KEY WEST,
Fla. — The crew of the Coast Guard Cutter Thetis (WMEC-910) returned to their
homeport in Key West, Florida, on May 23 after a three-month U.S. Africa
Command patrol, the Coast Guard 7th District said in a release.

The Thetis
crew concluded their patrol, in which they conducted multiple joint law-enforcement
exercises and operations with West African countries with U.S. Africa Command
and U.S. 6th Fleet to maintain and strengthen international partnerships and
maritime security.

“By
conducting joint maritime law-enforcement operations, we were able to establish
best practices providing the West African navies and coast guards with the
tools to enforce their laws and secure their maritime borders,” said Cmdr.
Randall Chong, commanding officer of the Thetis. “The U.S. Coast Guard’s
involvement in the African Maritime Law Enforcement Partnership has had a
positive impact on the region, and I am proud of all the hard work my crew has
put into this mission.”

Thetis crew members
and U.S. Coast Guard Tactical Law Enforcement Team South worked to build,
strengthen and maintain relationships with the African nations of Cabo Verde,
Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire, São Tomé and Príncipe, Togo and Benin. Together, they
conducted joint maritime safety, security and law enforcement training and
missions in support of Africa Maritime Law Enforcement Partnership 2019
operations.

While at sea,
the crew conducted joint fisheries and law-enforcement boardings with Nigerian navy
and Cabo Verde coast guard law-enforcement teams. The Thetis crew saved the
lives of two men who were lost at sea for three days and safely transferred
them to the Sierra Leone maritime authority. The crew also rescued two
loggerhead sea turtles that were entangled in fishing nets in the Gulf of
Guinea.

Thetis is the
first U.S. Coast Guard cutter to support U.S. 6th Fleet and deploy to U.S.
Africa Command since 2012.

U.S. 6th
Fleet, headquartered in Naples, Italy, conducts a full spectrum of joint and
naval operations, often in concert with allied and interagency partners, to
advance U.S. national interests, security and stability in Europe and Africa.

The Thetis is a multimission
270-foot medium-endurance cutter whose missions include illegal drug and
migrant interdiction as well as search and rescue. The Thetis patrols
throughout the Caribbean basin, eastern Pacific and Atlantic seaboard.

Huntington
Ingalls Industries hosted a ceremonial first-cut-of-steel event today at its
Newport News Shipbuilding division to mark the start of advance construction
for the Columbia-class submarine program, the company
announced in a press release. The event also marked the first class of
submarines that will be built using fully digital blueprints.

“Today is a
historic day,” said Jason Ward, Newport News’ vice president for Columbia-class construction. “It has been a half century
since Newport News Shipbuilding has constructed a ballistic submarine. Today,
we celebrate the decade-plus effort spent working with Electric Boat on the
design of this new class of submarine as we formally transition from design to
material procurement and now to construction execution.”

The Columbia-class boats will replace the fleet of Ohio-class nuclear ballistic submarines. Newport News is
starting its work three weeks ahead of schedule to support its advance
construction efforts, according to the release.

“The first cut
of steel is a major construction milestone that signifies our shipyard and
submarine industrial base are ready to move forward with production,” Ward
said. “We have worked to engage the submarine industrial base and leveraged
lessons learned from the successful Virginia-class
program to building the Columbia-class
submarines in the most efficient and affordable manner to provide the best
value to the Navy.”

Ceremony
participants included Newport News Shipbuilding President Jennifer Boykin; Rear
Adm. Scott Pappano, Columbia’s program executive officer; Capt. Jon Rucker, Columbia’s
program manager; Will Lennon, vice president of the Columbia-class
submarine program for General Dynamics Electric Boat; and shipbuilders.

Construction
of the 12-boat Columbia class will take place in
Virginia, Rhode Island and Connecticut, with Electric Boat assembling and
delivering all of the submarines. The lead boat is scheduled to be delivered to
the Navy in 2027.

