ARLINGTON, Va. — The U.S. Navy is maintaining a vigilant cyber watch over its data networks as it balances network security and protecting the health of its Sailors amid the COVID-19 pandemic, a Navy admiral said. “We’re trying to balance two different priorities,”…

Navy, Marine Officials: AI Will Augment — Not Replace — Humans
ARLINGTON, Va. — U.S. Navy and Marine Corps officials close to the effort to develop artificial intelligence in machines say the technology is advancing rapidly and will be used where it can add value. Discussing AI in an April 16 webcast of the Navy…

Space, the Hostile Frontier: Panel Explores Defense of Earth Orbit
Space is not benign — no longer just the domain of unmanned scientific probes and occupied by astronauts in capsules or space stations exploring and conducting research, panelists stressed during a webcast that was aired on April 16 as part of the Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space 2020: Virtual Edition. “Space, internationally, is very important to our way of life. It’s of strategic importance. We see our adversaries starting to…

Foggo: U.S. Military in All-New Territory in Fight Against Virus
ARLINGTON, Va. — The scope of the COVID-19 pandemic shows the new domain that the U.S. military must prepare to operate in, according to the top commander of U.S. naval forces in Europe and Africa. “That seventh domain is just…

Geurts: Accelerated Acquisitions Position Navy, Industry for Period After COVID-19 Crisis Wanes
ARLINGTON, Va. — The U.S. Navy’s top acquisition official said the service’s efforts to accelerate contract awards in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic are helping the defense industry sustain its economic health at all levels and positioning the Navy and industry to emerge from the…

Jones Act Defenders Challenge Economic Arguments for Repealing Century-Old Law
ARLINGTON, Va. — The 100-year-old Jones Act is far from an outdated law that keeps shipping prices high and hurts the nation’s economy, a panel of maritime policy experts argued on April 14. “The biggest misconception of the Jones Act…

MARAD’s Buzby: Readiness of Sealift, Ready Reserve Force Suffering
ARLINGTON, Va. — U.S. strategic sealift fleets need recapitalization and some increased manning to achieve the readiness that the nation needs to sustain its maritime power, the U.S. maritime administrator said April 14. “The readiness is suffering,” a fact that sealift stakeholders recognize, Maritime Administrator Mark H. Buzby said during a webcast that is part of…

Coast Guard: Illegal Fishing in Oceans a National Security Issue
WASHINGTON — Illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUU) is a national security issue that threatens global economic order and the sovereignty of nations and that enforcement is over-stretched to counter the threat, U.S. officials said. IUU includes fishing without a permit, catching over a legal limit, catching the wrong…

COVID-19 Piles on Coast Guard’s Funding, Readiness Challenges, Says Commandant
ARLINGTON, Va. — The U.S. Coast Guard, already facing longer term readiness and funding issues, is shifting manpower and equipment to meet the new challenge of the COVID-19 pandemic, the commandant of the Coast Guard told Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space 2020:…

SAIC to Build Propulsion for Navy Mk48 Torpedo From Scratch
ARLINGTON, Va. — With the U.S. Navy resuming manufacture of Mk48 torpedoes for its submarines after a two-decade hiatus, the engineering effort to restore the industrial capability to build the torpedo has required some resourcefulness on the part of defense…