US Armed Forces

[Khafee]

US Ditches Plans to Raise Combat Readiness of Fighter Jets
10.05.2020
by Tim Korso

© AP Photo / Darin Russell


The US Air Force is hoping to revive the plan in a different and less costly form in the future, but has no program schedule assigned at the current time.

The Pentagon has abandoned plans to raise the combat readiness of its modern fighter jets - including the F-35, the F-22, the F-16 and the F/A-18 - up to 80 percent of which were originally earmarked by former US Secretary of Defence Jim Mattis, according to the nominee for the post of Chief of Staff of the United States Air Force, General Charles Brown, in written testimony to the US Senate. The decision to ditch the plan came from the office of the Mattis' successor, Mark Esper.

According to Brown, the decision on appropriate combat readiness levels is entirely up to the top Pentagon brass.

"The Air Force returned to allowing lead commands to determine the required [mission capable] rates to meet readiness objectives. We continue to balance near-term readiness recovery with investment long-term combat capability", Brown said.

Brown indicated that reaching an 80 percent level of combat readiness for all US fighter jets - capable of being sent into action on short notice - has proved to be difficult and costly to achieve, both with older models and the new F-35.

"Maintaining ageing aircraft is an extremely difficult and expensive task, while new, technologically advanced weapons systems present their own challenges", Brown acknowledged.

While the Air Force never achieved the 80 percent threshold set by Mattis, the US military branch did make some progress towards it, Brown offered.

Ageing F-16s boosted combat readiness from 70 percent to 75 percent, F-22s gained an impressive 19 percent up to 68 percent of jets being ready to fight. The most recent addition to the aerial fleet, the troubled fifth-generation F-35 stealth fighter jet, raised combat readiness levels to 74 percent from around 55 percent during the time the Mattis plan was active, the Air Force chief nominee revealed.

Brown asserted that the US Air Force is in the process of developing a new plan that will be less costly, but will still improve combat readiness levels across the military branch, although no timetable or details were forthcoming.

 

[Khafee]

BAE Systems Selects Kongsberg’s MCT-30 Turret for U.S. Marine Corps ACV Program
May 13, 2020

Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace AS has been selected by BAE Systems, Inc. to design and manufacture the remote Medium Caliber Turret (MCT) for the United States Marine Corps’ Amphibious Combat Vehicle (ACV) -30 program.

Kongsberg will deliver up to 150 MCTs in a phased program as part of this contract. Test article delivery will commence early 2021 followed by
production phases.

The Kongsberg MCT-30 is the first remotely operated 30mm turret to be qualified and fielded in the United States. The system provides highly accurate firepower for wheeled or tracked combat vehicles. It is remotely controlled and operated from a protected position inside the vehicle compartment for optimized crew safety.

The MCT-30 leverages a link-less medium caliber cannon providing lethality, extremely high reliability and multi-user functions to the Marine Corps ACV and other platforms.

“The ACV-30 with Kongsberg’s MCT-30 turret signifies a powerful lethality capability for the Marine Corps, representative of a new era in U.S. amphibious operations,” said Pål E Bratlie, Executive Vice President Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace.

The U.S. Army, in 2015, chose Kongsberg’s MCT-30 to increase the lethality of the Stryker Brigade in Europe. The system has been fielded and operated with the Army as part of the European Deterrence Initiative since 2018.

It is the primary armament and fire control system for the Infantry Carrier Vehicle – Dragoon (ICV-D) Strykers. All MCT-30s, and any remote weapon stations, bound for U.S. customers are manufactured in the Kongsberg Johnstown, PA facility leveraging a U.S. supply base located in over 30 states.
Kongsberg is an international, knowledge-based group that supplies high-tech systems and solutions to customers in the maritime, oil & gas, defence and aerospace industries. Kongsberg has almost 11,000 employees in 40 countries.

 

[Khafee]

Chemring Awarded $200 Million for US Army Husky Mounted Detection System Kits
May 13, 2020

Chemring Sensors and Electronic Systems Inc., Dulles, Virginia, was awarded a $200,218,380 modification (P00009) to contract W909MY-18-D-0014 to develop, integrate and produce and deliver Husky Mounted Detection System kits, spare parts, maintenance and training. Chemring Sensors and Electronic Systems’ (CSES) battleproven Husky Mounted Detection System (HMDS) has played a critical role for area and route clearance operations for the US military and its allies. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 15, 2022. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, is the contracting activity.

