Littoral Operations in a Contested Environment

HASC Seapower Mark Saves 5 Ships, Backs Marine Corps Call for 31 Amphibs

USS Vicksburg (CG-69) getting repaired at BAE Systems Norfolk Ship Repair, Va., on April 8, 2022. Christopher P. Cavas Photo used with permission

The House Armed Services Committee will prevent the Navy from retiring five ships from the fleet and supports the Marine Corps’ call for 31 amphibious warships, according to a summary of the seapower and projection forces subcommittee’s mark of the House’s defense policy bill.

The measures in the mark, which reflect the consensus of the HASC, support a...

https://news.usni.org/2022/06/07/hasc-seapower-mark-saves-5-ships-backs-marine-corps-call-for-31-amphibs

House Bill Backs Marines’ 31 Amphibious Ship Requirement, Over Navy’s 25 Ship Level

The future USS Fort Lauderdale (LPD 28) departed Huntington Ingalls Shipyard to conduct Acceptance Trials in the Gulf of Mexico. US Navy Photo

Two members in Congress have heard the Marines’ call for more amphibious warships and issued a House bill that would cement their level at 31, according to language reviewed by USNI News.

Put forth by House Armed Services seapower and projection forces subcommittee chair Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) and ranking member Rep. Rob Wittman (R-Va.), the bill...

https://news.usni.org/2022/05/10/house-bill-backs-marines-31-amphibious-ship-requirement-over-navys-25-ship-level

Marines Couldn’t Meet Request to Surge to Europe Due to Strain on Amphibious Fleet

A landing craft, air cushion, attached to Assault Craft Unit 4, disembarks the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD-3), during a Marine Expeditionary Unit off-load in support of a bilateral training event in Tromsø, Norway, April 12, 2022. US Navy Photo

As Russia prepared to invade Ukraine, the head of U.S. European Command asked for a Marine Expeditionary Unit and Amphibious Ready Group to deploy early to Europe as a hedge against the conflict expanding.

But the Marine Corps...

https://news.usni.org/2022/04/26/marines-couldnt-meet-request-to-surge-to-europe-due-to-strain-on-amphibious-fleet

Congress May Reject Navy’s Proposal to End LPD-17 Flight II Line, Lawmakers Say

USS San Diego (LPD-22) and USS Somerset (LPD-25) conduct routine operations in the eastern Pacific on April 7, 2020. US Navy Photo

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — Congress may reject the Navy’s proposal to end the San Antonio-class amphibious warship production line in the upcoming fiscal year, two lawmakers said today.

House Armed Services seapower and projection forces subcommittee chairman Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn.) and ranking member Rep. Rob Wittman (R-Va.) said today that they think Congress will...

https://news.usni.org/2022/04/04/congress-may-reject-navys-proposal-to-end-lpd-17-flight-ii-line-lawmakers-say

Navy and Marines Divided Over the Amphibious Fleet’s Future as Delays and Cancellations Mount in FY 2023 Budget Request

The future Richard M. McCool Jr. (LPD-29) launching at Ingalls Shipbuilding, Mississippi. HII Photo

If the Marines could spend any more money as part of the Pentagon’s Fiscal Year 2023 budget, they’d ask to buy another amphibious warship.

Ranked higher than new F-35B and C Lighting II Joint Strike Fighters or Joint Light Tactical Vehicles, the number one item on the Corps’ FY 2023 unfunded priority list to Congress is $250 million in advanced procurement funding for a new Flight II San...

https://news.usni.org/2022/04/03/navy-and-marines-divided-over-the-amphibious-fleets-future-as-delays-and-cancellations-mount-in-fy-2023-budget-request

Marines Stand Up First Marine Littoral Regiment

Marines with 3d Marine Littoral Regiment, 3d Marine Division present arms during the redesignation ceremony of 3d Marines to 3d MLR aboard Marine Corps Base Hawaii, March 3, 2022. US Marine Corps Photo

The Marine Corps this week formally converted its Hawaii-based regiment into the 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment, taking another step in the pursuit of its new island-hopping strategy in the Indo-Pacific.

As part of the service’s Force Design 2030 effort, the Marine Corps converted the 3rd Marine...

https://news.usni.org/2022/03/04/marines-stand-up-first-marine-littoral-regiment

CNO Gilday: ‘We Need a Naval Force of Over 500 Ships’

Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Spruance (DDG-111), left, USS America (LHA-6), and Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN-70), transit the Philippine Sea on Jan. 22, 2022. US Navy Photo

SAN DIEGO, Calif. – The U.S. Navy needs a fleet of more than 500 ships to meet its commitments to the soon-to-be released National Defense Strategy, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday said on Friday. 

“I’ve concluded – consistent with the analysis – that we need a naval force...

https://news.usni.org/2022/02/18/cno-gilday-we-need-a-naval-force-of-over-500-ships

Navy, Marines Want the Light Amphibious Warship to Haul 75 Marines for $150M or Less

Sea Transport Solutions Image

The Navy and Marine Corps are finalizing a list of requirements for the Light Amphibious Warship that Marine leadership argues is key to how the service will fight its future island-hopping campaigns.

The services pitch LAW as a medium amphibious warship with a small crew that can haul 75 Marines from shore to shore without tying up the Navy’s larger amphibious ships for smaller operations, for the price tag of $150 million or less per hull.

“You look at the existing...

https://news.usni.org/2022/02/10/navy-marines-want-the-light-amphibious-warship-to-haul-75-marines-for-150m-or-less

CMC Berger: Marine Corps Needs Both LAW and Large Amphibious Ships

Amphibious transport dock ship USS Portland (LPD-27) conducts flight operations with amphibious assault ship USS Essex (LHD-2) on Sept. 6, 2021. US Navy Photo

The Marine Corps needs both the new Light Amphibious Warship and larger amphibious ships to achieve the future missions outlined in its new vision of expeditionary warfare, the Marine Corps Commandant said today.

Asked if the Navy can build both LAW and the larger amphibious ships it traditionally buys, Gen. David Berger argued the two...

https://news.usni.org/2022/02/08/cmc-berger-marine-corps-needs-both-law-and-large-amphibious-ships

Moving Marines Across the Pacific Could Be Littoral Combat Ship’s Next Mission

USS Kansas City (LCS-22) off the coast of California on Aug. 16, 2021. USNI News Photo

ABOARD THE LITTORAL COMBAT SHIP USS KANSAS CITY, OFF THE COAST OF CALIFORNIA – The cavernous mission bay of USS Kansas City (LCS-22) was crafted to hold the Navy’s needs to find sea mines, fight swarm boats or interdict submarines – mission packages that have lagged the construction of the ships and plagued the Littoral Combat Ship program.

Now the LCS might be ready for a new mission – moving Marines across...

https://news.usni.org/2021/09/28/moving-marines-across-the-pacific-could-be-littoral-combat-ships-next-mission

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