U.S. 6th Fleet Archives - Maritime Shipping News

Navy Wants Independence LCS in Bahrain for Mine Countermeasure Mission

12 January 2023

Independence-variant littoral combat ship USS Jackson (LCS-6) pierside in Guam. US Navy Photo

ARLINGTON, Va. — The Navy could deploy the aluminum hull, Independence-class Littoral Combat Ship to the Middle East as part of a future mine-countermeasures force in U.S. Central Command, service officials said.

Vice Adm. Roy Kitchener, the commander of Naval Surface Forces, said the Navy could send up to two of the Independence-class to Bahrain with a variant of the LCS MCM mission package in the same...

https://news.usni.org/2023/01/11/navy-wants-independence-lcs-in-bahrain-for-mine-countermeasure-mission

22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit Returns Home from Extended European Deployment

11 October 2022

Marines attached to the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) wave to spectators as they arrive in Morehead City, N.C., aboard the San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock ship USS Arlington (LPD-24) on Oct. 10, 2022. US Navy Photo

Thousands of Marines began returning to North Carolina over the weekend ending a seven-month deployment to Europe as part of the U.S. regional presence mission following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The 22nd Marine Expeditionary Group began sending Marines to...

https://news.usni.org/2022/10/11/22nd-marine-expeditionary-unit-returns-home-from-extended-european-deployment

Vice Adm. Thomas Ishee Assumes U.S. 6th Fleet Command

15 September 2022

Vice Adm. Thomas Ishee, commander of U.S. 6th Fleet, speaks after assuming command at U.S. Naval Support Activity Naples, Italy, after relieving Vice Adm. Gene Black, right, Sept. 15, 2022. US Navy Photo

Vice Adm. Thomas Ishee assumed command of U.S. 6th Fleet Thursday, taking over from Vice Adm. Eugene Black.

Ishee, who most recently served as director of global operations for U.S. Strategic Command, was tapped for 6th Fleet commander in May, when he was also nominated by President Joe Biden for...

https://news.usni.org/2022/09/15/vice-adm-thomas-ishee-assumes-u-s-6th-fleet-command

SWO Boss Wants 6 Littoral Combat Ships in Western Pacific

22 August 2022

Electronics Technician 3rd Class Jerry Brown, from Middletown, Ohio, participates in morning colors on the foc’sle aboard the Independence-variant littoral combat ship USS Charleston (LCS-18) during a port visit to Dili, Timor-Leste on Dec. 8, 2021. US Navy Photo

In the next couple of years the Navy hopes to have six Independence-class Littoral Combat Ships operating in the Western Pacific at a given time, the service’s top surface warfare officer said this week.

“In the Indy class, we continue...

https://news.usni.org/2022/08/22/swo-boss-wants-6-littoral-combat-ships-in-western-pacific

Navy Moving Ahead on Combining Gear Fix on Freedom Littoral Combat Ships Marked for Decommissioning

15 August 2022

Freedom-class littoral combat ship USS Sioux City (LCS 11), homeported at Naval Station Mayport, Jacksonville, Fla., arrives at the Marathi NATO Pier Complex in Souda Bay, Greece, to undergo scheduled preventative maintenance on May 20, 2022. US Navy Photo

Despite plans to decommission Littoral Combat Ship USS Sioux City (LCS-11) next fiscal year, the Navy is preparing funds to repair a latent issue with the ship’s propulsion system, USNI News has learned.

Sioux City, which is currently deployed...

https://news.usni.org/2022/08/15/navy-moving-ahead-on-combining-gear-fix-on-freedom-littoral-combat-ships-marked-for-decommissioning

Russian Corvettes Spotted Shadowing BALTOPS Exercise

8 June 2022

Graphic by H I Sutton used with permission

Two Russian warships are operating near the international BALTOPs naval exercise in the Baltic Sea, according to photos from ship spotters.

A pair of Russian Navy Karakurt-class corvettes were spotted off the coast of Sweden near Stockholm one day after NATO and allied ships departed for the at-sea portion of the BALTOPS drills.

The Russian Navy’s Black Sea Fleet is split between Saint Petersburg and the exclave of Kaliningrad. The Baltic Sea connects...

https://news.usni.org/2022/06/07/russian-corvettes-spotted-shadowing-baltops-exercise

Littoral Combat Ship USS Sioux City Now Operating in the Middle East

31 May 2022

Littoral combat ship USS Sioux City (LCS 11) transits the Suez Canal, May 29. U.S. Navy Photo

In a first for the class, a Freedom-variant Littoral Combat Ship is now operating in the Persian Gulf.

USS Sioux City (LCS-11) chopped into 5th Fleet on Saturday after operating in U.S. 6th Fleet for nearly a month.

“Sioux City is operating in support of a newly established multinational task force, Combined Task Force (CTF) 153, focused on maritime security and partner capacity building in the Red Sea,...

https://news.usni.org/2022/05/31/littoral-combat-ship-uss-sioux-city-now-operating-in-the-middle-east

Iceland Foreign Minister: ‘Thank God We’re Part of NATO’

24 April 2022

Icelandic Coast Guard offshore patrol vessel ICGV Þór (UT 512L) steams through Whale Bay in Miðsandur, Iceland during exercise Northern Viking 22, April 11, 2022. US Navy Photo

In the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Iceland’s foreign minister this week expressed relief that her country is part of the NATO alliance.

“Thank God, we’re part of NATO,” because the North Atlantic island nation without an army can no longer “take peace for granted,” Thórdís Kolbrún Reykfjörd Gylfadóttir said at...

https://news.usni.org/2022/04/24/iceland-foreign-minister-thank-god-were-part-of-nato

Kearsarge Amphibious Ready Group, 22nd MEU Deploy from Norfolk, N.C.

17 March 2022

Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD-3) departs Naval Station Norfolk, Va., on March 16, 2022. US Navy Photo

Two of the three-ship Kearsarge Amphibious Ready Group deployed Wednesday from Naval Station Norfolk, Va., and Camp Lejeune, N.C., according to U.S. 2nd Fleet.

USS Kearsarge (LHD-3), amphibious transport dock ship and USS Arlington (LPD-24) left the East Coast with Marine Expeditionary Unit 22 embarked. The third amphib, USS Gunston Hall (LSD-44) is set to deploy later...

https://news.usni.org/2022/03/17/kearsarge-amphibious-ready-group-22nd-meu-deploys-from-norfolk-n-c

24th MEU, Iwo Jima ARG Arrive Home From Deployment

13 October 2021

The Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7) arrives at its homeport of Naval Station Mayport, Florida, Oct. 11, 2021. US Navy Photo

The three ships that make up the Iwo Jima Amphibious Ready Group pulled into their respective homeports the last few days, ending a deployment that supported the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

USS Iwo Jima (LHD-7) reached Naval Station Mayport, Fla., on Monday, while USS Carter Hall (LSD-50) arrived at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek, Va.,...

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