The Husky Mounted Detection System (HMDS) is a counter explosive hazard system that provides standoff detection and marking of metallic and low-metallic surface-laid, shallow-buried antitank landmines, trigger mechanisms and deep buried improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in support of area access route clearance operations. HMDS is the only vehicle-mounted sensor in the Army inventory capable of interrogating and detecting buried explosive hazards. It provides increased standoff distance and protection for the operator. HMDS will operate in complex and urban terrain, minimize warfighter workload and move the warfighter out of the blast zone.

The HMDS can be augmented with a Wire Detection System Array, or PODS, to provide detection against the thinnest of wires used to connect explosives to triggers, or other command or autonomously detonated systems utilizing wires. This technology provides the ability to detect wires independent of the orientation of the wire or the approach angle of the vehicle. Additionally, it provides improved detection performance when the moisture content of the substrate increases. The HMDS with Wire Detection provides very high probability of detection (Pd) and very low false alarm rate (FAR). It has also been designed to be interoperable with most deployed electronic systems on vehicles.

The Wire Detector system consists of up to six PODS sensors integrated into a single assembly routed into a Vehicle Interface Box. This Interface Box provides the feed into the GPR Graphic User Interface. The sensor array is located forward of the vehicle front bumper to provide detection prior to overpass. The system is also adaptable to other vehicles using varying numbers of PODS. CSES’ technology enables users to view multiple sensor feeds in one simple, easy-to-use interface, providing soldiers and commanders a real-time common operating picture of buried threats. CSES partnered with CTS to deliver the Husky Mounted Detection System with the Wire Detection capability.

 

[Khafee]

Meggitt Awarded $22 Million Contract by General Dynamics Land Systems for M1A2 Abrams Tanks
May 13, 2020

Meggitt PLC, a leading international company specializing in high performance components and sub-systems for the aerospace, defense and selected energy markets, has received a $22 million contract to provide Thermal Management Systems (TMS) to General Dynamics Land Systems, Sterling Heights, Michigan, for the Abrams program. Supplied by Meggitt Defense Systems, Inc. (MDSI), Irvine, California, the TMS provides active cooling for the Abrams’ upgraded electronics and crew.

Meggitt Defense Systems Thermal Management System (TMS) designed for the Abrams M1A2 SEP tank removes excess heat produced by modern electronic equipment employed in today’s ground combat systems. The Thermal Management System ensures that combat performance is not degraded due to heat stress. The modular design was developed to maximize the flexibility of the thermal management system, and to limit intrusion into the fighting compartment.

 

[Khafee]

US Army 2CR Field Artillery Squadron M777 Howitzer Air Assault
May 13, 2020

U.S. Soldiers assigned to Field Artillery Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, with support from 12th Combat Aviation Brigade CH-47 Chinook helicopter crews, conduct M777A2 howitzer air assault training at the 7th Army Training Command’s Grafenwoehr Training Area, Germany, May 7, 2020. The 12th Combat Aviation Brigade is a Combat Aviation Brigade of the United States Army. The brigade is currently based around Ansbach, Bavaria, in Germany, and headquartered in Katterbach Kaserne, with subordinate units at Katterbach Army Airfield, Grafenwoehr Army Airfield, and Wiesbaden Army Airfield.

The M777 howitzer is a towed 155 mm artillery piece. It succeeded the M198 howitzer in the United States Marine Corps and United States Army in 2005. The M777 is also used by the ground forces of Australia, Canada, India and Saudi Arabia. The M777A2 is manufactured by BAE Systems’ Global Combat Systems division. The M777 can be transported by helicopter sling-load, transporter aircraft such as the C-130, or towed by air-braked vehicles weighing over 2.5 tonnes (2.8 short tons), such as the FMTV and MTVR. The minimal gun crew required is five, compared to a previous nine.

 

[Khafee]

Boeing Awarded $3.1 Billion in U.S. Navy Contracts for Cruise Missile Systems

May 14, 2020

The U.S. Navy has awarded Boeing a combined $3.1 billion in contracts for Harpoon and Standoff Land Attack Missile Expanded Response (SLAM-ER) weapon systems in support of Foreign Military Sales (FMS), Boeing has announced on 13th May. About $2.6 billion of that was contracted today while the remainder had been previously awarded.

