– War Zone – A functioning railgun fitted to a ship would signify a massive accomplishment for China and it would be a source of major concern at the Pentagon.
The Gate of Tears: Interests, Options, and Strategy in the Bab-El-Mandeb Strait
– CIMSEC – The U.S. can afford neither to ignore the threats emerging from the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait and surrounding territory, nor can it afford to aggressively intervene in Yemen and Somalia wholesale to fully stabilize the region. The most affordable approach to securing U.S. interests in the region is through maritime influence to enable regional and international partner efforts.
There Is No NATO without the North Atlantic
– National Review – To fulfill its mission of collective security, NATO must pay attention to geography.
North Korea Could Sink a U.S. Aircraft Carrier
– National Interest – Could North Korea’s armed forces sink an American aircraft carrier? Yes—depending on what type of carrier they confront, how skillfully U.S. Navy commanders employ the flattop and its consorts, how well North Korean warriors know the tactical surroundings and, most crucially, whom fortune favors in combat.
Who Watches the Watchers in the U.S. Navy?
– National Interest – James Holmes on what does the latest Navy Strategic Readiness Review say about the state of the U.S. Navy?
$86,000 + 5,600 MPH = Hyper Velocity Missile Defense
– Breaking Defense – The Pentagon’s Strategic Capabilities Office will test-fire a radical new missile defense system in less than a year. The Hyper Velocity Projectile, a supersonic artillery round, is fired from ordinary cannon at 5,600 miles per hour and can kill incoming threats for a mere $86,000 a shot.
F-35 Problems: Late IOTE, F-35A Gun Inaccurate, F-35B Tires, Threat Data, Cyber…
– Breaking Defense – Perhaps the most damning thing a director of Operational Test and Evaluation can say about a weapon is that it is not “operationally suitable.”
Iranian Drone Missions on the Rise in the Persian Gulf as Small Boat Harassment Drops
– USNI News – Iranian drones have become increasingly active in the Persian Gulf and other critical waterways around the Middle East, regularly conducting surveillance flights close to U.S. warships crossing the Strait of Hormuz and operating around the region.
China unveils vision for ‘Polar Silk Road’ across Arctic
– Reuters – China on Friday outlined its ambitions to extend President Xi Jinping’s signature Belt and Road Initiative to the Arctic by developing shipping lanes opened up by global warming.
Britain’s Nuclear Deterrent Isn’t a Military Asset and Shouldn’t be Funded as One
– War on the Rocks – The United Kingdom’s nuclear weapons are currently funded out of the overstretched defense budget even though, especially in the post-Cold War era, they are more a political asset than a military one. So why are genuine military assets like regiments, ships, and aircraft being sacrificed in its name?
Navy Orders Development Of New Air Defense Blasting Missile That Will Fit Inside F-35
– War Zone – Since 2015, the US Navy has been finalizing requirements for a weapon to make sure its jets can break into increasingly heavily defended areas.
Hey Navy, LCS Is Too Big To Hide
– Breaking Defense – In essence, the Navy is propounding a cavalry role for the LCS, where the vessel would take the fight to the enemy in hit-and-run attacks while trying to evade detection. However, this proposed Concept of Operations for the Littoral Combat Ship is problematic as it fails to consider the vessel’s suitability for such missions.
China Reveals It Has Two Underwater Listening Devices Within Range of Guam
– War Zone – The sensors are officially for scientific purposes, but they could just as easily monitor submarine movements and gather other intelligence.
U.S. Navy Denies Iranian Drones Chased Away Destroyer Near Gulf of Oman
– USNI News – Navy officials are pushing back against claims that a U.S. destroyer was chased away from an Iranian military combined exercise in the Gulf of Oman by naval forces.
No slowdown for China’s Navy aspirations
– Defense News – China’s carrier aviation programs continue apace with the focus starting to shift toward the development and introduction of training and specialized aircraft as China’s first domestically built carrier approaches the start of sea trials.
Cyberphysical Forensics: Lessons From the USS John S. McCain Collision
– CIMSEC – The 2017 back-to-back collisions of two Navy destroyers led to much speculation about the role of cyberphysical interference in the disasters. As the senior officer representing the U.S. Navy engineering community during the USS McCain cyber assessment, it is clear that we do not yet have the basic tools to definitively answer the question, “were we hacked or did we break it?”
LCS In Pacific: Run Silent, Run Shallow
– Breaking Defense – What good is a little ship in a big war on a big ocean? It can hide behind islands and in shallow waters, sniping at the enemy fleet — much like the PT boats of World War II or skirmishers in a Napoleonic army. That’s the US Navy’s newest argument for its much-criticized Littoral Combat Ship, and they have evidence to back it up from the latest LCS deployment to the Pacific.
Take A Rare Glimpse Inside The Navy’s Massive Blue Ridge Class Command Ships
– War Zone – Inside what some would consider the most important vessels in the entire U.S. Navy and the nerve centers of the fleet.
Russian spy ship spotted 100 miles off North Carolina coast
– CNN – The Russian spy ship, the Viktor Leonov, was spotted 100 miles south east of Wilmington, North Carolina, in international waters.
Fire At Russia’s Vladivostok Submarine Base Sure Doesn’t Look Like An “Exercise”
– War Zone – Lighting your own sub on fire, or setting a fire right next to one, seems like a pretty stupid, if not unbelievable way to execute a drill.
Game-Changing Unmanned Systems for Naval Expeditionary Forces
– CIMSEC – It is one thing to state the aspiration for more unmanned systems in the Fleet, and quite another to develop and deploy them. There are compelling reasons why naval expeditionary forces have been proactive in experimenting with emerging unmanned systems.
What Happened To Our Surface Forces?
– USNI Proceedings – To chart a course going forward, it is necessary that we understand what went before and how it all went wrong so we can avoid the mistakes that have led us to this place. It is not enough to remedy issues such as the lack of quality sleep available to those who serve in ships, or elapsed and waived certifications, or faulty training in seamanship and navigation. It is not enough to decide that we need to begin transmitting on the automatic identification systems (AIS), or that we should rationalize all of the bridge radars and ship control systems in the fleet, or that we should usurp a captain’s prerogative to write his or her own standing orders. This approach is tantamount to treating the symptoms of an illness instead of addressing the underlying causes. The surface warfare community must determine the answer to the following question: What is the malady that lies behind the symptoms?
The Significance of US and Chinese Hospital Ship Deployments to Latin America
– CIMSEC – USNS Comfort and China’s Peace Ark have carried out commendable humanitarian work throughout many coastal communities in Latin America and the Caribbean as their tours in these regions have helped individuals who would otherwise have trouble accessing medical services. These humanitarian assistance deployments will continue to be necessary in both the short- and long-term. As for the geopolitical value of such deployments, they are a non-dangerous and effective example of “soft power” via which both Beijing and Washington utilize to maintain and improve their image in these regions.
Outgunned Allies Must Contest Baltic, Black Seas: NATO Admiral
– Breaking Defense – “When I was an ensign, a lieutenant, we knew we could beat the Russians. It was just a question of time because we were better than them,” NATO’s top admiral said. “I’m not sure we could make that assumption now.”
Dynamite at the Speed of Light: How Directed Energy Can Transform the US Navy
– CIMSEC – If we are going to successfully engage adversaries relying on A2/AD strategies, our Navy needs bold and innovative solutions that can successfully counter their attrition focus.
NOSI - Naval Open Source Intelligence™ 
You must be logged in to post a comment.