Month: July 2022

Source: United States Navy

“With a crew of over 360 Sailors, Fort Lauderdale is the first ship for over 240 of them and for many, this will be their first time at sea,” Quaresimo said. “It is exciting to watch the team come together and operate our ship at sea for the very first time.”

After years of hard work and dedication by both Huntington Ingalls Industries and the crew of the ship, the Mighty Fort Lauderdale is ready to become a part of the Fleet and the greatest ship on the waterfront.

“Our team is fully ready for anything,” said Quaresimo. “In 10 short weeks we have certified in multiple warfare areas and have met all Sail Away requirements. We have brought online each and every system from scratch. From stem to stern each department has demonstrated their preparedness for getting underway by exceeding the standards required of them. The crew is simply amazing.”

During her transit to Norfolk and prior to her commissioning, Fort Lauderdale will conduct hull, mechanical, and electrical system shakedown events as well as navigation checks, flight deck and well deck operations and combat systems test events. Additionally, the crew will participate in training events to continue honing their familiarity with the ship and how to combat any casualty that may arise.

“Everyone onboard is extremely excited to sail to our namesake city for commissioning,” mentioned Quaresimo. “The tremendous support we have received from the City of Fort Lauderdale and our Commissioning Committee is really remarkable. Simply put, commissioning is going to be an amazing, once in a life time, event.”

Amphibious transport dock ships are warships that embark, transport and land elements of a landing force for a variety of expeditionary warfare missions. LPDs are used to transport and land Marines, their equipment, and supplies by embarked Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC) or conventional landing craft and amphibious assault vehicles (AAV) augmented by helicopters or vertical take-off and landing aircraft (MV 22). These ships support amphibious assault, special operations, or expeditionary warfare missions and serve as secondary aviation platforms for amphibious operations.

Fort Lauderdale is the twelfth San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship of the United States Navy and is the first ship to be named for Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Fort Lauderdale will commission at Port Everglades in the City of Fort Lauderdale July 30.

For more news on PCU Fort Lauderdale (LPD 28) visit
https://www.facebook.com/FORTLAUDERDALELPD28.

Source: United States Navy

The mariner, a 75-year-old American citizen, had been adrift without sail or power for 12 days when he was rescued by personnel aboard USS Frank E. Peterson, Jr. (DDG 121), 300 miles south of Oahu, and transported aboard the ship to Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii, July 6.

“This search and rescue operation speaks to the capability of the U.S. Navy to respond quickly, aggressively, and safely across a lot of ocean to save a life and have positive mission impact,” said Cmdr. Daniel A. Hancock, the on-scene commander of the rescue effort and commanding officer of Frank E. Peterson. “I am proud of the crew’s professionalism in response to short-notice, real-world tasking.

The ship worked in coordination with the Joint Rescue Coordination Center and the U.S. Coast Guard’s 14th District, who provided the information needed to locate and contact the sailboat and were waiting at the pier to escort him for customs and caretaking.

“The combined effort and coordination displayed by everyone involved resulted in an efficient and successful rescue,” said Lt. Charles Lesperance, an operations unit controller for Joint Rescue Coordination Center Honolulu. “These partnerships in the Pacific are essential in creating a force multiplier to cover such a large area of operation.”

Additionally, the 14th District provided aerial support with a HC-130J long-range search and rescue aircraft to verify the location of the sailboat in advance of the ship’s arrival, verify the condition of the vessel and see the mariner aboard.

Once aboard the ship, Frank E. Peterson personnel provided the mariner medical attention, as well as food, water and the opportunity for rest after his ordeal. He had been underway for 54 days.

“The safe rescue of this mariner reflects their character and tenacity, and emulates the daring, toughness, and mission success of our namesake, Lt. General Frank E. Petersen, Jr.,” said Hancock. “This is a capable warship but her real strength is without a doubt her determined crew.”

The mariner had lived aboard the sailboat for the past three years and had been sailing from New Zealand.

Frank E. Petersen Jr. commissioned on May 14 in Charleston, South Carolina, and is the Navy’s newest Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer.

Source: United States Navy

The theme of the medical symposium was “interoperability.” The panel members discussed how international partnerships and standardization can improve patient outcomes if and when medical assets are called to respond to a wartime situation or humanitarian crisis.

To achieve interoperability, we must first “understand what each of our expectations will be,” said Rear Adm. Bruce Gillingham, Navy Surgeon General. “We know that we will encounter the unexpected. We will have to manage that and demonstrate high reliability behaviors to do that. But fundamentally, we can trust that our partners will be there and will work with us. The initial stages are all about building trust, understanding each other, and understanding our expectations moving forward, so when things become very kinetic, we know how to join and be interoperable.”
The theme of RIMPAC is “capable, adaptive partners.” The panel members honed in on those three words and talked about what they specifically mean to them.

“Capable, adaptive partners are absolutely critical,” said Sarah Sharkey, Royal Australia Navy. “It should be a reflex for us in the terms of the way we reach out and {build and sustain} our partnerships. It requires deliberate effort. It’s not intuitive and doesn’t come to us naturally. We all need to collectively lean into that behavior and make that a reflex in the way we do business. I think at all levels in our organization, you should feel empowered, wherever you sit in your command, to look for opportunities to integrate, partner and be interoperable.”

The panel consisted of Rear Adm. Gillingham; Rear Adm. Sharkey; Rear Adm. Pamela Miller, Indo-Pacific Command Surgeon; and Brig. Gen. Paula Lodi, U.S. Army Incoming 18th Medical Command Commanding General. The panel was facilitated by Capt. Michael McGinnis, U.S. Pacific Fleet Surgeon.

