Navy Ships, Subs, Aircraft - Research and Technology Latest Topics

How Microsoft’s “Little Workaround” Created a Major Pentagon Threat

Wed, 15 Jul 2026 16:42:01 +0000

Reporter Renee Dudley heard Microsoft was running tech support for the U.S. Defense Department through China, the country’s biggest cybersecurity adversary. She thought it sounded like a conspiracy theory — until she started looking into it.

U.S. Navy Sea Drones Make Combat Debut in Operations Near Hormuz

Wed, 15 Jul 2026 16:29:18 +0000

The U.S. military has employed autonomous maritime systems in combat for the first time, with U.S. Central Command confirming that unmanned surface vessels participated in strikes against Iranian naval infrastructure as Washington continues operations aimed at protecting commercial shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

Navy’s Most Heavily Armed Combat Ships Being Scrapped Without Replacement After Failed $3.7 Billion ‘Hail Mary’ Life Extension Program

Mon, 13 Jul 2026 13:38:10 +0000

The Ticonderoga-class cruiser, the most heavily armed surface warship in the U.S. Navy, is almost gone. The newest inactivation list sends two more out this year, shrinking the class toward its last three survivors. When the final one hauls down its pennant, the Navy will operate no cruisers at all for the first time in generations, and nothing in the fleet will match their firepower.

The Navy’s New Doomsday Plane Is Late

Tue, 07 Jul 2026 12:18:28 +0000

There is one aircraft the United States hopes it never has to use for its real job: the plane that would relay the order to launch nuclear missiles from America’s submerged submarines. Its replacement is now running late — and the government watchdog that warned about it says its concerns “have morphed into realities.”

USS Nimitz: An Aircraft Carrier’s Final Journey

Mon, 06 Jul 2026 13:33:06 +0000

Nimitz is shifting its homeport from Naval Base Kitsap in Bremerton, Wash., to Norfolk, where it will be deactivated in March of 2027 and dismantled in 2030, according to the Navy’s 30-year Shipbuilding Plan released in this year. Nimitz was previously slated to leave active service in May this year, but the Navy opted to keep the carrier in the fleet for at least 10 additional months, coinciding with when the future John F. Kennedy (CVN-79) is set to deliver to the Navy, USNI News previously reported.

US Navy Sailors Sickened from Exhaust Fumes on Submarine

Mon, 06 Jul 2026 13:18:54 +0000

However, even though the US Navy has gone fully nuclear with its undersea vessels, 64 sailors aboard the Ohio-class ballistic missile submarine USS Nebraska (SSBN-739) nevertheless fell ill after being exposed to diesel exhaust last week.

U.S. Navy Suspends Search for Missing Sailor After MH-60S Crash in Arabian Sea

Mon, 06 Jul 2026 13:08:29 +0000

The U.S. Navy suspended its active search for a sailor missing after an MH-60S helicopter crashed into the Arabian Sea, with the Fifth Fleet press service saying the search was halted as of July 5.

The Navy said the sailor has been missing since July 1 and that during more than 102 hours of searching the military examined an area of over 14,000 square miles (36,259 square km).

Navy searching for missing crew member after 'emergency water landing'

Wed, 01 Jul 2026 19:10:16 +0000

The U.S. Navy is searching for a crew member after a helicopter made an "emergency water landing" in the Arabian Sea, Navy officials said.

The MH-60S Sea Hawk helicopter, which is assigned to the USS George H.W. Bush, landed around 3:30 am ET on July 1, U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/U.S. 5th Fleet said on social media. Three of the helicopter's crew were found and are in stable condition aboard the aircraft carrier.

USS Anchorage Marine Lost at Sea Declared Dead

Tue, 30 Jun 2026 21:24:00 +0000

Over the objections of a U.S. Marine’s family, the corps has called off its “extensive search and rescue operation” and declared dead a lance corporal from the Twin Cities who was lost at sea last week during training operations off the southern California coast.

