Miitary lasers are getting more and more powerful, fast. But raw power isn’t all you need for a workable weapon.

The US Navy now says it’ll reach 355 ships by 2034, while whacking F-35Bs and a carrier from its five-year plan. What’s the strategy?

“We’ve spent a lot of time over the past years playing defense,” Rear Adm. Ronald Boxall, director of surface warfare, said at the West 2019 conference here. “The best defense is a good offense, and the idea that we will go after the threat — at range — is something that we have to be able to do.”

WASHINGTON: The Navy needs to increase both the number and complexity of its wargames, the service’s top admiral said Wednesday, citing rapid advances being made by competitors in cyber and information warfare tactics that will muddy and confuse future battlefields. While Adm. John Richardson didn’t provide any details to flesh out his thinking during an… Keep reading →

The Navy may back off its much-publicized call for a 355-ship fleet and look at new options like unmanned vessels, the Chief of Naval Operations said.

WASHINGTON: After years of delays, budget fights, and searing debates over the role that the ship will play, three Littoral Combat Ships will head out on their first deployments this year. “We’re deploying LCS this year. It’s happening. Two ships are going on the West Coast, one ship is going on the East Coast,” said… Keep reading →

WASHINGTON: President Trump has just issued orders to cut the defense budget, and hasn’t tweeted for a while about his campaign pledge to build a bigger Navy, but the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee wants to get a 355-ship fleet back on the agenda. Jim Inhofe — who’s likely to retain the SASC chairmanship… Keep reading →

  CANBERRA: As the Chinese challenge grows, Australia is clearly concerned about expanded Chinese influence within Australia and with regard to Chinese efforts to reshape the external environment to expand the influence and power of the Chinese authoritarian state. Clearly the United States remains Australia’s core ally in dealing with the Chinese challenge, but as… Keep reading →

Five shipbuilders are fighting it out to build 20 of the U.S. Navy’s new frigates, and one competitor is sailing though a whirlwind East Coast tour.

PENTAGON: The U.S. Navy’s budget is growing by over $12 billion in 2019, and more ships are on their way – but not enough to get to the hoped-for 355-ship fleet any time before the 2050s. In unveiling its $194.1 billion budget for the 2019 fiscal year on Monday, Navy officials highlighted the increase in… Keep reading →