– USNI News – A proposed Russian submarine launched doomsday weapon — the existence of which was almost certainly leaked by the Kremlin — gives clues to the Russian mindset for the development of new strategic weapons in the face of the West’s increasing ballistic missile defense capability and Russia’s shrinking national assets.
Making Expeditionary Force 21 Work
– US Naval Institute Proceedings – A worst-case ‘pre-mortem’ analysis of the Marine Corps’ latest operating concept is the way ‘to avoid failure when failure is not an option.’
The Perils of Energy Independence
– 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.’
Cuba, the Coast Guard, and Chaos
– US Naval Institute Proceedings – As relations between Cuba and the United States trend toward amiable, the Florida Straits maritime domain could become chaotic.
Chinese Websites Produce Intelligence Windfall
– Washington Free Beacon – What the US is learning using open source intelligence on the Chinese military.
Russia Reveals Secret Nuclear-Armed Drone Sub
– Washington Free Beacon – A Russian document shown on state-run television confirmed that Moscow is developing a high-speed drone submarine capable of delivering a nuclear warhead.
The Age of Unmanned Systems
– US Naval Institute Proceedings – UAS must be fully integrated into the Navy’s fleet to enhance our ability to provide all-domain access.
What’s Important About Underwater Internet Cables
– The Atlantic – Submarine cables don’t come up in the news that often, but if they do it seems to be in two forms: short articles reminding everyone that the Telegeography Submarine Cable Map exists, and short articles of hand-wavey reminders that submarine cables are vulnerable to harm (from tectonic plates, ship anchors, sharks, and terrorists, among others).
China Tests Anti-Satellite Missile
– Washington Free Beacon – China recently conducted a flight test of a new missile capable of knocking out U.S. satellites as part of Beijing’s growing space warfare arsenal.
Navy Developing Software To Give Standard Missile-6 Additional Mission Capabilities
– 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.
Can the U.S. Military Halt Its Brain Drain?
– The Atlantic – The Pentagon worries its rigid personnel system is driving away the officers it will need for the conflicts of the 21st century.
Rough seas ahead for the US Navy
– Boston Globe – James Holmes on what the future looks like for the US Navy.
Could tensions in South China Sea lead to armed confrontation?
– Stars and Stripes – China will likely ramp up its efforts to expand and militarize disputed islands in the South China Sea — an area critical to the global economy — as a result of the U.S. Navy’s more assertive patrols in the region, China experts say.
Council Looking Into Using JHSV as Afloat Command and Control Platform for Marines
– USNI News – The Auxiliary Platforms and Payloads Council at the Pentagon has focused its efforts on using the Expeditionary Fast Transport for Marines’ afloat command and control requirements, as well as looking at technical enablers to allow Marines to operate from the Littoral Combat Ship.
Russian Navy Comissioned New Submarine
– Mil Today – The Krasnodar newest diesel-electric 636.6 project submarine was put in service of the Russian Navy. St Andrew’s Flag has been flown over the submarine by the order of Russian Navy Commander-in-Chief Admiral Victor Chirkov.
LX(R) Will Be Cheaper, More Capable Thanks To Using San Antonio LPD Design As Starting Point
– 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.
China’s Daring Vanguard: Introducing Sanya City’s Maritime Militia
– CIMSEC – The following is the first in a five-part series meant to shed light on Hainan Province’s maritime militia. For decades, these irregular forces have been an important element of Chinese maritime force structure and operations. Now, with Beijing increasing its capabilities, presence, and pushback against other nations’ activities, in the South China Sea (SCS), Hainan’s leading maritime militia elements are poised to become even more significant. Yet they remain widely under-appreciated and misunderstood by foreign observers.
The U.S. Navy’s Freedom of Navigation Operation around Subi Reef: Deciphering U.S. Signaling
– 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.
Confusion Continues to Surround U.S. South China Sea Freedom of Navigation Operation
– 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.
France to deploy largest warship in mission against IS
– BBC – France is sending its largest warship, the Charles de Gaulle, to join operations again Islamic State (IS) in Syria and Iraq.
What China’s ‘Militarization’ of the South China Sea Would Actually Look Like
– The Diplomat – A closer look at the specific military concerns posed by China’s artificial islands.
America’s “Carrier Gap” Crisis Highlights A Need For Smaller Aircraft Carriers
– 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.
Expeditionary Mobile Base Chesty Puller May Receive SOF Upgrades Before 5th Fleet Deployment
– 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.
U.S. aircraft carriers could become ineffective
– 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
Half the Carrier Fleet Tied Up In Maintenance, Other 5 Strained To Meet Demands
– 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.
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