Category: Defence

Source: United States Navy

Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Lisa Franchetti attended the Warfare Commander’s conference (WARCOM) held at the Naval Aviation Warfare Development Center (NAWDC) in Fallon, Nevada, on August 19-20, 2024. This critical event united top warfighters to present, discuss, and refine the latest innovations and tactical strategies in Naval operations.

WARCOM provides a structured and dynamic platform for collaboration among leaders in Aviation, Surface, and Information Warfare. The conference is designed to include a wide array of commanders, such as those from Strike Groups, Air Wings, Information Warfare units, Type Wings, Destroyer Squadrons, Amphibious Squadrons, as well as Commanding Officers of CVNs and ships. The event also integrates representation from Numbered Fleets, OPNAV, and acquisition sectors, ensuring a holistic approach to Naval warfare.

“WARCOM is all about the highest levels of advanced warfighting in all domains from space to the sea bed floor,” said Vice Adm. Dan Cheever, Commander, Naval Air Forces. “We are thinking, acting and operating differently to preserve the peace, respond in crisis and win decisively in combat. It is our free thinking, our tactical and operational excellence that will prove decisive.”

Adm. Franchetti underscored the pivotal role of WARCOM ‘24, emphasizing its importance in bringing together diverse expertise from across the Navy’s operational spectrum. This year’s conference aims to fortify the U.S. Navy’s position as the world’s leading fighting force by fostering a comprehensive and integrated approach to warfare and highlight the significance of leveraging collective knowledge and strategies to stay ahead in a rapidly evolving tactical environment.

“As the Navy’s center of excellence for advanced tactics and combat training, Naval Aviation Warfighting Development Center (NAWDC) remains focused on developing the most knowledgeable, competent and proficient Naval warfighters in order to compete and win in an ever evolving strategic landscape,” said Rear Adm. Mike Spencer, Commander, Naval Aviation Warfighting Development Center. “The Fallon Range Training Complex and the NAWDC staff and facilities provide a second to none, cutting-edge training environment that will always ensure our Navy prevails throughout the spectrum of competition, crisis and conflict.  NAWDC’s hosting of WARCOM serves as a pinnacle event to advance Navy warfighting across all warfare competencies.”

A key focus of WARCOM ‘24 is the development and enhancement of the Navy’s warfighting ecosystem. This ecosystem encompasses the full range of Naval warfare capabilities—surface, aviation, subsurface, information, and special operations—ensuring they work seamlessly together to provide a cohesive and formidable operational force. By integrating various domains of warfare, the conference aims to create synergies that enhance overall effectiveness and adaptability in complex and contested environments.

Vice Adm. Mike Vernazza, Commander, Naval Information Forces and the Navy’s IBoss, explained how Information Warfare underpins this ecosystem.

“The Navy’s warfighting ecosystem depends on a robust constellation of capabilities – all enabled by Information Warfare,” said Vernazza. “IW’s pillars of Assured Command and Control, Battlespace Awareness, and Integrated Fires are foundational to every single warfighting area in the high-end fight.” 

Adm. Franchetti stressed the importance of utilizing all aspects of Naval warfare to ensure an effective, integrated, and lethal force. Her direction was centered on maintaining the Navy’s edge against increasingly sophisticated adversaries through a unified approach that leverages the full spectrum of naval capabilities.

“Bringing together warfighters from all communities in Fallon this year reflects the changing character of war and enhances our ability to integrate and accelerate efforts across tactical and operational levels of warfighting. As warfare evolves, so must the Navy,” said Franchetti “Our ability to work with the Joint Force in a warfighting ecosystem, enables us to achieve compounding effects that confound and degrade adversaries’ ability to sense and make sense of the information environment, allowing us to maneuver our strengths against their weaknesses.”

Adm. Franchetti emphasized the need for a unified and integrated approach to achieve superior operational outcomes and adapt to emerging threats.