“We are pleased to continue our long legacy of partnering with the Navy to build weapons that defend America and its international partners,” said Cindy Gruensfelder, vice president, Boeing Weapons. “These awards will not only extend production of the Harpoon program through 2026, but they will also restart the production line for SLAM-ER and ensure deliveries through 2028.”

According to a statement of Pentagon, Boeing has been awarded two contracts The first contract, worth $1.97 billion, is for the modernization of SLAM-ER cruise missiles as well as delivery of 650 new missiles “in support of the government of Saudi Arabia. The second contract worths $650 million is for delivery of 467 new Harpoon Block II anti-ship missiles, including more than 400 to Saudi Arabia. The others will be delivered to Brazil, Qatar and Thailand. Support equipment will be supplied to India, Japan, the Netherlands and South Korea.

Boeing last delivered the SLAM-ER weapon system in 2008. In October 2019, Boeing began construction on a new 35,000 sq. ft. manufacturing facility to support increased production for the Harpoon and SLAM-ER programs. Construction is expected to be complete in 2021.

 

[Khafee]

Lakenheath F-15Es Deploy to the Middle East
May 15, 2020 | By Brian W. Everstine

F-15E Strike Eagles and Airmen from RAF Lakenheath’s 492nd Fighter Squadron deployed to the Middle East in early May as part of ongoing combat operations in U.S. Central Command.

The undisclosed number of aircraft and personnel from the squadron, nicknamed the “Bolars,” deployed to the 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing at an undisclosed location, U.S. Air Forces in Europe announced.

492nd Fighter Squadron Airmen are shown inside one of the squadron’s F-15Es before leaving RAF Lakenheath for a deployment to the CENTCOM area of responsibility. Photo: U.S. Air Forces in Europe-Air Forces Africa on Twitter

“Last week we sent the 492nd Fighter Squadron and Maintenance team downrange to continue the fight,” 48th Fighter Wing boss Col. William Marshall said in a Facebook announcement. “AFCENT asked us to hold [the] announcement until they had an opportunity to make an announcement, which is why you are just now seeing this. Proud of the Bolar team and know they will do great work down there.”

The wing replaces the 389th Fighter Squadron from Mountain Home Air Force Base, Idaho, at the 332nd AEW.

The F-15 squadrons from the 48th Fighter Wing regularly deploy to the Middle East, at times on short notice. Earlier this year, the 494th Fighter Squadron returned from a deployment to the Middle East, and the base’s 493rd Fighter Squadron earned the Raytheon Trophy for its deployment to the region in 2019.

The 492nd Fighter Squadron had to prepare for this deployment while facing restrictions because of the new coronavirus outbreak. Airmen with the squadron told Air Force Magazine last month that they broke up into two teams, alternating on a one-week-on and one-week-off schedule to fly. The squadron conducted all briefings virtually, with planning done remotely, so pilots could arrive shortly before taking off.

“The COVID-19 response has been a significant event for everybody involved,” Marshall said at the time. “Here at the Liberty Wing, our key task has been to balance the protection of our force, along with ensuring that we can continue to provide the combat airpower.”

 

[Khafee]

Roper Sees High-Low Mix for Hypersonic Missiles
May 15, 2020 | By John A. Tirpak

An artist concept of the AGM-183A Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW) shows the hypersonic missile after launching from a B-52 bomber, encapsulated in a rocket that accelerates it to hypersonic speed. Lockheed Martin artist rendering.

The Air Force’s Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon, or ARRW, will be the first hypersonic weapon deployed by the U.S., but service acquisition chief Will Roper sees a high- and low-flying mix of hypersonic missiles, complicating an adversary’s defenses, as a longer-term goal.

Speaking in a Zoom chat with reporters May 14, Roper said the ARRW is tracking to initial operational capability “by the end of fiscal ’22.” It’s an “exceptionally important” program as the first such weapon, he said, and “that’s why we want to keep that on track.” He said he’s “very confident” the Joint force will “need that weapon in reasonable quantity.”

However, “we don’t want to make that the place that we end” hypersonic development. While the ARRW will leave the atmosphere and glide to its target, an air-breathing hypersonic cruise missile based on the Hypersonic Air-breathing Weapon Concept could be small enough to launch from all combat aircraft and at lower altitudes, Roper said.

“We could carry more of them on a bomber, but we also could carry them on our fighters, and that opens up the entire Air Force quiver,” he said. “That kind of conundrum to present to an adversary is exactly what we want … We can hit you high and low, with weapons that are wicked fast, that are going to require a lot of expense for you to try to defend against.”

