receive food, water, shelter and basic medical
attention.

HONOLULU —
The U.S. Coast Guard conducted an aids-to-navigation and waterways assessment
in the Federated States of Micronesia in support of improved maritime safety
and defense readiness in May, the Coast Guard 14th District said in a release.

The U.S.
Coast Guard Cutter Sequoia, a 225-foot seagoing buoy tender homeported in Guam,
completed surveys in Yap, Chuuk and Phonpei. While in Yap, the Sequoia’s crew
hosted local officials and U.S. Ambassador Robert Riley. In Pohnpei, the
Sequoia crew hosted tours for the public.

The ports
and waterways of Micronesia are essential to maritime commerce and U.S. defense
readiness. A large number of commercial, military and private vessels use these
routes.

“The
U.S. Coast Guard, in a joint effort with U.S. Embassy Phonpei, U.S. Pacific
Fleet, the Department of the Interior, and the Federated States of Micronesia,
is working to improve the readiness and safety of maritime navigation
systems,” said Rear Adm. Kevin Lunday, commander of the U.S. Coast Guard’s
14th District. “Our work together is essential to strengthening the U.S.
relationship with the Federated States of Micronesia, improving regional
maritime governance, and ensuring a free and open Indo-Pacific.”

Improved
navigation systems promote maritime governance in the South Pacific, essential
for economic prosperity and a free and open Indo-Pacific.

The Federated States of
Micronesia, with a population of 105,000 people and more than 600 islands, is made
up of four states: Pohnpei, Kosrae, Chuuk and Yap.

WASHINGTON — The
U.S. Senate has confirmed Adm. Bill Moran to become the 32nd chief of naval
operations (CNO).

The chief of
naval personnel, Vice Adm. Robert Burke, also was confirmed for promotion to
admiral and appointment as the next vice chief of naval operations (VCNO), the
Office of the Navy Chief of Information said in a release.

“I am deeply
humbled and honored to be given the opportunity to continue to serve as our
Navy’s next chief of naval operations,” Moran said in a statement released
after his confirmation May 24.

“[CNO] Adm. [John]
Richardson and his wife, Dana, are an amazing team that has consistently
advocated on behalf of our Sailors and their families. My wife, Patricia, and I
are grateful for their service to our Navy and our nation. I look forward to
the honor of leading the men and women of the world’s greatest Navy in service
to our nation.”

Acting
Defense Secretary Patrick M. Shanahan announced President Donald J. Trump’s
nomination of Moran and Burke on April 11.

Moran will be
the first naval aviator to become the Navy’s top officer since Adm. Jay L.
Johnson, who served as CNO from 1996 to 2000. In the years since, three surface
warfare officers and two submariners have served as CNO, according to another Navy
press release.

Moran, a
native of Newburg, New York, also would be the first CNO since Adm. Thomas H.
Moorer, who served from 1967 to 1970, to have been a patrol plane pilot. Moorer
flew PBY Catalina aircraft in World War II. Moran is a P-3 Orion pilot.

At the time
of Moran’s nomination, Richardson said that Moran “is an amazing leader and
good friend. He has been central to the Navy adopting a fighting stance in this
‘Great Power Competition.’ As I turn over and go ashore, I will rest easy
knowing that, pending confirmation, Adm. Moran has the watch.”

Moran served
in Patrol Squadron 44 (VP-44) in Brunswick, Maine, and twice as an instructor
pilot in VP-30 in Jacksonville, Florida. He commanded VP-46 and later Patrol
Reconnaissance Wing Two in Hawaii. He also served on the staff of commander,
Carrier Group 6, aboard USS Forrestal (CVA-59).

As a flag
officer, he has served as commander, Patrol and Reconnaissance Group; director,
Air Warfare (N98) on the staff of the Chief of Naval Operations; and most
recently as the 57th chief of naval personnel, according to his official
biography. Ashore, he served as executive assistant to the chief of naval
operations; executive assistant to Commander, U.S. Pacific Command; deputy
director, Navy staff; and assistant Washington placement officer and assistant
flag officer detailer in the Bureau of Naval Personnel.

Moran
graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1981 and a
master’s from the National War College in 2006.

Burke is a
nuclear submariner who has served onboard USS Von Steuben (SSBN-632), USS
Maryland (SSBN-738) and USS Bremerton (SSN-698), according to his official
biography.

He commanded
USS Hampton (SSN-767) and later became commodore of Submarine Development
Squadron 12. Burke was recognized by the United States Submarine League with
the Jack Darby Award for Leadership in 2004 and the Vice Admiral James Bond
Stockdale Award for Inspirational Leadership in 2005.

