The chairman of a House committee with jurisdiction over the Navy says Congress will once more ride to the administration’s rescue and provide a budget that avoids a perilous drop in the size of the Navy fleet. Rep. Joe Courtney (D-CT), who spoke at a Hudson Institute event on Friday, said that while the Biden administration put forward a plan that would shrink the Navy, Congress would do what it can to avoid a declining naval presence. “If you look at the last three years, f

The Navy acknowledged last week that it could have done a better job preparing Sailors assigned to the aircraft carrier USS George Washington for lengthy service while in drydock, but said seeing the ship through this process is part of their job. Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy Russell Smith addressed Sailors from the George Washington last week, as Navy officials investigate the death of seven Sailors linked to that ship, including at least four suicides. Smith seeme

The Navy announced this month that it successfully tested a new laser defense weapon by disabling an airborne drone, an historic first that could foreshadow a new generation of weaponry aboard U.S. ships. The Office of Naval Research said that in February, it demonstrated a layered laser defense system (LLD) by defeating a drone that was simulating a subsonic cruise missile. The system, designed and built by Lockheed Martin, can counter drones and fast-attack boats, and can a

Navy leadership is examining a cluster of suicides among Sailors assigned to the USS George Washington, after three Sailors took their lives within the space of a week. The Navy confirmed to several press outlets that the three sailors who died by suicide in mid-April are Retail Services Spec. 3rd Class Mikail Sharp, Interior Communications Electrician 3rd Class Natasha Huffman and Master at Arms Seaman Recruit Xavier Hunter Mitchell-Sandor. All three were found dead in Virgi

Ukraine’s ability to hit the flagship Russian cruiser Moskva and send it to the bottom of the Black Sea was widely seen as a major event in the annals of naval history, one that prompted serious reflection both in countries that rely on navies to project power and countries that worry about defending themselves from attack by sea. What is the state of anti-access denial strategies among the major world powers? Are the Neptune missiles used to sink the Moskva cheap and abundan

The Navy this week released a new long-term shipbuilding plan that outlines three possible ways forward – two of which keep the fleet relatively flat, and one of which adds funding to significantly boost the fleet over the next few decades. According to the document submitted by Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro, the Navy is for the first time is giving Congress a look at what its choices will mean for the size and capacity of America’s Navy. Of the three options, only on

A destroyer that fought in World War II and the Korean War is now at risk of sinking at a military park in upstate New York. The USS The Sullivans suffered a hull breach last week and started taking on water at the Buffalo and Erie County Naval & Military Park, which partially submerged the 78-year-old vessel. Officials at the U.S. Coast Guard’s Sector Buffalo said rescue efforts were underway to patch the ship and dewater the hull. “Dewatering efforts continue with positive