Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Harker Archives

Report to Congress on Sea-launched Nuclear Cruise Missile

27 April 2022

The following is the April 25, 2022, Congressional Research Service In Focus report, Nuclear-Armed Sea-Launched Cruise Missile (SLCM-N).

From the report

In its FY2023 budget request, the Navy eliminated funding for research and development into a new nuclear-armed sea-launched cruise missile (SLCM-N). The Navy indicated that the program was “cost prohibitive and the acquisition schedule would have delivered capability late to need.” According to the Navy, this cancellation would save $199.2...

https://news.usni.org/2022/04/27/report-to-congress-on-sea-launched-nuclear-cruise-missile

CNO Gilday: Navy Balancing New SSN(X) Attack Submarine Design Against Need For NGAD, DDG(X)

2 March 2022

USS South Dakota (SSN-790) stand at parade rest during a change-of-command ceremony onboard Naval Submarine Base New London in Groton, Conn., Sept. 27, 2022. US Navy Photo

ABOARD THE NUCLEAR ATTACK SUBMARINE USS SOUTH DAKOTA – A banner over the sonar operators in the control room of one of the Navy’s most technologically advanced submarines declares the attack boat is the service’s “Apex Predator.”

The sign – complete with a portrait of the alien from the 1987 sci-fi adventure film “The Predator”...

Harker: Navy, Marine Corps Must Fix More Business Practices to Improve Readiness

5 August 2021

Fleet Readiness Center Southwest. US Navy Photo

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. – While the Navy and Marine Corps have fixed problems they’ve identified in their business practices, the service’s top official said it still needs to correct some weaknesses to improve readiness.

Speaking at the Navy League’s 2021 Sea Air Space conference, Acting Navy Secretary Thomas Harker said the top-to-bottom audit of the Pentagon and military departments “highlighted ways in which we can operate more efficiently and...

https://news.usni.org/2021/08/04/harker-navy-marine-corps-must-fix-more-business-practices-to-improve-readiness

SECNAV Nominee Del Toro Supports Growing U.S. Fleet as China Expands Influence

14 July 2021

Sailors aboard Chinese missile destroyer Xi’an during the military parade marking Russia’s Navy Day on the sea near Kronshtadt islet off the shore of St. Petersburg, Russia on July 28, 2019. Xinhua Photo

President Joe Biden’s nominee to serve as the Navy’s top civilian had a congenial confirmation hearing on Tuesday before the Senate Armed Services Committee, with the nominee echoing calls for a larger fleet to balance out a rising China.

Carlos Del Toro, a former surface warfare officer and...

https://news.usni.org/2021/07/13/secnav-nominee-del-toro-supports-expanding-u-s-fleet-as-china-expands-influence

SECNAV Nominee Del Toro’s Written Statements to the Senate

13 July 2021

The following is the written statement and answers Advance Policy Questions to the Senate Armed Services Committee prepared for the July 13, 2021 nomination hearing for Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro.

From the statement

Mr. Carlos Del Toro
Nominee to be Secretary of the Navy
Senate Armed Services Committee
July 13, 2021

Thank you Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Inhofe, and Distinguished Members of the Committee.

I am honored to appear before you as President Biden’s nominee for Secretary of the...

https://news.usni.org/2021/07/13/secnav-nominee-del-toros-written-statements-to-the-senate

SECNAV Nominee Del Toro Will Appear Before Senate Next Week Ahead of Budget Markups

8 July 2021

NASA Photo

The nominee to serve as the top Navy civilian will appear before the Senate next week, as Congress prepares to mark up the annual defense spending and policy bills.

Carlos Del Toro, a former surface warfare officer and destroyer commander, will testify in front of the Senate Armed Services Committee on July 13 along with four other Pentagon nominees.

Del Toro would be the second Hispanic Navy secretary should the upper chamber confirm him to the position.

His testimony follows recent...

https://news.usni.org/2021/07/07/secnav-nominee-del-toro-will-appear-before-senate-next-week-ahead-of-budget-marks-ups

Harker: Navy Planning New Multi-Year Destroyer Buy

24 June 2021

Artists rendering of the first planned Flight III Arleigh Burke destroyer, Jack H. Lucas. HII Photo

The Navy plans to enter into another multi-year contract for the Arleigh Burke-class Flight III destroyers, the acting secretary confirmed to Congress today.

The service will sign a contract for Fiscal Year 2023 through 2027, acting Navy Secretary Thomas Harker told the Senate Appropriations defense subcommittee.

“Multi-year contracts are very important to us. We do intend to sign another multi-year...

https://news.usni.org/2021/06/24/harker-navy-planning-new-multi-year-destroyer-buy

White House Taps Carlos Del Toro as SECNAV Nominee

11 June 2021

A former surface warfare commander and president of a small information technology firm is the Biden administration’s nominee for the long-vacant top job in the Department of the Navy, a source familiar with the matter confirmed to USNI News on Friday.

Carlos del Toro, a Cuban-born Naval Academy graduate, has been the current chief executive officer of SBG Technology Solutions for the last 17 years.

Carlos Del Toro

Del Toro served in the Navy for 22 years, including the commissioning commanding...

https://news.usni.org/2021/06/11/white-house-taps-carlos-del-toro-as-secnav-nominee

Lawmakers Question Navy’s Decision to Abandon Nuclear Cruise Missile

11 June 2021

Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Mark A. Milley answer questions from the Senate Armed Services Committee on June 10, 2021. DoD Photo

Pentagon leaders faced tough questions from lawmakers on the Navy’s decision to shelve the development of a sea-launched nuclear cruise missile during a Thursday budget hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Several Republican lawmakers voiced concerns about acting Navy Secretary Thomas Harker’s plans to...

https://news.usni.org/2021/06/10/lawmakers-question-navys-decision-to-abandon-nuclear-cruise-missile

SECNAV Memo: New Destroyer, Fighter or Sub: You Can Only Pick One; Cut Nuclear Cruise Missile

8 June 2021

The Navy only has funds to develop follow-ons either the (top) F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, (middle) Arleigh Burke DDG-51guided-missile destroyer or (bottom) the Virginia-class submarine (SSN-774). Navy Images

The Navy only has enough money to develop either a new next-generation fighter, destroyer or submarine and will have to pick one platform to invest in, according to a recent memo obtained by USNI News.

In a memo dated June 4, acting Navy Secretary Thomas Harker called on the Navy to choose one...

https://news.usni.org/2021/06/08/secnav-memo-new-destroyer-fighter-or-sub-you-can-only-pick-one-cut-nuclear-cruise-missile

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