WASHINGTON (NNS) — Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday hosted the Royal Australian Navy’s Chief of Navy Vice Adm. Mark Hammond at the Pentagon on Sept. 22, Gilday’s press office announced.

During the visit, the two leaders focused on interoperability and their ongoing work to expand and strengthen maritime security in the Indo-Pacific region.

“Our partnership with Australia is rooted in our shared common values and friendship,” said Gilday. “Our history and like-minded goals allow us to work seamlessly together across a range of military operations to keep the seas open and free.”

Gilday and Hammond discussed progress of the trilateral security partnership signed in September 2021, known as AUKUS — referencing Australia, the United Kingdom, and United States — which was implemented to develop and provide joint advanced military capabilities to promote security and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.

Since the announcement, each of the participating countries have reaffirmed their commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific, and more broadly to an international system that respects human rights, the rule of law and the peaceful resolution of disputes free from coercion.

“We are excited for the future and are honored to work with the Royal Australian Navy day-in and day-out, committed to a warfighting force capable of assurance, deterrence, and the high-end fight,” said Gilday.

The U.S. and Australian navies share mutual interest in maintaining freedom of navigation and adherence to the rules-based international order.

The two navies conduct frequent cooperative deployments, and regularly operate together during flagship theater exercises like Pacific Partnership, Rim of the Pacific and Australian-led Kakadu.

This was Gilday’s first in-person meeting with Hammond, who assumed command of the Royal Australian Navy in June 2022.

SOUTH CHINA SEA — Royal Canadian Navy Halifax-class frigate HMCS Vancouver (FFH 331) concluded exercises in the South China Sea with Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Higgins (DDG 76) Sept. 18, Commander, Task Force 71/Destroyer Squadron 15 Public Affairs announced Sept. 21. 

Vancouver and Higgins conducted bilateral surface action group operations demonstrating interoperability in the execution of joint exercises in the South China Sea and highlighted the U.S. Navy’s support to Canada’s Indo-Pacific deployment and their presence and role in the Western Pacific. 

“Working with USS Higgins in the South China Sea has been an incredible opportunity for HMCS Vancouver,” said Cmdr. Kevin Whiteside, HMCS Vancouver commanding officer. “The two teams seamlessly integrated, conducting a variety of training exercises together. As part of our deployment on Operation PROJECTION, Team Vancouver has been delivering robust capabilities, working with our partner navies since we departed home in June. It was awesome working with the Higgins team, demonstrating our commitment to promoting stability in the Indo-Pacific region.” 

The bilateral training between U.S and Canadian maritime forces served to strengthen skills in maritime operations, anti-submarine warfare operations, air warfare operations and maneuvering. 

“It has been an honor to sail alongside HMCS Vancouver for the past few weeks,” said Cmdr. Joseph McGettigan, Higgins commanding officer. “Operating with our closest allies and partners in the South China Sea provides us an opportunity to deepen our relationships as well as improve our capabilities as a combined force. Gaining familiarity with these waters and each other, provides us a greater ability to assure the stability of the region and demonstrates our shared commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific.” 

Higgins is assigned to Task Force 71/Destroyer Squadron 15, the Navy’s largest forward-deployed DESRON and the U.S. 7th fleet’s principal surface force. 

NAVAL BASE VENTURA COUNTY, Calif. — A variety of robots crawling in, on and below a decommissioned U.S. Navy destroyer, as well as replacement parts being additively manufactured on site, comprised just a small part of the activity that took place during the first-ever U.S. Navy Repair Technology Exercise, or REPTX, held Aug. 22-Sept. 1 at Naval Base Ventura County in Ventura County, California.

Teams from various companies as well as academic and government laboratories arrived from around the world with their technology applications to conduct demonstrations and field experiments aboard the decommissioned Spruance-class destroyer, known as the Self Defense Test Ship. The ship is operated by personnel from Naval Surface Warfare Center, Port Hueneme Division (NSWC PHD) in Port Hueneme, California, a field activity of Naval Sea Systems Command and located at NBVC.

