USNI News – The surface force will net a total of seven Littoral Combat Ships after the Navy shelved plans to decommission the hulls ahead of their expected service lives, USNI News has learned.
Author Archives: Naval Open Source Intelligence (NOSI)
French Carrier Strike Group Set Sails for High Intensity Exercise ORION 26
Naval News – The French Navy (Marine Nationale) Carrier Strike Group (CSG) set sail on 27 January to take part in the exercise ORION 26. ORION 26 is a joint and combined high intensity warfare exercise set to take place in the Atlantic.
Indian Navy set to get Black Shark Torpedoes: Italy’s lethal submarine killer explained
Z News – The Indian Navy, which has around a dozen submarines, is all set to get a new weapon in its arsenal to kill enemy submarines and warships. The Indian Navy is in the process of acquiring 48 Black Shark Advanced (BSA) heavyweight torpedoes for a Rs 1900 cr deal with Italy’s defence firm WASS. According to reports, these torpedoes will be integrated across all 6 Kalvari-class submarines & later with other submarine systems.
(Thanks to Alain)
We’ve probably just seen the USAF’s secret electromagnetic attacker
The Strategist – Bill Sweetman writes that another element in the US Air Force’s plans for long-range operations, essential for Asia-Pacific deterrence, may have emerged from under cover of secrecy.
Poland launches largest naval modernization since Cold War
Polskie Radio – Poland is undertaking its most ambitious naval upgrade since the Cold War, investing billions to modernize a long-neglected fleet in response to growing security concerns in the Baltic Sea, Financial Times reported Thursday.
(Thanks to Alain)
European coastal states warn Russian shadow fleet over Baltic and North Sea safety
Navy Lookout – European coastal states, including the UK, have issued a coordinated warning to the international maritime community over unsafe and deceptive practices linked to Russian maritime activity in the Baltic and North Seas. The statement signals a firmer enforcement posture, making clear that AIS manipulation and sanction-evasion by vessels associated with Russia will face closer scrutiny and reduced tolerance.
India’s New Hypersonic Anti-Ship Missile Shown Off During Military Parade
The War Zone – The Long-Range Anti-Ship Missile has an intriguing configuration and is focused on Chinese and Pakistani naval threats.
The strategic logic and industrial peril of Trump’s battleship plan for the US Navy
Navy Lookout – The announcement of the Defiant-class battleship signals a sharp reorientation of US naval force structure, moving away from distributed lethality towards massed, concentrated firepower to address the widening magazine gap with China. However, the revival of such leviathans sits uneasily with a fragile US industrial base that has struggled to deliver even basic escorts, raising doubts over the programme’s deliverability.
Navy’s Avenger Class Mine Hunters Have Left The Middle East For Good
The War Zone – The last four Avengers in Bahrain were carried off on a heavy lift vessel at a time of crisis, where mining the Persian Gulf could come into play.
Lincoln Carrier Strike Group Has Arrived In CENTCOM’s Area Of Responsibility
The War Zone – Assets continue to pour into the Middle East, including high-end air defenses, but there still hasn’t been a large migration of airpower.
Want of Frigates: Why Is It So Hard for America To Buy Small Surface Combatants?
FPRI – The United States is at a point where it hasn’t designed and built a good surface escort ship since the Arleigh Burke, at a time when its navy needs more and fast. The US Navy decommissioned the last of its previous frigate class in 2015 and is already retiring some of its LCS fleet after considerable operational problems. With no obvious small surface combatant to fill this gap on the horizon, America needs to figure out a new plan before the US Navy suffers from the same want of frigates as plagued Nelson.
Royal Navy Submarine Maintenance Recovery Plan launched
Navy Lookout – The Submarine Maintenance Recovery Plan (SMRP) was formally launched on 15th January.
Canada’s Pacific Fleet Commander Calls for Urgent Submarine Acquisition to Bolster Defence Capabilities
Ready Aye Ready – In a rapidly evolving geopolitical landscape, Rear Admiral David Patchell, the commander of Canada’s Pacific naval fleet, has underscored the critical need for expedited procurement of new submarines.