ARLINGTON,
Va. — The Navy established a new unit at Naval Base San Diego on May 22 that
will serve as a fount of experimentation for the surface warfare community to
accelerate the lethality and combat readiness of the Navy’s surface warships.

In a May
20 teleconference with reporters, Vice Adm. Richard Brown, commander, Naval
Surface Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet, said that he was establishing Surface
Development Squadron One (SURFDEVRON ONE) to:

• Execute operational testing and evaluation of new and emerging surface warfighting capabilities.
• Develop material and technical solutions to tactical challenges.
• Coordinate doctrine, organization, training, material, logistics, personnel and facilities requirements for unmanned surface systems.

“We want
to rapidly be able to experiment and move at a faster pace,” Brown said, noting
that the new squadron is modeled in part after the Navy’s submarine development
squadron and unmanned underwater vehicle squadron.

Brown said
the new squadron was a renaming and a repurposing of the “Z-RON”—the squadron
for the two, soon to be three, Zumwalt-class guided-missile destroyers.

Brown said
the Zumwalt class DDGs would still deploy with carrier strike groups in
accordance with the Optimized Fleet Response Plan despite their assignment to
the development squadron.

He said
the Zumwalt DDGs were ideal for the squadron because if their advanced
capabilities and potential.

“There is
no reason why a Zumwalt could not control USVs,” Brown said.

He also
said he is working to get the Navy’s Sea Hunter medium-displacement unmanned
surface vehicle (USV) transferred to the squadron from the Office of Naval
Research. The Navy is experimenting with the Sea Hunter in the eastern Pacific
to develop navigation capabilities, concepts of operation and sensor
configurations for USVs. He also plans to assign the second Sea Hunter now
under construction to the squadron.

Brown
expects that the Large USVs (LUSVs) and Medium USVs (MUSVs) that are envisioned
for the fleet in the 2020s will be assigned to the development squadron as
well. The concept of operations of these USVs include the possibilities of
being controlled by another ship, a strike group commander or a fleet
commander.

“The
possibilities are endless,” he said. “We need an organization that is doing
that.”

The growth
of Surface Development Squadron One will be in phases. Phase 1, the name change
from Z-RON and the leveraging of the Zumwalt-class DDGs, will be complete by
the end of fiscal 2019.

Phase 2 will
be about building capacity, Brown said, including the absorption of the two Sea
Hunter USVs.

Phase 3,
expected to begin in 2024, will involve addition of the new LUSV and MUSV.

Brown said
the Navy’s first four littoral combat ships (LCS) — Freedom, Independence, Fort
Worth and Coronado — would be transferred to the development squadron at the
end of Phase 2 or Phase 3. These LCS are currently considered nondeploying test
ships to support development of the fleet of successor LCS and their mission
packages.

Capt. Hank
Adams is the first commanding officer of Surface Development Squadron One. He
will report directly to Brown.

ARLINGTON,
Va. — With the U.S. Navy resuming manufacture of Mk48 torpedoes for its
submarines after a two-decade hiatus, the engineering effort to restore the industrial
capability to build the torpedo has required some resourcefulness on the part
of defense contractors.

SAIC won a competitive contract to build the torpedo’s aft section, consisting of the propulsion section and the propeller, said Stephen Rigdon, SAIC vice president for programs in the Defense Systems Customer Group, speaking to Seapower on May 6 at the Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space exposition in National Harbor, Maryland.

The guidance-and-control
section is being built by Lockheed Martin. Rigdon said the warheads and fuel
tanks in the middle section of the torpedo are on hand in the Navy’s inventory.

“This is a
build-from-scratch program,” Rigdon said. “They haven’t been built since the
mid-90s. The biggest challenge we faced is reinvigorating the supply chain, finding
suppliers that can provide the assemblies that go inside this torpedo.”

He said there
was no new technology in the propulsion sections, dating to the late 1980s and
early 1990s. The Mk48 originally was built by Gould.

