Welcome to MSW’s Scuttlebutt! Here’s the news for the day.
Feature – HMS Cowslip
MSW Crewmember Dave Cox [davecox] gives the Royal Navy fans something to ogle, the 1/72 HMS Cowslip.
Feature
Russian Navy ends first stage of Nerpa sub trials in Far East
Source: en.rian.ru
The first stage of new sea trials of Russia's Nerpa nuclear attack submarine, which was damaged in a fatal accident in previous tests, has been successfully completed, the Amur shipyard said on Monday.
The vessel resumed sea trials on July 10 in the Sea of Japan following extensive repairs. "The first set of sea trials has been successfully completed according to schedule," a shipyard official told RIA Novosti.
"The sub is back at the in Bolshoy Kamen in the Primorye Territory, and it is getting ready for the second stage of the scheduled testing," the official said, adding that some equipment for performance checking and adjustment work will be installed on board the submarine.
On November 8, 2008, while the Nerpa was undergoing sea trials in the Sea of Japan, its on-board fire suppression system went off, releasing a deadly gas into the sleeping quarters. Three crewmembers and 17 shipyard workers were killed. There were 208 people, 81 of them submariners, on board the vessel at the time.
Following the repairs, which cost an estimated 1.9 billion rubles ($60 million), the submarine was cleared for final sea trials before being commissioned with the Russian Navy, and will be leased to the Indian Navy by the end of 2009.
India reportedly paid $650 million for a 10-year lease of the 12,000-ton K-152 Nerpa, an Akula II class nuclear-powered attack submarine.
Akula II class vessels are considered the quietest and deadliest of all Russian nuclear-powered attack submarines.
Navy Christens Newest Arleigh Burke-Class Ship Jason Dunham
Source: US Navy
BATH, Maine (NNS) -- The U.S. Navy christened the newest Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109), Aug. 1 during a ceremony at Bath Iron Works, Bath, Maine.
"I can tell the crew of the USS Jason Dunham, that you can not have a better namesake, nor a better sponsor. This ship, USS Jason Dunham, will always remind individuals that freedom is in fact not free. It is paid for by those great young men and women who wear the cloth of our nation," said retired general and former commandant of the Marine Corps Michael Hagee, who served as guest speaker.
Deborah Dunham served as the sponsor of the ship named for her late son. In accordance with Navy tradition, she broke a bottle of champagne across the ship's bow and christened the ship.
She said her son would be very proud of the honor to have a ship named after him.
"It's an honor to be able to do this for Jason. I appreciate the fact that they chose to name the ship after Jason, but I like the idea that they'll be able to carry his name on in history. I'm hoping that somebody, a child in school some day, will see the name 'Jason Dunham' and look it up and find out what he did with his citation. Maybe, that will encourage them to go to the Medal of Honor Society Web site and find out what other men have done for our nation, also.
"These men carry on their heroic actions very quietly and very humbly. So, if this is a way of putting it out there, of what this whole entire fraternity of men have done for our country, I'm glad that he could be a stepping stone for that," said Dunham.
The new destroyer honors the late Cpl. Jason Dunham, the first Marine awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions during Operation Iraqi Freedom. On April 14, 2004, Dunham's squad was conducting a reconnaissance mission in Karabilah, Iraq, when his battalion commander's convoy was ambushed. When Dunham's squad approached to provide fire support, an Iraqi insurgent leapt out of a vehicle and attacked Dunham. As Dunham wrestled the insurgent to the ground, he noticed that the enemy fighter had a grenade in his hand.
Dunham immediately alerted his fellow Marines, and when the enemy dropped the live grenade, Dunham took off his Kevlar helmet, covered the grenade, and threw himself on top to smother the blast. In an ultimately selfless act of courage, in which he was mortally wounded, he saved the lives of two fellow Marines.
In November 2006, at the dedication of the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Quantico, Va., then-President George W. Bush announced that the Medal of Honor would be awarded posthumously to Marine Cpl. Jason Dunham.
