KINGS BAY, Ga. -- Vice Adm. Charles Munns, Commander, Naval Submarine Forces, spoke to a capacity crowd of Kings Bay officers Aug. 19 at the Trident Training Facility auditorium.

Munns briefed the group on current and future Submarine Force issues and exhorted them to know their “purpose and product” as submariners so they can help others understand the value of the submarine force to national security.

"We can go places other people can't,” said Munns. “We have the access, the stealth, the payload and the ability to capture knowledge and information without being detected. The knowledge and information we capture makes us a vital piece in this nation’s defense.”

Munns also spoke about the critical role Kings Bay has always played in accomplishing the SSBN mission. He spoke about how SSBNS helped win the cold war and would continue today on their silent patrols to preserve the peace as the most survivable form of deterrence and if necessary, to win the war.

2005 was a busy year for the submarine force, with more than half of the force involved in global deployments. United States submarines partnered with forces from nearly 30 countries in exercises including Pacific Reach, Operation Active Endeavor, Exercise Sorbet Royal and the Diesel Electric Submarine Initiative.

Submariner helps the 101^st in Iraq

By COMSUBPAC Public Affairs, 23 January 2006

PEARL HARBOR, HI--Soldiers with the 101st Airborne Division will be a little safer in Iraq thanks to some help from a Hawaii-based submariner.

CMDCM(SS) Christopher Shannon, command master chief for Submarine Squadron Seven, is spearheading an effort to send extra Navy flash hoods to soldiers in Iraq. The hoods, which are designed to protect the neck and face from burns while fighting fires aboard Navy ships, have been shown to protect against burns during attacks by Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs). Some Army units in Iraq are seeking the hoods to protect their soldiers.

Shannon heard about the need for Navy flash hoods from Chief Petty Officer Eric Tyler of Naval Security Group Activity Kunia, whose brother is stationed in Iraq with the 101st Airborne Division, 3rd Brigade. Shannon pulsed the waterfront to request any extra sets. The result was about 100 sets borrowed from USS Cheyenne (SSN 773), USS Louisville (SSN 724), USS Pasadena (SSN 752) and USS Tucson (SSN 770). Since they were extras, their being loaned will not take away from the ships' ability to protect their own crews.

The flash hoods should arrive in Iraq with several days.

Captain Barry Bruner, Commodore of Submarine Squadron Seven, lauded Shannon for his efforts in helping to protect soldiers in Iraq. "COB Shannon is the kind of guy who would do anything for those that are on the pointy end of the spear,” he said.

Draft Quadrennial Defense Review Report Focuses on 'Long War,' New Capabilities

By Jason Sherman, Inside Defense, 23 Jan 06

Jan. 22, 2006 -- The Defense Department's new blueprint for the U.S. armed forces calls for modest changes to both conventional and strategic forces, a range of new capabilities to deal with terrorist networks as well as potential major adversaries like China, and a host of reforms to the defense bureaucracy that could significantly alter how the Pentagon acquires new weapon systems, according to a draft of the 2005 Quadrennial Defense Review obtained by InsideDefense.com.

To improve proficiency against terrorist networks in what it repeatedly calls “the long war,” the 128-page document, dated Jan. 18, calls for expanding the ranks of Special Forces by 15 percent and boosting the number of psychological operations and civil affairs units in the armed forces by one third. A dedicated Air Force unmanned aerial vehicle squadron will also be established and assigned to U.S. Special Operations Command, according to the report.

These actions are part of what the draft report calls a “vanguard” set of recommendations from the 2005 QDR that are funded in the Pentagon’s fiscal year 2007 spending request, which will be delivered next month to Congress along with copies of the QDR report. Required by law to be conducted every four years, the QDR is designed to anticipate the needs of the armed forces for the next two decades and provide a guide to near-term decisions about the size, shape and capabilities of the U.S. military.

While the QDR report includes a number of decisions with near-term budget implications, it is designed to set the framework for deliberations within the Pentagon in the coming months that will influence the fiscal year 2008 to 2013 spending plan. The report, the first to be conducted while the nation is at war and the second conducted by Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, outlines a new force planning construct that underscores the significance of the U.S. military commitment in Iraq and Afghanistan.

“For the foreseeable future, steady state operations, including operations as part of a long war against terrorist networks, and the associated rotation base and sustainment requirements, will be the main determinant for sizing U.S. forces,” states the strategy.

Still, the QDR calls for the Defense Department to prepare to deal with long-term challenges of facing a near-peer military competitor, such as China. The report calls for developing a wider range of conventional and non-kinetic deterrent options for deterring nations with significant conventional armed forces.

The QDR also calls for two major program actions to deal with challenges in the Asia-Pacific region: The Navy is to double its attack submarine procurement rates -- from one boat a year to two -- in 2012; and the Air Force is to accelerate by nearly two decades its plans to build a new long-range bomber, fielding a new aircraft class in 2018, as InsideDefense.com first reported Jan. 12. Some officials wonder whether either service will be in a position to afford such new starts given the existing portfolio of ships and aircraft both maintain.

The review, as reported in recent weeks, leaves intact all of the military services’ most prized weapon system programs. In fact, some programs will see significant increases: The Pentagon plans to buy enough additional Global Hawk and Predator unmanned aerial vehicles to nearly double today’s capacity, according to the draft QDR report.

