Category: Defence

Source: United States Navy

BALTIMORE (Sept 20, 2024) – Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro announced that the future Virginia-class nuclear-powered attack submarine SSN 812 will be named USS Baltimore. Del Toro made the announcement during a ship naming ceremony held in Baltimore aboard the historic USS Constellation, Sept. 20.

The future USS Baltimore honors the city of Baltimore, the crews of one Continental Navy ship, and the five previous Navy vessels named Baltimore.

The naming selection of the future USS Baltimore (SSN 812) continues the recent trend of naming Virginia-class submarines after cities. Del Toro previously named USS Long Island (SSN 809), USS San Francisco (SSN 810), and USS Miami (SSN 811).

“The city of Baltimore maintains a strong connection with our maritime services and is a critical enabler of our National Maritime Statecraft,” said Del Toro. “It is my honor and privilege to announce the name of the next Virginia-class nuclear-powered submarine, SSN-812, USS Baltimore.” 

Maryland Sen. Ben Cardin joined Del Toro for the ceremony honoring Baltimore.

“Maryland is proud of our connection to the Navy and our strong history as a coastal state,” said Cardin. “I am excited that the next USS Baltimore will be sailing the seas again as the Navy’s newest submarine. Our Navy maintains and protects free and open international waters. From defending our young nation from pirates in the late 1700s to ensuring freedom of navigation today in the Red Sea and Taiwan Strait, our Navy is always on watch.”

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott also served as a guest in the official party and spoke about the honor and meaning behind the naming of the Navy’s newest submarine.

“We are honored that Baltimore is being represented across the globe once again with the naming of this future ship,” said Scott. “As a city with such a rich naval and maritime history, the naming of the USS Baltimore ensures that legacy will continue to live on for decades to come. I want to extend my deepest thanks and gratitude to the U.S. Navy for this honor and for continuing to uplift our city, including all Baltimoreans who choose to serve.”

Along with the ship’s name, Del Toro also announced Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks will serve as the ship’s sponsor. In her role as sponsor, she will represent a lifelong relationship with the ship and crew.

“When Baltimore joins the fleet, with a world-class crew, it will be among the most agile, lethal, resilient, and capable conventional nuclear-powered submarines we’ve ever made,” said Hicks. “Make no mistake about Baltimore’s purpose, like all of our submarines, conventional and otherwise, we build them not to provoke war, but rather to prevent wars, through deterrence.”

The city of Baltimore has significant ties to American and Naval history. The Port of Baltimore was established in 1706 and the Town of Baltimore in 1729. One of the Navy’s six founding frigates, USS Constellation, was built in Baltimore, and the city’s skilled ship workers later would construct the famous Baltimore clipper ships. In 1814, the Battle of Baltimore inspired the American national anthem.

The first Baltimore served in the Quasi-War against France, while the second Baltimore served during the Civil War. The third Baltimore fought in the Battle of Manila Bay during the Spanish-American War and later conducted mine-laying operations in World War I. The fourth Baltimore earned nine battle stars during World War II, fighting in campaigns for the Caroline Islands, Gilbert and Marshall Islands, and Okinawa. The fifth Baltimore participated in undersea operations against the Soviet Union, completing a variety of intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions. The Navy simultaneously decommissioned and struck the most recent vessel from the list on 10 July 1998.

After the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in March 2024, the Navy provided equities to the established “Key Bridge Response Unified Command.” NAVSEA’s Navy Supervisor of Salvage and Diving (SUPSALV) led critical efforts to support the clearance of the Port of Baltimore’s Fort McHenry Federal Channel, responsible for managing all on-scene assets tasked with debris removal and channel clearing. Del Toro personally assessed the site and met with Navy personnel on April 19, 2024.

Attack submarines are designed to seek and destroy enemy submarines and surface ships; project power ashore with Tomahawk cruise missiles and Special Operation Forces (SOF); carry out Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR) missions; support battle group operations; and engage in mine warfare.

Source: United States Navy

Good evening, everyone! Wow – what a fantastic video highlighting out Navy in action!

It is an honor to be here with such a distinguished group of leaders, members of Congress, Industry partners, Department of the Navy civilians, Flag and General Officers, MCPONs lots of MCPONs, veterans, and our servicemen and women – here to celebrate our Navy – and most importantly, our people – tonight.

Let me start by saying thank you very much to Admiral John Nowell and to the Navy Memorial team for putting together this spectacular event year after year. And thank you for bringing to life our Navy story and the stories of all our Sailors and all the people in the sea services day in and day out at the Navy Memorial, which is the home to one of the largest maps in the world, the “Granite Sea,” where you already heard that I danced with many veterans from the Armed Forces Retirement Home, and I had a really good time thanks to them and the Navy Band.

