Defense News – There is no more valued attribute, as famed naval tactician Wayne Hughes declared, than “the number of ships … a fleet can have.” But ships must be sustained — something the naval officer Alfred Thayer Mahan recognized nearly a century earlier when he wrote: “Fuel stands first in importance of the resources necessary to a fleet.”
Army Watercraft Depart for Gaza Port Mission, Navy Preparing East Coast Reserve Ship to Sail
USNI News – More pieces of the extensive Pentagon effort to build a pier and establish a sea route for humanitarian aid to Gaza departed from the East Coast this week.
Construction of corvettes for the Ukrainian Navy in Turkey
BMPD – It is reported that on March 8, 2024, during his visit to Turkey, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited the RMK Marine shipyard in Tuzla (the southern outskirts of the Asian part of Istanbul), where he got acquainted with the construction of two Turkish-type corvettes Ada (MILGEM) for the Ukrainian Navy.
(In Russian)
(Thanks to Alain)
Marine Corps budget would add range, lethality to Force Design tools
Defense News – The U.S. Marine Corps plans to upgrade systems it already fielded during its Force Design modernization effort, with its fiscal 2025 budget request looking to boost sensing and striking capabilities.
The Russian Navy’s Commander-in-Chief Has Been Removed and Replaced
The Maritime Executive – Russian state media has confirmed the dismissal of the Russian Navy’s top officer, Adm. Nikolai Evmenov. He has been removed and replaced by the commander of the Northern Fleet, Adm. Aleksandr Moiseev.
(Thanks to Alain)
The U.S. Navy’s Real China Problem Won’t Be Easy to Fix
National Interest – In short, Secretary Del Toro has taken on an unenviable task: persuading Asian business leaders to invest in the U.S. shipbuilding complex to take on China at a time when domestic political headwinds are fierce. Profit, risk, time. Let’s wish him well.
Russian Navy’s Deceptive Camouflage In Black Sea Not Effective Against Infrared
Covert Shores – Some observers have speculated that the black paint may be intended to confuse drones or missiles using infrared sensors to locate and identify the targeted ship. This detects heat, and infrared absorbing paint is often black. The comparison suggests that this is not the case.
(Thanks to Alain)
Navy postpones several modernization programs to pay for operations
Defense News – The U.S. Navy will postpone most of its planned development and purchases of large unmanned systems and next-generation ships and planes in fiscal 2025, citing spending caps.
US Navy nixed a Virginia sub amid spending frenzy to support suppliers
Defense News – The U.S. Navy’s fiscal 2025 budget request includes money for one Virginia-class attack submarine instead of the planned two, but still represents “a prioritization and very significant investment in undersea warfare capabilities,” the service’s undersecretary said Friday, arguing this is not contradictory.
New Navy Budget Seeks 6 Battle Force Ships, Decommission 19 Hulls in FY 2025
USNI News – The Navy wants to buy six battle force ships and decommission 19 ships in the next fiscal year, according to the service’s latest budget request.
Focus on the Fundamentals: The Siren Song of Technology in Maritime Security
CIMSEC – Instead of being wooed by “game-changing” technologies, maritime security professionals should focus on ensuring their organizations can perform critical functions first. Similarly, professionals who partner with chronically under-resourced organizations should focus on assisting with basic functions instead of dangling “silver bullets” that promise to solve all their woes.
Ukraine war: The sea drones keeping Russia’s warships at bay
BBC – Ukrainian sea drones have revolutionised naval warfare over the last few years, relentlessly hunting down Russian ships in the open sea and even at naval bases. Group-13, a secretive unit of Ukraine’s military intelligence agency, was behind the Sergey Kotov attack last week, and the BBC has been given rare access to its operations.
DragonFire – pathway to a Laser Directed Energy Weapon for the Royal Navy?