Many involved in the review believed at the outset that the QDR might call for a resource shift between the departments -- specifically from the Air Force and Navy to the Army -- that did not materialize.

The Air Force, which set as its highest goal for the QDR the protection of the F-22A fighter, managed to extend production two years beyond 2008, which means it can work to win support from the next presidential administration or Congress to keep the stealthy fighter aircraft production line going beyond the planned 183-aircraft buy.

Similarly, the Navy in late November was granted permission to move ahead with its next-generation DD(X) destroyer program, which will consume a big chunk of the service’s shipbuilding account as the QDR-directed enhanced submarine procurement is set to kick in.

“What they’ve done, in effect, is say, ‘Yeah, Rummy, we’ll make all these promises. Of course, you’re not going to be around to hold us to them. In the meantime, we will sustain our programs and build program momentum with Congress and industry,’” said a source familiar with the QDR findings.

As for the Army, the QDR confirms the service has protected its top priority, the Future Combat Systems program, which the draft report says will be incorporated into the modular Army “through a spiral development effort that will introduce new technologies as they are developed.”

The QDR also lays out in broad terms what that modular Army will look like, with modular brigades -- including its new brigade combat teams -- “in all three Army components: 117 in the Regular Army (12 BCTs and 75 support brigades); 106 in the Army National Guard (28 BCTs and 78 support brigades); and 58 support brigades in the U.S. Army Reserve,” the report states. “This equates to a 16 percent increase in readily available combat power and a better balance between combat and support forces.

The QDR also leaves intact the Marine Corps’ top priorities, including the V-22 Osprey and its Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle.

Rumsfeld directed the 10-month review to explore what new capabilities the military needs to effectively deal with a wider set of challenges than major wars against conventional adversaries. Among these challenges, the QDR examined what new capabilities the United States requires to defend the homeland and prevent hostile states and terrorists from acquiring or using weapons of mass destruction.

The QDR calls for the creation of a new expeditionary headquarters element, led by a three-star officer, to oversee units trained to hunt down and render safe nuclear weapons that have fallen into the hands of terrorists.

The draft report also outlines a single new initiative for defending the homeland -- a $1.5 billion effort to improve defense against biological weapons. However, the Pentagon over the last year has taken numerous steps to detail its new homeland defense plans, including issuing a new strategy and working with other executive agencies to develop a maritime defense strategy.

Key QDR conclusions previously reported by InsideDefense.com include a move to give combatant commanders a more central role in determining budget and policy priorities.

“The 2005 QDR provides new direction for accelerating the transformation of the department to focus more on the needs of combatant commanders and to develop portfolios of joint capabilities rather than individual stove-piped programs,” states the report.

Giving combatant commander a central role in determining what new weapon system programs to develop and procure “should reduce unnecessary program redundancy, improve joint interoperability and streamline acquisition and budgeting processes,” the draft states.

The QDR report also calls from a number of changes to conventional and strategic forces, including:

· Expanding the Air Force Joint Tactical Air Control program by jointly training personnel for air/ground operations and use of UAVs.

· Stabilizing the Army’s end strength at 482,400 active-duty troops and 533,000 reserve component personnel by FY-11.

· Stabilizing the Marine Corps’ end strength at 175,000 active-duty Marines and 39,000 reserve component personnel by FY-11.

· Reducing the B-52 force to 56 aircraft and use savings to fully modernize B-52s, B-1s, and B-2s to support global strike operations.

· Restructuring the Joint Unmanned Combat Air System (J-UCAS) program and develop an unmanned longer-range carrier-based aircraft capable of being air-refueled to provide greater standoff capability, to expand payload and launch options, and to increase naval reach and persistence.

· Organizing the Air Force “around 86 combat wings (e.g., fighter, bomber, ISR/Battle Management/Command and Control, mobility, Air Operations Centers, Battlefield Airmen, other missions, and Space/missile) with emphasis on leveraging reach-back to minimize forward footprints and expedite force deployments, while reducing Air Force end strength by approximately 40,000 full-time equivalent personnel with balanced cuts across the total force,” states the draft report.

· Fully funding the E-10A technology demonstrator while canceling procurement plans.

· Building a larger naval fleet that includes 11 carrier strike groups, balance the need to transform and recapitalize the fleet, improve affordability, and provide stability for the shipbuilding industry.

· Accelerating procurement of Littoral Combat Ships to provide power projection capabilities in littoral waters.

· Procuring the first eight ships of the Maritime Pre-Position Force (Future) to improve the Department's ability to operate in restricted access environments.

· Providing a Navy riverine capability for river patrol, interdiction, and tactical troop movement on inland waterways.

· Building partner capacity to improve global maritime security by reinvigorating the Navy Foreign Area Officer program and procuring Disaster Relief Command and Control fly-away communication support capabilities.

· Returning to a steady-state production rate of two attack submarines per year not later than 2012 while achieving an average per-hull procurement cost objective of $2.0 billion.

· Developing conventional warheads using long-range Trident Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missiles.

· Reducing the number of deployed Minuteman III ballistic missiles from 500 to 450 beginning in FY-07.

· Retiring four E-4B National Airborne Operations Center (NAOC) aircraft and accelerate procurement of two C-32 aircraft with state-of-the-art mission suites as replacement aircraft.

· Upgrading E-6B TACAMO command and control aircraft to sustain a survivable airborne link to strategic nuclear forces and provide an airborne cellular base station for domestic catastrophic events.

