ARLINGTON, Va. — The Navy will commission the future USS Montana (SSN 794), the newest Virginia-class fast attack submarine, during a 10:00 a.m. EST ceremony on Saturday, June 25, at Naval Station Norfolk, the Defense Department said June 24. 

Gov. Greg Gianforte of Montana will deliver the principal address. Additional speakers include U.S. Rep. Bobby Scott of Virginia’s 3rd District; Undersecretary of the Navy Erik Raven; Adm. James Caldwell, director, Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program; and Jennifer Boykin, president of Newport News Shipbuilding. 

The submarine’s sponsor is Sally Jewell, former Secretary of the United States Department of Interior. Montana was christened at Newport News Shipbuilding, a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries, in Newport News, Virginia, on Sept. 12, 2020. Jewell will give the order to “man our ship and bring her to life.” 

The future USS Montana (SSN 794) honors the Treasure State and will be the second commissioned warship bearing the name. The first USS Montana (ACR-13), an armored cruiser, was also built at Newport News Shipbuilding and commissioned in July 1908. ACR-13 served in the Atlantic and Mediterranean, landed Marines during unrest in Haiti in 1914, and escorted convoys during World War I. The Navy decommissioned the first USS Montana in 1921, and two other vessels named after the state never saw commissioned service. 

“This boat is a true treasure of the U.S. Navy, and will play an integral part in protecting and promoting American prosperity and security abroad,” said Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro. “I am so proud of the brave men and women who will man this submarine, and I look forward to their success on the high seas.” 

Montana is the third Block IV Virginia-class submarine to enter service, designed to carry out the core missions of the submarine force: antisubmarine warfare; anti-surface warfare; delivery of special operations forces; strike warfare; irregular warfare; intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance; and mine warfare. These capabilities allow the submarine force to operate anywhere, at any time, and contribute to regional stability and the preservation of future peace. 

Montana is 377 feet long, has a 34-foot beam, and will be able to dive to depths greater than 800 feet and operate at speeds in excess of 25 knots submerged. It has a crew of approximately 136 Navy personnel. 

The ceremony will be live-streamed at: https://www.dvidshub.net/webcast/28926. The link will become active at 9:45 a.m. EST. 

ARLINGTON, Va. — The Navy will christen its newest expeditionary sea base, the future USS John L. Canley (ESB 6), during a 9:00 a.m. PDT ceremony Saturday, June 25, at General Dynamics National Steel and Shipbuilding Company (GD-NASSCO) shipyard in San Diego, the Defense Department said June 24. 

The principal speaker is Lt. Gen. Michael Langley, commanding general, Fleet Marine Force, Atlantic, and commander, Marine Forces Command and Marine Forces Northern Command. Additional speakers include Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Installations, Energy, and Facilities Robert Thompson; Vice Adm. Ross Myers, commander, U.S. Fleet Cyber Command/commander, U.S. 10th Fleet; Thomas Kiss, director of ship management, Military Sealift Command; Sgt. Maj. David Wilson, command sergeant major, First Marine Division; and David Carver, president of GD-NASSCO.    

In a time-honored Navy tradition, the ship’s sponsor, Patricia Sargent, daughter of Sgt. Maj. Canley, will christen the ship by breaking a bottle of sparkling wine across the bow. 

The ship is named for Medal of Honor recipient, retired Sgt. Maj. John L. Canley. Canley, who served in the Marine Corps for 28 years, was awarded the nation’s highest honor 50 years after his actions while serving as Company Gunnery Sergeant, Company A, First Battalion, First Marine Division in the Republic of Vietnam during the Battle of Hue City. Initially awarded the Navy Cross for his actions, his award was upgraded to the Medal of Honor in 2018. Canley passed away on May 11, 2022. 

“Tomorrow we christen the future USS John L. Canley, recognizing a pioneer in the Marine Corps and a devoted patriot, who earned our nation’s highest honor for his gallant actions in the Battle of Hue City,” said Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro. “Sgt. Maj. Canley is an example to the men and women who will proudly serve aboard this ship and he will be remembered every day ESB 6 operates.” 

ESBs are highly flexible platforms used across a broad range of military operations, supporting multiple operational phases and directly contributing to American prosperity and security abroad. Acting as a mobile sea base, they are a part of the critical access infrastructure that supports the deployment of forces and supplies to provide prepositioned equipment and sustainment with adaptable distribution capability. 

ARLINGTON, Va. — The U.S. Navy has ordered two more MQ-4C Triton high-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicles from Northrop Grumman, the Defense Department said June 22. 

The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, awarded Northrop Grumman Systems a $248.2 million contract modification to procure two MQ-4Cs as an addition to Lot 5 low-rate initial production. 