“We’re
building this from a government print,” he said. “What we’re finding out in
some cases is that if you build it to the print it doesn’t necessarily work
perfectly. If you go back to the ‘90s, there was a guy that worked for the
company that knew how to do that. That person is retired now. So, it’s been an
engineering challenge to figure those things out.”

“The Navy has programs underway to look at improved engines and things like that,” he said.

SAIC is under
contract to build 95 propulsion sections for the Mk48, with two more options on
the contract.

“The Navy may
buy up to 199 more,” Rigdon said.

SAIC is
building the torpedo assemblies at its facility in Bedford, Indiana.

FORT WORTH, Texas — The Bell V-280 Valor recently completed flight demonstrations ahead of schedule of its low-speed agility key performance parameter in the U.S. Army-led Joint Multi-Role Technology Demonstrator (JMR TD) program, Bell Helicopter announced.

The V-280 Valor, which the U.S. Marine Corps is monitoring for possible use as well, has demonstrated in flight testing that it has the raw control power in pitch, roll and yaw maneuvers to meet the Army’s Level 1 handling qualities requirements, which is the highest performance standard for agility.

This flight testing validates Bell’s engineering models and development processes to design, build and test an aircraft on an aggressive development schedule that meets Army performance requirements.

“This latest flight milestone proves that the V-280 Valor tilt-rotor delivers first-rate handling for pilots during low-speed maneuvers without sacrificing speed, range or payload that the military needs for multidomain operations,” said Ryan Ehinger, the V-280 program manager at Bell.

For pilots, this achievement provides additional proof that the V-280 will have unprecedented agility on the objective (at the “X”) for operational effectiveness, according to the Bell release. The aircraft’s digital flight controls and performance-driven design increases mission effectiveness by providing a high level of agility, reducing pilot workload and enhancing flight safety.

As the JMR TD period of performance winds down, Bell and Team Valor continue to expand the flight envelope and demonstrate new capabilities to prove the V-280 Valor’s key technologies and reduce the risk for future vertical lift programs.

The latest flight statistics for the V-280 include:
• Forward flight over 300 knots true airspeed.
• More than 110 hours of flight and over 225 rotor-turn hours.
• Greater than 50-degree banked turns.
• 4,500-feet-per-minute rate of climb and sustained flight at an altitude of 11,500 feet.
• Single flight ferry of more than 370 miles.
• Demonstrated Level 1 low-speed agility with fly-by-wire controls.
• In-flight transitions between cruise mode and vertical takeoff and landing.

ARLINGTON, Va. — An AV-8B Harrier II based at Marine Corps Air
Station Cherry Point, North Carolina, crashed May 20 near Cherry Branch, according
to May 20 and May 21 releases from 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing Strategic
Communications. The pilot ejected safely.

The Harrier II pilot was transported to Carolina East Medical
Center in New Bern for evaluation and was released with no injuries, the May 21
release said. There are no reports of civilian casualties or property damage.
Personnel from 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing responded to the scene and assisted
local authorities, who had responded first.

The pilot was assigned to Marine Attack Squadron 542, a unit of
the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing. Cherry Point is home of three Marine attack
squadrons and one Marine attack training squadron, all of which fly the Harrier
II.

The
aircraft is cordoned off at the crash site and an emergency reclamation team is
onsite and beginning recovery operations.

The
Marines of VMA-542 “are working closely with the Marines of Aircraft Rescue and
Fire Fighting, Explosive Ordnance Disposal and both military and local
authorities,” the May 21 release said. “The scene has been deemed safe and
secure by all parties involved, but recovery personnel are still implementing
environmental and personal protective measures.”

“I
would like to start by thanking the Craven County sheriff’s office and the
community for their ongoing support,” said Maj. Gen. Karsten Heckl, commanding general
of 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing.