· Retiring the U.S. Strategic Command Mobile Consolidated Command Center in FY-07, while finding a new distributed ground-based communications system to provide survivable and enduring command and control for nuclear forces starting in FY-07.

· Strengthening coordination of defensive and offensive cyber missions across the Defense Department.

· Improving the Defense Department’s information sharing with other agencies and with international allies and partners by developing information protection policies and exploiting the latest commercial technologies.

· Expanding the Army's 20th Support Command capabilities to enable it to serve as a Joint Task Force capable of rapid deployment to command and control WMD elimination and site exploitation missions by 2007.

· Expanding the number of U.S. forces with advanced technical render-safe skills and increase their speed of response. The Department will develop further recommendations to improve render-safe capabilities for the FY-08 budget.

· Improving and expand U.S. forces' capabilities to locate, track, and tag shipments of WMD, missiles, and related materials, including the transportation means used to move such items.

The draft QDR contains a number of references to comments made by senior officials including the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, indicating its language still needed slight tweaking as of Jan. 18.

Secrets Of The Quadrennial Review - Revealed!

Loren B. Thompson, Ph.D., Lexington Institute, 23 Jan 06

The cat, as they say, is out of the bag. In a front-page story today, Defense News reveals virtually every interesting fact about the Quadrennial Defense Review report headed for Capitol Hill in February that wasn't already reported in recent weeks by Bloomberg Business News. In a remarkable series of scoops, Bloomberg reporter Tony Capaccio disclosed plans to eliminate seven Army combat brigades, increase funding for special-operations forces, extend the production line of the F-22 fighter, and equip Trident ballistic missiles with conventional warheads. Defense News confirms much of what Bloomberg reported while providing a host of additional information. For example...

· The Navy plans to shift aircraft carriers and submarines from the Atlantic to the Pacific while increasing funding for coastal and riverine combat capabilities.

· The Air Force plans to greatly increase its long-range, penetrating strike capability while rapidly ramping up use of the Global Hawk and Predator reconnaissance drones.

· The U.S. Special Operations Command wants a big increase in funding to cover expanded psychological warfare, civil affairs and littoral reconnaissance/strike activities.

More generally, Defense News says that the QDR report favors a shift in focus from conventional to non-traditional forms of warfighting, coupled with an increasingly "preventative" rather than reactive use of intelligence resources. These changes were foreshadowed in a "threat matrix" distributed last year to guide QDR deliberations that suggested conventional military threats are waning while irregular, catastrophic and disruptive dangers are growing.

Subsequent coverage of QDR in the national media will probably follow the lead of Bloomberg and Defense News in focusing on what's new about the administration's proposed defense posture. That's reasonable enough, but it has the effect of exaggerating how much change the quadrennial review portends. After a year of wrangling over future military requirements, QDR participants decided not to cancel any signature weapons programs, not to eliminate any major redundancies among the services, and not to initiate any big new investment initiatives.

So despite the bold rhetoric about change, the 2005 QDR ends up being a status-quo document -- a fact that will be readily apparent to anyone who scrutinizes the 2007 defense spending request that accompanies the QDR report to Capitol Hill. Moreover, there are several decisions coming out of the QDR that are hard to square with what the Pentagon says about future challenges. For example, if the global war on terror really is a "long war" as the QDR report contends, why is the administration eliminating brigades from an overextended Army? And if mobility is so critical to military success, why is it proposing to shut down both the C-130J and C-17 lines -- the only airlifters in production?

Maybe it doesn't matter -- Rumsfeld will be gone soon, and Capitol Hill has ceased caring what he wants anyway. Congress will probably add money for the lost brigades and airlifters, just as it will reject other bad proposals like the idea of creating a monopoly for fighter engines. But with the clock ticking down on Donald Rumsfeld's tenure, it's a little hard to say what he has achieved in the way of a lasting, positive legacy.

Navy renews plan to cut carrier fleet, documents show

As the military tries to reshape itself, the fight over aircraft carriers could affect the local economy.

By Davis Lerman, Daily Press, 24 Jan 06

NATION: DEFENSE -- A draft Pentagon blueprint renews a plan to shrink the Navy's fleet of aircraft carriers, barely a month after Congress blocked the move.

Excerpts of the draft Quadrennial Defense Review, conducted every four years to guide military strategy, call for a fleet of 11 aircraft carriers - or one fewer than exist today.

The Navy pushed hard last year to reduce the fleet by mothballing the USS John F. Kennedy, based in Mayport, Fla. But Congress saved the carrier last month by mandating a 12-carrier fleet in the final version of a defense authorization bill.

Hampton Roads is now home to five aircraft carriers - each of which sustains thousands of jobs for the region's economy.

The Norfolk-based USS George Washington is slated to move to Japan to replace the retiring USS Kitty Hawk in 2008. Whether Norfolk gets a replacement for the Washington could depend on whether the Kennedy - Florida's only carrier - is mothballed.

The Pentagon document describes the proposed reduction as part of a strategy that would allow the Navy to build a larger overall fleet, make ships more affordable, and provide long-sought stability to the beleaguered shipbuilding industry.

Although the final draft of the review won't be released until early February, draft excerpts were circulating on Capitol Hill and posted on a defense trade publication's Web site Monday.