The contract modification follows two other contracts awarded in June to Northrop Grumman for the Triton program. 

The Naval Air Systems Command awarded Northrop Grumman a $15.1 million contract modification on June 14 to incorporate production engineering change proposals that modify MQ-4C Triton unmanned aircraft system production UAVs to an integrated functional capability 4.0 multiple intelligence configuration for the Navy and the government of Australia.  

Another contract issued June 16 awarded the company $20.5 million to incorporate IFC-4 for MQ-4Cs construction numbers B13 through B15.  

The MQ-4C’s IFC-4 is designed to bring an enhanced multi-mission sensor capability as part of the Navy’s Maritime Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance and Targeting transition plan. The Triton in the IFC-4 configuration is designed to complement the Navy’s P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft and eventually will enable the Navy to retire its EP-3E Orion electronic reconnaissance aircraft. The initial operational capability for the Triton will be declared in 2023 when IFC-4-configured Tritons are deployed in enough quantity to field one complete orbit.   

Work on the two additional UAVs is expected to be completed in February 2027.  

ARLINGTON, Va. — The Navy has brought home from the Middle East its last deployed RQ-4A Global Hawk Broad-Area Maritime Surveillance – Demonstrator (BAMS-D) unmanned aerial vehicle, culminating a 13-year span of operations that began as a six-month experiment.  

According to a June 22 release from the Naval Air Systems Command, the RQ-4A returned to its home base, Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland, from the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility on June 17. 

The Navy had deployed the RQ-4A to Southwest Asia since 2009 as a component of the BAMS-D program. Five Block 10 RQ-4As were acquired from the U.S. Air Force and were based at Patuxent River and operated in sequence over the years by detachments of Patrol Reconnaissance Wings 5, 2, and 11. The detachment kept at least one RQ-4A in the rotation to a base in the Persian Gulf region. One was lost in a mishap in Maryland in June 2012. Another was shot down June 19, 2019, in an unprovoked attack in international airspace over the Strait of Hormuz by an Iranian surface-to-air missile. 

“BAMS-D has been a singular force multiplier for 5th Fleet and U.S. Central Command and has provided invaluable insights into the use of unmanned air systems as part of an overall concept of operations for naval ISR,” said Dave Seagle, BAMS-D deputy program manager, who has led the program since its inception, in the release. 

BAMS-D provided more than 50% of maritime intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance in theater accruing over 42,500 flight hours in 2,069 overseas missions, the Navy said.  

“By 2013, BAMS-D had ramped up its capabilities to 15 24-hour missions every month, supplementing its first deployed aircraft with a second aircraft,” Seagle said. “Through the next nine years, BAMS-D provided uninterrupted operations and collected almost 1.4 million ISR scenes, highlighted over 11,500 targets of interest and provided the fleet with over 15,000 tactical reports, becoming an indispensable asset for the warfighter. One of many notable achievements occurred as recently as August 2021 when BAMS-D provided ISR coverage to non-combatant evacuation operations during the U.S. drawdown in Afghanistan. 
 
“Despite the aging of the system and limited spares available, BAMS-D’s incredible operations and maintenance team achieved an overall mission availability rate of 96%, with more than 94% of scheduled missions completed,” he said. 

The BAMS-D Integrated Sensor Suite featured electro-optical/infrared, synthetic aperture radar, ground moving target indicator and wide-area search modes retained from the Air Force production system. To improve performance in the maritime environment, LR-100 electronic surveillance sensors, Automatic Identification System receiver, inverse synthetic-aperture radar, and maritime search and maritime moving target indicator radar modes were integrated into the demonstrator system. The ground segment consisted of three launch and recovery elements, two mission control elements and a Navy-designed tactical auxiliary ground station. 

In the Navy’s 2022 budget request, divestment of the RQ-4A Global Hawk Broad-Area Maritime Surveillance-Demonstrator UAV had been planned for acceleration from 2023 to 2022, with the savings invested in higher priorities.  

The BAMS-D is being replaced by a Global hawk derivative, the MQ-4C Triton, which has been deployed to the Western Pacific in an Early Operational Capability deployment. The Triton with an upgraded sensor capability will be deployed in 2023. 

KIEL, Germany — Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday traveled to Kiel, Germany June 15-18 for the conclusion of BALTOPS 22, The CNO’s Public Affairs office said June 18.

In its 51st iteration, BALTOPS is an annual coordinated exercise that reinforces interoperability with allies and partners and provides collective maritime security in the Baltic Sea.

Gilday visited the guided-missile destroyer USS Porter (DDG 78) at sea during the final days of the exercise.

“Our Sailors are our asymmetric advantage against any threat,” said Gilday. “Watching the incredible multi-domain coordination with our international partners, and seeing Sailors in action, is always inspiring.”  

