Welcome to the CavasShips Podcast with Christopher P. Cavas and Chris Servello…a weekly podcast looking at naval and maritime events and issues of the day – in the US, across the seas and around the world. This week…we talk with recently retired Navy Captain Jason Salata about NATO’s maritime structure, how nations work together and the alliance’s handling of the Russia-Ukraine Conflict. Additionally, we pay tribute to friend and colleague Raymond Pritchett, But first a look at this week’s naval news
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This Week’s Naval Round Up:
The US cruiser CHANCELLORSVILLE carried out a freedom of navigation passage near the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea on November 29, drawing immediate condemnation from China, who posted images on the internet of the US ship as seen from the shadowing Chinese frigate YIYANG. In a statement, China said it has, quote, indisputable sovereignty over the islands. The US 7th Fleet, responding to the claims said that Chinese statements about the cruiser’s mission were false and that the moves were consistent with international law. The movements by the CHANCELLORSVILLE broke a four-month US pause in such freedom of navigation passages, the last having been in mid-July.
The Pentagon on November 29 released its annual report on Chinese Military Power. The report noted the Chinese Navy now numbers about 340 ships, and is expected to grow to more than 400 ships by 2025, largely due to the introduction into service of more major surface combat ships. By comparison, the US fleet remains at about 292 ships.
The carrier USS NIMITZ left her homeport of Bremerton, Washington on December 1 to begin a western Pacific deployment with Carrier Air Wing 17. The oldest US aircraft carrier will be accompanied in the air defense commander role by USS BUNKER HILL, herself the oldest cruiser in service.
A minor fire broke out aboard the carrier USS ABRAHAM LINCOLN November 30 shortly after the ship got underway from San Diego for training. Nine sailors suffered minor injuries, according to the Navy, and the LINCOLN did not return immediately to port.
The assault ship USS TRIPOLI returned to San Diego November 29 after a nearly seven-month independent to the western Pacific. The deployment, the first for the ship, was a test of what’s been dubbed the Lightning Carrier concept, where, after arriving in Japan in late May, the ship embarked about two dozen F-35B Lightning Joint Strike Fighters of Marine Strike Fighter Squadron 121 based in Japan. TRIPOLI carried out numerous exercises and activities in the western Pacific and South China Sea before returning to base.
The website Naval News, citing a French Ministry of Defense briefing, reported December 1 that the French carrier CHARLES DE GAULLE is to deploy to the Indian Ocean during the first quarter of 2023. The DE GAULLE carried out a similar deployment during 2021. The DE GAULLE currently is operating in the eastern Mediterranean with an international task group.
Huntington Ingalls Industries delivered the new destroyer LENAH SUTCLIFFE HIGBEE to the US Navy on November 30. The ship is the 34th Arleigh Burke-class destroyer built at Ingalls Shipbuilding in Pascagoula, Mississippi, and the final Flight IIA variant from Ingalls, which now is concentrating is destroyer production on the new and enlarged Flight III variant. With the HIGBEE’s delivery, there are now 73 Burke-class Aegis destroyers in the US Navy.
Servello Squawk:
This week in Orlando I attended the annual Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference. I/ITSEC as it’s commonly called is the world’s largest modeling, simulation and training event.
I’ve been going to conference on and off for the last decade and walked away again this year wowed and amazed by the technology and know-how brought together in Orlando.
What particularly grabbed my attention was the increase in connectivity and reality achieved across multiple training stations. Students of all ages and experience have the ability to conduct everything from individual qualifications to organizational and service-wide blended live-fire interactions.
It is possible in ways not previously imagined to have a ship pier side participate in exercises or live training scenarios with other assets spread across the globe.
Now…because we should never rest on our laurels…the next step in this process is two-fold…first we need to continue to integrate this technology to drive down basic training steaming days in favor of using underway time for higher level tactical training or CO freeplay. Second as DoD looks to bring more sophisticated joint warfighting networks online we need to have a standard way to take advantage of this great training and simulation technology by creating a joint synthetic training network that better allows any unit in any service to connect with any other unit in any other service in order to train and operate together. Imagine doing JTFEX level coordination and training from your ship’s console or wing’s simulator bay. How much better would the real world training be if much of the rust and joint-awkwardness was dusted off ahead of time.
I am prone to finding problems or complaining when I attend these types of shows…however this week I walked away energized and motivated. Industry, OSD, Congress and the services need to continue to fund this type of technology…it is clearly having an impact and with their combined commitment even better things are possible in the not too distant future.