Among other things, the report also calls for extending production of the Air Force's F-22A Raptor fighter plane through 2010-or two years longer than currently planned. And it calls for doubling procurement of submarines-from one per year to two-by 2012 and reducing costs to $2 billion per sub. The Navy has long sought to increase submarine production and cut costs, only to see costs soar and production plans postponed.

The release of the defense review next month seems sure to trigger a fresh battle over the fate of the Kennedy.

The report also renews a Navy goal, voiced occasionally in recent years, to place a greater emphasis on threats in the Pacific. That talk has spurred local concerns that some Atlantic ships could be relocated westward.

"The fleet will have greater presence in the Pacific Ocean, consistent with the global shift of trade and transport," the draft report said. "Accordingly, the Navy plans to adjust its force posture and basing to provide at least six operationally available and sustainable carriers and 60 percent of its submarines in the Pacific to support engagement, presence, and deterrence."

For the Air Force, the review envisions cutting about 40,000 positions from across the service to help create a lighter but more nimble force. But the report contained more upbeat news on the Raptor, an expensive new warplane once considered a likely target of budget cuts.

Just a year ago, the Pentagon decided to end production of the plane - now flown at Langley Air Force Base - in 2008. That move, aimed at saving $10.5 billion, would produce 179 planes instead of the Air Force's stated requirement of 381. Extending production until 2010 would presumably allow the Air Force to buy more planes, though the excerpted draft offered no specifics.

U.S. Navy Secretary Tours New England Facilities

By Christopher, P. Cavas, Defense News, 23 Jan 06

New U.S. Navy Secretary Donald Winter made a two-day trip Jan. 19-20 to see first-hand Navy and industrial base facilities in the New England region.

His schedule included the General Dynamics Electric Boat shipyard and New London submarine base, both in Groton, Conn., and in Maine, the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard in Kittery, Naval Air Station Brunswick and the General Dynamics Bath Iron Works shipyard in Bath.

One of the aims of the visit was to give Winter a chance to “see the synergy” between the New London base and submarine-builder Electric Boat, said Winter’s spokeswoman, Capt. Beci Brenton.

New England fought back a Navy effort last year to close the New London submarine base and the Portsmouth shipyard. After a series of hearings, the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) Commission recommended keeping open the facilities, arguing they were key to the Navy’s infrastructure.

But the BRAC commission voted to close the Brunswick air station, overturning the Navy’s recommendation to downsize but keep open the base, which primarily supports P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft.

A key element of the decision to keep open the submarine base was its proximity to Electric Boat’s shipyard. Ironically, Electric Boat last month announced it would begin laying off up to 2,400 employees, due in part to more submarine overhaul work being done by the four naval shipyards. Unlike the other Navy shipyards, Portsmouth only works on submarines.

Winter was sworn into office Jan. 3, replacing Gordon England, who became deputy defense secretary.

“He really wants to go and look and listen and learn,” Brenton said. “We’ll be doing a lot of these familiarization visits. As we can work them into the schedule, we’ll do them.”

Navy, Shipyards Seek Stability After Storms, Budget Cuts

By Rebecca Christie, Dow Jones Newswires, January 23, 2006

WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Navy and its two major shipbuilders are hoping for stability in coming years, after 2005 hurricanes and budget cuts wreaked havoc on prior plans.

The Navy has settled on a 313-ship fleet target over the next several decades, according to draft documents circulating on Capitol Hill. Last year, the service sketched out plans for a fleet as small as 260 ships, with as few as 10 aircraft carriers, while also offering a 325-vessel version.

In its latest evolution, the plan acknowledges that the Navy will not be able to replace its destroyers, submarines and other fighting vessels as quickly as it once wanted. Shipbuilding costs have skyrocketed, despite an industry consolidation intended to save money.

As a result, the Navy can afford even fewer of the next-generation vessels. The Navy is slated to build only four ships in 2006, and last year's budget made deep cuts in many shipbuilding programs.

Northrop Grumman Corp. (NOC) and General Dynamics Corp. (GD) run all six of the major U.S. shipyards. Congress has mandated that the Navy use all six yards, even when Pentagon planners have sought further contraction. This has put increasing pressure on shipbuilders to get the most out of their workers and suppliers.

"We've got to figure out how to produce those ships affordably," said Mike Toner, General Dynamics' executive vice president for marine systems, in a telephone interview.

Adm. Mike Mullen, the service's new chief of naval operations, has pledged to stabilize the fleet while also taking new strategic needs into account. The new plan acknowledges the Navy's role in homeland security and the war on terrorism, as well as its limited budget for replacing key assets.

Submarines are a key challenge. The Navy's plan offers a few scenarios for its Virginia-class subs, which cost well above $2 billion each. Contractors say the costs won't come down until the Pentagon can buy two a year, but the Navy doesn't think it can afford more than one annual purchase until 2010 or 2012.

The new plan also calls for buying only seven DD(X) destroyers, the vanguard of future U.S. surface warships. The Navy had hoped to use the new destroyers as a springboard to missile cruisers and follow-on projects, but now the entire line is threatened.

"Destroyers are the workhorses of the surface Navy," says a draft of the new shipbuilding plan obtained by Dow Jones Newswires. "Unless significant cost reduction can be achieved, the Navy will be short on these critical assets after fiscal year 2026."

Defense analyst Loren Thompson said the new cruisers, dubbed CG(X), may never be built. He predicted that the Navy will ultimately need to buy more versatile ships than a traditional missile defense cruiser can provide.

