Navy Amphib Plans Fall Short For Marine Corps
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WASHINGTON: The Navy’s strategy to modernize its amphibious fleet will leave the Marine Corps shorthanded despite plans to buy 20 new ships over the next few decades, a Congressional Budget Office report claims. The Navy will hit its goal of 33 amphibious ships under the plan but will not reach the 38-ship fleet the Marines… Keep reading →
Gator Navy Gets First Unmanned Vessel
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Washington: The Navy is beginning to make good on former Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead bet that unmanned drones would be the future of the service. Naval Sea Systems Command delivered the first mini-ship like drones to Navy Riverine Group One stationed at Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek in Virginia on Nov. 1.… Keep reading →
Air-Sea Battle: What’s It All About, Or Not
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Pentagon: If you ever wanted to be left nonplussed, you would have been well advised to attend the press conference about Air-Sea Battle. We were told yesterday afternoon by three clearly intelligent defense officials that their new office — staffed by 15 people — would be a “focusing lens” for the services. Exactly what they… Keep reading →
Navy Tries MH-60 Seahawks With Unmanned Helos
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Patuxent River, Md: The Navy has increased its experimentation with its fleet of combat helicopters to see how they can work with unmanned aircraft. The Navy recently flew Lockheed Martin’s new MH-60R Sea Hawk helicopter and the Northrop Grumman’s Fire Scout unmanned aircraft together in joint operations, deputy program manager Robert Kimble told reporters here… Keep reading →
Navy Arms Its First Unmanned Vehicle — Fire Scout
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Washington: The Navy will place arming its fleet of Fire Scout drones with a modified Hydra rocket, heralding a new era in unmanned combat for the service. An armed Fire Scout will dramatically cut the Navy’s kill chain, or time it takes to identify, track and eventually sink an enemy target, says Jan Van Tol,… Keep reading →
Navy Cements Second Batch Of P-8s For $1.4 Billion
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Washington: The Navy cemented a deal with Boeing last week to buy seven new P-8A Posidon aircraft for just under $1.4 billion, bringing the total fleet up to 13 aircraft. The new P-8As are part of the second batch of low-rate initial production planes bought by the Navy for the Posidon program. The service bought… Keep reading →
Combat Commanders Gain Control Of Counterintelligence Ops
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Washington: The Pentagon is offering field commanders control of counterintelligence operations to cope with the never-ceasing efforts by countries such as China, Iran and Israel to gain access to classified information and technology. Undersecretary of Defense for Intelligence Mike Vickers approved the plan in an Oct. 5 memorandum. Groups such as Central Command and Special… Keep reading →
Pentagon To Hold The Line In South Korea
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Washington: We may be leaving Iraq, but American troops stationed on the Korean peninsula aren’t going anywhere as the Pentagon sets its sights on the Pacific. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is expected to tell his South Korean counterparts the United States will maintain its 28,000-man force in the country for the foreseeable future, according to… Keep reading →
Navy’s Latest LCS Clears Critical Test
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Washington: The Navy is a step closer to getting another one of its next-generation warships into the service arsenal. The USS Fort Worth, the third vessel in the Navy’s new class of Littoral Combat Ships wrapped up sea trials this week, according to a statement issued by shipbuilder Lockheed Martin. The sea trials, run jointly… Keep reading →
Marines, SOF May Get A Piece Of LCS
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Washington: It’s only a matter of time before Marines and special operations forces get their piece of the Navy’s newest combat vessel. Mission packages built just for the Marines and special forces will be on the Littoral Combat Ship within the next few years, Rear Adm. James Murdoch, program executive officer for LCS, said yesterday.… Keep reading →