This year, 14 NATO allies, two NATO partner nations (Finland and Sweden), more than 45 ships, 75 aircraft, and approximately 7,000 personnel participated in BALTOPS 22.

“The United States’ strong defense relationships with our Northern European allies and partners constitute our greatest strategic advantage in the region,” said Gilday. “BALTOPS achieves a multitude of objectives by demonstrating NATO interoperability, interchangeability, and readiness.”

He added that naval forces are participating in this exercise and are focused on interoperability with Sweden and Finland, as well as the other allied nations of NATO. “We are trained, proficient and ready, BALTOPS demonstrates just that and our commitment to defending NATO is ironclad.”

While in Kiel, Gilday met with Vice Adm. Jan Kaack, chief of the German navy, as well as Vice Adm. Frank Lenski, vice chief of the German navy, to discuss operational areas of mutual interest, NATO operations, and Transatlantic security.

“I sincerely welcome the continued commitment of the U.S. Navy in Europe. Since 1972, the BALTOPS exercise has been taking place in the Baltic Sea under US leadership — this year for the 51st time,” said Lenski. “Our ties with the U.S. Navy are strong and will remain so because the Baltic Sea is part of NATO’s northern flank. It is our vital interest to guarantee freedom and security in this area.”

The trip culminated with a BALTOPS reception aboard the U.S. 6th Fleet flagship USS Mount Whitney (LCC 20), where Gilday met with U.S and foreign naval leadership as well as members of the local community. This was Gilday’s first visit to Germany.

ARLINGTON, Va. — The U.S. Navy has exercised a contract option to order the third Constellation-class guided-missile frigate (FFG) from Fincantieri Marinette Marine. 

The Naval Sea Systems Command awarded Marinette Marine Corp., Marinette, Wisconsin, was awarded a $536.9 million “fixed-price incentive (firm target) and firm-fixed-price modification to previously awarded contract” for the future USS Chesapeake (FFG 64), the Defense Department announced June 16. 

The order follows the $553.8 million contract option exercised on May 20, 2021, for the second ship of the class, the future USS Congress (FFG 63). 

The Marinette Marine shipyard is currently working on the detailed design for the first ship of the class, the future USS Constellation (FFG 62). Cutting of first steel is scheduled for later this year.  

The Navy has a requirement for 20 frigates. Marinette Marine is now under contract for the first three FFGs with options for seven more. 

The Constellation class FFG is based largely on the Italian FREMM frigate. 

Work on the latest contract option is expected to be completed by August 2028. 

NAVAL SUPPORT ACTIVITY ROTA, Spain — The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Paul Ignatius (DDG 117) arrived in its new homeport of Naval Station Rota, Spain, on June 17 as the U.S. Navy’s newest Forward Deployed Naval Forces–Europe (FDNF-E) destroyer, 6th Fleet Public Affairs said in a release. 

Prior to arriving in Rota, Paul Ignatius operated alongside British, Canadian, French, German and Norwegian allies as part of exercises Cable Car and Green Light. The ship also conducted port visits in Ponta Delgada, Portugal and Bergen, Norway. In the Baltic Sea, Paul Ignatius integrated with the 2nd Marine Division and the Kearsarge Amphibious Readiness Group with embarked Amphibious Squadron Six and 22nd Marine Expeditionary Unit. The ship also conducted interoperability exercises with the USS Sioux City (LCS 11) during the inaugural deployment of a Freedom-class littoral combat ship to 5th and 6th Fleet areas of operation. 

“We certainly met and exceeded our goals,” said Cmdr. Aaron Arky, commanding officer of Paul Ignatius. “I couldn’t be more proud of the team as they superbly conducted undersea, air-defense and expeditionary operations during this patrol.” 

Commissioned in 2019, Paul Ignatius is the second of eight Flight IIA technology insertion ships, bringing enhanced capability and technological advancements to U.S. Naval Forces Europe and Destroyer Squadron 60. The ship is the 67th Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, a class capable of conducting a variety of missions from sea control and power projection to peacetime presence and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. 

The ship’s arrival in Rota brings substantial capabilities to the FDNF-E force already in place. Arriving to their new homeport also allows Paul Ignatius Sailors the opportunity to get acquainted with their new duty station and to reunite with their families, many of whom have already arrived in Rota. 

“The uniqueness of this homecoming cannot be understated, as we are both returning to our families and arriving at our new homeport,” said Arky. “The tremendous support network established by Naval Station Rota and Destroyer Squadron 60 has immensely helped the families and Sailors alike. For that, we are grateful.” 

ARLINGTON, Va. — The Navy will christen the future USS John Basilone (DDG 122) during a 10:30 a.m. EDT ceremony on Saturday, June 18, at General Dynamics Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine, the Defense Department announced June 17. 