His staff assignments
include tours as an instructor and director for the Electrical Engineering
Division at Naval Nuclear Power School; junior board member on the Pacific
Fleet Nuclear Propulsion Examining Board; submarine officer community
manager/nuclear officer program manager; senior Tactical Readiness Evaluation
Team member at Commander, Submarine Force, U.S. Atlantic Fleet; the deputy
director for Operations, Strategy and Policy Directorate (J5) at U.S. Joint
Forces Command; division director, Submarine/Nuclear Power Distribution
(PERS-42); and director, Joint and Fleet Operations, N3/N5, U.S. Fleet Forces
Command.

Burke’s
assignments as a flag officer include deputy commander, U.S. 6th Fleet;
director of operations (N3), U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa; commander,
Submarine Group 8; and director, Military Personnel Plans and Policy (OPNAV
N13). He assumed duties as the Navy’s 58th chief of naval personnel on May 27,
2016.

Burke, from Portage,
Michigan, holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering from
Western Michigan University and the University of Central Florida,
respectively.

ECUADOR — The
crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Hamilton (WMSL-753) interdicted 22 Ecuadorian
nationals last week in possession of illegal firearms in the eastern Pacific
Ocean and delivered them to Ecuadorian authorities, the Coast Guard 7th
District said in a release.

A Hamilton
law-enforcement team boarded the Ecuadorian long-line fishing vessel, Erika
Fernanda, in a known smuggling area during a patrol.

Multiple
violations and two illegal automatic weapons were located onboard. The crew of
the Erika Fernanda and evidence collected was transferred to the Ecuadorian
Coast Guard near the Port of Manta.

“This case
highlights the value and benefits of the close partnerships the U.S. Coast
Guard has with our allies in Central and South America.” said Capt. Mark
Gordon, commanding officer of the Hamilton.

“The ability
to work with our counterpart foreign agencies is critical to combatting common
challenges such as illegal narcotics trafficking, human smuggling and illegal
and unreported fishing. The success of this case is a result of years of robust
collaboration between the State Department, DHS, Ecuador and the U.S. Coast
Guard.”

Hamilton is deployed
on a counter-narcotics patrol in the eastern Pacific. The cutter is one of two
418-foot national security cutters homeported in Charleston, South Carolina.

MIAMI — The
Coast Guard interdicted 50 migrants May 21 about 46 miles north of Cap-Haïtien,
Haiti, the Coast Guard 7th District said in a release.

At about 5:35
p.m. May 21, the Coast Guard Robert Yered (WPC-1104) crew detected an
overloaded 30-foot panga vessel and launched a small-boat crew to investigate.
The crew then boarded the vessel and discovered 36 Haitian males and 14 Haitian
females.

The Robert
Yered crew safely embarked the migrants and sank the vessel to prevent a hazard
to navigation. The Coast Guard Cutter Vigilant (WMEC-617) crew transferred the
50 Haitian migrants back to their country of origin.

“Bottom
line is these voyages put lives at unnecessary risk,” said Capt. Jason
Ryan, Coast Guard 7th District chief of enforcement. “These voyages often
involve ill-advised agreements with smugglers on poorly equipped, makeshift
vessels that are prone to capsizing, leading to loss of life.”

Approximately
2,474 Haitian migrants have attempted to illegally enter the U.S. via the
maritime environment since May 20 in fiscal year 2019 compared to 2,727 Haitian
migrants in fiscal year 2018. These numbers represent the total number of
at-sea interdictions, landings and disruptions in the Florida Straits, the
Caribbean and Atlantic.

Once aboard a
Coast Guard cutter, all migrants receive food, water, shelter and basic medical
attention.

The Robert Yered is a
154-foot Sentinel-class cutter homeported in Miami, Florida. The Vigilant is a
210-foot medium endurance cutter homeported in Port Canaveral, Florida.

SAN JUAN,
Puerto Rico — The Coast Guard repatriated 66 migrants on May 23 to a Dominican navy
vessel in waters off the Dominican Republic following the interdiction of three
illegal migrant vessels in the Mona Passage earlier that week, the Coast Guard
7th District said in a release.

Two of the
interdicted migrants, one Haitian and a Dominican man, remain in federal
custody facing possible prosecution by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the
District of Puerto Rico on potential charges of attempted illegal re-entry into
a U.S. territory.

