Adm. Craig Faller

Navy Commissions USS Miguel Keith in California

SAN DIEGO (May 8, 2021) – The Lewis B. Puller-class expeditionary mobile base USS Miguel Keith (ESB 5) sits pierside during the ship’s commissioning ceremony. US Navy Photo

The Navy’s latest Expeditionary Sea Base ship officially entered the fleet on Saturday.

The service commissioned USS Miguel Keith (ESB-5) in a ceremony at Naval Air Station North Island, Calif., the service said in a statement.

The new ESB will be based out of Saipan in the Northern Mariana Islands, according to the Navy.

“Capt....

https://news.usni.org/2021/05/10/navy-commissions-uss-miguel-keith-in-california

Lawmakers Quiz SOUTHCOM’s Faller on Littoral Combat Ship Program

The Freedom-variant littoral combat ship USS Sioux City (LCS 11), transits the Caribbean Sea, April 10, 2021. Sioux City is deployed to the U.S. 4th Fleet area of operations to support Joint Interagency Task Force South’s mission, which includes counter-illicit drug trafficking missions in the Caribbean and Eastern Pacific. US Navy Photo

Two lawmakers raised questions on the future of the Navy’s Littoral Combat Ship during a Wednesday hearing, as the service continues to wrestle with a crucial...

https://news.usni.org/2021/04/14/lawmakers-quiz-southcoms-faller-on-littoral-combat-ship-program

Panel: Pentagon Needs High-Level Attention on AI, Digital Workforce to Keep Up With China

Operations Specialist 3rd Class Zachary Ezekiel, assigned to the guided-missile cruiser USS Monterey (CG 61), identifies air contacts in the combat information center (CIC) on March 21, 2016. Monterey is underway conducting Composite Training Unit Exercise (COMPTUEX) with the Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group in preparation for a future deployment. US Navy photo.

Pentagon leaders need to set clear digital readiness performance goals this year as a first step in revamping the requirements process...

https://news.usni.org/2021/03/12/panel-pentagon-needs-high-level-attention-on-ai-digital-workforce-to-keep-up-with-china

Pentagon Announces Nominees to Lead INDO-PACOM, Pacific Fleet

Adm. John Aquilino, Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet speaks during the 79th Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day ceremony at the Pearl Harbor National Memorial in Honolulu, Hawaii. US Navy Photo

U.S. Pacific Fleet commander Adm. John Aquilino is the Biden administration pick to be the next head of all U.S. forces in the Indo-Pacific, the Pentagon announced on Saturday.

The announcement affirms the Trump administration’s December pick of Aquilino to take charge of the largest American combatant command,...

https://news.usni.org/2021/03/06/pentagon-announces-nominees-to-lead-indo-pacom-pacific-fleet

West Coast Amphib USS Comstock off Honduras for Hurricane Relief, Anti-Drug Operations

Whidbey Island-class amphibious dock landing ship USS Comstock (LSD-45) steams in formation during Valiant Shield 2020 off Guam. US Navy Photo

A West Coast amphibious warship transited the Panama Canal on Monday on a mission to support anti-narcotics operations in the Caribbean, Navy officials told USNI News.

USS Comstock (LSD-45) passed through the canal and the ship is planning to take up station off the coast of Honduras, U.S. 4th Fleet spokesperson Cmdr. Kate Meadows told USNI News.

The...

https://news.usni.org/2020/11/24/west-coast-amphib-uss-comstock-off-honduras-for-hurricane-relief-anti-drug-operations

Destroyers Continue to Prowl 4th Fleet As Coast Guard, Navy Rack Up $1B in Drug Seizures

USS Pinckney (DDG-91), with embarked U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) Law Enforcement Detachment (LEDET) team, conducts enhanced counter-narcotics operations on May 14, 2020. US Coast Guard

The Navy has had more warships operating in the Caribbean and the Eastern Pacific in the last three months than it has in the last five years, pushing the results of a U.S. effort to seize drugs at sea to all-time highs.

Since the start of April, an average of six warships with embarked Coast Guard law enforcement...

https://news.usni.org/2020/07/02/destroyers-continue-to-prowl-4th-fleet-as-coast-guard-navy-rack-up-1b-in-drug-seizures

VIDEO: Navy Leaders Acknowledge Tough Year in Holiday Messages

Sailors and Marines aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer (LHD-4) secure a CH-53E Super Stallion attached to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM) 163 (reinforced) to the portside elevator during Tiger Strike 2019. Oct. 5, 2019. US Navy Photo

As Navy leaders shared holiday message videos today, they acknowledged that 2019 has been tough for the Navy in some ways and encouraged sailors to use the holiday season to take care of themselves and their families.

2019 continued to be a challenge...

https://news.usni.org/2019/12/25/video-navy-leaders-acknowledge-tough-year-in-holiday-messages

SOUTHCOM Will Keep Amphib USS Wasp Busy During Transit

USS Wasp (LHD-1) transits the Coral Sea on Aug. 1, 2019. US Navy Photo

WASHINGTON, D.C. – As USS Wasp (LHD-1) rounds the horn from the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean, the commander of U.S. Southern Command plans to use the big-deck amphibious warship for as much training as possible.

Adm. Craig Faller, the commander of SOUTHCOM, continually looks to turn standard transits of U.S. Navy or Coast Guard ships through his area of responsibility into training opportunities for U.S. and partner nation...

https://news.usni.org/2019/10/04/southcom-will-keep-amphib-uss-wasp-busy-during-transit

SOUTHCOM CO: China’s Influence Growing in Western Hemisphere  

Adm. Craig Faller, the commander of U.S. Southern Command, arrives to Soto Cano Air Base, Honduras on June 20, 2019. US Marine Corps Photo

China’s soft power moves in the Western Hemisphere – from building ports to sharing information on space and offering wireless 5G technologies – “have hard aims” with military implications that are drawing increased attention in Washington, the admiral in charge of U.S. Southern Command told a Senate panel on Tuesday.

Referring to a military-run facility...

https://news.usni.org/2019/07/10/southcom-co-chinas-influence-growing-in-western-hemisphere