Others say the budget may limit the Navy's choices. The Congressional Budget Office estimates the Navy's plan will have average yearly construction costs of $18.3 billion, far higher than the $14.4 billion the Navy expects.

Congressional Research Service analyst Ronald O'Rourke says the Navy's plan has very little wiggle room. "Things don't always work out the way you hope, and unforeseen budget shocks do occur," O'Rourke said at an industry convention this month.

"If that happens, this new shipbuilding plan will come under pressure, and the planned DD(X)/CG(X) rate may very well melt down," he said.

The shipbuilders say funding stability is even more important than overall numbers in planning for the future. A Navy spokesman declined to comment, citing ongoing budget discussions and policy reviews.

Both Shipbuilders Face Recovery Costs After Storms

In addition to last year's bracing budget cuts, both shipbuilders were hit with devastating storms. Gulf Coast-based Northrop Grumman still has thousands of employees living in temporary trailers, while the General Dynamics yards in New England and California took hits to their supply chain and teaming relationships.

Northrop Grumman's shipyards are in Virginia, Louisiana and Mississippi. Its Gulf Coast yards were at the center of Hurricane Katrina's path, and its current work force is 2,000 employees smaller than before the storm.

The 11 ships under construction at the Gulf Coast shipyards survived relatively unscathed, said George Yount, Northrop Grumman Ship Systems vice president for ship construction. But getting the work force back to even 80% levels has been a huge challenge.

"The hard part in this area is still housing for people and families to live in," Yount said. "There's probably 100,00 homes destroyed in the area, and lots of areas that are not electrified yet to let people come in."

The company provided temporary housing for its employees, but not for their families. Some New Orleans-area households have found trailers or other temporary lodging; families in Pascagoula, Miss., have been living on a cruise ship.

The Navy has made shipbuilding a top priority in the recovery efforts. When the White House proposed its hurricane-related emergency spending bill, it included $2 billion to replace building materials and minimize delays.

These funds are separate from Northrop Grumman's insurance claims and don't affect privately owned facilities. The Navy said the funds would only be used for "legitimate costs to the government for replacing material, restoring the shipyards, and re-employing the work force."

Before the storm, Northrop Grumman was expecting to lay off about 680 workers because of reduced demand. Since the storm, it's hired nearly 1,000 new employees as it strives to get back on track. It also has handed over a new amphibious ship and a new DDG destroyer to the Navy, while making progress on other projects.

"Frankly, we're probably a little bit amazed at where we are, compared to what everything looked like immediately after the storm," Yount said.

Lieberman: Navy chief may help EB

By Ray Hackett, Norwich Bulletin, 24 Jan 06

GROTON -- John Worobey, president of the Marine Draftsmen's Association, told U.S. Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn., Monday the mood at Electric Boat was like "waiting for the other shoe to fall."

Workers are bracing for layoffs of between 1,800 to 2,400 workers this year.

But EB President John Casey said Monday the submarine builder has submitted bids for maintenance work on the USS Miami and USS Toledo that could result in a delay of the projected layoffs this year.

"In the next couple of weeks it might be appropriate to update the situation," he said.

An estimated 150 draftsmen and designers are scheduled to be laid off in the first wave of job cuts at the Groton shipyard. The company's workforce of 12,000 people is projected to be cut in half by 2008.

Worobey declined comment when asked if the union received official notification of the layoffs, saying he had to first talk to union members.

By union contract, the submarine manufacturer must notify the unions of layoffs five days prior to notifying individual workers.

Lieberman visited the shipyard Monday as a show of support that the Congressional delegation is working to bring more business to EB in an effort to save jobs.

Lieberman said he was optimistic some of the planned layoffs might be avoided based on the visit last week of newly sworn-in Secretary of the Navy Donald Winter.

"I think he genuinely has an open mind, and we're hopeful that we can make him into a real advocate," Lieberman said.

Worobey and Metal Trades Council President Ken De La Cruz said Lieberman's visit was important because of his long-held support for the shipyard workers.

"He's always been a friend and advocate, and it's great to have him in our corner," Del La Cruz said.

Because no design plans exist for the next generation of submarines, the first wave of layoffs will primarily affect draftsmen and designers.

But the next round of layoffs will affect employees company-wide if no new maintenance contracts are signed and the current plan to build one submarine a year through 2012 remains firm.

"It's critical we get to (building) two subs a year," Lieberman said. "This is not a question of national priority. It's absolutely a financial question. Are we willing to pay for it?"

USS Norfolk Sailors Visit Bahrain

By Photographer's Mater 2nd Class (AW/SW) Carolla Bennett

MANAMA, Bahrain – USS Norfolk (SSN 714) made it's first ever port visit to Manama, Bahrain Jan. 16, for a weeklong interlude docking for crew liberty and mid-deployment maintenance.

The port visit marked the midpoint of Norfolk's six-month deployment as a member of USS Nassau (LHA 4) Expeditionary Strike Group 8, in support of maritime security operations (MSO) in the Arabian Gulf.

MSO set the conditions for security and stability in the maritime environment as well as complement the counter-terrorism and security efforts of regional nations. MSO also deny international terrorists use of the maritime environment as a venue for attack or to transport personnel, weapons or other material.

Cmdr. Scott Adams, commanding officer of the Los-Angeles class attack submarine, said Norfolk had been tasked with several missions this deployment.