During his speech, Bush said, "As long as we have Marines like Cpl. Dunham, America will never fear for her liberty."
Bush presented Cpl. Dunham's family with the Medal of Honor during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House on Jan. 11.
"Today, Jason takes his rightful place in naval history alongside his storied legacy in the annals of the Marine Corps," said Secretary of the Navy, Ray Mabus.
"Though Jason is no longer with us, his name will live on in this magnificent warship that represents the best our nation has to offer. Jason's spirit -- as a warrior, fighter, and one who never gave up, even in the face of great challenges -- lives on to lead all of the men and women who will ever serve aboard USS Jason Dunham, in home waters and abroad. In the fighting spirit of its namesake, the men and women of USS Jason Dunham will never back down from any challenge put before them," said Mabus.
"It's clear that having 'Jason Dunham' written on the stern of this ship will always force the crew to think about why they're serving and what they're giving and what they expect of themselves. So, what Jason taught the rest of us is something that they can always think about as they serve on that ship, wherever it may take them," said Michael M. Phillips, author of "The Gift of Valor: A War Story," a book about Cpl. Dunham and actions leading up to his Medal of Honor.
The ship's prospective commanding officer is Cmdr. Scott Sciretta who will lead the crew of 276 officers and enlisted personnel of the 9,200-ton vessel.
"This ship as far as the maritime strategy is the most capable warship in the world," said Sciretta. "It can do anything. You name the mission, our Navy is ready to meet the maritime strategy. This ship is the most capable warship in the world."
"This is the greatest honor of my life. I cannot stress with anything greater in my heart anything that I feel, to have the opportunity to meet Dan and Deb Dunham and their lovely family, the sacrifice that Jason made for this country, the sacrifice that Dan and Deb continue to make for this country on a daily basis. I'm deeply honored," continued Sciretta.
In the spirit of this Marine, USS Jason Dunham will continue protecting America's liberty by providing a dynamic multimission platform to lead the Navy into the future. Utilizing a gas-turbine propulsion system, the ship can operate independently or as part of carrier strike groups, surface action groups, amphibious ready groups, and underway replenishment groups. The ship's combat systems center on the Aegis combat system and the SPY-Ld(V) multifunction phased array radar. With the combination of Aegis, the vertical launching system, an advanced anti-submarine warfare system, advanced anti-aircraft missiles and Tomahawk cruise missiles, the Arleigh Burke-class continues the revolution at sea.
"I feel incredibly honored to be here today to christen the USS Jason Dunham," said Mabus. "To honor a Marine who made the ultimate sacrifice, so that others Marines could live and so that America could continue to represent the values that we do. To have a Navy ship named after such a Marine is in the great tradition of our naval forces. And USS Jason Dunham is going to represent us well, around the world, in a lot of different capacities, for decades to come.
"This is one of the most capable ships that the Navy has. It's one of the most capable types of ships that any navy has ever had. It can mount simultaneous defenses and attacks. Air, sea, underwater. It is truly an integrated fighting machine. And it's got other things too. It can deliver humanitarian aid. It can deter some aggression. It can reassure allies. It is an incredibly capable ship, in an incredibly capable navy, in an incredibly complex world. And it's something that we need, and it's something that's going to serve us well.
"It shows what values we have in the United States. Not only in the Navy and Marine Corps, but as a country. The values of character, of honor, of sacrifice, of the willingness to give to something bigger than ourselves. And I think that the name Jason Dunham on this ship, what he stood for, the character that he had, the actions that he took, will represent us well as this ship sails in our fleet for a long time to come," said Mabus.
"He would think it was an absolute hoot, and he would just enjoy it to no end. I do think Jason would find it a huge honor," said Dunham's mother.
"It would be our duty and pleasure to be with the ship and be a part of the ship for the rest of the ship's life or my life and the children's lives, and I'm really looking forward to a family cruise," said Dunham.
