If you’re a student of WWII history (or have seen the movie The Imitation Game), you know what a critical role codebreakers played in winning the war in Europe. You may not know that the Navy had a program in downtown D.C. just like the more-famous Bletchley Park facility. There a group of Navy WAVES […]
Normally I write about the Navy on this site, but since the Marines are a sister organization and since this kind of technology is also being pursued by the Navy, I thought you might find it of interest. You may remember a blog I wrote a few months ago talking about the Navy’s work on […]
A few years ago I was in San Diego and had a chance encounter with a SEAL mini-sub driver and was impressed with everything about him. So when this article came along, I was reminded of that encounter and the amazing capabilities of our elite SEALs. The article describes a new Shallow Water Combat Submersible (SWCS) that […]
Memorial Day is an opportunity to remember our fallen military heroes who died in active service. This year, I’m thinking about Chief Petty Officer Nicolas Checque who died leading a SEAL Team 6 operation in eastern Afghanistan to free an American hostage from the Taliban on December 8, 2012. His bravery in that operation earned […]
The Navy’s first anti-drone laser has been deployed on the guided-missile destroyer USS Dewey (DDG 105). It uses dazzler technology to overwhelm the drone’s sensors. It’s similar to blinding the human eye with a very bright light. Its official name is ODIN (Optical Dazzling Interdictor, Navy). To learn more about this new capability, please read […]
Drones are an increasing threat to naval vessels. Iran has already used them against our ships, but drone technology is spreading to multiple adversaries. To counter this threat, Northrup Grumman is developing an airburst munition. The target distance is determined by a laser, the munition is fired and it explodes like a shotgun blast once […]
The Pieper twins were both serving as radiomen aboard Landing Ship Tank (LST) 523 when they were killed after their ship struck a German mine just two weeks after D-Day. One brother was immediately recovered and buried at the American military cemetery in Normandy. The other brother remained unidentified until the curiosity of a high […]
Some of my readers may remember that I spent a little time aboard the USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) back in 2009 as part of the Navy’s Leaders to Sea program. That experience has caused me to watch the Truman as she served her country over the years. So, it’s no surprise that I […]
The Navy recently ordered five Extra Large Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (XLUUVs) from Boeing. They’ll handle jobs that don’t require submariners on board such as laying mines in dangerous waters. They’ll act as a force multiplier by freeing up manned subs for real attack missions. In the future, these subs may even carry out armed missions. […]
A US warship has shot down a ballistic missile in space as part of the latest test of the military’s advanced interceptor technology (click here for more)….