NAVSEA’s Naval Systems Engineering and Logistics Directorate Technology Office (NAVSEA 05T) sponsored REPTX 2022, which was hosted by NSWC PHD and held both pierside and aboard the SDTS, which took to the sea for the second week of the event.

The purpose of the inaugural exercise was to see if the technology can tackle real-world fleet maintenance and battle-damage related repairs of ships while operating in a true maritime environment — boosting the Navy’s ability to keep ships at sea by aiding Sailors in carrying out needed repairs.

“The format provides a realistic fielding environment, both pierside and underway, allowing teams the chance to field, adjust, learn and retest their solutions,” said Janice Bryant, sustainment technology program manager at NAVSEA 05T.

“REPTX didn’t just showcase technology but applied it to solve Navy challenges,” Bryant added. “It was a problem-centric event that promoted collaboration rather than competition. Many problems require a complex solution, and multiple participants have independent pieces of that solution.”

The more than 60 REPTX participants demonstrated technologies designed to address four focus areas: visualization, command and control aids, forward manufacturing and expeditionary maintenance.

The technology also needed to be capable of taking on a “day job” — in other words, serving a purpose that adds value to Navy ships and crew on a routine basis. And, it has to be user-friendly enough for a ship’s crew to learn quickly.

“Our priorities as a warfare center are to deliver and sustain readiness, modernize and maintain the current fleet, and field the surface fleet of the future,” said Capt. Andrew Hoffman, NSWC PHD commanding officer. “REPTX demonstrates these priorities by allowing both industry, government and academia to work side-by-side while exploring innovative maintenance concepts that we can rapidly deliver to our forward-deployed warfighters.”

Approximately 20 reservists from the Navy’s Surge Maintenance (SurgeMain) program provided that ship’s crew perspective as they got hands-on with much of the technology, learning how to operate the remote-controlled robotics, wearing augmented reality (AR) headsets to view repair instructions and videos, measuring corrosion on the deckplate of the SDTS, and more.

“The SurgeMain sailors typically don’t get chances like this to provide input on new technologies, so it was hugely important for them to have that opportunity,” said REPTX Project Manager Suzie Simms. “At the end of the event, all of the SurgeMain sailors who participated said they want to be involved again next year.”

Scenarios where reservists were able to remotely control robots included identifying unknown objects on the side of the ship’s hull, detangling a fouled propeller, measuring the depth of metal wastage due to corrosion using ultrasonic waves, and inspecting tight spaces that would be difficult or dangerous for a human to go into.

Several companies brought AR technology to the SDTS, providing both communication and real-time visuals during simulated battle damage assessment scenarios as well as repair work instructions and videos that can be viewed through the headset while simultaneously looking at the damaged area.

Additive manufacturing technology installed in compact shipping containers both pierside and aboard the SDTS provided the capability to 3D print replacement parts as needed in a variety of materials.

Other scenarios involved ship-to-shore communication systems, inspection and repair tools, and above- and below-water visualization devices.

Technology suppliers assisted SurgeMain reservists in using and demonstrating the technology aboard the SDTS during week two — this time in a true maritime environment as the vessel went underway off the coast of Port Hueneme. Unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) operators got a chance to fly their camera-equipped drones around the ship to inspect it.

The main goals of the UAV demonstrations during REPTX were to identify issues like corrosion and misplaced items and to test the UAVs’ capabilities to aid in battle damage assessment and repair — a key focus area for the Navy — by rapidly creating digital models, among other things.

In one scenario, a flange with a leaky gasket was the focus of a collaborative effort on the last underway day of REPTX. The SDTS crew had identified the issue in the ship’s state room, and several technology suppliers worked on a fix with SurgeMain sailors.

A reservist used an AR headset during the scenario to connect remotely with a subject matter expert elsewhere to help inspect and measure the faulty flange.

Armed with measurements of the flange assembly, two additive manufacturing companies participating in REPTX later 3D-printed parts that could be used to replace the flange and gasket in the state room.