Sgt. Maj. of the Marine Corps Troy Black will deliver the christening ceremony’s principal address. U.S. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, Vice Adm. Francis Morley, principal military deputy to the assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development, and acquisition, Vice Adm. Scott Conn, deputy chief of naval operations for warfighting requirements and capabilities, Don Basilone, brother of the ship’s namesake and Charles Krugh, president of General Dynamics Bath Iron Works, will also provide remarks. The ship’s sponsors are Ryan Manion and Amy Looney Heffernan, president and vice president of the Travis Manion Foundation. Heffernan is unable to attend the event. In a time-honored Navy tradition, Manion will christen the ship by breaking a bottle of sparkling wine across the bow. 

The ship’s namesake, Gunnery Sgt. John Basilone, received the Medal of Honor for heroism displayed in the Battle of Guadalcanal during World War II, where he led his heavy machine gun sections in defense of a critical position and inflicted heavy casualties on the enemy. Basilone later returned to action at the Battle of Iwo Jima in February of 1944, where he single-handedly destroyed an enemy blockhouse and led a Marine tank under fire safely through a minefield. He was killed in action later that day and was posthumously awarded the Navy Cross for his unwavering devotion and valiant spirit of self-sacrifice. 

“The future USS John Basilone will serve as a constant reminder of the immense impact that actions taken by any one Sailor or Marine can truly have,” said Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro. “Gunnery Sgt. Basilone is a national hero and this ship and crew will honor his legacy for decades to come.” 

This is the second ship to honor Basilone. The first, USS Basilone (DD 824), was a Gearing-class destroyer in service from 1945 to 1977.

PASCAGOULA, Miss. — HII’s Ingalls Shipbuilding division has received a $240 million, cost-plus-fixed-fee advance procurement contract from the U.S. Navy to provide long-lead-time material and advance construction activities for amphibious transport dock LPD 32, the company said June 16.

The ship will be the 16th in the San Antonio-class constructed at Ingalls Shipbuilding. 

“Our shipbuilders are proud to continue building these amphibious ships that are integral to the Navy fleet,” Ingalls Shipbuilding President Kari Wilkinson said. “The funds from this contract will be used to purchase long-lead time material and major equipment across a supplier network of nearly 400 companies in 30 states.” 

LPD 32 will be the third Flight II amphibious ship in the San Antonio class. LPD Flight II is the next generation amphibious ship to replace Whidbey Island (LSD 41) and Harpers Ferry (LSD 49) classes of dock landing ships. Ingalls has delivered 12 San Antonio-class ships to the U.S. Navy and has two more under construction, including Richard M. McCool Jr. (LPD 29) and Harrisburg (LPD 30). Fabrication of the 15th San Antonio-class ship, Pittsburgh (LPD 31), will begin later this year. 

ARLINGTON, Va. — The Navy has awarded Northrop Grumman two contracts to upgrade MQ-4C Triton high-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicles with a multi-intelligence collection capability. 

The Naval Air Systems Command awarded Northrop Grumman Systems Corp. of San Diego a $15.1 million contract modification to a previously awarded, fixed-price incentive contract to provide “additional labor and material to incorporate production engineering change proposals that modify MQ-4C Triton unmanned aircraft system production assets to an Integrated Functional Capability 4.0 [IFC-4] multiple intelligence configuration for the Navy and the government of Australia,” according to a June 14 Defense Department contract announcement. 

Another contract issued June 16 awarded the company $20.5 million to incorporate IFC-4 for MQ-4Cs construction numbers B13 through B15. 

The MQ-4C’s IFC-4 is designed to bring an enhanced multi-mission sensor capability as part of the Navy’s Maritime Intelligence, Surveillance, Reconnaissance and Targeting transition plan. The Triton in the IFC-4 configuration is designed to complement the Navy’s P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft and eventually will enable the Navy to retire its EP-3E Orion electronic reconnaissance aircraft. The initial operational capability for the Triton will be declared in 2023 when IFC-4-configured Tritons are deployed in enough quantity to field one complete orbit.  

The first production MQ-4C Triton unmanned aerial vehicle to be upgraded to the multi-intelligence configuration was delivered to the U.S. Navy at Naval Air Station Patuxent River, Maryland, on Feb. 1. The Triton, designated B8 by the manufacturer, Northrop Grumman, went through a 30-month modification period to the new configuration.  

The two MQ-4Cs that were deployed to Guam for the U.S. 7th Fleet’s Task Force 72 by Unmanned Patrol Squadron 19 (VUP-19) as part of the early operational capability deployment were in the baseline IFC-3 configuration. One has returned to VUP-19’s facility at Naval Station Mayport, Florida, to support training. 

Work on the new contract is expected to be completed in April 2025.