US Navy - discussione ufficiale

[Andrea75]

Due notizie:

 

USMC’s Harriers Could Fly Until 2030!

 

With the help of spare parts scavenged from Britain’s old GR9 Harriers that the Marine Corps just bought from the UK, the Marines could keep their AV-8B Harrier jump jets flying until 2030

 

 

US navy names five new submarines

 

the next five Virginia-class attack submarines will be named the USS Illinois, the USS Washington, the USS Colorado, the USS Indiana, and the USS South Dakota.

[Andrea75]

Guai per le LCS

 

USS Freedom, the US Navy’s first LCS ship, is “plagued by flawed designs and failed equipment since being commissioned,” says a report from watchdog POGO.

 

 

Failed Equipment, Flawed Designs Plague Lockheed Littoral Combat Ship

 

POGO Releases Navy Documents Showing Problems with the Littoral Combat Ship

[madmike]

Guai per le LCS

 

 

 

 

Failed Equipment, Flawed Designs Plague Lockheed Littoral Combat Ship

 

POGO Releases Navy Documents Showing Problems with the Littoral Combat Ship

 

 

eh si, purtroppo come previsto i nodi di questo programma stanno arrivando al pettine.

 

USS Freedom (LCS-1, the first LCS ship) has been plagued by flawed designs and failed equipment since being commissioned, has at least 17 known cracks, and has repeatedly been beset by engine-related failures.[

 

According to the DoD’s DOT&E FY 2011 Annual Report, the LCS is “not expected to be survivable in a hostile combat environment.

[Andrea75]

... ed ecco la difesa della US Navy

 

LCS Vigorously Defended by U.S. Navy

[madmike]

La USN fa, comprensibilmente, il suo mestiere.

 

Certo che quando le difese sono di questo tenore:

 

Few of the 80 equipment failures cited above were mission critical

 

ovvero: POCHE delle 80 problematiche tecniche erano critiche per la missione..... c'e' da stare poco allegri. Se 2 erano critiche per la missione, ce n'era anche una di troppo, per far si di tornare a casa.

[Andrea75]

US to move 9,000 Marines from southern Japan

 

The redeployment, which will see troops moved to Guam, Hawaii and Australia

[Andrea75]

Aggiornamento riguardo le LCS - Littoral Combat Ship

 

Navy: Trials Successful for Newest LCS

 

Third US Navy LCS acceptance trials

[Andrea75]

Ancora aggiornamenti sulle LCS: LCS Program Lauded, But Freedom Not Yet Ready

 

A pre-inspection assessment last week of the first Littoral Combat Ship rated the Freedom a “no-go” to proceed to a more comprehensive inspection scheduled for later this month.

 

The ship’s crew and contractors, said the senior inspector in an internal message, “were not prepared for the [pre-] inspection,” and “were unfamiliar with the conduct of [board of Inspection and Survey] material checks.”

 

Half — 14 — of the inspected areas were rated “red,” or no-go. Eight categories received yellow marks, while six were rated green, or go. One of the 29 rated areas was not demonstrated.

 

While the inspector noted that the ship’s crew demonstrated “a good positive attitude” and was able to properly “self-assess,” the internal message noted that, “safety programs aboard the ship are non-existent.”

 

The Freedom has spent much of the past year undergoing an overhaul and a series of repairs, most notably a period in drydock in March and April to fix a broken shaft seal that resulted in minor flooding. The unscheduled repairs meant the crew had fewer opportunities to take their ship to sea.

[Andrea75]

U.S. Navy to Deploy New Warship to Singapore In 2013

 

The first in a new class of U.S. Navy combat ships will be sent to Singapore next year for a 10-month deployment, an official said May 10, as the U.S. moves to expand its Asia-Pacific presence.

 

“The USS Freedom will deploy to Singapore for 10 months in spring 2013,”Navy Lt. Katie Cerezo said in an email to AFP.

 

P.S.: ammesso che risolva i suoi problemi

[Andrea75]

8 LCSs Could Be Based in Gulf, Says U.S. Navy Undersecretary

 

The U.S. Navy could eventually have a force of eight ships operating from Bahrain if plans to base littoral combat ships (LCS) in the Arabian Gulf continue as envisioned, the service’s No. 2 official said May 21.

 

The Navy has long been planning to operate LCS ships in the gulf, Undersecretary Bob Work told an audience at the Cato Institute in Washington. The ships, able to perform several different missions when fitted out with specialized equipment packages, already are to replace U.S. minesweepers and patrol boats in the region.

[Andrea75]

incidente A fire raged through the nuclear-powered Los Angeles-class fast attack submarine USS Miami on Wednesday 23 May while sitting in a dry dock at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Maine

 

The fire is reported to have started during the evening hours and was extinguished through the heroic efforts of shipyard firefighters, Miami crewmembers, and firefighters from more than a dozen fire departments from Maine and New Hampshire.

