Welcome to MSW’s Scuttlebutt! Here’s the news for the day.
Port Columbus-Civil War Naval Center
Today’s website is Port Columbus-Civil War Naval Center. Buildings reminiscent of the Confederate Naval Ironworks in Columbus, Georgia will comprise the new National Museum of Civil War Naval History on the Port Columbus campus. Still, the structures will be built as modern museum buildings complete with humidity and temperature controls to insure not only the comfort of visitors, but the integrity of the artifacts as well. Enjoy.
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This Day in U.S. Naval History
1925 - The first planned night landings on a carrier take place aboard USS Langley (CV 1).
1950 - An unarmed Navy patrol aircraft is shot down over the Baltic Sea by the Soviet Union.
1951 - The first of four detonations occurs during Operation Greenhouse nuclear test.
BVT to Build Ships for Trinidad & Tobago on the Clyde
Source: BVT Surface Fleet
GLASGOW, United Kingdom --- BVT Surface Fleet, the maritime Joint Venture between BAE Systems and VT Group, have announced that they will build, integrate, test and commission (up to Sea Trials) an Offshore Patrol Vessel (OPV) for the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, and undertake considerable further work on another, at its facilities on the Clyde in Glasgow.
The two 90m vessels for the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard are part of a £150M+ contract signed in April 2007 between VT Shipbuilding and the Government of Republic of Trinidad & Tobago (GORTT). The scope of the contract is to build three Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPV) and provide support in the form of training and long-term maintenance and is now managed by BVT.
The programme is also supported by the UK MOD which is providing advice to GORTT and operational sea training to the TTCG crews.
The ships will perform a range of Economic Exclusion Zone (EEZ) management, special operations and maritime law enforcement tasks. The first of the ships is being built at BVT's yard in Portsmouth.
The decision to move the construction of the second ship in the programme to the Clyde has been taken to make optimum use of facilities and resources in order to improve overall delivery to BVT's customers, to balance workloads across its sites and to help to ensure the long-term sustainability of the industry across the UK. The decision follows a significant increase in work content to be carried out by BVT's Portsmouth facilities on the Royal Navy's two new aircraft carriers, announced earlier this month.
Scott Jamieson, BVT's Trinidad and Tobago Programme Director, said "This move shows BVT's ability and commitment to use its scale and scope to ensure delivery of future naval capability to its customers and to ensure the long term sustainability of the maritime industry in the UK".
Design and build of the ships is well advanced, with the first ship well progressed in Portsmouth, and manufacture of the second ship already underway at Scotstoun on the Clyde. The second ship will be launched from BVT's Scotstoun facility later this year and delivered in 2010. The final delivery strategy for the third and final ship remains under review.
About the Trinidad & Tobago Offshore Patrol Vessels
Length overall 90.5 metres
Breadth moulded 13.5 metres
Depth moulded to main deck 7.7 metres
Draught 3.5 metres
Speed in excess of 25 knots
Range at 12 knots greater than 5,500nm
Endurance 35 days
The ship has been specially designed to be easy to operate with a crew of 60 reducing the costs and problems associated with the recruitment, training and retention of skilled personnel.
Other features include:
--Capable sensor and weapons fit integrated within a command and control system
--Comprehensive communication system
--Ability to conduct sea boardings using onboard RIB and Fast Interceptor Craft
--Accommodation for 50 fully equipped troops
--Ability to conduct Helicopter operations
--Ample deck space for the transport of containers and additional craft
--Ability to replenish at sea
Military workers protesting against non-payment of wages
Source: BarentsObserver.com
Workers at military shipyards in Murmansk Oblast are fighting for their wages. Many have not been paid in 5-7 months and unrest is rising.
120 workers at the military shipyard in Roslaykovo outside Severomorsk have not been paid for five months and have now laid down their work. The shipyard is the main employer for the town’s 9600 inhabitants. The yard has Russia’s only dock capable of holding nuclear-powered missile cruisers like the Northern Fleet’s flagship Petr Veliky, regional television channel GTRK Murman reports.
- People are getting desperate and have laid down their work at the dock. All depends now on the reactions from the authorities, an engineer at the yard said.
The ship yard in Roslyakovo is completely depending on state military orders, and wages are paid from the Ministry of Defence. This is not the first time ship yard workers in Roslyakovo protest – in 1999 they barricaded the road between Severomorsk and Murmansk after not having being paid for four months.
In Murmansk, workers at a plant for service and repairs of navy quays have not seen payment for up to seven months, and are planning a large protest meeting in the beginning of April. The Ministry of Defence has outstanding debts amounting to 20 million RUB to the plant for fulfilled orders in 2004, GTRK Murman reports.
NAVAIR Rapidly Deploys Improved Aircraft Survivability Equipment to Fleet
Source: Naval Air Systems Command
NAVAL AIR SYSTEMS COMMAND, PATUXENT RIVER, Md. --- Within six months of receiving an urgent requirement for the rapid deployment of improved Aircraft Survivability Equipment, NAVAIR fielded improved capabilities for the CH-46E Sea Knight helicopter and the MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft.
The Advanced Tactical Aircraft Protection Systems program office (PMA-272) here, rapidly upgraded the detection capability of the AAR-47(V)2 Missile Warning System, increased the number of flares carried by the ALE-47 Countermeasures Dispenser System and fielded advanced Air Expendable Countermeasures common to all Marine Corps assault aircraft.
“This suite of improvements offers better detection of incoming missiles and is capable of providing advanced active countermeasures to decoy missiles launched from Man-Portable Air Defense Systems,” said Matt Lehtonen, deputy integrated product team lead for Assault ASE. “All improvements were recently tested under fire during missions in Iraq with great success, saving lives on aircraft operating in harm's way.
PMA-272 is currently fielding the Large Aircraft Infrared Countermeasure System (LAIRCM) for the Marines’ CH-53E Sea Stallion aircraft.
“We continue to work on advanced ASE capabilities for several Type/Model/Series aircraft,” said Capt. Paul Overstreet, PMA-272 program manager. “Platforms that will benefit from future improvements include the CH-46E Sea Knight; CH-53D/E Sea Stallion; AH-1W Cobra; UH-1N/Y Huey; MV-22 Osprey; KC-130J/T Hercules; UC-12 Huron; MH-60R/S, SH-60B, and HH-60H Seahawk; and P-3 Orion Anti-Surface Warfare Improvement Program aircraft.”
The PMA-272 team and the Program Executive Office for Tactical Aircraft were recently recognized by Brig. Gen. Robert Walsh, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing (Forward) commanding officer, for the outstanding service provided to the Fleet.
“I would like to extend my personal thanks to you, PEO(T) and the PMA-272 team for your efforts in once again keeping our Marines safe,” said Walsh. “Your team has once again proven the viability of our ASE systems in combat, the extraordinary team you have at NAVAIR and the tremendous personal relationships you have built with our industry partners. Enhancing our combat effectiveness while protecting our most precious assets -- the pilots, crew and passengers of these aircraft -- is our number one priority, and you have confirmed over and over again that it is also yours.”
Photo of the Day
A landing craft air cushion from Assault Craft Unit (ACU) 5 leaves a beach during an exercise near Camp Lemonier, Djibouti.
Gator