“We have the multi-mission capability to conduct intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance type activities, whether undersea or on the surface, to provide information to the commander of the strike group,” Adams said. “We can also conduct operations that would involve supporting the surface ships' role for maritime security operations.”

Lt. Cmdr. Thomas Buccanan, Norfolk's executive officer, confirmed that the submarine's schedule had been hectic this deployment.

“Despite the stressful nature of our operations, and the fact that the Sailors were separated from their families over the holidays, the morale of the crew was fantastic and the port visit to Bahrain is a well deserved break,” he said.

USS Norfolk's wives group contributed significantly to crew morale as well. Along with all the personal mail, the wives group had sent several boxes containing care packages and holiday goodies for the crew.

Chief Torpedoman's Mate Edwin Nixson, from Miami, Fla., said despite missing the holiday celebration at home during the season, he recognized the importance of the Norfolk's mission.

“My strategy for missing the holiday is simple. I celebrated Christmas with my family prior to our departure from Norfolk, and while forward-deployed, I celebrated Christmas with my sea-going family,” said Nixson.

Machinist's Mate 2nd Class Robert Boon, a native of Mountain Lake, Minn., agreed,

“The deployment is long and being away from family is hard, but overall I feel that this deployment is very important and we need to be here,” he said.

“Being away from home is tough and we get lonely,” agreed Chief of the Boat, Master Chief Machinist Mate Roger Meffley from Elton, Md. “But with all the challenges and activities for the crew, we keep each other motivated, because the mission we are doing out here is an important one.”

Gliders: Under the Sea…

Small and autonomous, new underwater vehicles will enable the Navy to forecast ocean conditions, help pinpoint quiet diesel subs

By OTTO KREISHER, Special Correspondent

In the search for greater capabilities to counter the growing threat of quiet diesel submarines in littoral waters, the Navy is exploiting technology developed in concert with the nation’s leading oceanographic research institutions with financial support from the Office of Naval Research (ONR).

This potential antisubmarine tool is a relatively low-cost, long-endurance sensor capable of providing valuable data on water conditions such as temperature, salinity, pressure and turbidity, over large stretches of ocean.

The devices, called gliders, are small, autonomous underwater vehicles that look like short torpedoes with wings and tails. The current models have no external propulsion and very few moving parts. As a result, they are able to operate on battery power for extended periods to survey thousands of miles of ocean and report the data they collect.

Navy officials recognize that knowledge of those ocean conditions can allow more accurate predictions of the effectiveness of sonar and other antisubmarine sensors. That information also could be helpful in countering sea mines and in forecasting the operating environment for SEALs or amphibious raiders, the experts said.

In the future, the gliders also could become part of mobile sensor networks able to detect and accurately locate submarines in shallow, noisy littoral waters.

The idea for these undersea explorers was conceived about 15 years ago at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, Mass. The concept has been developed and tested by that institution, the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego, the University of Washington and Webb Research of Falmouth, Mass.

Recognizing the potential value of these sensors for the Navy, ONR has supported the effort from the start and is continuing to fund advanced research.

Navy personnel tested all three of the current models of gliders and used them in exercises, including RimPac 04, a warfare exercise conducted in July 2004 in Hawaiian waters by ships of seven nations, including Australia, South Korea, Chile and the United States.

Although usually launched from surface vessels, a glider was successfully launched Nov. 14, 2005, with the help of Navy divers, from a dry deck shelter on the attack submarine USS Buffalo near Hawaii. Lt. Cmdr. Patrick Cross, force oceanographer at Submarine Force Pacific, said another test is expected in the near future in which a submarine deploys and recovers a glider.

The gliders all work basically the same way, Cross said. They are made to be nearly neutrally buoyant and are propelled by making changes to their buoyancy by moving small amounts of fluid into or out of their hull.

Moving the fluid internally is enough to make a 6-foot-long glider negatively buoyant, which causes it to sink slowly. Its 4-foot wings then develop lift, pushing the vehicle forward. When a glider reaches its prescribed depth — currently about 3,300 feet maximum — it expels the fluid to become positively buoyant and climbs back to the surface.

The current models advance on a preset course quite slowly, about 12 nautical miles a day. During the glider’s up-and-down voyage, sensors onboard record information about ocean conditions that is transmitted by Iridium satellite links when the vehicle reaches the surface.

For the Navy, the information goes into the Modular Ocean Data Assimilation System, run by the Naval Oceanography Office, which is available to submariners and antisubmarine warfare (ASW) forces.

While on the surface, the glider also can check its position with the Global Positioning System and get instruction on where to go next. Because it uses very little electrical power, the glider can run for weeks or months, depending on the type of batteries it carries, Cross said.

The gliders provide a capability long sought by the scientific oceanographic community and the Navy: A cheap means to spend a lot of time collecting a lot of data about the oceans, Cross said.

“In oceanography, one of the things we suffer from is not enough data on what the ocean is actually doing. These things provide a great source of just persistent data,” he said. “That’s sort of the goal, to be able to predict the ocean the way we predict the atmosphere.”

A glider developed by Scripps, called Spray, became the first autonomous underwater vehicle to cross the Gulf Stream underwater.

Dr. Russ Davis, a Scripps oceanographer, said the gliders will be used together with widely spaced hydrographic sensors, called floats, in an international experiment to keep track of ocean conditions all over the globe. The gliders would span the gaps between the floats and help provide vital details on changes in currents, temperature and other ocean conditions. The advantage of the gliders, he said, is that “they can be out there for a long period of time at relatively low cost, making measurements that wouldn’t be made otherwise.”