Hawaii Was the Greenland of the 19th Century
National Interest – James Holmes says that in the late 1890s, naval theorist Alfred Thayer Mahan made a compelling argument for the United States’ possession of Hawaii. Those interested in the annexation of Greenland might take note.
HMS Richmond to be decommissioned this year – Royal Navy down to six frigates
Navy Outlook – It was confirmed yesterday at a farewell Parade in her affiliated town of Richmond in Yorkshire, that the frigate is to be retired following 31-years of service.
French Navy Seizes Russian Shadow Fleet Tanker in Western Mediterranean
Naval News – On January 22nd, the French Navy launched an operation in the Alboran Sea within the Western Mediterranean Ocean, resulting in the successful seizure of the tanker designated, “Grinch”. The Grinch is tied to Russia’s “shadow fleet” of oil ships, helping the Russian Federation to dodge sanctions.
How Will China’s DF-27 Long-Range Missile Reshape the Pacific?
National Interest – James Holmes writes that there is much we still do not know about the DF-27 missile—but it is worth examining the consequences for the US Navy if the Pentagon’s claims are taken at face value.
US Boarding Russian-Flagged Oil Tanker Breaks Precedent: High Stakes on the High Seas
RUSI – If the US no longer abides by rules, how does it expect revisionist states to do so?
Trump administration aims at upending defence industry
Australian Strategic Policy Institute – Bill Sweetman’s view on the future of the US defense industry.
AUKUS Submarine Deal Might Be Near A Collapse
1945 – A retired UK rear admiral and former Ministry of Defence nuclear-policy director warns the SSN-AUKUS effort is at high risk because the Royal Navy’s submarine enterprise is short on experienced people, strained by low readiness, and struggling to sustain operations. Under the AUKUS “optimal pathway,” the UK and Australia are meant to co-develop and build a new SSN-AUKUS class for deliveries starting in the late 2030s, while the U.S. sells Australia used Virginia-class boats in the interim.
(Thanks to Alain)
Ships or Munitions? Clarifying the Discussion on Unmanned Surface Vessels
War on the Rocks – Beijing would be most afraid of losing the advantage it has today from its anti-ship missiles. Blunting that advantage with unmanned systems will require maximizing the benefits they can offer against anti-ship missiles while minimizing the drawbacks. Unmanned surface vessels that resemble munitions rather than ships would be the more effective tool to counter this threat.
The first step to unlocking their potential asymmetric advantage is to make the distinction between the two types of systems. A more precise taxonomy could clarify the functions that each type of unmanned surface vessel is meant to perform and help identify the roles that each should play in the sea denial mission.
Russia may begin first sea trials of Khabarovsk nuclear submarine in 2026 as Poseidon carrier.
Army Recognition – According to Izvestia, Russia’s Project 09851 nuclear-powered submarine Khabarovsk could begin sea trials in 2026 following completion of outfitting work at the Sevmash shipyard. Designed as a dedicated carrier for the Poseidon nuclear-powered unmanned underwater vehicle, the Khabarovsk was launched in November 2025 and has since entered mooring test preparations.
(Thanks to Alain)
Chinese Buoys Near the South Korea-China PMZ
Asia Martime Transparency Initiative – China’s deployments of buoys in the Yellow Sea add yet another layer to its approach toward managing disputes with South Korea while furthering its own maritime interests. Like many of China’s maritime activities, the buoys accomplish several things simultaneously: they increase China’s monitoring and sensing capabilities in an important maritime area; they assert control over a less sensitive but still disputed portion of overlapping maritime claims; and, importantly in the Yellow Sea context, they test South Korean reactions to inform future deployments.
Navy’s Top Admiral Wants To Tailor Warship Deployments To Specific Missions
The War Zone – While today’s surface Navy puts major emphasis on carrier strike group and expeditionary strike group deployments, driven by the resource realities and the global threat environment, the current Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) wants to take a far more flexible and tailored approach to sending his vessels on cruise.
Japan’s New Anti-Ship Cruise Missile Barrel Rolls To Evade Defenses
The War Zone – One of the many capabilities of the new SSM is the ability to spiral during its attack run to help evade close-in gun systems.
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