U.S. Central Command

Iran Shoots Down $120M Navy Surveillance Drone in ‘Unprovoked Attack’; U.S. Disputes Claims it was Over Iranian Airspace

An undated photo of RQ-4A BAMS-D flying over Maryland. Northrop Grumman photo.

A Navy high-altitude surveillance unmanned aerial vehicle was shot down by a surface-to-air missile in the vicinity of the Strait of Hormuz by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, the IRGC announced on Thursday.

The IRGC claimed the UAV was operating over Iranian airspace and that the shootdown was to send a “clear message” to Washington, said IRGC commander Gen. Hossein Salami, according to ABC.

“The message is that...

https://news.usni.org/2019/06/20/iran-shoots-down-120m-navy-surveillance-drone-in-unprovoked-attack-u-s-disputes-claims-it-was-over-iranian-airspace

Lincoln Strike Group and Kearsarge ARG Exercise Together Outside Persian Gulf

The Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group (ABECSG) and Kearsarge Amphibious Ready Group (KSGARG) conduct joint operations in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations on May 17, 2019, in the Arabian Sea. The ABECSG and KSGARG, with the 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit, are prepared to respond to contingencies and to defend U.S. forces and interests in the region. US Navy photo.

As tensions between the United States and Iran continue to rise and fall, a Navy carrier strike group and amphibious ready...

https://news.usni.org/2019/05/20/lincoln-strike-group-and-kearsarge-arg-exercise-together-outside-persian-gulf

Boxer Amphibious Ready Group, 11th MEU Leave on Scheduled Pacific, Middle East Deployment

USS Boxer (LHD-4) transits the Pacific Ocean. Boxer is underway conducting routine operations as a part of USS Boxer Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) in the eastern Pacific Ocean on March 20, 2019. US Navy Photo

About 4,500 sailors and Marines left San Diego, Calif., today for a scheduled deployment to the Indo-Pacific and Central Command regions with the Boxer Amphibious Ready Group and 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit.

Dock landing ship USS Harper’s Ferry (LSD-49) and amphibious transport dock USS Joh...

https://news.usni.org/2019/05/01/boxer-amphibious-ready-group-11th-meu-leave-on-scheduled-pacific-middle-east-deployment

U.S. Airstrike Kills Terrorist Behind USS Cole Bombing

MV Blue Marlin transporting USS Cole from Yemen following the 2000 attack on the ship. US Navy Photo

A U.S. military airstrike on New Year’s Day reportedly killed Jamal al-Badawi, who helped orchestrate the October 2000 bombing of the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Cole (DDG-67), officials said.


“We are aware of reports that Jamal al-Badawi was killed in a strike in Yemen,” Navy Capt. Bill Urban, a U.S. Central Command spokesman, said in an email to USNI News. “U.S. forces...

https://news.usni.org/2019/01/04/40112

Marines See Future for Special Purpose MAGTFs Even As Ship Count Rises

Landing Support Specialists with Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Force-Crisis Response-Africa conduct helicopter support team drills with an MV-22B Osprey at Morón Air Base, Spain, Oct. 4, 2017. SPMAGTF-CR-AF deployed to conduct limited crises-response and theatre-security operation in Europe and North Africa. US Marine Corps photo.

THE PENTAGON – The Marine Corps may have expanded its use of ground-based Special Purpose Marine Air-Ground Task Forces (SP-MAGTFs) in response to a shortage...

https://news.usni.org/2018/10/30/marines-see-future-for-special-purpose-magtfs-even-as-ship-count-rises

Marines Prepared to Use F-35Bs in Middle East Combat If Needed; No Other Naval Aviation Nearby

F-35B Lightning II, attached to the “Avengers” of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 211, sit on the flight deck of Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Essex (LHD 2) on Sept. 4, 2018, while transiting the Indian Ocean with San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock USS Anchorage (LPD 23) during a regularly scheduled deployment of Essex Amphibious Ready Group (ARG) and 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU). The Essex ARG and 13th MEU is the first U.S. Navy/Marine Corps team to deploy to...

https://news.usni.org/2018/09/12/marines-prepared-to-use-f-35bs-in-middle-east-combat-if-needed-no-other-naval-aviation-nearby

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