Other underway demonstrations tested, repaired and monitored vital equipment on the ship.

Participants and organizers agreed that some of the best things to come out of REPTX were the spontaneous collaborations between attending organizations that revealed more efficient uses of their individual technologies when used together.

Along with the focus on collaboration, organizers designed the event to be educational for everyone involved.

“REPTX facilitated learning on both the government and participant sides,” said Jason Bickford, research manager at NSWC PHD. “We’ve heard unanimous positive feedback from participants that it was a valuable experience for them.”

The learning experience was impactful in that it was hands on, operationally based and held aboard an active ship.

Bryant said that next steps include determining how to invest $2 million in follow-on funding to further develop technologies for fielding in the fleet. The REPTX team will also release to the public a comprehensive after action report on the event.

Meanwhile, discussions are underway for a sequel.

“Events like REPTX enable NAVSEA to be more agile and competitive in the future fight,” Bryant said. “Providing access to Navy assets, crew and problems allows traditional and non-traditional players to engage together, quickly and effectively. Continuing efforts like REPTX are essential as the Navy looks to build a more resilient and sustainable fleet and innovative and responsive industrial base.”

ARLINGTON, Va. — The guided-missile destroyer USS Zumwalt (DDG 1000) is operating under the command of the U.S. 7th Fleet for the first time, according to a Navy release.  

The Zumwalt completed its first port call in Guam on Sept. 19, according to Commander, Task Force 71/Destroyer Squadron 15 Public Affairs. This “marks the farthest it’s ever been from its home port of Naval Base San Diego since its commissioning,” the squadron’s release said.  

While in the region, the Zumwalt is assigned to Task Force 71/Destroyer Squadron 15, the 7th fleet’s principal surface force. 

The Zumwalt is the lead ship of a three-ship class of DDGs, two of which have been commissioned and one is still under construction. All three are or will be assigned to Surface Development Squadron One in San Diego. 

The Zumwalt class has been selected to be the initial platform for the Navy’s Conventional Prompt Strike capability. The ships’ Advanced Gun Systems will be removed to make way for Large Missile Vertical Launch Systems to handle hypersonic missiles because the ship’s existing Mk57 launchers for its Standard and Tomahawk missiles are too small to accommodate the CPS missile.   

The Zumwalt will be the first ship to receive the modifications. The Navy’s Supervisor of Shipbuilding, Conversion, and Repair, Bath, Maine, awarded General Dynamics Bath Iron Works a $20 million cost-plus-fixed-fee contract modification “for procurement of long-lead time material for the Large Missile Vertical Launch System [LMVLS] launch module fabrication on DDG 1000,” an Aug. 18 Defense Department contract announcement said. Work is expected to be completed by June 2024.   

The Navy plans to field the Conventional Prompt Strike capability on the Zumwalt in 2025. The Conventional Prompt Strike capability will be fielded later in the decade on the Block V version of the Virginia-class attack submarine.  

The Zumwalt is commanded by Capt. Amy McInnis. 

NORFOLK, Va. — The crew of the guided-missile cruiser USS Monterey (CG 61) held a decommissioning ceremony onboard Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia, Sept. 16, USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) public affairs said in a release. 

Plankowners, including the ship’s commissioning commanding officer Capt. Joel Heaton, as well as former crew members, joined hundreds of attendees to celebrate the ship’s distinguished 32-year history of naval service. 
 
“Unique to the Navy, when we serve on a ship, it becomes part of us — I mean who we are, how we act, think and live. Similarly, we all in turn become part of that ship — it is a tremendously powerful legacy. This is most definitely the case with USS Monterey, she is certainly a testament to her excellent crews and she has been ‘rough in battle and ready in peace,'” said Vice Adm. Jim Kilby, deputy commander, U.S. Fleet Forces Command. 
 
“Monterey executed 14 deployments, many availabilities, and as many training cycles. She was modified over her life to continue to be a relevant and a key ship in our fleet. She will leave a great legacy for many years in the future as those who proudly call themselves Monterey Sailors continue to serve our Nation.” 
 