NavyLookout – In late 2023 an aerial target was destroyed during a successful test firing of the UK’s DragonFire Laser Directed Energy Weapon (LDEW) technology demonstrator. Here we look at DragonFire and the possibility of operational derivatives.
A Bridge Over Troubled Waters
Center for Maritime Strategy – Putting a U.S. military beachhead into the middle of the region’s worst war in a generation will only make U.S. forces the #1 target for terrorists in the region, and without a U.S.-led distribution plan, it is unlikely that aid will reach those in need.
Red Dragon Rising: Insights From a Decade of Wargames
CIMSEC – China and the United States see each other as the pacing challenge, with Taiwan the obvious potential flashpoint. Correspondingly, different governments and think tanks repeatedly featured the Taiwan conflict in wargames. However, results from these studies varied significantly, ranging from swift Taiwanese capitulation and pyrrhic United States victories to bloody Chinese failures. This review compares several studies, explaining differences in the objectives, outcomes, and implications. As such, it is the first review to collate findings from a broad sample of wargames held over eight years between 2016 and 2023. It identifies a clear, regressive trend in the United States and Taiwanese chances of victory over the period and crucial factors influencing the outcomes for the People’s Liberation Army, the Republic of China, the United States, and allied forces. It concludes with recommendations for future wargame iterations.
Red Sea Turkey Shoot: Allied Warships Down Dozens Of Drones Within Hours
The War Zone – Allied warships and aircraft repulsed a mass drone attack in the Red Sea, but it’s still an ominous sign that the Houthis aren’t backing down.
First kills for Sea Ceptor. HMS Richmond downs 2 attack drones
Navy Lookout – Serving as part of a coalition force that repelled multiple attack drones launched by Houthi rebels, HMS Richmond destroyed 2 aerial drones with her Sea Ceptor missile system.
Indian Navy Conducts Dual Carrier Operations
Naval News – In the past three weeks, the Indian Navy showcased both of its aircraft carriers at exercise MILAN 2024 and at a biannual naval conference.
Vital Russian Supply Lines In Black Sea Cut By Ukrainian Drones
Naval News – Ukraine’s maritime drones are shaping the war in the Black Sea. These robotic boats, termed USVs, have sunk an impressive number of Russian Navy ships. But their mere presence is having a greater, possibly more strategic, impact. Russia is having to shift its supply lines. And as the invasion of Ukrainian has shown, supply lines are key.
US military ship heading to Gaza to build port
BBC – A US military ship is sailing towards the Middle East, carrying equipment to build a temporary pier off the coast of Gaza, the army says…but it could take up to 60 days to build the pier.
Imagining a Much Bigger Australian Surface Combatant Fleet
RUSI – Australia’s latest defence review – addressing the renewal of the country’s navy – charts a vision for a larger fleet over the coming decades. But it will take time, and even the best laid plans can go awry.
V-22 Osprey fleet will fly again, with no fixes but renewed training
Defense News – The U.S. military will allow its fleet of V-22 Ospreys to fly again, three months after it grounded the entire inventory of more than 400 aircraft following a fatal crash off the coast of Japan in November.
The New Age of Naval Power
Time – In a contested maritime century, we should start thinking about navies as the ultimate national security insurance policy. Like any insurance, they demand regular investments against risks that are unlikely but potentially grave. Navies work best to deter would-be aggression, but the industrial base to generate their capabilities underwrites military credibility. Crucially, when all else fails, that credibility stands to make certain that in the hour of need, the hardest challenges will be met and overcome.
Sea Drone Swarms – Can NATO’s Navies Avoid Russia’s Fate?
CEPA – Recent sinkings of Russian naval vessels by Ukrainian maritime drones are raising stark questions about tactics and competence.
Pentagon abandons effort to scale down amphibious ship design
Defense News – The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps will move forward with the existing design of the San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship in fiscal 2025, a top leader said, after the Defense Department last year raised the specter of scaling down the ship’s design or not buying any more at all.
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