October - 2021

Oct 29, 2021
1 min

Pentagon pumps the brakes on terminating the unvaccinated

The Biden administration has indicated that it will take some time to review cases involving active duty and civilian personnel who refuse to receive the COVID-19 vaccine, giving many hope that they might avoid immediate dismissal if they refuse to get the jab. The Navy has said all active-duty sailors must receive their final COVID shot by Nov. 14 to be considered “fully vaccinated,” while reservists have until Dec. 14. While the Pentagon has said it would being separation p

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Lawmaker asks Navy: Why are you decommissioning ships Congress is trying to save?

AUSN Staff

Oct 28, 2021
2 min

Lawmaker asks Navy: Why are you decommissioning ships Congress is trying to save?

Rep. Elaine Luria (D-VA) this week asked a top Navy leader why the Navy was moving ahead with plans to decommission three cruisers that Congress is trying to save. Luria, a retired commander who served on six ships, used a Thursday hearing to remind Fred Stefany, the Navy’s acting assistant secretary for research, development and acquisition, that Congress worked hard to fix the Navy’s proposed budget, which called for decommissioning 15 vessels and building just eight new on

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WASHINGTON EXAMINER: Leaders will give the Navy anything but more ships

AUSN Staff

Oct 28, 2021
3 min

WASHINGTON EXAMINER: Leaders will give the Navy anything but more ships

The Navy has seen better days. In the 1980s, it reached nearly 600 ships and became an ever-present reminder of U.S. strength around the world. Today, we are just short of 300 vessels, a ceiling we have been unable to crack in 15 years. Under President Joe Biden’s direction, the fleet would shrink further. Over the last six months, everyone in charge of the Navy has said they support the goal of building the fleet up to 355 ships. But that “support” was nowhere to be seen in

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439 Americans still in Afghanistan two months after U.S. withdrawal

AUSN Staff

Oct 27, 2021
1 min

439 Americans still in Afghanistan two months after U.S. withdrawal

More than 400 Americans are still in Afghanistan and about half of them are in the process of leaving by air or ground with the help of the State Department. Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Colin Kahl outlined the latest numbers at an Oct. 26 Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, after Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) said far more Americans appear to be stuck in Afghanistan than the Biden administration’s public estimates of 100-200. Kahl said the final “validated” number o

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Survey of U.S. military strength gives Navy ‘marginal’ grade; Marines upgraded to ‘strong’

AUSN Staff

Oct 25, 2021
2 min

Survey of U.S. military strength gives Navy ‘marginal’ grade; Marines upgraded to ‘strong’

The U.S. Navy remained stuck with a “marginal” rating in the Heritage Foundation’s latest survey of American military strength, while the Marines improved to an overall “strong” rating from the prior year. The survey is aimed at assessing the U.S. military’s ability to project force around the globe and “physically impose its will on an enemy” when needed. The Navy received the same rating in last year’s report. The more than 20 contributors to the 2022 edition of the report

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Navy, Army conduct hypersonic weapons tests amid growing pressure from China

AUSN Staff

Oct 22, 2021
1 min

Navy, Army conduct hypersonic weapons tests amid growing pressure from China

Three hypersonic weapon prototypes were tested this week by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Army, just days after word spread that China was running similar tests. The Navy announced that the tests were conducted by NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia, and will be used to “inform the development of the Navy’s Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) and the Army’s Long Range Hypersonic Weapon (LRHW) offensive hypersonic strike capability.” It added that the tests are a “vital step” in

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Oct 20, 2021
2 min

USS Bonhomme Richard doomed by ‘repeated failures,’ Navy recommends disciplinary action against 36

A Navy investigation found that the 2020 fire that destroyed the USS Bonhomme Richard was the result of multiple failures throughout the Navy, from the failure of leaders to account for growing risks to the ship, to the inability of its crew to effectively contain the fire. The investigation conducted by former U.S. 3rd Fleet commander Vice Adm. Scott Conn was completed in April and released to the press this week. It determined that “repeated failures allowed for the accumul

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Marine who criticized Afghanistan withdrawal fined $5,000, given letter of reprimand

AUSN Staff

Oct 19, 2021
1 min