WARCOM ‘24 is instrumental in aligning Navy leaders with cutting-edge training, operational readiness, and emerging tactics, while also addressing theater-specific requirements. The conference’s focus on enhancing the Navy’s warfighting ecosystem highlights the importance of integration and collaboration in maintaining a strategic advantage and ensuring continued excellence in naval operations.

This was Franchetti’s first time attending WARCOM as CNO.   

Source: United States Navy

Edinburgh, SCOTLAND – Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro met with Minister of Foreign Affairs, Industry and Trade of the Faroe Islands Høgni Hoydal, Aug. 15.

The leaders discussed shared security interests in the Arctic Circle, including strategic competition, climate change, fisheries management, and strategic transit routes across the GIUK Gap.  Noting release of the U.S. Department of Defense Arctic Strategy in July, Secretary Del Toro added that the Navy’s forthcoming Arctic strategy would support the DoD strategy across the maritime domain.

Secretary Del Toro thanked Minister Hoydal for his continued support for U.S. Navy submarine port visits to the Faroe Islands, most recently with USS Albany’s (SSN 753) visit in July.     

Secretary Del Toro invited Minister Hoydal to visit him at the Pentagon in Washington D.C.

Source: United States Navy

Barrow, ENGLAND – Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro visited BAE Systems Submarines Barrow-in-Furness Shipyard during a trip to the United Kingdom last week. 

During the visit he met with UK government, Royal Navy and industry leadership to discuss expanding collaboration and applying best practices to U.S. submarine construction and maintenance.  Secretary Del Toro was also updated on the SSN-AUKUS program as well as U.S.-UK collaboration on knowledge transfer, technology insertion and senior leadership engagements.

A tour of facilities showcased submarine production from hull sections of the future Dreadnought-class to the final stages of construction of the Astute-class.  The secretary stopped by the Submarine Skills Academy as well and spoke with apprentices pursuing a variety of skilled trades at the shipyard.    

 “It was an incredible visit to BAE’s Barrow Shipyard, where I saw construction of the Royal Navy’s most advanced submarines by highly skilled technicians and toured their apprentice workshops to develop the next generation of submarine-builders,” said Secretary Del Toro.  “Lessons learned from building these extraordinary ships will pave the way for industry to build the next-generation SSN-AUKUS.”

The visit also highlighted use of the Shiplift system to raise and lower submarines in and out of the water, both for delivery and for maintenance, instead of using a dry dock.      

Construction of a public university satellite facility at the shipyard demonstrated ways that overseas industry is working to attract, educate and incorporate new talent into its workforce.     

“I was very impressed with the strong partnership displayed between the shipyard, national and local governments to address skilled-workforce challenges in the shipbuilding industrial base that we all face,” said Del Toro.  “As part of my Maritime Statecraft initiative, I will continue to promote public-private training partnerships like this that revitalize American shipbuilding.”        

Launched on Sept. 23, 2023, Maritime Statecraft promotes whole-of-government efforts to restore U.S. and allied comprehensive maritime power. 

Source: United States Navy

The first-of-its-kind training capability, called Simulators at Sea, features connected desktop trainers that enable aviators to practice missions together while deployed—a historically limited capability.

“Simulators at Sea brings American aviators a level of readiness our carrier air wing has never experienced while deployed,” said NAWCAD Commander Rear Adm. John Dougherty IV. “This training is a game changing advantage that keeps our forces the most dominant in the skies.”

Aviators with Lincoln’s Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 9 flying F-35C Lightning II, F/A-18 E/F Super Hornets, EA-18G Growlers, and E-2D Hawkeyes are the first to deploy and rehearse naval missions including wartime scenarios with the Navy’s new Simulators at Sea. Previously, joint mission training on this scale has been significantly limited as practicing wartime scenarios holds risk, flight operations can be expensive, and open-air rehearsal puts Navy tactics on display for adversaries.

“Naval aviators train extensively working up to deployment, but those skills begin to atrophy the day they pull out of port,” said NAWCAD Joint Simulation Environment Director Blaine Summers, whose team delivered the Simulators at Sea capability. “This was a capability gap we had to plug with a fully integrated carrier air wing solution—one we’re ready to scale across the Navy’s fleet of carriers.”

