USS Bataan, USS Carter Hall and 26th MEU Now in the Persian Gulf

Two U.S. Air Force F-35A Lightning II aircraft operate alongside amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD-5) and guided-missile destroyer USS Thomas Hudner (DDG-116) in the Gulf of Oman, Aug. 17, 2023. US Navy Photo

Amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD-5) and landing dock ship USS Carter Hall (LSD-50), sailing on orders to the Persian Gulf region, crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday, USNI has learned.

Both ships, part of the three-ship, 4,000-member Bataan Amphibious Ready Group, left...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/18/uss-bataan-uss-carter-hall-and-26th-meu-now-in-the-persian-gulf

Large Scale Exercise 2023 Was Custom Built to Push Fleet to the Limit, Say Planners

Airman Steven Wilcoxson, from Visalia, California, pulls a refueling hose aboard the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) in the Atlantic Ocean on June 23, 2023. U.S. Navy Photo

ABOARD AIRCRAFT CARRIER USS DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER – Fresh from a training exercise off the coast of Virginia, the Navy’s second oldest carrier is getting minor repairs while moored at Naval Station Norfolk, Va. But just below the flight deck of USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69), the staff of...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/16/large-scale-exercise-2023-was-custom-built-to-push-fleet-to-the-limit-say-planners

Navy, Marines Send Aid to Hawaii, Papua New Guinea Following Disasters

Coast Guard, along with federal, state, and local partners continue to respond following the Lahaina wildfires in Maui, Hawaii on Aug. 9, 2023. Coast Guard Photo

Naval and Marine Corps assets are responding to natural disasters in Hawaii and Papua New Guinea, the Pentagon announced Thursday.

Navy Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 37 sent two MH-60 R Sea Hawk helicopters to assist the Coast Guard with search and rescue operations in Maui, Pentagon Press Secretary Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder told...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/10/navy-marines-send-aid-to-hawaii-papua-new-guinea-following-disasters

Spying Targets Point to Chinese Interest in Amphibious Warfare, Experts Say

USS Essex (LHD-2), front, transits the Indian Ocean with the guided-missile destroyer USS O’Kane (DDG-77) on Jan. 9, 2022. US Navy Photo

The material two alleged spies for China provided to their handlers point to a sustained interest from the People’s Liberation Army in amphibious operations as threats to Taiwan grow, two naval experts told USNI News.

U.S. sailors Machinist’s Mate 3rd Class Jinchao Wei and Construction Electrician 2nd Class Wenheng Zhao allegedly fed their Chinese handlers were...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/10/spying-targets-point-to-chinese-interest-in-amphibious-warfare-experts-say

First Marine Corps MQ-9A Reaper Squadron Now Operational

Marine Corps MQ-9A MUX/MALE is formally unveiled during a ceremony for Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron 3 (VMU-3), Marine Aircraft Group 24, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing at Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay, Aug 2, 2023. US Marine Corps Photo

Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron 3 (VMU 3) introduced its new Reaper unmanned aerial vehicles in a ceremony at Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, last week.

The Marine Corps UAV squadron, the only one of its kind in the Indo-Pacific,...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/08/first-marine-corps-mq-9a-reaper-squadron-now-operational

CO: In Australia, Marine Rotational Force-Darwin is at the ‘Cutting Edge’ of Force Design

A U.S. Marine with India Co., 3rd Battalion, 1st Marine Regiment (Reinforced), Marine Rotational Force – Darwin 23 provides security during Exercise Talisman Sabre 23 at Lakeside Airpark, Queensland, Australia, July 28, 2023. US Marine Corps Photo

What began with 250 American Marines and sailors at Australia’s “Top End” 12 years ago has grown into a Marine air-ground task force of 2,500 that spends its seven-month rotation spread across Australia and the western Pacific.

As U.S.-Australia...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/08/co-in-australia-marine-rotational-force-darwin-is-at-the-cutting-edge-of-force-design

Amphibious Warship ‘Strategic Pause’ Ongoing Despite Small Business Solicitation

Amphibious warship Richard M. McCool, Jr., (LPD-29) on Aug. 4, 2022. USNI News Photo

Construction of new U.S. amphibious warships is still on pause despite a small business solicitation indicating the Navy was preparing to enter a multi-year deal for San Antonio-class ships, USNI News has learned.

Last week, contract portal SAM.gov posted a long lead contract that indicated the Navy was moving ahead with a multi-year contract with HII’s Ingalls Shipbuilding to build three Flight II San Antonios.

“T...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/07/amphibious-warship-strategic-pause-ongoing-despite-small-business-solicitation

Largest Ever Talisman Sabre Exercise Wraps in Australia

Marines with Battalion Landing Team 2/1, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, conduct inland ground missions at Stanage Bay, Queensland, Australia, Aug. 2, 2023. US Army Photo

The largest iteration of Exercise Talisman Sabre, with more than 33,000 troops from 13 countries, concluded on Friday .

As part of the exercise, the U.S. Army established a Joint Logistics Over The Shore (JLOTS) facility in Australia for the first time. This floating pier permitted equipment to be unloaded onto a beach in...

ACMC Smith to Marine Corps: Discipline, Standards to Remain as Confirmation Delays Continue

Gen. Eric Smith, the Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps, delivers remarks during the U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Central Command, change of command ceremony at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida, Aug. 1, 2023. US Marine Corps Photo

Gen. Eric Smith’s message to the Marine Corps is it’s business as usual until further notice.

Smith, who is both the acting commandant and the assistant commandant of the Marine Corps, released guidance meant to hold the force over until the Senate confirms Smith as...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/03/acmc-smith-to-marine-corps-discipline-standards-to-remain-as-confirmation-delays-continue

13th MEU Pacific Deployment Expanded Marine F-35 Operations, Tested Contested Logistics, Says CO

MV-22B Ospreys, assigned to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM) 362 (Rein.), 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit, embarked aboard the Makin Island Amphibious Ready Group, prepare to take off from the flight deck of the forward-deployed amphibious assault carrier USS America (LHA-6) during forward arming and refueling ship (FARS) operations while sailing in the East China Sea, Mar. 16, 2023. US Navy Photo

The 13th MEU employed its SIMRAD radar system, a small, mobile sensor, throughout the...

https://news.usni.org/2023/08/01/13th-meu-pacific-deployment-expanded-marine-f-35-operations-tested-contested-logistics-says-co

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