The
interdictions are the result of ongoing efforts in support of Operation Unified
Resolve, Operation Caribbean Guard and the Caribbean Border Interagency Group
(CBIG).

“I’m
extremely proud of my crew and the collaboration with our Caribbean Border
Interagency Group partners,” said Cmdr. Michael A. Nalli, commanding officer of
the Coast Guard Cutter Escanaba (WMEC-907).

“Our
collective efforts led to the successful interdiction of three grossly
overloaded, unseaworthy vessels and the safe recovery of all 68 migrants. Crossing
the Mona Passage in these makeshift vessels is an extremely dangerous voyage,
where the migrants risk losing their lives or the life of a loved one.”

While on a
routine patrol in the Mona Passage on May 21, crews of Customs and Border
Protection DHC-8 maritime patrol aircraft detected the two migrant vessels
transiting without navigational lights. The first boat was located 43 nautical
miles north of Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, while the second was detected about 15
nautical miles northwest of Desecheo Island, Puerto Rico.

Coast Guard watchstanders
in Sector San Juan diverted cutter Escanaba to interdict the suspect vessels.
Shortly thereafter, and with the cutter boat’s assistance, the Escanaba
interdicted a 20-foot makeshift boat with 19 adult migrants onboard. The
Escanaba crew embarked 14 men and five women who claimed Dominican nationality.

Following the
first interdiction, the Escanaba proceeded to intercept the second migrant
vessel. Once on scene, the Escanaba crew and a CBP Caribbean Air and Marine
interceptor surface unit stopped a 25-foot makeshift boat with 21 adult
migrants onboard. The Escanaba crew embarked 18 men and three women of
Dominican nationality.

A third
migrant vessel was detected the night of May 21 by the crew of a CBP DHC-8
maritime patrol aircraft about 20 nautical miles northwest of Aguadilla. Escanaba’s
crew interdicted the 30-foot makeshift boat and safely embarked 28 adult
migrants, 21 men and seven women of Dominican nationality as well as a Haitian
man.

Once aboard a
Coast Guard cutter, all migrants receive food, water, shelter and basic medical
attention.

The Escanaba
transferred custody of the two migrants facing federal prosecution to the Coast
Guard Cutter Richard Dixon (WPB-1113) for further transfer to Ramey Sector
Border Patrol agents in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico.

KEY WEST,
Fla. — The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Thetis (WMEC-910) returned to their
homeport in Key West, Florida, on May 23 after a three-month U.S. Africa
Command patrol, the Coast Guard 7th District said in a release.

The Thetis
crew concluded their patrol, in which they conducted multiple joint law-enforcement
exercises and operations with West African countries with U.S. Africa Command
and U.S. 6th Fleet to maintain and strengthen international partnerships and
maritime security.

“By
conducting joint maritime law-enforcement operations, we were able to establish
best practices providing the West African navies and coast guards with the
tools to enforce their laws and secure their maritime borders,” said Cmdr.
Randall Chong, commanding officer of the Thetis. “The U.S. Coast Guard’s
involvement in the African Maritime Law Enforcement Partnership has had a
positive impact on the region, and I am proud of all the hard work my crew has
put into this mission.”

Thetis crew members
and U.S. Coast Guard Tactical Law Enforcement Team South worked to build,
strengthen and maintain relationships with the African nations of Cabo Verde,
Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire, São Tomé and Príncipe, Togo and Benin. Together, they
conducted joint maritime safety, security and law enforcement training and
missions in support of Africa Maritime Law Enforcement Partnership 2019
operations.

While at sea,
the crew conducted joint fisheries and law-enforcement boardings with Nigerian navy
and Cabo Verde coast guard law-enforcement teams. The Thetis crew saved the
lives of two men who were lost at sea for three days and safely transferred
them to the Sierra Leone maritime authority. The crew also rescued two
loggerhead sea turtles that were entangled in fishing nets in the Gulf of
Guinea.

Thetis is the
first U.S. Coast Guard cutter to support U.S. 6th Fleet and deploy to U.S.
Africa Command since 2012.

U.S. 6th
Fleet, headquartered in Naples, Italy, conducts a full spectrum of joint and
naval operations, often in concert with allied and interagency partners, to
advance U.S. national interests, security and stability in Europe and Africa.

The Thetis is a multimission
270-foot medium-endurance cutter whose missions include illegal drug and
migrant interdiction as well as search and rescue. The Thetis patrols
throughout the Caribbean basin, eastern Pacific and Atlantic seaboard.