The “worst thing” the U.S. could do is “give that adversary the benefit of only having to look up or down, or the benefit of only having to worry about bombers but not fighters,” he said.

Roper said he’s “delighted” that the air-breathing hypersonic technology has “matured faster” than expected, helped by advanced manufacturing techniques, so “it’s time for us to shift out of the laboratory … into prototypes similar to ARRW, to … get it into a warfighters hands.” He predicted an aggressive prototyping campaign similar to that taken with ARRW, using Section 804 authorities from Congress to accelerate development and “get to an operational endstate as rapidly” as possible.

All that is possible based on “the technology foundation” built by Air Force Research Laboratory and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency with the HAWC program, he said.

The first example won’t be the final version, he said, but will be “something that makes a difference for the warfighter: Get it in low-rate production, and start spiraling the technology until you hit a peak that is worthy of that ‘gold medal’ and a larger-quantity buy.”

 

[Khafee]

Light Attack Providers Get Second Shot with SOCOM
May 15, 2020 | By Rachel S. Cohen

Textron Aviation is offering Beechcraft's AT-6E plane for U.S. Special Operations Command's armed overwatch program, after winning a small contract from the Air Force's light attack experiment. Photo courtesy of Textron.

Multiple companies who faced off in the Air Force’s light attack experiment will again compete for a similar contract from U.S. Special Operations Command.

Sierra Nevada Corp., Textron Aviation, Air Tractor, and Leidos are offering aircraft for a three-phase armed overwatch competition that ends with live-fly demonstrations in November. That demo follows the Air Force’s nearly three-year light attack effort that ultimately fell short of a full-fledged buy.

SOCOM Acquisition Executive James Smith told reporters May 13 the command is very pleased with industry’s response so far. He declined to say how many proposals SOCOM received.

“We’ve got a good competition going,” Smith said. “There are sufficient vendors out there that have a product that they can offer that we’ll be able to put into production in fairly short order.”

The Air Force had vetted four aircraft offered by Textron, Sierra Nevada, and an Air Tractor-L3 Technologies team.

“Textron Aviation Defense is maintaining open lines of communication with USSOCOM regarding its plans, timelines, and milestones in support of its armed overwatch experimentation,” said Brett Pierson, Textron’s vice president of defense strategy and sales. “Our Beechcraft AT-6 Wolverine is purpose-built for the warfighter and ready to demonstrate its proven austere, deployable, and sustainable capabilities.”

The AT-6 is one of two light attack airframes the Air Force bought for further testing earlier this year. Sierra Nevada and Embraer Defense and Security are pitching the A-29, which also received a small light attack contract for Air Force Special Operations Command’s combat air advisory mission.

Air Tractor also confirmed to Air Force Magazine on May 12 it is participating in the armed overwatch program. FlightGlobal reported May 4 a Leidos-led team is offering the Bronco II.

Whereas the Air Force’s project focused on finding a platform that is cheaper and simpler to fly than a fighter jet for U.S. and partner counterterrorism operations, SOCOM wants a new plane for close air support; armed intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance; strike coordination and reconnaissance; and airborne forward air control. Those would be part of counterinsurgency work in both permissive and austere areas.

Light attack had a broader set of requirements than armed overwatch, Smith argued, whereas SOCOM is focusing on finding a plane that can perform close air support in hard-to-reach areas without a large sustainment footprint. He said a company’s ability to integrate new weapons and intelligence sensors into a basic aircraft is more important than the airframe itself, noting the Air Force was more interested in the actual platform.

Large remotely piloted aircraft are still on the table, Smith added, but may be more expensive to maintain than SOCOM wants. The Air Force also focused on manned aircraft before noting that foreign countries might be more interested in unmanned platforms.

“We are on the backs of the Air Force’s effort. We’re using the same program managers and engineers,” Smith said. “Everything that was learned by the Air Force in their light attack experiment is being leveraged into ours.”

Competitors have already submitted their first round of paperwork. Next, SOCOM will visit contractors for an up-close look at their offerings before deciding which aircraft should move on to the demo in phase three. The military plans to award up to $4 million each to as many as four companies for that experiment, followed by a possible production contract.

“At the speed that we’re moving on this acquisition, we don’t anticipate at the top of the demo that the vendors will have been able to complete weapons integration, communications integration, ISR integration,” Smith said. “They’ll bring to that demonstration their version of comms gear that will achieve the connectivity that we’re looking for, … both with the direct line of sight, beyond line of sight, etc.”