P-8A Poseidon Rollout Unveils Next Maritime Patrol Aircraft
Source: US Naval Air Systems Command
NAVAIR PATUXENT RIVER, MD --- The U.S. Navy and Boeing unveiled the next Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft, the P-8A Poseidon, during a rollout ceremony today at Boeing’s manufacturing facility in Seattle.
“This is a tremendous day to recognize the outstanding efforts of the U.S. Navy, Boeing and the entire industry team on a job extremely well done,” said Rear Adm. Bill Moran, Commander, Patrol Reconnaissance Group. “It has been more than 40 years since the maritime patrol community has seen a new aircraft; delivery of this aircraft cannot come soon enough.”
Rear Adm. Moran said the aircraft’s greater situational awareness, open systems architecture and higher operating altitude will bring a greater punch to the fight, across all warfare mission areas and will be a significant force multiplier.
The Poseidon will replace the P-3C Orion as a long-range anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance aircraft. It will maximize the experience and technology of the Orion, but with significant growth potential, greater payload capacity, advanced mission systems, software and communications.
“The P-8A Poseidon program is an outstanding example of evolutionary acquisition at work. We have established a very solid baseline for initial operational capability, while concurrently making upgrade increments for future insertion as technology matures,” said Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Aircraft Program Manager Capt. Mike Moran. “The team has worked hard to stay on schedule and within cost in this developmental effort; we all should be extremely proud of the results.”
Boeing was awarded a contract in 2004 to deliver five test vehicles. This acquisition phase provides three flight test aircraft, one full-scale static loads test airframe, and one full-scale fatigue test airframe. The Navy plans to purchase 117 production aircraft.
According to Capt. Moran, all five test aircraft are in various stages of assembly and ground test. Two of the flight test aircraft have already successfully flown as part of a Boeing relocation and system flight check process. Testing on the static loads airframe is underway and the Navy will begin formal flight testing later this year.
In April, the Australian Department of Defence signed an agreement with the U.S. DoD to join a cooperative partnership in the development of follow-on capabilities to be added to the Poseidon after it enters the Fleet in 2013.
U-1105 Black Panther Historic Shipwreck Preserve
Today’s website is the U-1105 Black Panther Historic Shipwreck Preserve. Following limited action in the closing days of World War II at Piney Point, the Black Panther Submarine became a possession of the US Navy. In February 1946 research on her unique rubber-tiled skin was initiated at the Naval research Laboratory in Washington and at the MIT Acoustic Laboratory in Cambridge, MA August 1948 U-1105 was towed to the Chesapeake, and salvage test began off Point No Point, where the ship was temporarily sunk. On 29 June 1985, the wreck was rediscovered by a team of sport divers and now is administered by the St. Clement's Island-Potomac River Museum, the Maryland Historical Trust, and Sea Colony Aqua Sports. Enjoy.
Website
This Day in U.S. Naval History
1862 - CSS Arkansas destroyed by her commanding officer to prevent capture by USS Essex.
1943 - Battle of Vella Gulf begins. U.S. destroyers sink three of four Japanese destroyers.
1945 - Atomic bomb detonated over Hiroshima, Japan. Navy weaponeer, Capt. W.S. Parsons, armed the atomic bomb on the B-29 bomber, Enola Gay.
1990 - President George Bush orders Operation Desert Shield, largest overseas deployment since Vietnam, to protect Saudi Arabia after Iraqi's invasion of Kuwait.
1997 - Naval Forces on Guam help rescue and begin providing medical care to survivors of Korean Airlines Flight 801 that crashed on Guam.
Photo of the Day
The tug Mitchell Herbert helps manuver the Ohio-class ballistic missile submarine USS Alabama (SSBN 731) to be moored alongside the Ohio-class ballistic missile submarine USS Maine (SSBN 741) at the Delta Pier on board Naval Base Kitsap.
Gator
