Month: April 2024

Source: United States Navy

Two waste water treatment projects already under construction and an upcoming water system redundancy and resiliency repairs project aim to save water and increase energy savings in Sigonella for years to come.

“By saving potable water, NAS Sigonella saves a very precious source and helps the environment,” said Antonino Piluso, installation energy manager, NAS Sigonella PWD. “By reducing the potable water usage for irrigation, the base saves energy too. This is why these projects are double winners for the installation.”

The two water-saving projects already under construction will treat waste water discharged on both NAS Sigonella bases – NAS 1 and NAS 2, then use the reclaimed water to irrigate the installation, reducing potable water usage by 10 percent, annually.

The newest project – a water system redundancy and resiliency repairs project – will save raw and potable water for the whole installation by repairing and upgrading the existing distribution system and using the discharge water from the treatment process to reduce the overall potable water usage for irrigation.

Sigonella PWD encourages everyone to save water by utilizing the following tips:

1. Repair leaky faucets promptly. One faucet leaking one drop per second can waste 2,400 gallons of water each year – 13 years’ worth of drinking water for one person.

2. Install low-¬flow shower heads, toilets and aerators on kitchen and bathroom sink faucets to save water. They can cut water usage by as much as 280 gallons a month for a typical family of four.

3. Shorten showers. Each minute less in the shower can save between two to five gallons, depending on the type of showerhead.

4. Fill the sink when washing the dishes by hand, instead of letting the water run – it could save up to 25 gallons of water.

5. Don’t leave the water running when brushing teeth – it could save as much as nine gallons each time you brush.

6. Fill a sink when shaving – you’ll use only one gallon of water instead of up to 15 gallons.

7. Repair “silent leaks” in the toilet. If food coloring put in the tank ends up in the bowl without flushing, it is leaking. Repairing the leak will save up to 200 gallons of water per day.

8. Run the dishwasher with a full load, not partial (do the same with laundry).

9. For cold drinks, keep a pitcher of water in the refrigerator instead of running the tap. You can save hundreds of gallons over the course of a year by not letting water run down the drain.

10. When landscaping, use drought-resistant plants. Check the drought tolerance of plants by reducing the amount of watering a few minutes a day (or cut one day a week) to see how well they do.

Naval Air Station Sigonella provides consolidated operational, command and control, administrative, logistical and advanced logistical support to U.S. and other NATO forces. The installation’s strategic location enables U.S., allied, and partner nation forces to deploy and respond as required, ensuring security and stability in Europe, Africa and Central Command.

For more news and information from NAS Sigonella, visit https://cnreurafcent.cnic.navy.mil/Installations/NAS-Sigonella/ or https://www.facebook.com/nassigonella/.

Source: United States Navy

The RAN officers’ graduation represents a significant step toward realizing Pillar 1 of the trilateral AUKUS partnership, a strategic endeavor aimed at strengthening the security and defense capabilities of Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Pillar 1 aims to create a sovereign conventionally armed, nuclear-powered attack submarine fleet for the Royal Australian Navy.

“Collectively, we would like to thank our instructors here in Groton and also in Goose Creek, South Carolina, for getting us to this point,” said Lt. William Hall. Hall, Lt. Cmdr. James Heydon and Lt. Cmdr. Adam Klyne are the first RAN officers to complete Naval Nuclear Power School and Nuclear Power Training Unit, located in South Carolina, and now SOBC. “Now, we’re looking to join our boats and continuing our careers as part of Australia’s conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarine force.”

The Submarine Officer Basic Course is the last step in the U.S. Navy’s 15-month nuclear submarine training pipeline before assignment to the fleet. The three RAN officer graduates will be assigned to Virginia-class attack submarines based out of Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Upon assignment, the graduates serve as division officers, leading a team of highly trained enlisted submariners. In this capacity, they will be tested and qualified on the ship’s systems and in various warfighting and leadership roles.

“Over the last two months, these three officers have trained alongside our Sailors, learning the fundamentals of operating and tactically employing SSNs,” said Naval Submarine School Commanding Officer Capt. Matthew Fanning. “At SOBC, they applied both their previous experience and the new skills they developed through our nuclear training schools, to learn how we operate the ocean’s apex predator, the nuclear-powered attack submarine.”

“These officers are the future leaders of Australia’s sovereign conventionally armed nuclear-powered submarine fleet,” said the U.S. Navy’s AUKUS Integration and Acquisition Program Manager Rear Adm. Lincoln Reifsteck. “Their time in Groton bridged the operational gap between the Collins-class SSKs and the Virginia-class SSN. These tours on U.S. Virginia-class submarines are the key professional development step toward earning the privilege to become submarine executive officers and the first commanding officers of Australian SSNs.”

Nearly 100 RAN officers and enlisted personnel will enter the submarine and Naval Nuclear Propulsion training piplelines in 2024.

“These three officers are trailblazers for the Royal Australian Navy,” said Rear Admiral Matt Buckley, Head of Nuclear Submarine Capability within the Australia Submarine Agency. They are not only the first Australians to be fully trained within the U.S. system but will also gain real-world experience aboard Virginia-class SSNs, which will be foundational to Australia’s ability to sovereignly operate, maintain, and steward these world-class platforms.”

AUKUS is a strategic partnership that will promote a safe, free, and open Indo-Pacific, enhance national security, and uplift the three industrial bases. AUKUS Pillar 1 is delivering a conventionally armed SSN capability to the Royal Australian Navy by the early 2030s. The AUKUS I&A Program Office is responsible for executing the trilateral partnership to deliver conventionally armed, nuclear-powered attack submarines to the RAN at the earliest possible date while setting the highest nuclear stewardship standards and continuing to maintain the highest nonproliferation standard.

