Mil News USA, Canada & Caribbean Nations Military News & Discussion Thread

[Chazman]

Agreed.

Other than the USS Fort Worth being deployed to Singapore, I can't think of one mission the LCS's have been tasked with and/or accomplished. They'll probably be relegated to the 4th Fleet mission of chasing drug smugglers. I'm not sure how much value the Navy will get out of these ships now that the mission module concept has gone tits up. And it's unknown what the longevity of these fragile ships will be. And....they have two separate classes to provide training and parts for.


For less than the cost of 1 LCS , you could regenerate 10 (TEN) OHP's.


Oh, one more thing...the very concept of "littoral" comes from operations in the Persian Gulf. Why hasn't even one of these ships been deployed there?

 

[BravoZulu]

^^ The short answer? because they are incapable of carrying out the mission, projecting force or even of defending themselves in the littorals where they are meant to operate

 

[Chazman]

Exactly!

 

[Chazman]

Boeing Gets Order For 24 New Block III F-18's For US Navy.


This in addition to upgrading the existing Block II Super Hornets to Block III.

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http://www.navyrecognition.com/inde...eing-f-a-18-super-hornet-block-iii-is-go.html

 

[Chazman]

The navy definitely needs these new builds. The current aircraft are tired and need maintenance after 17 years of combat. The Block III conversions will also repair airframes to extend flight hours to 9,000.

 

[AAR Galileo]

The US Marine Corps (USMC) has phased out its General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems (GDOTS) 120 mm Expeditionary Fire Support System (EFSS), an official revealed at the Omega Conferences & Events Mortar Systems conference held in Bristol, United Kingdom.

Lieutenant Colonel Michael Butler, Indirect Fire Capabilities Integration officer at the USMC's Combat Development and Integration, explained that the decision to phase out the EFSS included concerns about the time required to load and unload from the V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft, as well as the reliability of the Internally Transported Vehicles (ITVs) which tow and transport the 120 mm mortar and its associated ammunition.

https://www.realcleardefense.com/20...s_out_expeditionary_mortar_system_300938.html

For me it's a stupid decision. The 120mm is a very efficient rapid support system and the V-22 pretext, I don't buy it, they have CH-53E / K who can transport the EFSS internally.

 

[Bombardier]

Well its a decent size round and in a nice compact system, as you say it should be easy to transport, as for a suitable amount of the large caliber ammo well that might be the issue rather than the kit itself, just a thought.

What will they replace it with?, something smaller I guess?
The video on your link gives a good idea of the capability of this weapon system.

 

[AAR Galileo]

The USMC will just have the 60 & 81mm mortar (at rifle company level) and the M777A2 Lightweight Towed Howitzers (LTH) 155 mm (at battalion level) and also the HIMARS rocket system.

 

[berkut76]

Stupid decision. 120mm mortar has proven to be the most efficient (bang for the buck) artillery support system in the Russian - Ukrainian war for both sides. Russian are also developing and testing new types of munitions for it.

 

[AAR Galileo]

Faced with growing difficulties sustaining and modernizing its existing fleet, the need to address the underlying issues behind a spate of deadly accidents and other controversies, and a desire to increase the total number of ships in its inventory, the U.S. Navy has many different priorities to balance when it put together its latest budget request. But at least one part of its new, broad plans, includes a decision to retire one of its two unique hospital ships, possibly as early as the end of 2019, a move that has already rankled some members of Congress.

more :
http://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zon...wants-to-retire-one-of-its-two-hospital-ships

 

[Bombardier]

“I’ll tell you, for every one hospital ship we’re short, we’re going to have a requirement for 479 air-refueling tankers,” General McDew told lawmakers. That notional tanker force reflects what it would take to support the amount of medical evacuation aircraft it would take to handle the same number of casualties as Mercy or Comfort.

He makes a good point

USNS Mercy leaving San Diego Bay, May 2008

USNS Comfort in Haitian waters 2009

 

[bdpopeye]

This same issue came up a few years ago and fortunately the idea was scrapped.

 

[BravoZulu]

A silly, ill conceived idea that hopefully will go the way of the Dodo. These ships are indispensable to the USN and the US military as a whole, not taking into consideration the well being it engenders towards the US when they are deployed to disaster areas and mercy missions

 

[BravoZulu]

US Navy to commission 64th Arleigh Burke destroyer ‘Ralph Johnson’
The US Navy is set to commission its 64th Arleigh Burke destroyer in a ceremony in Charleston, South Carolina, on Saturday, March 24.

The future USS Ralph Johnson (DDG 114) is the 30th DDG 51 class destroyer built by the Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) shipyard and the first warship named for Medal of Honor recipient Marine Pfc. Ralph Henry Johnson.

Johnson, a native of Charleston, posthumously received the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions during the Vietnam War. Johnson used his body to shield two fellow Marines from a grenade, absorbing the blast and dying instantly in March 1968.

In early fall of 2014, the keel of Ralph Johnson was laid down. The ship was launched on Dec. 12, 2015 and christened on April 2, 2016 during ceremonies at the Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) shipyard in Pascagoula, Mississippi.

The ship was officially received by the navy in November 2017 having previously completed builder’s and navy trials in July and September 2017.

Ralph Johnson is the third of the DDG 51 Flight IIA restart ships and comes equipped with Aegis Baseline 9 combat system, which includes an Integrated Air and Missile Defense (IAMD) capability incorporating Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) 5.0 and Naval Integrated Fire Control-Counter Air. Aegis Baseline 9 IAMD destroyers have increased computing power, along with radar upgrades which improve detection and reaction capabilities against modern anti-air warfare and BMD threats.