[Andrea75]

‘Freedom Is Fit for Service’

 

The littoral combat ship Freedom: A Navy inspection last week prounounced the ship "fit and ready for service."

...

That verdict came after a three-day “special trial” conducted May 22-24 at San Diego by the Navy’s Board of Inspection and Survey, or INSURV. Nearly 200 people rode the ship — normally crewed by 40 sailors — to test the Freedom’s combat, communications and engineering systems; minutely examine the ship’s physical condition; and put the vessel through a series of ship-handling evolutions.

“There were some hiccups in the demonstration in some of the areas,” Hunt admitted, “and there are things that ought to be fixed on three, five and seven” — follow-on ships built to the Freedom (LCS 1) design. “But the things we identified [as problems] are fixable.”

[madmike]

Oddio, l'articolo ha un titolo molto ottimistico, poi leggendo non è che vada tutto poi benissimo:

 

- il software del sistema di combattimento non funziona bene 'ma è colpa dell'equipaggio'

 

- il cannone su 840 colpi si è inceppato due volte: non il massimo. Ricordo che i 76 della MM si inceppavano si e no una volta ogni 3\4000 colpi.... e parlo dei vecchi Compatto

 

- uno dei quattro diesel non funzionava, ma gli altri tre hanno funzionato bene. Letterale. Non so se ridere o piangere.

 

- i portelloni posteriori per i RHIB imbarcano acqua. Oltretutto non sono risolti i problemi di corrosione.

 

There is still some work to be done there: mai frase fu più azzeccata....

 

ah, per ultimo: "The steel hull cracks were relatively minor,” Hunt said. “Probably more was made of that than should [have] been — it was about a 4-inch crack."

 

.....

[Andrea75]

U.S. Navy Eyes Technology To Cloak Subs

 

The U.S. Navy is investing in research that could make its submarines even stealthier, using cloaking technology that seems to come straight out of a Tom Clancy thriller or Star Trek script.

 

Developed by New York-based Weidlinger Associates with U.S. Navy Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) funding, the technology involves the carving up and altering of aluminum to give it “elastic properties” — a form of what the company calls “metal water,” according to Jeffrey Cipolla, a Weidlinger senior associate.

[-{-Legolas-}-]

TRL? "Technical Readiness Level" per caso? Anzi, Technology readiness level, e nella fase 5, penso siano pronti per testarlo.

Modificato 6 Giugno 2012 da -{-Legolas-}-

[madmike]

a proposito di sub USA, bellissimo articolo (14 pagine...) di Martinelli su Analisi Difesa, sui Virginia comprendenti anche gli sviluppi futuri.

 

http://cca.analisidifesa.it/it/magazine_8034243544/numero129/article_140500677031783565388757415840_6782002623_0.jsp

[Andrea75]

Cam Ranh Bay is the Prize, Are Lethal Weapons the Cost?

 

The US is not looking to establish permanent bases to support additional forces, preferring to develop facilities that can service units rotating through the region thus reducing vulnerabilities associated with permanent, fixed positions. A rotational strategy also serves to reduce local opposition to the presence of sizeable US forces.

[Andrea75]

US Navy Littoral Combat Ship Delivered Two Months Early

 

The Lockheed Martin-led industry team delivered the nation’s third Littoral Combat Ship, Fort Worth (LCS 3), to the U.S. Navy two months ahead of schedule.

The delivery followed the ship’s successful Acceptance Trials on Lake Michigan in May.

“By delivering Fort Worth early and performing so successfully at Acceptance Trials, this team has reached milestones rarely seen this early in a new ship class,” said U.S. Navy LCS Program Manager Rear Admiral (Select) John Neagley.

[Andrea75]

Aircraft carrier’s recovery procedures

 

[Andrea75]

U.S. Navy Finds More LCS-1 Issues During Special Trials

 

While the U.S. Navy touted the Littoral Combat Ship (LCS-1) USS Freedom’s completion of special trials in May as a solid success, service officials still found issues on the ship that need to be addressed, according to ship documents recently obtained by Aviation Week.

The ship areas and components that created issues during the special trials, the documents show, include the following: heat, flame, smoke and flood alarms; hydraulic power unit systems, airborne mission zone lift hoist and platform; lifting capstan; gypsy winch; oily water separator and transfer pump; reverse osmosis system; watertight doors, degaussing system, gas-turbine intake plenum space; and blow-in doors.

[Andrea75]

Più uomini a bordo U.S. Navy Boosting LCS Core Crew Up to 50%

 

Years after sailors and planners realized the crew size of littoral combat ships was too small, the U.S. Navy has decided to increase the number of sailors on the ships.