If you haven’t seen the “Granite Sea” or been to the Navy Memorial, I encourage you to do so. The Granite Sea,” it’s a map and it really show the sheer size, the expansiveness and the interconnectedness of the world’s oceans. And the sheer responsibility we have to keep them free and open for all.

Tonight, we are here to celebrate the contributions of Sailors, past and present and let me say right upfront there is a lot to celebrate.  After visiting our Navy team around the world and then just watching them again in that video I am filled with pride. I could not be more proud of our active and Reserve Sailors, our civilians, our Navy – Marine Corps team that is out there executing our Navy’s mission every single day – operating far forward, from seabed to space to deter aggression, to promote our Nation’s prosperity and security, and provide options to our Nation’s decision makers.

So, tonight, it is both an honor and a privilege for me to be here to recognize the bold and daring actions of our Sailors the ones you just saw in the video from Carrier Strike Group TWO. There are Sailors from – the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower the aircraft carrier – Carrier Air Wing 3 and its nine squadrons. We have The Philippine Sea a guided missile cruiser. Destroyers from Destroyer Squadron Twenty Two – the Gravely,  the Mason, the Laboon, and USS Carney. USS Florida, a guided missile submarine. All joined by a full complement of logistics ships run by our amazing civilian mariners – USNS Supply, Kanawha, and Alan Shepard – who did their part to deliver fuel, supplies, munitions, other goods, and of course mail to sustain our people and our Fleet at sea. How about a big round of applause for all those Sailors out there.  

Every one of them played a critical role in what I like to call a “Deployment of Firsts”: The first shoot down of an anti-ship ballistic missile; the first SM-6 engagement. the first air-to-air engagement of a hostile Unmanned Aerial Vehicle; and, the first employment of a hellfire against naval surface threats in combat.

And while I could go on and on and on about their contested straits transits and the number of threats intercepted, but I instead want to tell you about the story of this amazing team as I saw it.

For nine months our incredible Sailors prevailed operating inside an adversary Weapons Engagement Zone with an intensity not seen since WWII. They were saving lives, preventing the escalation of conflict, escorting merchants, ensuring the free flow of commerce, defending and working alongside our Allies and partners, and standing up for the values that we all hold so dear.

For nine months, they demonstrated to the American people that naval power is – and will continue to be – an essential element of our nation’s security.

And for nine months, these Sailors proved to our adversaries that we are truly the world’s preeminent fighting force and that no other Navy can train, deploy and sustain such a lethal, combat force at the scale and the tempo that we do. 

These Sailors are truly America’s Warfighting Navy.

And again, I could not be more excited to recognize some of those courageous IKE Strike Group Sailors here with us tonight teammates please stand. Please join me in giving them a round of applause.

The story of the IKE Strike Group and the story of these warfighters is one of many stories across America’s Warfighting Navy it’s a Navy that works around the globe and around the clock. And tonight, thousands more of our Navy Sailors, our Marines, our Coast Guardsmen and actually all of our servicepeople are operating far forward at risk in multiple weapons engagement zones around the world.

From the Eastern Mediterranean to the Indo-Pacific, from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea, and everywhere in between our Sailors are standing the watch in every domain ready to preserve the peace, to respond in crisis, and if necessary, win decisively in war. 

So, as we recognize the outstanding achievements of these Sailors here tonight, of our Lone Sailor Award recipients I ask that we also take a moment to reflect on all of our Sailors, our Marines, our service members, and their families. They serve everyday with Honor, Courage, and Commitment and it is because of their selfless service to our Nation that we can be here tonight to enjoy this wonderful evening.

Thank you very much.

Source: United States Navy

The Honorable Carlos Del Toro, Secretary of the Navy, will deliver the ceremonial principal address. Remarks will also be provided by the Honorable Meredith Berger, Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Energy, Installations, and Environment, Vice Adm. Jeffery T. Jablon, Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Installations and Logistics, and David J. Carver, President, General Dynamics NASSCO. In the time-honored Navy tradition, the ship’s sponsors and U.S. Navy ship introduction specialists who have helped bring to life over 100 ships in the past 20 years, Alicia Aadnesen and Debbie Simmons, will christen the ship with the traditional breaking of a bottle of champagne on the ship’s bow.

The ship is named for American suffragist Lucy Stone, who joined other notable advocates such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony, Ernestine Rose, and Antoinette Brown Blackwell to petition for suffrage and abolition in the 19th century. Her efforts as a founder of the Women’s National Loyal League were essential to the passage of the Thirteenth Amendment abolishing slavery.