CVW-9 aviators have trained in its new simulators daily since its July 2024 deployment.

Simulators at Sea came together for Abraham Lincoln in less than 12 months following lessons learned from NAWCAD’s 2023 deployment of F-35 simulators onboard USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70). The Simulators at Sea effort was more complex, requiring significant integration efforts that stretched across the Naval Aviation Enterprise’s Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division, NAWCAD’s Webster Outlying Field, and the Naval Aviation Training Systems and Ranges Program, as well as industry partners Boeing, Collins Aerospace, and General Dynamics Information Technology.

The warfare center plans to expand Simulators at Sea to other carriers in the future.

The Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division employs more than 17,000 military, civilian and contract personnel. It operates test ranges, laboratories, and aircraft in support of test, evaluation, research, development and sustainment of everything flown by the Navy and Marine Corps. Based in Patuxent River, Maryland, the command also has major sites in St. Inigoes, Maryland, Lakehurst, New Jersey, and Orlando, Florida.

Source: United States Navy

Pacific Partnership and Pacific Angel jointly organized the Vietnam mission stop to strengthen disaster response preparedness and international cooperation. The mission will take place from August 19 through August 31.  

In Quang Ngai, the PP24-2 and PA24-3 programs will bring together approximately 200 participants, including personnel from the Australian Defense Force, British Armed Forces, Chile, Japan, and members of the U.S. Armed Forces. The U.S. Consul General in Ho Chi Minh City will attend the opening ceremony on Aug. 20. 

“During this year’s Pacific Partnership and Pacific Angel mission, we highlight the enduring friendship that drives the U.S.-Vietnam relationship forward in disaster response, medicine, and education. This progress is even more meaningful when we consider how our two countries have overcome our shared past to build a brighter future for the next generation,” said U.S. Consul General Susan Burns.

The Pacific Partnership and Pacific Angel humanitarian mission includes a range of activities aimed at enhancing disaster response capabilities, providing humanitarian assistance, and fostering mutual understanding between partnering nations. Medical professionals will conduct exchanges and training sessions at various hospitals and medical centers in Quang Ngai, covering topics such as mass casualty incidents, surgeries, public health, and infectious diseases. In addition, U.S. and Vietnamese officials will hold discussions on forest fire prevention, coastal erosion, and natural disaster management, accompanied by a site survey of the Nghia An anti-erosion embankment. 

“Our leaders understand the importance of collaboration, with experts both inside and outside of government, to strengthen and enhance the resilience of vulnerable communities, particularly through disaster preparedness initiatives,” said U.S. Navy Captain Daniel Keeler, PP24-2 mission commander. “We aim to strengthen coordination on regional and global issues of shared concern and interest, contributing to collective efforts to uphold peace, stability, cooperation, and development both in the region and worldwide.” 

Construction efforts will also play a significant role in the mission, with repairs and renovations planned at several local facilities, including Tinh Minh Kindergarten, Nghia Lo Medical Station, Tinh Khe Elementary School, and Tinh Khe Medical Station. These projects are designed to improve the infrastructure and resilience of local community sites. The mission will also emphasize community engagement through a series of English language and music exchanges with students at local schools, fostering cultural interactions and mutual understanding. 

“We are dedicated to working with each host nation and our sister branches to enhance capacity, 

interoperability, combined readiness, and partnership in the Indo-Pacific,” said Major Bradley 

Emmett, PA24-3 mission commander. “The relationships built and sustained with our partners 

through these missions, civil-military operations, and military exchanges help preserve peace and stability in the region. We look forward to working with them in the upcoming week.” 

The PP24-2 and PA24-3 mission represents a milestone in foreign affairs engagement with Quang Ngai province, reinforcing the U.S.-Vietnam bilateral relationship nearly a year after the two countries upgraded to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. The program underscores the province’s commitment to global partnerships and disaster preparedness. 

For information on Pacific Partnership and Pacific Angel visit: www.clwp.navy.mil/Pacific-Partnership and https://www.pacaf.af.mil