Aircraft will also be asked to simulate the weight of weapons to replicate what they might carry in real life, he added.

“Does the aircraft have the endurance that has been advertised? Does the aircraft have the legs, the staying power that was advertised?” Smith said.

SOCOM ultimately wants to buy up to 75 aircraft over five to seven years. It requested $106 million in fiscal 2021 to move the program forward.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to clarify details of the upcoming demonstration.

 

[Gripen9]

F-22 crashed near Eglin AFB. Pilot ejected safely.

BREAKING: F-22 Crashes Near Eglin Air Force Base. Pilot Ejected Safely.

The aircraft reportedly crashed during a training mission. An F-22 assigned to the 43rd Fighter Squadron, part of the 325th Fighter Wing, based at Eglin

theaviationist.com

 

[Khafee]

Bell Textron delivers 400th V-22 Osprey tiltroter aircraft

June 10 (UPI) -- The 400th V-22 Osprey was delivered to the Department of Defense, manufacturer Bell Textron Inc. announced on Wednesday.

The newest tiltrotor VTOL, or vertical takeoff and landing, CV-22 variant for Special Operations Forces was received by the U.S. Air Force at Hurlbut Field, Fla., home of the 1st Special Operations Group, on June 2.

The first V-22 Osprey flight occurred in 1989. The Army, Marines, Navy and the Japan Self-Defense Forces use the aircraft, and Israel, India, South Korea and the United Arab Emirates are considering purchase.

The plane's vertical lift capabilities make it useful in diverse environments, and it is regularly in use in combat, humanitarian and special operations missions.

"It's been over 20 years since the first production V-22 was delivered, and we are proud to reach another milestone in our 400 thdelivery," Marine Corps Col. Matthew Kelly, V-22 Joint Program Office program manager, said in a press release.

"V-22s continue to be in high demand, protecting our country and our allies around the world through combat operations, international training partnerships and humanitarian missions. This platform's impact can't be overstated."

 

[Khafee]

Head of Naval Aviation Schools Command, Another Navy Pilot Killed in Plane Crash
Updated 15.06.2020

Capt. Vincent W. Segars, the head of Naval Aviation Schools Command, left, and Cmdr. Joshua Fuller, Training Squadron 86’s former commanding officer, right, died in a plane crash in Alabama, June 10, 2020. (Navy photos)

Two naval aviators were killed this week when their civilian single-engine aircraft crashed in Alabama.

Capt. Vincent Segars, the head of Naval Aviation Schools Command, and Cmdr. Joshua Fuller died Wednesday when their Piper PA-32 crashed about 12 miles outside of Selma, said Cmdr. James Stockman, a spokesman for Naval Education and Training Command. Segars and Fuller were the only two aboard the plane, he added.

Fuller owned the aircraft, The Selma Times-Journal reported. The pair, according to the paper, were on their way from Jasper, Alabama, to Pensacola, Florida, where the officers were based. Jasper is about 300 miles north of Pensacola.

The pilots declared an emergency landing at about 4:40 p.m. Wednesday, Dallas County Coroner Alan Dailey told the Times-Journal. They were trying to land at a civilian airport that had been an old Air Force base that closed in the 1970s.

"A crop duster was up and spotted the plane," Dailey told the paper. "There was nothing that could be done."

Stockman declined to provide any additional details about the crash, citing an ongoing investigation being handled by the National Transportation Safety Board. The Navy is cooperating with the investigation, he added.

Segars and Fuller were decorated pilots with several decades of combined flight experience. Both served in Afghanistan, according to their service records.

Segars had served as commanding officer of Naval Aviation Schools Command at Pensacola since 2018. He'd flown more than 4,300 flight hours, and had been awarded the Defense Superior Service Medal, two Legions of Merit, a Bronze Star and five Air Medals -- one for individual action and four for strike flights.

Baron Reinhold, a retired Navy pilot, wrote in a Facebook post that he was overcome with grief after learning of Segars' death.
"Everyone that knew Vince respected him," Reinhold wrote. "He was a man of conviction and lived with a sense of purpose. ... I will live with a hole in my heart and mourn the loss of my friend and grieve with his family."

Fuller recently led the Pensacola-based Training Squadron 86 after serving as the unit's executive officer since 2017. Fuller oversaw about 60 instructors who trained Navy and Marine Corps international pilots.

He called the assignment the most rewarding tour of his career during his change of command ceremony.

