US Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus yesterday announced that the next Freedom-variant littoral combat ship will be named USS Minneapolis/St. Paul (LCS 21). The future Minneapolis/St. Paul was named to honor the citizens of Minnesota’s Twin Cities who have a long and proud history of naval service. It
Huntington Ingalls Industries recently announced that the Virginia-class submarine Washington (SSN 787) is “pressure hull complete,” signifying that all of the submarine’s hull sections have been joined to form a single, watertight unit. Washington will be the U.S. Navy’s 14th Virginia-class submari
U.S. 7th Fleet flagship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19) and embarked 7th Fleet staff returned to Commander, Fleet Activities Yokosuka after concluding a three-month patrol on September 2nd. During the summer patrol, Blue Ridge visited five ports in four different countries, strengthening relationships withi
Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) Lyme Bay arrived in Dominica on September 2nd to begin immediate relief efforts following the devastation left behind by Tropical Storm Erika. The British support ship has been tasked by the Department for International Development to offer assistance to the communities o
Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus hosted a ship-naming ceremony today in Billings, Montana to announce SSN 794, a Virginia-class attack submarine, will bear the name USS Montana. The submarine will be named to honor the history its namesake state has with the Navy. The future USS Montana will be the s
After a two-day delay due to tropical storm conditions, the U.S. Navy’s fourth Mobile User Objective System (MUOS) satellite launched on September 2nd at 6:18 a.m. EDT from Space Launch Complex 41. MUOS-4, whose signal was acquired approximately three hours after launch, completes the initial operat
Huntington Ingalls Inc., Newport News, Virginia, is being awarded a $109,4 million modification to previously awarded submarine support contract. The deal includes engineering, technical, design, configuration management, integrated logistics support, database management, research and development, m
US Navy’s guided-missile destroyer USS Chung-Hoon (DDG 93) has completed the Composite Training Unit Exercise/Joint Task Force Exercise (COMPTUEX/JTFEX), earning a ready-for-deployment certification from the U.S. Third Fleet. COMPTUEX/JTFEX provides a realistic exercise to train and assess staffs an
Royal Navy’s RFA Lyme Bay has been rerouted to assist humanitarian relief efforts in the Commonwealth country of Dominica following the devastation caused by Tropical Storm Erika. The British ship is carrying a range of disaster relief stores, as well as a Lynx Mk 8 helicopter. Tropical Storm Erika
Rear Adm. John B. Nowell assumed command of Amphibious Force SEVENTH Fleet, Expeditionary Strike Group Seven (ESG 7) and Task Force 76 (CTF 76) from Rear Adm. Hugh D. Wetherald during a change of command ceremony aboard USS Bonhomme Richard (LHD 6) Aug. 29. Wetherald leaves ESG 7/ CTF 76 to report a
The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109) returned to Naval Station Norfolk Aug. 28, following a seven-month deployment in the U.S. 4th Fleet and U.S. 6th Fleet areas of operations. Jason Dunham deployed to the Caribbean on Jan. 27. With an embarked U.S. Coast Guard
Amphibious assault ship USS America (LHA 6) began hosting Japanese Sailors Aug. 17 as they prepare for the annual amphibious assault training exercise Dawn Blitz 2015 (DB 15) in early September. The training exercise includes four participating nations and four other nations as observers. There are
HMS Queen Elizabeth Fires Up Its Long Range Radar The crew of Royal Navy’s HMS Queen Elizabeth flashed up the new carrier’s long range radar as part of ongoing preparations to ready the leviathan for sea next year. Australia to Demonstrate Amphibious Skills Australia’s newest military capability, th
U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Air and Marine agents and international partners intercepted a suspicious vessel loaded with 570 pounds of cocaine in international waters off the coast of Panama. The estimated street value of the drugs is more than $42 million. A CBP OAM crew aboard a