Seven sailors injured during fire aboard USS Indianapolis

Fri, 26 Jun 2026 13:55:44 +0000

Seven crew members aboard the Freedom-variant littoral combat ship USS Indianapolis received minor injuries after a fire broke out on the ship Wednesday, the service confirmed.

The Navy’s Big 3-D Printing Bet

Wed, 24 Jun 2026 22:29:56 +0000

In 2023, the Navy established the Additive Manufacturing Center of Excellence with the assistance of $35 million from the commonwealth of Virginia. The facility – adjacent to Danville’s Institute for Advanced Learning and Research – is part test kitchen, part emergency tech support center and part technology showroom that can replace traditional manufacturing, Don Hairston, the general manager of Austal USA Advanced Technologies, told USNI News during a visit earlier this year to the facility.

U.S. Navy Says Its Next Nuclear Attack Submarine Will Be the Deadliest Ever Built. Its Own Track Record Says Don’t Count on It

Thu, 18 Jun 2026 12:10:54 +0000

The SSN(X) is supposed to be the deadliest attack submarine ever — Seawolf’s firepower, Virginia’s stealth, Columbia’s endurance in one hull. It’s also slipped to 2040, could cost $8.7 billion each, and is being designed by a yard base that can’t build the current Virginia class on schedule. The Navy’s recent record on new ship classes says be skeptical.

Congress seeks to limit US Navy vessels built in foreign shipyards

Thu, 18 Jun 2026 10:27:26 +0000

The Trump administration’s recent push to buy foreign-built warships is being waylaid by congressional defense committees who are seeking to limit the executive office’s ability to tap overseas construction yards to build out America’s naval fleet.

US Navy fighter jet CRASHES near lake sparking fireball and sending thick plume of smoke into the air

Sun, 14 Jun 2026 17:09:35 +0000

A US military fighter jet plunged from the sky near a popular Washington state recreation area on Saturday, erupting into flames and triggering a wildfire that sent thick black smoke billowing above the forest landscape.

US Navy commits $17.6M to fix USS Ford carrier after combat deployment

Thu, 11 Jun 2026 18:52:01 +0000

A ship that spent nearly a year in harm’s way, operating under persistent threat from Iranian missiles and one-way attack drones while the Ford Carrier Strike Group carried out or coordinated hundreds of strikes against Iranian targets, now needs fixing.

The U.S. Navy has awarded General Dynamics NASSCO-Norfolk a $17.6 million contract modification to perform emergent maintenance on the USS Gerald R. Ford, America’s most advanced aircraft carrier, with work expected to wrap up by March 2027.

Fire breaks out on U.S. Navy ship under construction

Mon, 08 Jun 2026 13:03:51 +0000

SAN DIEGO — No injuries were reported after a fire broke out this weekend on board a U.S. Navy ship under construction at a San Diego shipyard.

Firefighters from the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department, Chula Vista Fire Department, National City Fire Department and Coronado Fire Department responded at about 8:30 p.m. Saturday to the General Dynamics NASSCO shipyard at 2798 Harbor Drive, according to SDFRD officials.

Future USNS Harriet Tubman

The $13 billion carrier with a plumbing problem is home. Now come the costly repairs

Thu, 04 Jun 2026 12:26:36 +0000

With 4,600 sailors finally home, USS Gerald R. Ford will finally receive some much needed repairs and an upgrade to its beleaguered sewage system.

The country's newest aircraft carrier undertook an eight-month maiden voyage in January 2024, swiftly followed by a nearly 11-month deployment. That is longer than any carrier had been away since the Vietnam War. It is expected to go into maintenance at Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Norfolk, Va.