"As I make my final approach toward the end of my career, I am honored to have helped shape the future of naval aviation, and that's something I will treasure," Fuller said. "The Navy's mission success depends on the exceptional men and women among its ranks, and there are none greater than the Sabrehawks I served alongside here."

 

[Khafee]

Repaired USS Fitzgerald Sets Sail Three Years After Deadly Collision off Japan
15 Jun 2020

The guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62) departs Huntington Ingalls Shipbuilding's Pascagoula shipyard to conduct comprehensive at-sea testing, marking a significant step in the ship's return to warfighting readiness. (U.S. Navy photo)

The USS Fitzgerald is on its way to San Diego, where it will rejoin the Pacific Fleet after spending more than two years undergoing extensive collision repairs and equipment upgrades in Mississippi.

Seven sailors were killed when the guided-missile destroyer collided with a commercial container vessel, the Philippine-flagged ACX Crystal, off Japan's coast on June 17, 2017.

On Saturday, the warship departed the Ingalls Shipbuilding facility in Pascagoula, Mississippi, for its new homeport at Naval Base San Diego, a Navy statement said. It had been assigned to the 7th Fleet at Yokosuka Naval Base, Japan, at the time of the accident.

"Today the 'Fighting Fitz' is returning to the Pacific Fleet as one of our nation's most capable warfighting platforms, marking a significant step in her return to warfighting readiness," Rear Adm. Eric Ver Hage, the Navy's surface ship maintenance and modernization commander, said in the statement.

The repairs and modernizations ended up costing the Navy $523 million, USNI News reported Saturday. The work was originally expected to top out at $368 million and take two years instead of two and a half.

In February, the Fitzgerald went to sea for a trial run and to evaluate its navigation, damage control, combat and propulsion systems. Once in San Diego, it will begin crew training and certifications required for it to officially restart patrols.

Blame for the collision fell on the commanding officer at the time, Cmdr. Bryce Benson, and Lt. Natalie Combs, a tactical action officer, who were initially charged with negligent dereliction of duty resulting in death and negligent hazarding of a vessel. The charges were dropped last year and the two were instead censured by the Navy. Benson retired in December; a Navy panel in January ruled Combs could do the same.

Two months after the Fitzgerald incident, the guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain, also based at Yokosuka, collided near Singapore with a commercial tanker, the Alnic MC, killing 10 sailors. The McCain underwent extensive repairs and is back in service.

A Navy report in late 2017 cited crew exhaustion, skipped certifications, poor watch-standing and training and manning problems among the causes of the collision, which the report concluded was preventable.

The Fitzgerald returns to sea about a week after a federal judge dismissed two lawsuits brought by survivors and sailors' families seeking more than $287 million from the ship company that chartered the ACX Crystal.

The suits, filed in the U.S. District Court of Eastern Louisiana, said the sailors endured mental anguish, lost wages, pain and suffering and "pre-death fright."

U.S. District Judge Lance Africk in New Orleans granted NYK Line's motion to dismiss, saying U.S. courts have no jurisdiction over the cases. The company "cannot be deemed 'at home' in every country in which it operates," according to the ruling. NYK Line maintains less than 6 percent of its employees and generates less than 10% of its revenue in the U.S., Africk wrote.

The plaintiffs' attorney, David Schloss, plans to appeal the decision.
"It simply cannot be the case that the United States has no interest in providing a forum for the seven families who lost their loved ones and the more than 40 Fitzgerald sailors who suffer debilitating physical and psychological injuries, all in the name of serving their country," he told Stars and Stripes

 

[TomCat]

Repaired USS Fitzgerald Sets Sail Three Years After Deadly Collision off Japan
15 Jun 2020

View attachment 13746
The guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62) departs Huntington Ingalls Shipbuilding's Pascagoula shipyard to conduct comprehensive at-sea testing, marking a significant step in the ship's return to warfighting readiness. (U.S. Navy photo)

The USS Fitzgerald is on its way to San Diego, where it will rejoin the Pacific Fleet after spending more than two years undergoing extensive collision repairs and equipment upgrades in Mississippi.

Seven sailors were killed when the guided-missile destroyer collided with a commercial container vessel, the Philippine-flagged ACX Crystal, off Japan's coast on June 17, 2017.