Source: United States Navy

Student engineering teams from Princeton, Washington College and the University of Alabama have won first place in their respective events at the “Promoting Electric Propulsion” (PEP) boat races, sponsored by the Office of Naval Research (ONR) and the American Society of Naval Engineers (ASNE).

In just six years, this electric boat-building competition has grown from a single university to 34, with more than 200 students who took part in the five-mile races on Broad Bay in Virginia Beach. Dr. Steve Russell, program officer, Sea Warfare and Weapons department, said he launched the PEP competition with a colleague from ASNE, Dr. Leigh McCue, and Tim Cullis, Naval Sea Warfare Center Carderock, after seeing a public race by local hobbyists in the Chesapeake Bay.

“It gave us the idea this would be a good way for the Navy to get engineering students interested in electric propulsion, so we did it.”

Russell said they are reaching hundreds of science and engineering students every year. The PEP racing event not only offers students valuable learning experiences, it provides the Navy and Marines with a workforce for the future.

“The goal is to create a pipeline of graduating engineers who have worked on a suite of problems that are currently issues within the U.S. Navy. They come out of school after having designed and built a boat like this, and learning about high power electronics, propulsion, hull design, cooling and boat stability – the naval architecture parts of it,” Russell said. “So far, we’ve hired many of them into the warfare centers and our industry partners.”

The teams of college students come from universities all over the country. Some are very well known, like Princeton and Texas A&M, but others are much smaller and not necessarily easily recognized. That doesn’t mean the smaller universities aren’t as competitive. Russell said Washington College in Maryland came in first and second place, respectively, in the 2022 and 2023 manned race, as well as placing first in 2024.

“They don’t even have an engineering school. It’s just a group of students who go to school near the Chesapeake Bay and they built a couple of very good boats,” he said.

The PEP competition includes manned and unmanned boat races. Russell said the manned competition seems to be more exciting for the students. It is a race, after all – and they can go pretty fast. Most of the entrants, though, register for the unmanned competition. Regardless of which category the teams fall into, they are all involved in meaningful and, in some cases, record-breaking work.

“While we’re not really looking to use any of the techniques that the students come up with, their innovation has been very impressive. For example, the Princeton team last fall took their boat down to a river in North Carolina and beat the world record for electric boat speed on the water with an average speed of 114 mph,” Russell said. “What we’re really trying to do is to get them interested in solving Navy-related problems, and hopefully they will pursue careers in the Navy.”

It’s also become something of an industry event where the students are introduced to industry partners in the area. Since its inception in 2018, the PEP competition has helped recruit 44 engineering graduates for the Navy. Eleven others gained engineering positions with industry partners.

For more information on PEP, visit their website at https://www.navalengineers.org/Education/Promoting-Electric-Propulsion-PEP

Source: United States Navy

Rugby Diplomacy was announced as part of President Biden’s Pacific Island Forum Summit held last fall where midshipmen from the USNA Rugby team travel to the Pacific Islands beginning in May for rugby exhibition matches and youth empowerment programming.

“Sports have a unique power to bring people together, and we are committed to supporting the development of sports in the Pacific, particularly through the U.S.-Pacific Partnership through which we seek to expand opportunities for all our peoples,” said Secretary Del Toro, a 1983 Naval Academy graduate. “Expanding sports ties between our countries and peoples will lead to greater understanding of one another’s societies and build support for areas like health and youth development.”

At the U.S.-Pacific Islands Forum Summit meeting at the White House on Sept. 25, 2023, President Biden renewed our commitment to enhancing our partnership with Pacific Island nations to achieve our shared vision for a resilient Pacific region of peace, harmony, security, social inclusion, and prosperity, where individuals can reach their potential, the environment can thrive, and democracy can flourish.

The United States also looks forward to joining Pacific Island delegations for the 13th Festival of Pacific Arts and Culture (FestPAC) in Hawaii, June 6-16, 2024. The theme, “Ho‘oulu Lāhui: Regenerating Oceania,” will honor the traditions that FestPAC perpetuates with an eye toward the future.

Pacific Islanders have made an impact in many facets of U.S. culture, particularly through American football, where many athletes have made their mark, most notably at present NFL star quarterback Tua Tagovailoa of the Miami Dolphins.

“The Pacific Islands region is a vital part of the Indo-Pacific.  Our engagement with Pacific Island nations offers opportunities to address shared challenges, from the climate crisis to an increasingly complex geopolitical landscape.  Our shared history, democratic values, and geography link the Pacific’s future to our own: our shared prosperity and security depend on the Pacific region remaining free and open,” added Secretary Del Toro.

To that end, we have elevated broader and deeper engagement with the Pacific Islands as a key priority of our naval diplomacy and foreign policy.  The Pacific Partnership Strategy both reflects and advances that commitment and is aligned with the goals of the Pacific Island Forum’s 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent.

Source: United States Navy

In her new role, Schuman will advise the SECNAV, Chief of Naval Operations (CNO), and Commandant of the Marine Corps on all cyber matters. DON PCA works in close coordination with the DON Chief Information Officer (CIO), the Department of Defense (DoD) PCA, and the DoD CIO. In addition, Schumann will also be responsible for certifying the adequacy of the DON’s cyberspace activities budget, and implementing the Department of Defense Cyber Strategy in the DON.

“I am honored to serve the DON as the new PCA,” said Schumann. “I plan to uphold the mission to drive excellence in the DON’s cyber resiliency and warfighting efforts to enable and strengthen maritime dominance in an evolving digital landscape.”

Schumann is a seasoned professional with over two decades of experience in military, public service, and industry. Her expertise lies in national security, particularly in cyber-related matters. Schumann previously served as the Senior Cyber Threat Advisor to the Director for Command, Control, Communications and Computers/Cyber and CIO, Joint Staff J6.