Commander Naval Air Forces

Mission Capable: How the Navy Harnessed Its Data to Achieve 80% Fighter Readiness

Vice Adm. DeWolfe Miller III, commander of Naval Air Forces, addresses T-34C Turbo Mentor aircraft maintainers and midshipmen from the U.S. Naval Academy at Naval Air Station North Island (NASNI) before taking a flight with Lt. Jason “JB” Ely of Strike Fighter Squadron 122 (VFA-122) on Aug. 6, 2019. US Navy photo.

This post is the first in a two-part series on the naval aviation community’s effort to build better readiness and how that is changing the future of naval aviation.

SAN DIEGO, Calif. –...

https://news.usni.org/2020/04/22/mission-capable-how-the-navy-harnessed-its-data-to-achieve-80-fighter-readiness

Navy Surpasses 80% Aircraft Readiness Goal, Reaches Stretch Goal of 341 Up Fighters

Sailors perform maintenance on an F/A-18E Super Hornet from the Top Hatters of Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 14 USS John C. Stennis’ (CVN 74) hangar bay on Jan. 22, 2016. US Navy photo.

The Navy has exceeded the Defense Department’s requirement of having 80 percent of operational Super Hornets and Growlers mission capable and has met the stretch goal it set for itself, the service announced on Wednesday.

With rates hovering in the 40- and 50-percent range, then-Defense Secretary James Mattis one...

https://news.usni.org/2019/09/25/navy-surpasses-80-aircraft-readiness-goal-reaches-stretch-goal-of-341-up-fighters

Navy Reducing East Coast Flight Hours to Cover Costs of Overflying P-8s

A P-8A Poseidon aircraft assigned to Patrol Squadron (VP) 45 is parked on the flight line of Naval Air Station Keflavik, Iceland. US Navy Photo

A P-8A Poseidon aircraft assigned to Patrol Squadron (VP) 45 is parked on the flight line of Naval Air Station Keflavik, Iceland in 2016. US Navy Photo

Parts of the Atlantic fleet will reduce their flying hours for the remainder of the fiscal year to address a funding shortfall within the naval aviation flight hour budget, a Navy official told USNI News.

On the East Coast, non-deployed P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol squadrons will see a 10-percent flight hour reduction. Non-deployed expeditionary...

https://news.usni.org/2019/07/16/navy-reducing-east-coast-flight-hours-to-cover-costs-of-overflying-p-8s

Naval Aviation Facing Unexpected Budget Shortfall; Options to Slow Spending Being Considered

Seaman Sakyra Baker stands aft lookout as an F/A-18 Super Hornet assigned to Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 7 lands on the flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) on Feb. 21, 2019. US Navy Photo

The naval aviation community is facing a budget shortfall of at least $100 million for the current fiscal year and may have to cut back flight hours and other operations between now and the Sept. 30 end of the fiscal year, USNI News learned.

Commander of Naval Air Force...

https://news.usni.org/2019/06/27/naval-aviation-facing-unexpected-budget-shortfall-options-to-slow-spending-being-considered

Panel: Navy Advancing Tactics, Adding New Weapons to Boost Combat Lethality

Sailors load a Harpoon anti-ship cruise missile aboard the Los Angeles-class fast-attack submarine USS Olympia (SSN 717) as part of the biannual Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) maritime exercise, July 3, 2018. US Navy photo.

SAN DIEGO, Calif. – Each Navy community is updating its tactics and weapons with lethality and a potential high-end distributed fight in mind, several admirals said last week.

The submarine community is overhauling its training courses to focus on high-end combat, the aviation...

https://news.usni.org/2019/02/20/panel-navy-advancing-tactics-adding-new-weapons-boost-combat-lethality

Navy Creates New Flight Instructor Billet Outside of Traditional Career Path

Marine Corps Capt. Chris Latimer, left, an instructor pilot for Training Squadron (VT) 31, and Ensign Marvin Smith, a student naval aviator, conduct pre-operation procedures before a training flight in a T-44C Pegasus aircraft on Jan. 12, 2012. US Navy photo.

The Navy is creating a Professional Flight Instructor (PFI) program that would allow pilots and naval flight officers to remain in the Navy later in their careers as flight instructors outside the normal sea/shore rotation.

Announced today...

https://news.usni.org/2018/09/28/navy-creates-new-flight-instructor-billet-outside-traditional-career-path

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