“Lucy Stone’s legacy of leadership and advocacy for equality reflects the values we uphold in the U.S Navy,” said Secretary Del Toro. “USNS Lucy Stone stands as a testament to our commitment to operational excellence and is a proud moment as we continue to build and strengthen our maritime capabilities.”

The future USNS Lucy Stone will be the fifth Lewis-class fleet replenisher oiler and will be operated by the Navy’s Military Sealift Command. The oilers feature a substantial volume for oil, significant dry cargo capacity and aviation capability. T-AOs provide additional capacity to the Navy’s Combat Logistical Force and become the cornerstone of the fuel delivery system.

PEO Ships, one of the Department of Defense’s largest acquisition organizations, is responsible for executing the development and procurement of all destroyers, amphibious ships and craft, auxiliary ships, special mission ships, sealift ships and support ships.

Media may direct queries to the Navy Office of Information at (703) 697-5342. More information on the Fleet Replenishment Oilers can be found at: https://www.navy.mil/Resources/Fact-Files/Display-FactFiles/Article/2222909/fleet-replenishment-oilers-t-ao/

Source: United States Navy

Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Lisa Franchetti is cancer free after undergoing treatment for Stage 1 Breast Cancer at the John P. Murtha Cancer Center at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.

Franchetti received her diagnosis in late June after a routine screening mammogram. She underwent a successful outpatient surgery in July, completed radiation therapy, and began maintenance endocrine therapy this month. During her surgery, Franchetti temporarily transferred her authority to the Vice Chief of Naval Operations.

“I am grateful for my wonderful team of doctors at John P. Murtha Cancer Center for their excellent care and their development of a treatment plan that allows me to continue leading the world’s greatest Navy,” Franchetti said. “I am blessed that this was detected early and will forever be an advocate for early and routine screening.”

Source: United States Navy

U.S. 6th Fleet and the Bulgarian Navy closed out the third serial of Sea Breeze 2024, concluding the 23rd iteration of exercise Sea Breeze, Sept. 20, 2024.

Twelve countries participated in exercise Sea Breeze 2024-3, training together and exchanging knowledge on explosive ordnance disposal (EOD), dive operations, and unmanned underwater vehicles.

“We adopted a ‘crawl, walk, run’ approach for the EOD portion of the exercise, and by the end of Sea Breeze 2024-3, we brought every aspect of our training together to successfully complete a full-mission rehearsal,” said Cmdr John P. Kennedy, commanding officer of EOD Mobile Unit (EODMU) 8. “I am incredibly proud of how Sailors across 12 nations worked together as one team and learned from each other to enhance our collective EOD and mine countermeasures (MCM) capabilities.”

The culminating training event for Sea Breeze 2024-3 brought the various serials together into a full-mission rehearsal. It started with an underwater vehicle that identified a simulated mine threat. From there, the joint EOD teams used techniques they trained on from previous exercise events to find a mine in the water, safely dive to deliver an explosive charge, detonate that explosive charge to render the threat safe, and place divers in the water to verify that their procedures were effective.

The final training week during Sea Breeze 2024-3 allowed the U.S., Allies and partner nations to further refine tactics, techniques, and procedures for EOD and MCM. Sea Breeze 2024 successfully built and enhanced U.S. and Allied EOD/MCM capability, which is essential for demining the Black Sea.

“Exercises like Sea Breeze are important to future peace, security, and stability of the Black Sea region,” Vice Adm. Thomas Ishee, commander, U.S. 6th Fleet, said at a press conference during the Fleet Commanders’ Conference. “We greatly appreciate the Allies and partners who joined us to promote freedom of navigation, stability, and security in the Black Sea. We demonstrated how we each dispose of ordnance and how we find drifting mines and are able to diffuse them. Understanding how we work to address this threat helps us to address the mine threat now and in the future.”

Exercise Sea Breeze 2024 is a joint MCM exercise between the Bulgarian Navy, Royal Navy, Ukrainian Navy and U.S. Navy. Sixteen countries and organizations participated this year: Bulgaria, Estonia, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Italy, Japan, NATO Allied Maritime Command, Poland, Romania, Sweden, Türkiye, Ukraine, U.K. and U.S.

The initial serial, hosted by the United Kingdom from June 24 to July 5, focused on the integration and command and control of mine countermeasure vessels (MCMV) and a Ukrainian task group headquarters augmented by international staff officers and mentors.

The second serial was a Fleet Commanders’ Conference co-hosted by the Bulgarian Navy and U.S. 6th Fleet from September 9-11, focused on discussing the current maritime situation in the Black Sea, collective demining capabilities, and effective ways to enhance maritime security in the region.

U.S. 6th Fleet, headquartered in Naples, Italy, conducts the full spectrum of joint and naval operations, often in concert with allied and interagency partners, in order to advance U.S. national interests and security and stability in Europe and Africa.