The changes will be made on the first LCS, the Freedom, starting in July — in time to beef up the crews for next year’s 10-month deployment to Singapore.

...

LCSs were intended to operate with a core crew of 40 sailors, plus a mission module detachment of 15 and an aviation detachment of 25

Each LCS class was designed with a total of 75 or 76 berths, or racks in Navy parlance.

Accommodations on Freedom are particularly spacious, and all racks in the ships were originally limited to two-high arrangements. Designers of both LCS classes, however, anticipated an increase in berthing, and the racks were built to be convertible to three-highs.

[Andrea75]

The United States uses military exercise like RIMPAC 2012 to accelerate its eastward shift of strategic focus, says Chinese Defense Ministry

 

The “Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) - 2012” multinational joint exercise was officially launched on June 29, 2012, and scheduled to end on August 3, lasting for 36 days. A total of 22 countries with the troop units of 25,000 people participated in this exercise. Eight countries, including Russia, United Kingdom, India and the Philippines, joined in the exercise for the first time. The exercise subjects include live firing practice, reconnaissance, minesweeping, maritime interception, amphibious landing operation, anti-submarine warfare and so on.

...

the U.S. uses military exercise diplomacy to accelerate its eastward shift of strategic focus, and enhance its influence in the Asia-Pacific region. Since Obama took office, the U.S. has proposed a new approach to shift its strategic focus eastward, attempting to consolidate its dominance in the Asia-Pacific region and maintain its global dominance

...

In terms of military affairs, the U.S. has not only tried to increase its military presence in the Asia-Pacific region and prepared to shift 60% of its naval troops to the Asia-Pacific region, but also vigorously promoted its military exercise diplomacy.

 

In addition to the “Rim of the Pacific – 2012” multinational joint exercise, the U.S. military has already held a number of joint trainings and joint exercises in the Asia-Pacific region since the beginning of this year: in Northeast Asia, there was the US-ROK “Key Commitment” joint exercise and the US-Japan-Australia “Against North” joint military exercise; in the waters of the Yellow Sea, the U.S. and the ROK held a joint anti-submarine training; in the South China Sea area, the U.S. and the Philippines held the “Shoulder to Shoulder” joint military exercise; in Southern Asia, there was the “Cobra Gold” joint military exercise held by seven countries including the U.S., Thailand, the ROK and Japan, as well as the “Malabar” joint military exercise held by the U.S. and India.

These military exercises have highlighted U.S. deployed intention to realize the “stability under the U.S. rule”, and transform the 21st century into a “Pacific Century of the U.S.”.

[Andrea75]

ONR Sensor and Software Suite Hunts Down more than 600 Suspect Boats

 

A new sensor and software suite sponsored by the Office of Naval Research (ONR) recently returned from West Africa after helping partner nations track and identify target vessels of interest as part of an international maritime security operation, officials announced July 10.

Researchers deployed the system, called "Rough Rhino," aboard U.S. aircraft, ships and partner nation ships operating in waters off the coast of Senegal and Cape Verde. Sailors and Coast Guardsmen could access and control the sensors both afloat and ashore, as well as share information in a real-time common operating picture.

[madmike]

http://www.defensenews.com/article/20120714/DEFREG02/307140001/LCS-Quick-Swap-Concept-Dead?odyssey=tab|topnews|text|FRONTPAGE

 

ennesimi problemi per le LCS, che a questo punto pare vengano completamente rivisitate anche come concetto.

 

questa è una perla:

 

Range is still another concern, because of capacity for both fuel and crew provisions. Although the original CONOPS called for ships to operate at sea for at least 21 days, the ships have storage capacity to only carry enough food for 14 days, according to sources familiar with the classified report.

 

e anche questa non è male:

 

A key LCS failure identified by the OPNAV report, sources said, is its inability to effectively defend against anti-ship cruise missiles (ASCMs), a weapon carried by hundreds of small, fast-attack craft operated by virtually all potentially hostile navies. These weapons include C-801 and C-802 Chinese missiles, Russian SS-N-2 Styx missiles, European weapons such as the Otomat and Exocet, and U.S.-made Harpoon missiles.

[Andrea75]

U.S. Navy Aims To Meet Growing Demand For Special Forces

 

The war against terrorism and concerns over ballistic missile attacks are being linked to strains on U.S. Navy ships and resources, and growing concern that the service may be unable to meet operational needs.

 

Missions requiring Special Forces work or construction needs are stressing Navy resources, but of particular consideration, some defense analysts say, is the increasing need for ships to handle ballistic missile defense (BMD) operations.

 

“Our Seals, our Seabees, they’re under a lot of demand,” says Adm. Jonathan Greenert, chief of naval operations (CNO). “Ballistic missile ships are under demand.”

 

Speaking during a recent Pentagon briefing with reporters, Greenert said, “We track each and we got to keep an eye on it.”