Monterey’s current Commanding Officer, Cmdr. David M. Schaller, spoke of the powerful bond between Sailors and their ships and the lives shaped aboard.

“Nobody joins the Navy to decommission a ship,” said Schaller. “The Monterey crew performed their duties of putting her to rest in the most professional and exemplary manner, honoring her storied history and service to our nation.” 
 
Monterey was built at Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine, and commissioned in Mayport, Florida, June 16, 1990. Monterey’s namesake commemorates the battle fought Sept. 20, 1846, in the war with Mexico. 
 
“She has served her crews and her nation well and rightfully takes her place among the ships that, for well over 200 years, have played an indispensable role in protecting the United States of America and serving her strategic interests across the world,” said Schaller. “This ship and her crews will forever share a legacy that will be felt across the fleet for years to come.” 
 
 
 

TAIWAN STRAIT — The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Higgins (DDG 76), in cooperation with Royal Canadian Navy Halifax-class frigate HMCS Vancouver (FFH 331), conducted a routine Taiwan Strait transit Sept. 20 (local time) through waters where high seas freedoms of navigation and overflight apply in accordance with international law, U.S. 7th Fleet Public Affairs said Sept. 20. 

The ships transited through a corridor in the Strait beyond the territorial sea of any coastal state. Higgins’ and Vancouver’s transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the commitment of the United States and its allies and partners to a free and open Indo-Pacific.

PATUXENT RIVER, Md.—The Navy’s Common Aviation Support Equipment program office (PMA-260) is currently evaluating electromagnetic environmental effects on a crash and salvage crane at the Aircraft Anechoic Test Facility in Patuxent River, the Naval Air Systems Command said Sept. 20. 

Electromagnetic waves within the radio frequency spectrum are used for communication, radar and information networks aboard ships. The E3 evaluation currently underway in the Aircraft Anechoic Test Facility will determine the crane’s compatibility with the RF environment. 

RF cannot be seen or felt, but it can negatively affect other electrical systems if those systems are not properly protected. Testing will determine if the crane has an appropriate level of emissions, can withstand a general level of radiation across the whole RF spectrum, and can withstand high levels of radiation tailored to frequencies in its operational environment. 

“The new amphibious and carrier CSC designs will ensure the warfighter has the safest, most modern and reliable equipment possible for years to come,” said Jim Choflet, PMA-260 crash crane team lead. 

Crash and salvage cranes are critical pieces of equipment because no flight operations are allowed on ships without an operational CSC running on standby. They are used for lifting and moving disabled aircraft on carriers and landing helicopter dock flight decks. The new version, designed by industry partner Allied Systems Co., replaces the legacy carrier and amphibious assault crash cranes. 

ARLINGTON, Va. — To improve capabilities for monitoring aircraft and vessels carrying illicit maritime cargo such as drugs, for longer periods of time and over greater distances, the Office of Naval Research-sponsored SCOUT initiative recently conducted a dynamic experimentation event at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story, Virginia, at the entrance of the Chesapeake Bay. 
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The goal of the event was to find creative solutions to pinpoint “dark targets” — aircraft or watercraft operating with little to no radio-frequency signatures — found in maritime operating areas covered by the Joint Interagency Task Force South, ONR said in a Sept. 19 release. It sought ways to use unmanned technologies to expand intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities beyond those of traditional maritime patrol aircraft such as the P-3 Orion and P-8 Poseidon.  
 
JIATF-S currently works with U.S. Southern Command and partner naval forces to leverage all-domain technologies and unmanned capabilities to target, detect and monitor illicit drug trafficking in the air and maritime domains. This facilitates interdiction and apprehension to reduce the flow of drugs, as well as degrade and dismantle transnational criminal organizations. 
 
