South China Morning Post – Dozens of destroyers and frigates are thought to be in the works but it will take more than hardware to make the plan work, observers say.
This Is Our Best Look Yet At China’s Z-20F Seahawk Clone Toting Air-To-Surface Missiles
War Zone – A new, much clearer picture has emerged of a Chinese Z-20F helicopter, the navalized variant of the Harbin Z-20, carrying what appears to be a load of eight live KD-10 air-to-ground/surface missiles.
Here’s the latest on the US Navy’s new Constellation-class frigate
Defense News – The U.S. Navy’s next-generation frigate, the Constellation class, is a do-or-die effort for the service and a critical test of its return to building ships around existing technologies rather than designing them around technologies in development.
Iran Commissions Its Massive Oil Tanker Turned Sea Base Into Service
War Zone – Iran’s Navy has formally commissioned the Markran, a former oil tanker it says has been transformed into a “forward base ship.” This vessel could provide a platform for more persistent maritime operations in and outside of the country’s own littoral areas.
The Tri-Service Maritime Strategy: Reading Between the Lines
CIMSEC – The Navy has not had a formal strategy process, most capstone documents being the products of an ad hoc effort, so it is never a routine occurrence when one is issued. Thus it is a worthwhile exercise to try and read between the lines of a new document. Hopefully this exercise will be of use to readers.
Navy Wants to Shed Aegis Ashore Mission, But Army Still Hasn’t Agreed to Take It
USNI News – The chief of naval operation’s new call to focus on sea control and power projection could lead the service to shed other non-core missions the Navy conducts today, such as manning Aegis Ashore missile defense sites. The biggest problem is, no one else has agreed to take over that mission yet.
A New Arctic Strategy For an Emerging Maritime Domain
CIMSEC – Coming on the heels of the new tri-service maritime strategy (“Advantage at Sea”), the Department of the Navy has now released an updated framework for the Arctic region— “A Blue Arctic: A Strategic Blueprint for the Arctic.” The document is a marked improvement on the brisk 2019 Navy version. It is particularly innovative (as strategies go) in including the Marine Corps in a “Blue/Green” approach to the region and in its navigation of cooperative themes in a moment dominated by great power competition. Yet it also has room for growth, in particular on how to connect loftier concepts with operational realities.
Russian Navy Commander Stole Two 13-Ton Bronze Propellers From His Own Destroyer
War Zone – The Russian Navy says that a former commander of the now-decommissioned Sovremenny class destroyer Bespokoynyy conspired with others and stole the ship’s two bronze propellers while it was in dry dock being converted into a floating museum. The alleged caper sounds like it was ripped straight from the plot of a comedic Hollywood heist movie, with the thieves reportedly swapping out the pair of screws, each weighing approximately 13 tons, for ones made out of a cheaper metal.
Destination Unknown 2.5
Krulak Center for Innovation & Creativity – Fictional short stories about near-future US Marine operations.
Italian Navy Aircraft Carrier Cavour To Start F-35B Qualification Next Month
Naval News – The Italian Navy aircraft carrier ITS Cavour is set to reach Naval Station Norfolk in mid-February to start F-35B STOVL aircraft qualifications with the U.S. Marine Corps.
Message from Joint Chiefs on U.S. Capitol Riot
U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff – This. Is. Extraordinary.
Marines, Navy Moving Quickly on Light Amphib, Anti-Ship Missiles to Create More Warfighting Options
USNI News – The Navy and Marine Corps are quickly seeking new ideas that allow Marines to support the Navy in sea control and other maritime missions, including the rapid acquisition of a light amphibious ship and a movement toward using Marine weapons while at sea.
CNO Gilday’s New Guidance Sets Clear Goals to Bring Lethality to Surface Force
USNI News – The head of the Navy warned the surface force there is little time to waste in designing and fielding key technologies it will need for a lethal and distributed future fleet.
French Navy’s 2020 Report On Worldwide Maritime Piracy And Robbery
Naval News – The Maritime Information Cooperation and Awareness Center of the French Navy released its 2020 annual report on maritime piracy and robbery acts that impacted worldwide maritime security.
Unclear on unmanned, Part 3: A New Year’s resolution to slow down
Defense News – This is the final installment of a three-part series on the Navy’s struggles to develop unmanned ships and systems.
The Navy’s $13 billion supercarrier still can’t do the one thing it’s absolutely required to do
Task and Purpose – What good is an aircraft carrier that can’t reliably launch and land aircraft?
Eight Surface Combatants And Two Submarines Were Delivered To Russian Navy In 2020
Naval News – The Russian shipbuilding industry properly performed in 2020 and supplied eight warships and two submarines to the Navy. In 2019, which was free of coronavirus problems, the Navy received six warships and one submarine
Navy Envisions Containerized Weapon System to Arm Amphibious Ships
Sea Power – The U.S. Marine Corps general in charge of the U.S. Navy’s expeditionary warfare directorate said the Navy is looking at options to increase the lethality of its amphibious warfare ships with a containerized weapon system.
Study Pushing Further Changes to LCS, Informing Frigate Manning Plans
USNI News – The Navy in the next few weeks will release a further refinement of how to operate and maintain the Littoral Combat Ships that today make up the small surface combatant fleet. In parallel, though, the service is working hard to take lessons learned from years of struggles with the LCS and ensure the upcoming frigate program can hit the ground running.
Unclear on Unmanned, Pt. 2: On Capitol Hill, the U.S. Navy has a credibility problem
Defense News – The Navy wants a suite of unmanned systems to reduce the cost of owning and operating its fleet, while boosting the missile capacity and sensor distribution of its manned ships. But this idea for less expensive sea power depends on the Navy’s record for rapidly maturing technologies. Congress is skeptical of that history and intentionally tried to slow the Navy down. Now, lawmakers have made evident a new plan for development. Instead of rushing out half-baked systems, they want the Navy to go fast by getting the program right the first time.
Unclear on unmanned, Pt.1: The US Navy’s plans for robot ships are on the rocks
Defense News – After a bruising, year-long fight with Congress, part of the Navy’s plan to field unmanned ships appears to be on life support, making 2021 a crucial year for plotting a path forward.
War Studies Primer
We invite you to try War Studies Primer – an introductory course on the study of war and military history. Its purpose is to provide an introduction to the study of war.
War Studies Primer is presented as a lecture curriculum at the university level. It is a free, non-credit, self-study course that consists of 28 topics and over 1,900 slides and is updated on a yearly basis.
Look at slides 2 and 3 in the War Studies Primer for its Table of Contents, and then choose a lecture to read and enjoy.
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The American Sea Power Project
USNI Proceedings – A new series of articles in Proceedings encourages vigorous debate on the future of the US Navy.
Saab to build underwater robots for French-British naval countermine program
Defense News – Swedish vendor Saab has received a contract to deliver underwater vehicles for blowing up sea mines to an Anglo-French program.
NOSI - Naval Open Source Intelligence™ 
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