The ship will be homeported at Everett, Washington.
https://navaltoday.com/2018/03/23/u...leigh-burke-destroyer-ralph-johnson/?uid=5430

 

[BravoZulu]

President Donald Trump signed into law on 23 March a spending bill that adds 143 aircraft, worth $9.5 billion, to what was already requested by the Department of Defence, including 20 additional F-35 Lightning II fighters, 10 F/A-18 Super Hornets, and three KC-46A tanker aircraft.

The defence spending was part of a $1.3 trillion budget that was six months overdue and only funds the government until 30 September. The Pentagon’s budget was boosted by $61 billion over last year to $700 billion. Congress appropriated $44 billion to aircraft procurement, 27.5 percent above what was requested by the Department of Defence.

The largest pile of money will be set aside to buy 90 Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II fighters, worth $10.2 billion in total. Some $2.9 billion of that total was not requested by the Department of Defence, but will fund 10 additional conventional take-off, six carrier variant and four vertical take-off F-35 Lightning II fighters, as well as additional tooling and spare engines, for the Air Force, Navy, and Marine Corps.

Congress also topped off the military’s wish list with 10 more Boeing F/A-18 Super Hornets for the Navy, worth $739 million. In all, the Navy is buying 24 Super Hornets for a sum of $1.8 billion in fiscal 2018.

More: http://airsoc.com/articles/view/id/...tes-a-28-increase-in-funding-for-new-aircraft

 

[BravoZulu]

USS Abraham Lincoln wraps up F-35C fleet carrier qualifications

US Navy’s Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) completed fleet carrier qualifications (CQ) for the F-35C Lightning II program over a five-day period in the Atlantic Ocean.
The US Navy said the milestone was achieved while the carrier was underway between March 17-21.
Pilots assigned to the “Rough Raiders” of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 125 and the “Grim Reapers” of VFA 101 accomplished day and night qualifications with 140 traps in anticipation of F-35C operational testing later this year.
Aboard for part of the CQ was Rear Adm. Dale Horan, director of the US Navy F-35C Fleet Integration Office, who was previously embarked aboard Abraham Lincoln during a nine-and-a-half-month deployment in 2002.
“I have tight ties to Lincoln,” said Horan. “It’s personally interesting for me, but also professionally, it’s really neat to see this aircraft out there with other aircraft; we haven’t done that before. Previously, all the CQ evolutions have just been F-35s.”
The integration of the F-35C into the carrier air wing will enable the carrier strike group of the future to be more lethal and survivable in high-end threat environments.

More:https://navaltoday.com/2018/03/26/u...-f-35c-fleet-carrier-qualifications/?uid=5430

 

[Chazman]

http://nationalinterest.org/blog/th...raptor-stealth-fighter-killer-it-can-be-14088
Came across this article today, thought I would share...

The F-22 numbers are what they are. Last year DoD looked into reopening the F-22 line and found it to be prohibitively expensive. At this point, the USAF is probably looking at the next gen fighter after the F-35.

 

[BravoZulu]

A 21-year-old Marine recruit died after going into cardiac arrest Sunday morning at the Naval Medical Center San Diego, according to the Marine Corps.

On Saturday, Pvt. Patrick Armando Vega was found unresponsive in his bed around midnight by a drill instructor at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, who performed CPR until medical help arrived. He was taken to the medical center in critical condition.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of Pvt. Vega during this difficult time," Brig. Gen. William Jurney, commanding general of the recruit depot, said in a press release.

Vega enlisted in the Marine Corps on March 12, Steven Posy, a spokesman for the recruit depot, told The Orange County Register. He was originally from Ventura, Calif.

The command has started a preliminary inquiry and officials at Naval Medical Center San Diego are conducting a medical review, both of which are standard procedure.
https://www.military.com/daily-news...after-being-found-unresponsive-boot-camp.html

 

[BravoZulu]

Spying on US Nuclear Sub Base Factor in Closing of Russian Consulate

The Trump administration expelled 60 Russian diplomats and closed the Russian consulate in Seattle -- the latter to help block Moscow from spying on U.S. Naval Base Kitsap, the home port of U.S. Navynuclear submarines in Washington state.
The White House took the dramatic step in conjunction with more than a dozen European allies retaliating against Moscow's alleged role in poisoning a former Russian spy living in the United Kingdom. It is said to be the largest, global one-time expulsion of a country's intelligence officials ever.
The aggressive actions run counter to President Donald Trump's efforts to improve ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin and instead reflect the U.S. intelligence apparatus's growing concerns of increased Russian surveillance on Washington and critical military bases.
"It's not just any naval base," said Brian McKeon, who served as principal deputy under secretary of defense for policy under President Barack Obama. "It's one of the two bases where we have submarines that have nuclear weapons."

More:https://www.military.com/daily-news...ub-base-factor-closing-russian-consulate.html

 

[BravoZulu]

USN:

The US Navy plans to modify 45 more Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornets in the next two years to increase the aircraft’s service life and capabilities. The potential contract will cover modifications to up to 15 aircraft in fiscal 2019 and up to 30 aircraft in FY2020 and is valued at $73.2 million.

The modifications are designed to extend the fighter’s airframe life from 6,000h to 9,000h, adding up to 10 years of service life. Upgrades include an enhanced network capability, a longer operational range, an advanced cockpit system, a reduced radar signature and an enhanced communication system.

Such upgrades are designed to make the Super Hornet effective in combat until at least into the early 2030s. The US Navy currently has an active fleet of 541 F/A-18E/Fs and is buying 24 new Super Hornets for a sum of $1.8 billion in FY2018.