ONR SCOUT is an ongoing, multiagency experimentation campaign for identifying alternative ways to bring unmanned technologies to warfighter problems, operationalize them and bring them to scale. SCOUT is committed to getting nontraditional, commercial-off-the-shelf, government-developed and/or government-sponsored technologies to the fleet rapidly. 
 
“SCOUT is an innovation vehicle and investment strategy for the rapid development of autonomous platforms that address today’s warfighter challenges,” said Chief of Naval Research Rear Adm. Lorin Selby. “Through experimentation with partners like JIATF-S, we can connect innovators, industry, acquisition professionals and fleet stakeholders to attack and solve key operational problems.” 
 
“This is a pressing issue for JIATF-S because every day multiple suspect vessels are near and in the area of operations conducting illicit trafficking,” said U.S. Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Duane Zitta, JIATF-S chief of operational demonstration and experimentation. “Because of this vast area, JIATF-S is looking for alternative capabilities and technologies to provide unmanned counter-operations that can detect and monitor suspect activity, ultimately helping prevent illegal movement to the United States.” 
 
The JEB Little Creek-Fort Story experimentation event was a partnership involving ONR SCOUT, JIATF-S, the Naval Research and Development Establishment, and industry partners in the Chesapeake Bay area. It was one of multiple sprint events (scenario-based demonstrations of technology capabilities and characteristics) held this year that will lead to a large-scale main experimentation event in March 2023. 
 
During the Chesapeake Bay event, participants engaged in simulated drug-running and -hunting scenarios during “cat-and-mouse” games involving a specialized vessel owned by SOUTHCOM and JIATF-S, a “Gotcha” boat formerly used by drug traffickers and seized by JIATF-S, and various targets of interest. 
 
Participants employed sophisticated sensor systems and technologies, ranging from coordinated unmanned aircraft systems to wide-area motion imagery. Data collected during the exercises was fed into an onsite maritime operations center and synthesized, providing operators with real-time information about targets and each technology’s performance. 
 
The technology tested at JEB Little Creek-Fort Story will undergo further refinement and improvement before the March 2023 main experimentation event. 

U.S. NAVAL SUPPORT ACTIVITY NAPLES, Italy — Vice Adm. Thomas E. Ishee relieved Vice Adm. Gene Black III as commander, U.S. 6th Fleet and commander, Naval Striking and Support Forces NATO (STRIKFORNATO) in a change of command ceremony held onboard U.S. Naval Support Activity Naples, Italy, Sept. 15. 

Adm. Stuart Munsch, commander, U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa (NAVEUR-NAVAF) and commander, Allied Joint Forces Command Naples, presided over the ceremony. Munsch outlined Black’s extensive accomplishments as 6th Fleet commander and presented Black with the Distinguished Service Medal. 

“Gene has sustained an unprecedented level of activity as the fleet commander for the Euro-Atlantic area, recalibrating our combined forces for dynamic operations, as the tenets of strategic competition dictate, to deter Russian aggression and stand ready to defend NATO,” said Munsch. “No one can look at the tenor you’ve set and argue that our adversaries haven’t factored your warfighting command of 6th Fleet and STRIKFORNATO into their calculus.” 

As 6th Fleet commander and deputy commander of NAVEUR-NAVAF, Black provided regional, national and international leadership with credible Navy and NATO combat capabilities across the European and African areas of operations. He also spearheaded the establishment of a European Navy-Marine Corps task force (Task Force 61 Naval Amphibious Forces Europe/ 2d Marine Division (TF-61/2)). TF 61/2 is charged with command and control of high-end U.S. forces, including Amphibious Ready Groups and Marine Expeditionary Units; Reconnaissance and Counter-Reconnaissance Marines; and intelligence and collection units able to integrate with theater allies and partners. 

“The establishment of Task Force 61/2 has brought an enhanced rapid response capability to the 6th Fleet area of operations and has displayed the strength and flexibility of the Navy-Marine Corps team,” said Brig. Gen. Andrew Priddy, commanding general of TF 61/2. 