Huntington
Ingalls Industries hosted a ceremonial first-cut-of-steel event today at its
Newport News Shipbuilding division to mark the start of advance construction
for the Columbia-class submarine program, the company
announced in a press release. The event also marked the first class of
submarines that will be built using fully digital blueprints.

“Today is a
historic day,” said Jason Ward, Newport News’ vice president for Columbia-class construction. “It has been a half century
since Newport News Shipbuilding has constructed a ballistic submarine. Today,
we celebrate the decade-plus effort spent working with Electric Boat on the
design of this new class of submarine as we formally transition from design to
material procurement and now to construction execution.”

The Columbia-class boats will replace the fleet of Ohio-class nuclear ballistic submarines. Newport News is
starting its work three weeks ahead of schedule to support its advance
construction efforts, according to the release.

“The first cut
of steel is a major construction milestone that signifies our shipyard and
submarine industrial base are ready to move forward with production,” Ward
said. “We have worked to engage the submarine industrial base and leveraged
lessons learned from the successful Virginia-class
program to building the Columbia-class
submarines in the most efficient and affordable manner to provide the best
value to the Navy.”

Ceremony
participants included Newport News Shipbuilding President Jennifer Boykin; Rear
Adm. Scott Pappano, Columbia’s program executive officer; Capt. Jon Rucker, Columbia’s
program manager; Will Lennon, vice president of the Columbia-class
submarine program for General Dynamics Electric Boat; and shipbuilders.

Construction
of the 12-boat Columbia class will take place in
Virginia, Rhode Island and Connecticut, with Electric Boat assembling and
delivering all of the submarines. The lead boat is scheduled to be delivered to
the Navy in 2027.

ARLINGTON,
Va. — The Navy established a new unit at Naval Base San Diego on May 22 that
will serve as a fount of experimentation for the surface warfare community to
accelerate the lethality and combat readiness of the Navy’s surface warships.

In a May
20 teleconference with reporters, Vice Adm. Richard Brown, commander, Naval
Surface Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet, said that he was establishing Surface
Development Squadron One (SURFDEVRON ONE) to:

• Execute operational testing and evaluation of new and emerging surface warfighting capabilities.
• Develop material and technical solutions to tactical challenges.
• Coordinate doctrine, organization, training, material, logistics, personnel and facilities requirements for unmanned surface systems.

“We want
to rapidly be able to experiment and move at a faster pace,” Brown said, noting
that the new squadron is modeled in part after the Navy’s submarine development
squadron and unmanned underwater vehicle squadron.

Brown said
the new squadron was a renaming and a repurposing of the “Z-RON”—the squadron
for the two, soon to be three, Zumwalt-class guided-missile destroyers.

Brown said
the Zumwalt class DDGs would still deploy with carrier strike groups in
accordance with the Optimized Fleet Response Plan despite their assignment to
the development squadron.

He said
the Zumwalt DDGs were ideal for the squadron because if their advanced
capabilities and potential.

“There is
no reason why a Zumwalt could not control USVs,” Brown said.

He also
said he is working to get the Navy’s Sea Hunter medium-displacement unmanned
surface vehicle (USV) transferred to the squadron from the Office of Naval
Research. The Navy is experimenting with the Sea Hunter in the eastern Pacific
to develop navigation capabilities, concepts of operation and sensor
configurations for USVs. He also plans to assign the second Sea Hunter now
under construction to the squadron.

Brown
expects that the Large USVs (LUSVs) and Medium USVs (MUSVs) that are envisioned
for the fleet in the 2020s will be assigned to the development squadron as
well. The concept of operations of these USVs include the possibilities of
being controlled by another ship, a strike group commander or a fleet
commander.

“The
possibilities are endless,” he said. “We need an organization that is doing
that.”

The growth
of Surface Development Squadron One will be in phases. Phase 1, the name change
from Z-RON and the leveraging of the Zumwalt-class DDGs, will be complete by
the end of fiscal 2019.

Phase 2 will
be about building capacity, Brown said, including the absorption of the two Sea
Hunter USVs.

Phase 3,
expected to begin in 2024, will involve addition of the new LUSV and MUSV.

Brown said
the Navy’s first four littoral combat ships (LCS) — Freedom, Independence, Fort
Worth and Coronado — would be transferred to the development squadron at the
end of Phase 2 or Phase 3. These LCS are currently considered nondeploying test
ships to support development of the fleet of successor LCS and their mission
packages.

Capt. Hank
Adams is the first commanding officer of Surface Development Squadron One. He
will report directly to Brown.