For the Navy, Cross added, “if we understand the ocean well, we understand how acoustic energy propagates through the ocean,” which is vital for ASW operations.

Thomas Swean, program manager for ocean engineering and marine systems at ONR, said the evidence is clear that military operations depending on underwater sensors are much more efficient if the environment in which they will work is known. That kind of information is increasingly important with the growing focus on quieter diesel-electric subs in the near-shore waters.

“One of the things that we’re concerned about, because of the technological advancements over the last 20 years, [is that] potentially hostile forces have very quiet submarines,” Swean said.

“Where, at one time, the U.S. Navy could feel fairly confident that it knew where most of the strategic submarines were, through our sensor systems, we no longer have that confidence, especially with diesel submarines in littoral areas,” he said.

The gliders can help improve that situation and are much cheaper to operate for extended periods than other hydrographic sensors, Swean said.

He said the Navy also plans to use gliders as part of a distributed network of persistent sensors that could be deployed over large areas of littoral waters as “sentries” to detect the presence of submarines. The next step is to develop technology that would make them able to positively identify a sub and track it well enough to allow an attack if necessary.

“That is pretty much the challenge. But the glider technology is playing a huge role in developing and proving a concept to be able to do that,” Swean said.

Although gliders still are in research and development, the Naval Oceanographer’s office plans to buy some and has requested proposals from the contractors, a spokesman said.

Meanwhile, ONR is supporting Scripps and University of Washington in developing a more capable glider that will be tested this year, Swean said.

This glider, called Liberdade, is shaped like a flying wing with a 20-foot wingspan. It can carry a considerable sensor payload, including hydrophone arrays that could detect and locate acoustic sources in the ocean, he said. It also could have magnetic anomaly detectors, which also can find submarines.

Because of its size and shape, Liberdade is much faster than the current gliders, with a cruise speed of 3 to 5 knots and a “burst speed” of more than 10 knots, he said.

Submersible Stands Test of Time

“Father of the submarine” recalled

By Dick Perrefort, The Connecticut Post, 23 Jan 06

MILFORD - The barnacle-encrusted submersible that lies at the bottom of the city's harbor may seem like a forgotten piece of sea wreckage left to the ravages of time and nature.

But to those who know better, the century-old vessel is a fascinating relic from the city's past, one that opens a portal into the life of city native and inventor Simon Lake, a pioneer in the field of submarine technology and underwater exploration.

"Simon Lake is the true father of the modern submarine," said Jeff Lake, one of the famed inventor's descendants. "There were a lot of people at the time who had the right ingredients for a submarine, but Simon Lake had the right recipe. He was the only one to receive a telegram from Jules Verne in 1898 congratulating him on making his dream become a reality."

While some mistakenly believe the submersible in the city's harbor is an early submarine, it is actually a chamber that would be lowered to the ocean floor by a boom on a ship. People could walk to the chamber through a 200-foot-long tube with a staircase that was connected to the structure.

"People called it Simon Lake's stairway to the sea," Lake said. "The chamber was used to do salvage work on the ocean floor and explore sunken wrecks. He would also use the chamber to harvest oysters and clams."

One of three such chambers built by Lake was used by England in 1907 to salvage the Lutine, a treasure-filled ship that sank in the Zuider Zee, a former arm of the North Sea that was later shut off by dikes, according to the inventor's family.

Joseph Leary, an author and historian from Fairfield, said that while many people have incorrectly referred to the chamber as a submarine, it is still an important relic built by the Lake Torpedo Boat Co. in Bridgeport. The chamber, more than 20 feet in diameter, can still be seen along Rogers Avenue during low tide.

"It was an innovative design for its day," Leary said. "It points to the breadth and depth of Simon Lake's interest in all things underwater. Lake was interested more in the practical applications of his designs than the technology itself." City resident Winifred Oldroyd, 89, Lake's granddaughter, said her grandfather was more interested in having his submersibles used for peaceful purposes, such as explorations and salvage expeditions, than for war. At one point, Lake was involved with an expedition to the North Pole that was canceled at the last minute, she said.

"He hated to think that the submarine could be used for an evil purpose," Oldroyd said.

She added that Lake believed drawings he submitted to the German Naval Ministry 10 years before World War II were later used to create the infamous U-boats.

Oldroyd said her grandfather, who died on June 23, 1945, at 78, built many of his submersibles in a workshop behind his house on Broad Street. The house is now the site of the Smith Funeral Home.

Although some have expressed an interest in raising the submersible from the harbor floor, experts say it might not be worth the expense - though they concede it's an interesting and feasible proposition.

"Whoever would raise the vessel would be responsible for its conservation and preservation in perpetuity," said Nick Bellantoni, the state archaeologist. "That could cost millions of dollars for a vessel like that."

Bellantoni added, however, that he would be interested in conducting additional research on the chamber, possibly through a newly developed underwater archaeology program at the University of Connecticut.

"It sounds like a fascinating project," he said. "We would be happy to help in any way that we can."

Leary said he would be just as happy if the chamber stays where it is, so that it can serve as a "touchstone for people's memories of the man." He added that the Explorer, the last submarine built by Lake in 1936, is already on display at Milford Landing Marina on Helwig Street. Also on display at the landing is a plaque from the first metal even-keeled submarine "Argonaut," which Lake built in 1897. The even-keeled technology developed by Lake is still used today in modern submarines.