“On
days like this, our dedication to duty is reaffirmed, and we are reminded how
proud we are to call Havelock our home. Thankfully, there were no serious
injuries. The safety of our Marines and the local community is of the utmost
importance to us, and we are extremely grateful that everyone who was involved
is OK.”

The
cause of the incident is still under investigation.

According to one
source, the Marine Corps AV-8B fleet has lost 104 aircraft (36%) of its
aircraft in mishaps over the service life of the jet. An additional 13 were
combat losses — either shot down, destroyed in a ground attack or damaged by
enemy fire and not repaired. The Marine Corps plans to keep the Harrier II in
service until 2028.

ARLINGTON,
Va. — Boeing is in the wrap-up stages of a trade study and architecture
assessment of an upgrade — called Block II — to the Navy’s EA-18G Growler
electronic attack aircraft. The upgrade is an effort to enable the EA-18G to
keep up with the dynamic electronic warfare threats.

“It makes
sense that we would take something that was designed in the ‘90s and now
enhance it to be relevant for decades to come,” said Jennifer Tebo, Boeing’s
director of development for the F/A-18 and EA-18G, speaking to reporters May 7
at the Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space exposition.

“The current
thinking on that is that it is a retrofit program,” Tebo said. “There is no
official new-build Growler Block II. We will continue to work with the Navy to
determine what those needs are, how we might incorporate them into a new build.
We’re thinking of a retrofit program that would deliver capability in the 2025 timeframe.
We’ve already starting work in earnest and early this year got initial funding
from the Navy to start moving to the [System Functional Requirements] phase by the
end of this year to deliver that capability on time.”

Tebo said
that the Growler Block II enhancements will include some of the upgrades of the
Super Hornet Block III program, plus “enhanced sensitivity through the
modernization of the sensors on the platform. … It’s about adaptive and
distributive processing, having big computers to process and be able to react
to the threats that are out there today and into the future.”

“It’s also
about enhancing the crew-vehicle interface,” Tebo added. “As the Growler crews
get more and more information into the cockpit, they’re going to need a way to
reduce the workload to be able to digest and use it effectively. All of that is
accomplished through software-defined radios that are enabled through a
flexible and adaptable hardware architecture.”

Tebo said the
infrastructure and the architecture will “allow us to continually evolve
capability as the threat dynamic changes. The life of the Growler is very, very
long. We’re setting this up for the Navy to be able to continue add capability
rapidly to the Growler.

“It’s been a joint
effort and it will evolve as we pin down the requirements,” she said.

She confirmed
that the Next-Generation Jammer and the mid-band and low-band jammers “are
considered part of the future of the Growler and Growler Block II.”

Boeing’s
concept of Block II includes the conformal fuel tanks being included in the
Super Hornet Block III, but “the Navy will have to decide,” she said.

Also to be
decided is whether the Growler will go through a service life-extension
program. The Super Hornet fleet is going through a service-life extension from
6,000 flight hours to 10,000 hours.

“That is to be decided,”
Tebo said. “The Growler has a 7,500-hour service life compared to 6,000-hour
life of the Super Hornet. [The Growler] has not finished its service-life
assessment program yet.”

PITTSBURGH — RE2 Robotics, developer of human-like
robotic manipulator arms, has received $3 million from the Office of Naval Research
to develop a dexterous, underwater robotic hand with tactile feedback, the
company said in a release.

The program, called Strong Tactile mARitime hand for
Feeling, Inspecting, Sensing and Handing (STARFISH), will create an advanced
end-effector for mine countermeasures and explosive ordnance disposal for expeditionary
forces.

Using next-generation tactile sensing technology and a
multifinger, electromechanical design, STARFISH will allow operators to locate,
identify and neutralize hidden and visible explosive threats on land and
underwater. STARFISH-enabled manipulators will be deployed on both ground-base
and underwater robotic system to defeat explosive threats.