On Saturday, the warship departed the Ingalls Shipbuilding facility in Pascagoula, Mississippi, for its new homeport at Naval Base San Diego, a Navy statement said. It had been assigned to the 7th Fleet at Yokosuka Naval Base, Japan, at the time of the accident.

"Today the 'Fighting Fitz' is returning to the Pacific Fleet as one of our nation's most capable warfighting platforms, marking a significant step in her return to warfighting readiness," Rear Adm. Eric Ver Hage, the Navy's surface ship maintenance and modernization commander, said in the statement.

The repairs and modernizations ended up costing the Navy $523 million, USNI News reported Saturday. The work was originally expected to top out at $368 million and take two years instead of two and a half.

In February, the Fitzgerald went to sea for a trial run and to evaluate its navigation, damage control, combat and propulsion systems. Once in San Diego, it will begin crew training and certifications required for it to officially restart patrols.

Blame for the collision fell on the commanding officer at the time, Cmdr. Bryce Benson, and Lt. Natalie Combs, a tactical action officer, who were initially charged with negligent dereliction of duty resulting in death and negligent hazarding of a vessel. The charges were dropped last year and the two were instead censured by the Navy. Benson retired in December; a Navy panel in January ruled Combs could do the same.

Two months after the Fitzgerald incident, the guided-missile destroyer USS John S. McCain, also based at Yokosuka, collided near Singapore with a commercial tanker, the Alnic MC, killing 10 sailors. The McCain underwent extensive repairs and is back in service.

A Navy report in late 2017 cited crew exhaustion, skipped certifications, poor watch-standing and training and manning problems among the causes of the collision, which the report concluded was preventable.

The Fitzgerald returns to sea about a week after a federal judge dismissed two lawsuits brought by survivors and sailors' families seeking more than $287 million from the ship company that chartered the ACX Crystal.

The suits, filed in the U.S. District Court of Eastern Louisiana, said the sailors endured mental anguish, lost wages, pain and suffering and "pre-death fright."

U.S. District Judge Lance Africk in New Orleans granted NYK Line's motion to dismiss, saying U.S. courts have no jurisdiction over the cases. The company "cannot be deemed 'at home' in every country in which it operates," according to the ruling. NYK Line maintains less than 6 percent of its employees and generates less than 10% of its revenue in the U.S., Africk wrote.

The plaintiffs' attorney, David Schloss, plans to appeal the decision.
"It simply cannot be the case that the United States has no interest in providing a forum for the seven families who lost their loved ones and the more than 40 Fitzgerald sailors who suffer debilitating physical and psychological injuries, all in the name of serving their country," he told Stars and Stripes

View attachment 13745
View attachment 13747
View attachment 13750
View attachment 13749
View attachment 13748

“Pre death fright”,
Lol, Cowards really,

They fail to understand the concept of Fight and die for the country, When you submit yourself to the cause of country, Inner Iman governs you and most probably even though fear increases at peak moments of danger, You have an opposing force of “Iman” which dictates you that the life is temporary anyways...

 

[Khafee]

U.S. Air Force F-15 crashes off Britain; pilot missing
June 15, 2020

A USAF F-15E Strike Eagle assigned to the 492nd Fighter Squadron flies over Royal Air Force Lakenheath, Britain. A U.S. pilot based at the station crashed on Monday during training in an F-15C, officials said. File Photo by U.S. Air Force/Tech. Sgt. Matthew Plew/UPI

June 15 (UPI) -- A U.S. Air Force F-15 fighter jet crashed into the North Sea off the coast of Britain on Monday and the condition of the pilot is unknown.

The USAF 48th Fighter Wing, based at the RAF Lakenheath station, said in a statement the F-15C Eagle crashed during a training mission early Monday morning. Though some F-15s can carry two pilots, military officials said the "C" variant involved in Monday's crash carried just one.
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"The cause of the crash as well as the status of the pilot are unknown at this time, and U.K. Search and Rescue have been called to support," it said.

Rescue teams from the British Maritime & Coastguard Agency were sent to the crash site in the North Sea, about 85 miles off Flamborough Head in Yorkshire.

"Our helicopter from Humberside has been sent along with Bridlington and Scarborough [Royal National Lifeboat Institution] lifeboats," HM Coastguard tweeted.

Other vessels nearby aided in the search after HM Coastguard issued a mayday call.

"The cause of the crash is unknown and the pilot is still missing," Col. Will Marshall, commander of 48th Fighter Wing, said. "We remain hopeful he will be located and thank the U.K. search and rescue agencies for their timely response."