"People should pay more attention to the accomplishments of Simon Lake," Leary said. "He's a forgotten hero."

Call for Displays

Submarine Technology Symposium 2006

www.jhuapl.edu/sts/displays.htm

Submarine Technology in an Era of Transition

The 2006 Submarine Technology Symposium will focus on the elements essential to traditional submarine missions and the submarine's support for emerging operational requirements including the Global War on Terrorism and Global Strike. Technical Sessions will be held in the following areas:

Session 1: Communications
Session 2: Anti-SSK Technology
Session 3: Force Needs
Session 4: Submarine Technology to Support GWOT
Session 5: SSGN in Global Strategic Operations

For additional information on each session, please refer to the STS 2006 Call for Papers (http://www.jhuapl.edu/sts/papers.htm). Displays will be selected based on technical content, with priority given to submissions related to the Symposium theme and session topics. Please note the following:

No marketing material of any kind is permitted in the display area.

Display content must not exceed SECRET/NOFORN classification.

Authors are responsible for obtaining permission to release display content from the appropriate authority.

Unclassified display proposals should be emailed to the Symposium Assistant Program Chair, Mr. Erik Johnson, at erik.johnson@jhuapl.edu. The deadline for submitting display proposals is 10 February 2006. Submissions should contain the following information:

· Title

· Proposed display classification

· Author(s), including affiliation

· Abstract (not to exceed one typewritten page)

· Mailing address

· E-mail address

· Phone number

· Fax number

· Sponsor(s) of work

· Contract number(s)

· Previous publication/presentation of proposed material

· Approximate footprint required (dimensions, power requirements, etc)

Final acceptance of STS 2006 displays will be made in March 2006. Presenters will be notified of acceptance via e-mail.

Indonesia to Buy 12 Russian Submarines

From MosNews.com, 23 Jan 06

Indonesia has expressed its intention to purchase 12 submarines from Russia before 2024.

First Admiral Abdul Malik Yusuf, the chief spokesman for the Indonesian Navy was quoted by RIA-Novosti news agency as saying combat submarines were strategic armaments allowing the country to maintain security in its territorial waters.

The admiral said the Indonesian waters were defenseless against the penetration of foreign ships. In light of this, the Indonesian navy turned to the country’s leadership with a proposal to purchase six Kilo-class submarines worth $1.9 billion from Russia in the next five years. The proposal had not yet been accepted due to insufficient budget funds.

In the recent past, the Indonesian submarine fleet was entirely composed of Soviet-made combat submarines, the agency reminded citing Indonesia’s leading magazine, Tempo.

Navy wants Scorpenes to become more lethal

The Times of India, 22 January 2006

NEW DELHI: The Navy now wants its Scorpene killer submarines, which will be armed with lethal Exocet sea-skimming missiles and wire-guided torpedoes, to acquire a knockout punch.

This can come with the installation of Mesma air-independent propulsion (AIP) systems in the last three of the six Scorpenes which will roll out of Mumbai's Mazagaon Docks between 2012 and 2017, as per the mammoth $3.5-billion contract signed with French companies on October 6.

The AIP system significantly enhances a conventional diesel-electric submarine's operational capabilities, narrowing the gap with nuclear submarines which can operate silently underwater for virtually unlimited periods.

A Scorpene, for instance, can operate underwater for four days without surfacing or snorkelling to get oxygen to recharge its batteries. With AIP, it will be able to operate for 18 days, giving it a huge strategic advantage.

Pakistan has already stolen the march in this arena. The third Agosta-90B Khalid submarine being built in Karachi with French help is being fitted with AIP. The Navy will, of course, have to approach the Cabinet Committee on Security afresh for the AIP systems since each one costs around $50-60 million. The October agreement does give India the option to incorporate the AIP system after the delivery of the first three submarines.

"We are looking very closely at the AIP system and hope to get it in future. The Scorpenes, in any case, are a generation ahead of the Agosta submarines," Vice-Admiral Nirmal Verma told TOI on Friday.

Royal Navy denies killing Thames whale

The Times, 23 January 2006

Navy sonar and military explosions have been blamed for disorientating the bottlenose whale that died on Saturday after two days in the Thames.

Even as scientists began the post-mortem examination on the 18ft adolescent now believed to have been a female -on a quayside in Gravesend, Kent, yesterday, the blame game over the cause of death had begun.

Marine scientists and animal welfare groups believe that navy sonar may have disorientated the whale. Marine acoustics experts supported local residents on the north coast of Kent in blaming huge explosions from a site operated by the defence contractor QinetiQ.

The Royal Navy was the first to respond to the claim. "HMS Grafton was involved in a show last Friday on the coast," a spokesman said.

"The only other ship in the North Sea is HMS Severn, and she was halfway to Belgium. Our sonar is good but not that good."

In north Kent, residents reported blasts from Shoeburyness Range, a Ministry of Defence site where QinetiQ was carrying out controlled detonations last week. "On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday last week, it was like being in the middle of a war zone," Tony Wilkinson, 65, a resident of Herne Bay, said.

"People suffered cracked floors, windows and ceilings." Professor Rodney Coates, who specialises in marine acoustics, confirmed that such blasts could disorientate whales.