“The development of STARFISH takes underwater robotic
technology to the next level by providing operators with the ability to ‘feel’
and sense the environment around them while remaining at a safe distance,” said
Jorgen Pedersen, president and CEO of RE2. “The use of advanced tactile sensing
and intelligent grasping will improve operational performance by removing
operators from dangerous areas and allowing them to quickly and accurately
respond to explosive threats.”

RE2 will work with researchers at UCLA and the University
of Washington to develop the hand, which will use state-of-the-art tactile skin
and sensorized fingertips that are capable of sensing normal and shear forces.
Operators will command the hand using information provided by external sensing,
such as cameras, sonar or LIDAR, which will then be processed with
machine-learning algorithms to assist the operator in manipulating the object.

“Tactile sensing at the end effector can provide a wealth
of information about the environment to a robotic system and its operator,”
said Dr. Andrew Mor, RE2’s principal investigator. “Using a rich network of
sensing, machine learning and assisted manipulation, STARFISH will be able to
perceive and then share its interpretation of the environment with the
operator, allowing naval expeditionary forces to manipulate and control the
robot at human speed.”

ST. LOUIS —
Boeing has received a one-year contract to continue modernizing the U.S. Navy’s
F/A-18 fleet under the Service Life Modification (SLM) program, the company
said in a May 17 release.

The $164
million contract for fiscal 2019, which also includes a one-year option for
2020, funds the standup of a second SLM line in San Antonio, Texas, complementary
to the line established last year in St. Louis.

“The Service
Life Modification program is making great strides as we’ve already inducted
seven Super Hornets into the program and will deliver the first jet back to the
Navy later this year,” said Dave Sallenbach, the program’s director. “This
program is crucial in helping the Navy with its readiness challenges and will
continue to grow each year with the number of jets we induct.”

The San
Antonio SLM line is scheduled to receive its first Super Hornet in June and a
total of 23 Super Hornets over the course of this contract. The U.S. Navy fleet
consists of more than 550 Super Hornets.

The SLM
program extends the life of existing Super Hornets from 6,000 to 10,000 flight
hours.

In the early
2020s, Boeing is scheduled to begin installing initial updates to the aircraft
that will convert existing Block II Super Hornets to a new Block III
configuration.

The Block III
conversion will include enhanced network capability, longer range with
conformal fuel tanks, an advanced cockpit system, signature improvements and an
enhanced communications system. The updates are expected to keep the F/A-18 in
active service for decades to come.

WASHINGTON — Naval
Air Systems Command has awarded a $1.3 billion contract to Sikorsky for 12 U.S.
Marine Corps CH-53K King Stallion helicopters, the command said in a release.

“The
Marine Corps is very appreciative of the efforts by the Navy and our industry
partners to be able to award the LRIP 2/3 contract,” said Lt. Gen. Steven
Rudder, deputy commandant for aviation. “This is a win for the Marine Corps and
will secure the heavy-lift capability we need to meet future operational
requirements and support the National Defense Strategy. I’m very confident in
the success of the CH-53K program and look forward to fielding this critical
capability.”

The Pentagon’s
most powerful helicopter, the King Stallion is a new-build helicopter that will
expand the fleet’s ability to move more material more rapidly throughout the
area of responsibility using proven and mature technologies. The CH-53K is the
only aircraft able to provide the Marines with the heavy-lift capability it needs
to meet future operational requirements for the vertical-lift mission.

“This
contract award reflects close cooperation and risk sharing between the government
and industry teams to deliver critical capabilities to the Marine Corps,”
said James Geurts, assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development
and acquisition. “Working with our industry partners, the team ensured
that solutions for technical challenges are incorporated into these production
aircraft.”

The CH-53K carries
triple the baseline CH-53E capability, having demonstrated the ability to lift nearly
14 tons at a mission radius of 110 nautical miles. The CH-53K has proven the
ability to lift up to 36,000 pounds via an external cargo hook.

Sikorsky is a Lockheed
Martin company based in Stratford, Connecticut.