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New Book Celebrates 50th Anniversary of the US Navy Fighter Weapons School

March 16, 2019March 16, 2019 seawaves

March 8, 2019 – When American fighter jets were being downed at a disturbing and unprecedented rate during the Vietnam War, the U.S. Navy turned to a young lieutenant commander, Dan “Yank” Pedersen, to figure out a way to reverse their dark fortune. Pedersen, aka “the Godfather of Topgun,” was the Hollywood image of a fighter pilot, seldom appearing without his Ray-Ban sunglasses, when a report about the shocking casualties foiling Navy air operations in Vietnam prompted a wholesale reevaluation of American fighter strategy. On a shoestring budget and with…

Carlos Aguayo Promoted to General Manager of Huntington Ingalls Industries’ San Diego Shipyard

March 15, 2019 seawaves

March 4, 2019 – Huntington Ingalls Industries announced today that Carlos Aguayo has been named general manager of the HII San Diego Shipyard. He will replace Daniel Flood, who is retiring after 40 years in the ship repair and defense contracting industry. Aguayo will be responsible for the overall operation of the shipyard business, including strategy development and execution, customer relations, quality, production, resource management, human capital development, process improvement, and finance/accounting. Throughout his 35-year career on the San Diego waterfront, Aguayo has held numerous, diversified positions increasing in scope…

Essex Amphibious Ready Group Visited Pearl Harbor

February 21, 2019 seawaves

February 20, 2019 – USS Essex (LHD 2), other ships of the Essex Amphibious Ready Group (ARG), and embarked 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) visited Pearl Harbor, Feb. 18-20. “Pearl Harbor is rich in military history and its strategic location places it center stage in the Pacific,” said Capt. Gerald Olin, commander, Amphibious Squadron 1. ” The harbors and bases the Navy uses here are among the very best in the world and help ensure that naval forces in the Pacific are trained and ready to respond to any contingency.…

SPAWAR Systems Center Names Change to Naval Information Warfare Centers

February 13, 2019 seawaves

February 13, 2019 – Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR) announced it will change the names of its Echelon III systems centers, SPAWAR Systems Center Atlantic in Charleston, South Carolina, and SPAWAR Systems Center Pacific in San Diego, to Naval Information Warfare Centers Atlantic and Naval Information Warfare Center Pacific, respectively. The changes will be effective Feb. 18. The new language “Naval Information Warfare Center,” with the acronym NIWC, (pronounced N’ wick) will apply to the names of all Naval Information Warfare Center sites falling under NIWC Pacific and…

SPAWAR Improves Speed and Quality of Communications for Warfighters at Sea

February 5, 2019 seawaves

February 1, 2019 – Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR) Systems Center Pacific (SSC Pacific) successfully concluded a rapid prototyping effort in December of 2018 for the Office of the Secretary of Defense to explore the use of 4G LTE technology as a communications system for ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore communications. Efforts included fleet experimentation, field testing, in-lab testing, rapid prototyping and a mixed reality technology demonstration led by the Naval Medical Center in San Diego (NMCSD) Tele-Critical Care Unit (TCCU). SSC Pacific supported NMCSD TCCU during a virtual critical…

Navy to Commission Destroyer Michael Monsoor

January 28, 2019 seawaves

January 23, 2019 – The Navy will commission its newest destroyer, USS Michael Monsoor (DDG 1001), Saturday, Jan. 26 during a 10 a.m. (PST) ceremony at Naval Air Station North Island, San Diego, California, where the ship will be homeported. The second ship in the Zumwalt-class of destroyers, DDG-1001 is named in honor of Medal of Honor recipient Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class (SEAL) Michael A. Monsoor, who was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroic actions in Ramadi, Iraq, Sept. 29, 2006. Scott Peters, U.S. Representative from…

US Navy Contract Announcements January 23, 2019

January 24, 2019 seawaves

General Atomics, Electromagnetics Systems Group, San Diego, California, is awarded $19,682,252 for firm-fixed-price delivery order N0001919F2406 against a previously issued basic ordering agreement (N00019-16-G-0006). This order provides for the manufacture, assembly, inspection, integration, test and delivery of Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) spare parts in support of the CVN-78 prior to the Advanced Arresting Gear and EMALS material support dates. Work will be performed in San Diego, California (37 percent); Boston, Massachusetts (18 percent); Tupelo, Mississippi (10.7 percent); Aston, Pennsylvania (5.8 percent); Guilford, Connecticut (4.4 percent); San Leandro, California (3.5…

