– US Naval Institute Proceedings – The number of U.S. military bases overseas—especially those that can accommodate fighter aircraft—has declined. Establishing ‘frontier bases’ provided by the host nation could be the solution.

– USNI News – The Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group (CSG) — centered on nuclear aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-71) — is slated to depart Naval Station Norfolk on Monday to join the U.S. led coalition against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS or ISIL).

– US Naval Institute Proceedings – When it comes to weaning ourselves from foreign oil, the United States should be careful what it wishes for—especially in light of its potential impact on U.S. Pacific Command’s operations in ‘China’s backyard.’

– US Naval Institute Proceedings – UAS must be fully integrated into the Navy’s fleet to enhance our ability to provide all-domain access.

– USNI News – The Navy’s surface ship weapons office is developing software to bring additional mission sets to the Standard Missile-6 surface-to-air missile, which may be ready for fielding in the next year or two.

– Boston Globe – James Holmes on what the future looks like for the US Navy.

– USNI News – The Navy and Marine Corps were able to design an LX(R) dock landing ship replacement with greater capability for less money by starting with the higher-end San Antonio-class LPD-17 design, stripping away unneeded features and adding back in desired ones.

– National Interest – Since the United States sailed in the waters close to Subi Reef [5], a low-tide election (LTE) that China has built up into a massive artificial island, some experts [6] have charged that the U.S. bungled the operation by conducting an “innocent passage,” implicitly granting China a 12 nautical mile territorial sea around the LTE to which it is not entitled. This accusation is not valid, however, and reflects an incomplete understanding of what is admittedly a complicated element of the Law of the Sea Convention.

– USNI News – Last week the United States sent a guided missile destroyer past a Chinese artificial island to challenge questionable claims in the South China Sea, but confusion still reigns from Washington, D.C., to the Western Pacific as to exactly what message was supposed to be transmitted.

– Foxtrot Alpha – The Navy is experiencing serious operational shortfalls due to running its fleet of ten aircraft carriers hard in recent years, which is one short of the mandated 11. As such, it is time for the U.S. to build smaller aircraft carriers in greater numbers than what today’s one-size-fits-all super carrier strategy permits.

– USNI News – The Navy’s newest Afloat Forward Staging Base may include special operations capabilities when it makes its maiden voyage to the Middle East in late 2016 or early 2017, if the Navy chooses to make the much-desired upgrades to the ship after a year-long test and certification period.

– CNN – A new report on the future of aircraft carriers raises questions about the choices the Navy has made about these mobile airfields. The rise of new powers now threatens to push the Navy farther from shore and beyond the range of the aircraft the carriers hold.

Read the report from the CNAS: Retreat from Range: The Rise and Fall of Carrier Aviation

– USNI News – The Navy has run its 10 aircraft carriers hard since USS Enterprise (CVN-65) decommissioned in December 2012 and is now paying the resulting maintenance bill, with half the fleet tied up in repairs and the other five trying to keep up with combatant commanders’ needs.

– BBC – The US has said it plans to return to contested areas of the South China Sea, with a top military commander saying it has conducted similar operations worldwide “for decades”.

– USNI News – Last week’s South China Sea freedom of navigation mission — in which a U.S. guided missile destroyer came within 12 nautical miles of a Chinese facility on an artificial island on Subi Reef — was conducted as an “innocent passage.” While the mission of USS Lassen (DDG-82) was deemed successful by Washington, focusing world attention on the myriad of overlapping and disputed claims in the South China Sea, the use of the innocent passage stipulation could result in a perception that the U.S. implicitly acknowledges Chinese claims to its recently constructed artificial islands.

– USNI News – The Navy hopes to restart its heavyweight torpedo program after a more than 15-year hiatus in production, but those plans could be hampered by a long-term continuing resolution.

– The Diplomat – What does the U.S. Navy’s first freedom of navigation operation near a Chinese man-made island really mean?

– Reuters – While the U.S. Navy is expected to keep its technological edge in Asia for decades, China’s potential trump card is sheer weight of numbers, with dozens of naval and coastguard vessels routinely deployed in the South China Sea.

– BBC – A US Navy ship has sailed close to artificial islands built by China in the disputed waters of the South China Sea, US defence officials have said. Guided-missile destroyer USS Lassen breached the 12-nautical mile zone China claims around Subi and Mischief reefs in the Spratly archipelago.

– USNI News – The new director of undersea warfare (OPNAV N97) is looking to extend the Navy’s asymmetrical advantage by investing in longer-range targeting, electromagnetic warfare tools and other capabilities to help submarine forces operate effectively into the future.

– USNI News – The Navy is investigating adding an anti-ship missile to its submarine force — bringing it inline with the majority of the world naval submarines.

– Reuters – The U.S. military and eight allied countries on Tuesday worked together to simultaneously intercept dummy ballistic and cruise missiles off the coast of Scotland, the U.S. Navy said, calling the test an important first demonstration of that capability in Europe.

– USNI News – Whereas a high sprint speed was a driving factor in designing the Littoral Combat Ship, the follow-on frigate will instead be optimized for lethality and survivability.

– Jane’s – In a sign that the annual ‘Malabar’ naval exercise is growing in scope and complexity, the US Navy (USN) is introducing the concept of a composite rotary wing detachment element for the first time. The detachment, which comprises one Sikorsky MH-60R Seahawk helicopter and one Northrop Grumman MQ-8B Fire Scout unmanned aerial vehicle, is being operated out of the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) USS Fort Worth (LCS 3).