Welcome to MSW’s Scuttlebutt! Here’s the news for the day.
Port Columbus-Civil War Naval Center
Today’s website is the 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
1833 - USS Constitution enters drydock at Charlestown Navy Yard, Boston for overhaul. The ship was saved from scrapping after public support rallied to save the ship following publication of Olive Wendell Holmes' poem, "Old Ironsides."
1926 - Office of Assistant Secretary of the Navy set up to foster naval aeronautics; aircraft building increased.
1948 - Berlin airlift initiated to offset the Soviet Union's blockade access of United States, France, and Great Britain to their sectors of Berlin.
Russia's Bulava missile 'will fly' - Navy chief
Source: Russian Navy
Russia will carry out the next test of a Bulava sea-launched ballistic missile in late July, and will conduct a total of four or five launches this year, the Navy commander said on Friday.
"The next launch is planned for the second half of July, and a total of four or five launches are planned in 2009," Adm. Vladimir Vysotsky said.
Despite five failures in 10 trials, the last unsuccessful trial being in December 2008, Russia's Defense Ministry is planning to complete Bulava tests and put the ICBM into service by the end of 2009.
"It will fly, it will definitely fly," Vysotsky told reporters.
The Russian military says the Bulava, along with Topol-M ballistic missiles, will become the backbone of Russia's nuclear triad.
The triad comprises land-based ballistic missile systems, nuclear-propelled submarines armed with sea-launched ballistic missiles, and strategic bombers carrying nuclear bombs and nuclear-capable cruise missiles.
The Bulava-M (SS-NX-30) ICBM carries up to 10 nuclear warheads and has a range of 8,000 kilometers (5,000 miles). The three-stage ballistic missile is designed for deployment on Borey-class Project 955 nuclear-powered submarines.
Currently, six types of silo-based and road-mobile ICBMs, including the heavy Voyevoda (SS-18 Satan), capable of carrying 10 warheads, and the Topol-M (Stalin), are in operational service with the Strategic Missile Forces.
The SMF reportedly has a total of 538 ICBMs, including 306 SS-25 Topol (Sickle) missiles and 56 SS-27 Topol-M missiles.
Yury Dolgoruky left Severodvinsk
Source: Barents Observer
Russia’s brand new submarine left the yard today and sailed out in the White Sea.
The construction of the submarine started 13 years ago, but on 19th of June Yury Dolgoruky could finally sail out from Sevmash shipyard in Severodvinsk. The submarine is of the Borey-class, supposed to be armed with the new Bulava intercontinental missiles (ICBMs), but they are not yet ready, so the submarine is without armament.
Yury Dolgoruky will be out in the White Sea for approximately 20 days. After that the first sea trials with diving will start. Before sailing from Severodvinsk on Friday afternoon, the vessel had its final inspection done by the Russian Navy’s top commander, Admiral Vladimir Vysotsky, reports Vesti.ru.
Both reactors onboard are reported to work normally. The total costs for the submarine is 23 billion roubles, or some USD 760 millions.
Yury Dolgoruky will be delivered to the navy by the end of this year.
The design of the submarine resembles the one of Delta-class, but the Borey-class is bigger in size.
The submarine has a crew of 107. It is 170 meters long and can dive to a depth of 450 meters. It can stay under water for more than three months.
Navy Laser Success Key in Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Research, Development
Source: US Navy
WASHINGTON --- Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA), with support from Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) Dahlgren, for the first time successfully tracked, engaged and destroyed a threat-representative unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) while in flight at Naval Air Warfare Center, China Lake, Calif., June 7.
A total of five targets were engaged and destroyed during the testing, also a first for the U.S. Navy. Members of NAVSEA's Directed Energy and Electric Weapon Systems (DE&EWS) Program Office and NSWC Dahlgren fired a laser through a beam director on a KINETO tracking mount.
Two additional UAVs were engaged and destroyed in flight June 9, with two more UAVs shot down June 11. These recent evolutions continued a series of progressively challenging tests using the prototype version of the Surface Navy Laser Weapon System (LaWS).
"The success of this effort validates the military utility of DE&EWS," said Program Manager Capt. David Kiel. "Further development and integration of increasingly more powerful lasers into Surface Navy LaWS will increase both the engagement range and target sets that can be successfully engaged and destroyed."
NAVSEA's DE&EWS Program Office is responsible for the research, development, integration and acquisition initiation of DE&EWS for the Navy's surface forces.
Photo of the Day
A portion of the shrimp boat fleet in Cameron, Louisiana.
Gator