General Dynamics NASSCO Commissions New Panel Line

January 16, 2019 seawaves

January 11, 2019 – General Dynamics NASSCO held a ribbon-cutting ceremony today to commission its new panel line, which expands steel production capabilities for the construction of commercial and government ships in San Diego. The new panel line enables distortion-free welding of plates as thin as five millimeters to produce lighter, more energy efficient ships. The cutting-edge facility uses hybrid laser arc welding and numerically controlled robots to mill, seam and weld steel panels in a highly automated production line. These features improve capacity, quality, accuracy and cycle time, and…

BAE Systems to Modernize USS Shoup Under $78 Million Contract

January 2, 2019January 3, 2019 seawaves

January 2, 2019 – BAE Systems has received a $78.8 million contract from the U.S. Navy for the maintenance and modernization of USS Shoup (DDG 86), an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer (DDG). The value of the competitively awarded contract could reach $87.6 million if all options are exercised. “Our team is experienced with the DDG class and ready to get to work to ready the Shoup for service in the fleet for many years to come.” “The Shoup availability is a large, complex repair job,” said David M. Thomas Jr., vice…

DDG 1001 Arrives in San Diego

December 8, 2018December 10, 2018 seawaves

Future USS Tulsa Arrives in San Diego

November 22, 2018 seawaves

November 21, 2018 – The Independence variant littoral combat ship Pre-Commissioning Unit (PCU) Tulsa (LCS 16) arrived at Naval Base San Diego, Nov. 21, after completing the ship’s maiden voyage from the Austal USA shipyard in Mobile, Alabama. Prior to arriving at its new homeport of San Diego, Tulsa made several port calls and completed a successful transit through the Panama Canal. “Every day at sea, sailing across the Atlantic, the Caribbean and the Pacific, we trained together as a team, conducting a myriad of drills while getting to know…

USNS Mercy Recognized for Pacific Partnership Mission

November 9, 2018 seawaves

November 8, 2018 – Military Sealift Command hospital ship USNS Mercy (T-AH 19) was presented with the United Seamen’s Service Admiral of the Ocean Sea (AOTOS) Special Recognition plaque during a ceremony at the Metropolitan Ballroom of the Sheraton New York Times Square Hotel in New York City, Nov. 2 Mercy was recognized for its Pacific Partnership humanitarian deployment to Southeast Asia earlier this year. “We are proud to recognize once again The USNS Mercy, one of the U.S. Navy hospital ships that served as the centerpiece for the 13th…

US Navy Contract Announcements October 29, 2018

October 30, 2018 seawaves

JLL-Midnight Sun IFMS, LLC,* Kotzebue, Alaska, is awarded a $30,408,548 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for base operations support services at Naval Air Station Jacksonville and outlying areas. The work to be performed provides for base operations support services to include facility investment, other (training pools), utilities management, electrical, wastewater, steam, water, compressed air, base support vehicles and equipment, environmental, and other related services. The maximum dollar value including the base period and seven option years is $236,917,489. Work will be performed in Jacksonville, Florida (99 percent); and outlying areas (1 percent), and…

San Diego Fleet Week Begins

October 29, 2018 seawaves

October 26, 2018 – San Diego Fleet Week (SDFW) began to take shape as the amphibious transport dock landing ship USS Harpers Ferry (LSD 49) moored on Broadway Pier, Oct. 23. SDFW Fleet Week is a week-long event taking place from Oct. 22-28. The event provides an opportunity for the American public to meet their Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard teams and experience America’s sea services. During fleet week, service members participate in various community service events and showcase capabilities and equipment to the community. This year, Harpers Ferry…

USNS Grasp Welcomed in MSC Pacific

October 29, 2018 seawaves

October 25, 2018 – Military Sealift Command Pacific welcomed the newest ship to the Pacific area of operations, rescue and salvage ship USNS Grasp (T-ARS 51) Grasp arrived in San Diego, Calif., on Tuesday, following an 18-day trip from its former home in Little Creek, Va. The trip included passage through the Panama Canal and dodging two hurricanes, including Hurricane Michael, the same hurricane that devastated portions of Florida. “Bringing Grasp from the East Coast to the West Coast was a great experience for me,” said Capt. Harry Sprague, Grasp’s…