Month: November 2022

Source: United States Navy

BUSAN, Republic of Korea – Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Mike Gilday and his wife Linda Gilday visited the Republic of Korea (ROK), Nov. 3-4, to meet with U.S. Sailors and military leaders, as well as ROK officials. 

Adm. Gilday met with the Chief of Naval Operations of the Republic of Korea Navy Adm. Lee, Jong-Ho, and Commander, Republic of Korea Fleet Vice Adm. Kang, Dong Hoon. 

“The alliance and close relationship between our naval forces is a linchpin of security in Northeast Asia,” said Gilday.  “Our alliance provides a stabilizing and deterring presence and our commitment to the defense of the Republic of Korea remains ironclad.” 

 “Lately, the DPRK is raising levels of provocation by launching missiles and artillery shells, flying warplanes and seriously threatening peace and security in the international community,” said Lee. “We have to bolster the two navies’ military engagement and combined defense posture to prepare for the current, critical security situation.”

“The U.S. remains committed to peace and prosperity through the region in order to maintain a free and open Indo-Pacific,” Gilday added.  

CNO visited Seoul, Busan, and Gyerong, ROK. At each engagement, Gilday emphasized the significance of presence and the strength of the partnership between the U.S. and ROK navies, as well as the importance of forward-deployed naval forces. Throughout his visit Adm. Gilday spoke with U.S. Sailors, as well as service members assigned to the ROK navy.

He also offered his sympathies to ROK following the recent tragedy in Seoul.

“With great sorrow, my wife Linda and I grieve alongside the people of Korea,” said the CNO.  “Our hearts are heavy. We will never forget the strength of the families and the community with whom we met over the past two days.” 

The Gildays also toured Commander, Naval Forces Korea headquarters, attended an awards ceremony and reenlisted Sailors.

The U.S. and Republic of Korea navies regularly operate together for many bilateral exercises and operations.  Joint exercise Vigilant Storm started this week and focuses on building interoperability and readiness.  Recently, both navies participated in the Korean-led exercise Hoguk, an annual exercise conducted by ROK marines. The ROK recently also hosted the 2022 Multinational Mine Countermeasures Exercise and Symposium at Busan Naval Base, which was an opportunity for leaders from multiple nations to meet and share knowledge about mine countermeasures.

This past September, USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) pulled into Busan, for the first time since 2017, marking the Japan-based carrier’s first trip to the ROK in nearly four years. CNO Gilday visited ROKS Marado (LPH 6112) over the summer during exercise Rim of the Pacific 2022. 

Gilday’s visit to ROK precedes a trip to Japan for the Japan Maritime Self Defense Force International Fleet Review and Western Pacific Naval Symposium.

Source: United States Navy

“The introduction of Additive Manufacturing (AM) into naval operations supports readiness and self-sufficiency,” said Rear Adm. Brendan McLane, commander, Naval Surface Force Atlantic.

Additive manufacturing (AM) – more commonly known as 3D printing – is the process of joining materials to make parts from 3D model data, usually layer upon layer, as opposed to subtractive manufacturing and formative manufacturing methodologies. Whether creating a quality of life item or a sophisticated machine part, AM facilitates production at the point-of-need when time and operational availability matter.

The equipment, installed under a joint effort between Commander, Naval Surface Force Atlantic and Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) Technology Office, includes the Phillips Additive Hybrid system, which integrates a Meltio3D laser metal wire deposition head on a Haas TM-1 computer numerical control mill. The Haas TM-1 platform has been proven to operate reliably in an afloat environment aboard several aircraft carriers.  Integrating the Meltio3D deposition head with the Haas TM-1 provides both an additive and subtractive manufacturing capability within the same system, increasing efficiency and reducing waste when compared with typical machining.

The Phillips Additive Hybrid system prints 316L stainless steel, a prevalent material in U.S. Navy ship systems. While stainless steel additive manufacturing onboard naval ships is new, it also represents an advancement in providing Sailors with industrial-level manufacturing capabilities to print individual parts for systems that previously have not been readily available without procuring the entire system at significantly greater cost. The 3D printer’s benefits are twofold – it works to maximize operational availability and reduces the demand on traditional and Navy-specific supply chains. Additionally, NAVSEA engineers installed a second 3D printer to produce polymer (plastic) components onboard Bataan. This printer enables the ship’s crew to print any of the NAVSEA developed 300+ AM Technical Data Packages that define the required design configuration and procedures to manufacture a part and ensure it performs properly. 

“These printers have the ability to help the Navy overcome both obsolescence issues for ships and systems that have service lives measured in decades and directly contribute to enhanced operational availability of our systems and ships,” said NAVSEA Chief Engineer Rear Adm. Jason Lloyd.

The Navy’s efforts to leverage AM illustrate enterprise-wide business process reform and innovation. NAVSEA subject matter experts and industry partners are working to test, evaluate, and field the most advanced AM technologies to improve readiness and increase capabilities, as demonstrated on USS Bataan.

Bataan, a multi-purpose amphibious assault ship, carries more than 2,500 Sailors and Marines when fully embarked, and is the fifth ship of the Navy’s Wasp-class ships. She was commissioned Sept. 20, 1997, and is the second U.S. Navy warship to bear the name. CVL-29 was an Independence-class small aircraft carrier that was commissioned in November 1943. After serving in both World War II and the Korean conflict, CVL-29 was decommissioned in 1954.

NAVSEA is the largest of the Navy’s six system commands, responsible for the building, buying and maintaining ships, submarines and systems for the U.S. Navy. NAVSEA’s Technology Office is leading multiple areas of research and development in evaluation of AM equipment, using data not only from deployed assets, but also shore side lab activities, to gain a critical understanding of how the equipment will perform under shipboard conditions. These evaluations will ensure that the current and future shipboard implementations of this equipment are fabricating parts repeatedly and reliably, thus allowing Sailors to address an increasing number of applications.

Source: United States Navy

Today, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday met with Chief of Naval Operations of the Republic of Korea (ROK) Navy Adm. Lee, Jong-Ho in Gyeryong, ROK, as part of his trip to the Indo-Pacific region to attend the International Fleet Review and Western Pacific Naval Symposium. 

The two leaders discussed the enduring nature of the U.S.-ROK naval alliance, as well their shared commitment to security and peace and prosperity throughout the Indo-Pacific. They also talked about regional and peninsular security, to include the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (DPRK) continuous provocations such as nuclear threats and missile launches. 

Gilday emphasized the importance of continuing to work with our Allies and partners to secure peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula and maintain a free and open Indo-Pacific, as well as continued efforts to achieve the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.   

Gilday also offered his condolences and deepest sympathies to the people of Korea who had loved ones that were killed or injured in the recent tragedy in Seoul.