Welcome to MSW’s Scuttlebutt! Here’s the news for the day.



Navy Awards Northrop Grumman $635 Million Contract for Submarine Work
Source: Northrop Grumman Corp.

NEWPORT NEWS, Va. --- The U.S. Navy has awarded Northrop Grumman Corporation a $635 million cost plus fixed-fee/level of effort contract for engineering, design and modernization support of new construction, operational and decommissioning submarines.

The company's Shipbuilding sector in Newport News, Va., is the prime contractor for the work on both the Los Angeles-class and Seawolf-class submarines which includes technical support; management of technical manuals and drawings; and design efforts to support modernization of the ships. Work on the contract is scheduled to conclude in 2014.

"This contract award continues the core work that is the foundation of our submarine business. We look forward to continuing our partnership with the Navy as we endeavor to build and maintain high quality, complex and very capable submarines for the fleet," said Becky Stewart, vice president for Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding's submarine program. "This contract brings stability to the submarine program and our workforce, and the modernization work over the next five years will greatly benefit our customer."

Planning and engineering for upgrade modifications and modernization is part of an attack submarine's 33-year life. Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding is the design agent and planning yard for the Los Angeles class and the lead design and co-planning yard for the Seawolf-class submarines.


Astute Leaves for Sea Trials
Source: BAE Systems

BARROW-IN-FURNESS, UK --- The first of class Astute nuclear powered attack submarine left BAE Systems’ shipyard at Barrow-in-Furness for the first stage of sea trials designed to prove its capability as the most formidable vessel of its kind ever operated by the Royal Navy.

Astute is now on her way to Her Majesty’s Naval Base Clyde at Faslane where she will be based for her operational life.

BAE Systems Submarine Solutions Managing Director John Hudson said: “The first of class Astute submarine successfully departed Barrow for sea trials on Sunday 15 November.

“After leaving Ramsden Dock early Sunday morning, Astute began the journey to HMNB Clyde at Faslane.

“I would like to take this opportunity to personally thank every single person in the business who have played their part in helping deliver the boat, in particular the Dockside Test Organisation and Astute team who have been an absolute strength over the past few months.”

During the transit from Barrow to Scotland, Astute is scheduled to start a period of sea trials that will continue for many months. For much of that time the Royal Navy crew will be accompanied on board by BAE Systems engineers and technicians who will work alongside them to monitor and measure every element of the submarine’s performance against the design parameters.

BAE Systems will also have personnel based at Faslane to deliver the initial in-service support for the submarine.

Astute is the most advanced attack submarine ever supplied to the Royal Navy, incorporating the latest stealth technology combined with a world class sonar system and equipped with Spearfish torpedoes and state of the art Tomahawk land attack missiles to make her a supremely effective naval asset.

Astute is designed to fulfil a range of key strategic and tactical roles including anti-ship and anti-submarine operations, surveillance and intelligence gathering and support for land forces. Displacing 7,400 tonnes and measuring 97 metres from bow to propulsor, Astute is significantly larger than the Swiftsure and Trafalgar class submarines that she will replace but requires fewer crew to operate her due to the advanced technology and automated systems on board.

That technology encompasses many innovations designed to improve operational effectiveness while also reducing costs to help achieve the affordability challenges facing the Ministry of Defence. The 2076 Sonar system is the most effective in the world, giving Astute a key tactical advantage in locating and identifying other vessels, while the stealth characteristics of the submarine design make it the quietest the Navy has ever operated, enabling it to avoid detection and fulfil its role within the ‘Silent Service’, as submarines are known.

Unlimited power is provided by the pressurised water nuclear reactor that is capable of powering a city the size of Southampton, and the Astute is capable of remaining submerged and circumnavigating the globe during a 90-day patrol, creating her own air and fresh water from the ocean. Astute is equipped with a digital optical mast system to replace the traditional periscope and this offers low light and infra-red capabilities to enable her to rapidly capture and analyse visual data, and share it with other fleet assets.

Luxury is not a word that normally appears in the submarine vocabulary – Astute is all about operational capability – but her crew will be the first to each have their own bunk, removing the need for ‘hot bunking’ when during shifts one crewman would occupy a bunk vacated by another. Astute also has a comparatively large and extremely well-equipped galley to ensure the meals that punctuate the round the clock watch system are of the highest standard.




Boeing EA-18G Growler to Advance to Full Rate Production
Source: Boeing Co.

ST. LOUIS --- The Boeing EA-18G Growler was approved to advance into Full Rate Production (FRP) by the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) on Nov. 23. The St. Louis-based EA-18G program now can proceed from Low Rate Initial Production to FRP quantities of approximately 20 aircraft per year.

"Full Rate Production for the EA-18G is critical, as it enables Boeing to quickly ramp up production of the U.S. Navy's newest and most advanced airborne electronic attack (AEA) platform, and rapidly get this new capability to the warfighter," said Bob Gower, F/A-18 and EA-18 Programs vice president for Boeing. "The FRP decision is also a clear indication of DOD support for the EA-18G program and the immediate capability it will provide Combatant Commanders around the world."

The EA-18G achieved Initial Operational Capability as planned in September with U.S. Navy electronic attack squadron VAQ-132, based at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Wash.

The EA-18G's highly flexible design enables warfighters to perform an array of AEA missions, operating either from the deck of an aircraft carrier or from land-based fields. It is the only airborne platform that delivers full-spectrum electronic attack capability, along with targeting and self-defense capabilities derived from the Navy's frontline strike fighter, the F/A-18E/F Block II Super Hornet. The new aircraft is replacing the Navy's current AEA platform, the EA-6B Prowler, which has been in service since 1971. The Growler joined the Navy's aircraft fleet in 2008.

Boeing, acting as the weapon system integrator and prime contractor, leads the EA-18G Growler industry team, which also includes Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and General Electric Aircraft Engines.




USS Arizona BB-39

Today’s website is USS Arizona BB-39. This site is dedicated to the history of not only the ship but of the men that called her home. Enjoy.


This Day in U.S. Naval History

1775 - Lt. John Paul Jones raises the Grand Union flag on the Continental Navy ship Alfred. It is the first American flag raised over an American Naval vessel.
1940 - President Franklin D. Roosevelt embarks on USS Tuscaloosa (CA 37) to inspect bases acquired from Great Britain under the Destroyer-for-Bases agreement.
1983 - Two F-14s flying over Lebanon were fired upon by Syrian antiaircraft artillery.


Photo of the Day



”Murderers Row” at anchor in Ulithi Atoll in 1944.

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