Additionally, Black’s leadership of STRIKFORNATO yielded the first transfer of authority of a U.S. Carrier Strike Group to NATO since the Cold War, setting a new standard in NATO cohesion and cooperation. 6th Fleet and STRIKFORNATO executed multiple phases of the Project Neptune series in 2021 and 2022, expanding transfer of authority of allied carrier strike groups and of the USS Kearsarge (LHD 3) ARG and 22nd MEU, substantially increasing flexibility and cohesion throughout the alliance. 

“Demonstrating and enhancing NATO’s high-end maritime warfare capabilities shows the world the true strength and teamwork of our alliance,” Black said of Neptune Shield, held in May 2022. “NATO’s capacity to conduct integrated operations in the maritime domain … validates more than seven decades of Alliance interoperability.” 

Ishee, previously the Director of Global Operations for U.S. Strategic Command, spoke of his appreciation for the team he will lead, while outlining his vision and goals for the command. 

“History is unfolding before our eyes, and our nation, the alliance, other allies and our partners around the world are relying on 6th Fleet and STRIKFORNATO to maintain freedom of navigation, defend our nations and the alliance, and support our partners,” said Ishee. “We will continue to build these enduring relationships through training and exercises, common values, and shared experiences and vision.” 

Black has been selected for reappointment to the grade of vice admiral and assignment as deputy chief of naval operations for operations, plans, and strategy, N3/N5, Office of the Chief of Naval Operations, Washington, D.C. 

U.S. 6th Fleet is permanently assigned to NAVEUR-NAVAF, and employs maritime forces through the full spectrum of joint and naval operations. 

SAN DIEGO — Independence-variant littoral combat ship USS Coronado (LCS 4) was decommissioned in San Diego, Sept. 14, the Navy said in a release.

As on operational unit, Coronado and its crew played an important role in the defense of the nation and maritime freedom. As a test and training ship, Coronado and its Sailors were key to determine the operational configuration and deployment capabilities of today’s LCS platform.

“Today we recognize the great contribution Coronado and its crew made in developing the operational concepts foundational to the current configuration and deployment of littoral combat ships,” said Rear Adm. Wayne Baze, the ceremony’s guest speaker and commander of Expeditionary Strike Group 3. “Thanks to Coronado, the future of LCS looks bright.”

Coronado and its Sailors contributed a tremendous amount of work and time to ensure the future success of the LCS program during the ship’s time in naval service. The ship worked alongside allied and partner nations while on a 14-month rotational deployment to the Indo-Pacific in 2017, including inaugural port visits to Cam Ranh, Vietnam and Lamut, Malaysia. While deployed, Coronado supported presence operations and maritime security operations to include the advancement of the LCS manned-unmanned teaming concepts through successful targeting exercises with an embarked MQ-8B Fire Scout. The ship’s successful operations demonstrated the relevance of LCS as a platform that provides flexible options and tactical advantages.

“Since April 5th, 2014, Coronado has been the vanguard for proving the capabilities of the LCS platform and establishing the mission sets,” said Cmdr. Spike Lamson, Coronado’s commanding officer. “The dedication of her crews and supporting teams have guaranteed the future success of this class of ship and the crews that will operate them over-the horizon. I am proud to have served alongside her Sailors, and I am grateful for the opportunity to give Coronado the farewell she deserves.”

Built by Austal USA in Mobile, Alabama, Coronado was commissioned April 5, 2014, at Naval Air Station North Island. The ship deployed to U.S. 7th Fleet, integrated with a carrier strike group, performed exercises with partner navies and conducted joint maneuvers with other U.S. Navy warships. Upon decommissioning, Coronado will be designated as Out of Commission, In Reserve asset, and its Sailors will receive follow-on orders to new assignments.

The first USS Coronado (PF 38) served in World War II and was decommissioned in 1945. The second USS Coronado (AGF 11) served in U.S. 2nd, 5th and 6th Fleets and as the flagship for Commander, U.S. 3rd Fleet. The second Coronado was decommissioned in 2006 and sunk during Exercise Valiant Shield in 2012.