The US Navy Only Built 3 Of These Attack Submarines - Here's Why

Tue, 19 May 2026 12:13:19 +0000

The United States Navy is the most powerful blue-water navy in the world, and it's loaded with impressive warships of all kinds. The Navy's submarine fleet is substantial, consisting entirely of nuclear-powered submarines of various classes, from attack subs to nuclear launch platforms. One of the most impressive classes of fast attack submarines is the Seawolf-class, which was first introduced to the inventory in 1997 with the commissioning of the USS Seawolf (SSN-21).

Two EA-18 fighter jets collide at Mountain Home airshow, pilots ejected safely

Sun, 17 May 2026 21:49:00 +0000

Of all aircraft. why is the Navy using EA18-G Growlers for an airshow?!?

All four crew members ejected safely after two Navy jets collided and crashed on Sunday during an air show at the Mountain Home Air Force Base, officials said.

The collision involved two U.S. Navy EA18-G Growlers from the Electronic Attack Squadron 129 in Whidbey Island, Washington, said Cmdr. Amelia Umayam, spokesperson for Naval Air Forces, U.S. Pacific Fleet.

USS Gerald R. Ford to return from 11-month deployment on Saturday

Fri, 15 May 2026 18:59:00 +0000

The world’s largest aircraft carrier is finally returning home after etching its name into Navy history books by completing the longest post-Vietnam deployment by a carrier, the service’s top officer confirmed Thursday.

‘Beaten-Up Supercarrier’: Aircraft Carrier USS Gerald R. Ford Could Be Out of Action for 2 Years

Mon, 11 May 2026 23:48:54 +0000

“This is one truly beaten-up supercarrier. My gut tells me that the USS Gerald R. Ford is in worse shape than we know in the press. I think she will be out of action for 2 years. She needs extensive repair work, and my sense is that the Navy will need time, energy, and resources to get this right. In any case, she isn’t going out to sea anytime soon.”

That’s what a retired U.S. Navy officer told me yesterday when I asked what he thought the USS Gerald R. Ford’s repair timeline might look like as she heads home to Virginia after a nearly year-long deployment. Needless to say, she will need extensive repairs and upkeep, but how long that might take could surprise even the most seasoned naval experts.

Future Aircraft Carrier Doris Miller Delayed by 2 Years

Mon, 11 May 2026 17:31:51 +0000

One of the Navy’s Ford-class aircraft carriers is delayed by two years, stretching the schedule to build the future USS Doris Miller (CVN-81) out to 15 years, USNI News has learned.

Carrier Doris Miller will now deliver to the Navy in February of 2034, according to the service’s Fiscal Year 2027 budget justification books. Last year’s books projected the ship’s delivery in February of 2032.

U.S. Navy’s 2026 Shipbuilding Plan

Mon, 11 May 2026 17:26:48 +0000

The Department of the Navy currently operates 291 battle force ships, while the Navy requirement by law is 355. Over the past two decades, the shipbuilding budget has doubled, yet we have no more ships now than in 2003. This is a persistent problem and one that is not just industrial. It is structural and the result of how we buy, how we plan, and how we manage risk in Navy acquisition.

CNO: U.S. Naval Aviators Will No Longer Command Amphibious Warships

Wed, 06 May 2026 23:32:00 +0000

Naval aviators will no longer command amphibious warships, according to a directive issued last week by Chief of Naval Operations Daryl Caudle.

Citing poor amphibious ship readiness and operational availability, Caudle said that surface warfare officers would become the only officers authorized to command amphibs starting in Fiscal Year 2028, according to the April 24 memo reviewed by USNI News.

Fifteen years young – Rubidium Fountains continue service to the Navy’s Master Clock

Wed, 06 May 2026 19:33:30 +0000

WASHINGTON, D.C. – As of March 2026, the rubidium fountain clocks have met the benchmark of 15 years of continuous operation as part of the U.S. Naval Observatory’s Master Clock ensemble. Developed and built at the observatory, these clocks were originally brought online in 2011, and their integration as part of the Master Clock shortly after enabled the generation of a time-scale more precise than any other in the world, a standard that continues to be the case today.