RIMPAC 2022 is the 28th iteration of the exercise that kicked off in 1971. This year, the exercise in and around the Hawaiian Islands and Southern California includes 26 nations, 38 ships, four submarines, more than 170 aircraft and 25,000 personnel. The world’s largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity while fostering and sustaining cooperative relationships among participants critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security on the world’s oceans.

Source: United States Navy

As defined by Peter G. Knight and William G. Robertson for the U.S. Army’s Center of Military History, staff rides “are a unique and powerful way for today’s leaders to gain insight and wisdom from the past for present-day application.” By participating in staff rides, the authors state, “staff ride participants exercise and improve their critical thinking skills, essential creativity, and decision-making capabilities.”

CNE-CNA-C6F personnel joined the long history of the staff ride with a reading and discussion of the Battle of Cassino. The battle, also known as Battle for Rome, was a series of four assaults by the Allies and Italians (who by October 1943 had joined the Allies and declared war on Germany) against the Axis-held Winter Line in Italy during the Italian Campaign of World War II.

The 4-month long battle, which took place from January to May 1944, incurred heavy casualties on both sides, with the Allies eventually breaking through in mid-May. The battle set the stage for the Allied capture of Rome, June 4, 1944, two days before the invasion of Normandy, France.

“This is a very unique and informative opportunity for our staff,” said Craig Linderman, one of the organizers and planners of this staff ride. “Taking time out of our day to understand and appreciate the history all around us enhances our professional knowledge of military service, joint and combined operations, and our understanding of operational art. It also fosters appreciation for our host nation.”

After an initial presentation, 22 staff ride participants loaded the bus to start their tour of the region. Throughout the tour, they visited Point 473, also known as “Hangman’s Hill,” Polish Cemetery, Snakehead Ridge, and the Montecassino Abbey.

“I never even knew this battle existed and learning about how big of an impact it had during World War II was a huge takeaway for me,” said Culinary Specialist 2nd Class Bruce Simpson. “We don’t talk about this battle enough, and I have a newfound respect for the terrain and what these troops had to overcome.”

This is the first staff ride for CNE-CNA-C6F personnel since before the COVID-19 pandemic. The ability and drive to restart the program led to the successful restart with this trip, fostering a knowledge and appreciation of military history that those serving throughout government today can apply to their own service.

“In the history books, we only hear about how we won,” said Joe Klein, assigned to the N3 directorate of CNE-CNA-C6F. “What is talked about less is that there were also a whole lot of losses. Difficult missions, people put into harrowing situations… these people were really put onto the pointed end of the spear and it is important that we learn about and have a healthy appreciation for the past to prevent it from happening again.”

For over 80 years, U.S. Naval Forces Europe-U.S. Naval Forces Africa (NAVEUR-NAVAF) has forged strategic relationships with our allies and partners, leveraging a foundation of shared values to preserve security and stability.

Headquartered in Naples, Italy, NAVEUR-NAVAF operates U.S. naval forces in the U.S. European Command (USEUCOM) and U.S. Africa Command (USAFRICOM) areas of responsibility. U.S. Sixth Fleet is permanently assigned to NAVEUR-NAVAF, and employs maritime forces through the full spectrum of joint and naval operations.

Source: United States Navy

The carrier strike group includes the Navy’s only forward-deployed aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76), the embarked Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 5, and embarked staffs of Task Force 70 and Destroyer Squadron (DESRON) 15, as well as the Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruiser USS Antietam (CG 54) and the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Higgins (DDG 76).

While in the South China Sea, the strike group is conducting maritime security operations, which include flight operations with fixed and rotary-wing aircraft, maritime strike exercises, and coordinated tactical training between surface and air units. Carrier operations in the South China Sea are part of the U.S. Navy’s routine operations in the Indo-Pacific.

“Our strike group works consistently to stay capable and ready and we continue that focus during operations in the South China Sea to demonstrate our commitment to the region,” said Rear Adm. Michael Donnelly, commander, Task Force 70/Carrier Strike Group 5. “Building on the lessons and successes of exercises like Valiant Shield 2022, and our continuous opportunities to train and operate alongside allies and partners, we provide assured capability to uphold the rules-based international order in this body of water and anywhere else we will sail, fly, and operate.”

Throughout the 2022 deployment, Ronald Reagan and accompanying units have routinely integrated with ally and partner naval forces to build high-end warfighting readiness through air defense, anti-submarine warfare, maritime strike, and force protection exercises. In early June this included operations with Republic of Korea (ROK) Navy ships for Carrier Strike Group Exercise (CSG) 2022. Later that month in the Philippine Sea, the Sailors of CSG 5 worked with more than 200 aircraft and an estimated 13,000 personnel from the U.S. Navy, Air Force, Army, Marine Corps, and Space Force during the Valiant Shield exercise, a U.S.-only, biennial field training exercise (FTX) focused on integration of joint training in a multi-domain environment.

The strike group finished the month of June with a port visit to Guam, where Sailors were able to conduct several community relations events and enjoy recreation and tours across the island, marking the strike group’s first port visit since 2020.

“Our presence in the South China Sea demonstrates America’s commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific,” said Capt. Fred Goldhammer, the commanding officer of USS Ronald Reagan. “Every Sailor onboard contributes to this important and enduring mission as we operate in this region, in accordance with international law to ensure that all nations can do the same.”

The Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group is forward-deployed to the U.S. 7th Fleet area of operations in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific region.
U.S. 7th Fleet is the largest forward-deployed numbered fleet in the world and, with the help of 35 other maritime-nation allies and partners, the U.S. Navy has operated in the Indo-Pacific region for more than 70 years, providing credible, ready forces to help preserve peace and prevent conflict.