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



On-Display - USS Hornet

MSW Crewmember Louis Carabott takes us deep into the North Pacific with the USS Hornet in this "On Display" feature.




BMT Unveils New Fast Landing Craft Design
Source: Naval Technology

BMT Nigel Gee and BMT Defence Services, subsidiaries of BMT Group, the leading international maritime design, engineering and risk management consultancy, have unveiled their new design for a highly capable fast landing craft (FLC).

Contracted by defence equipment and support (DE&S) the BMT team developed a novel, tri-bow monohull platform using a parent hull-form derived from an internal BMT research and development program, which included model tests to optimise performance.

Ed Dudson, technical director at BMT Nigel Gee, said: "Sized to occupy a similar footprint to the existing LCU Mk10 and thus capable of operating with UK amphibious support vessels, our innovative design meets the demanding UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) requirement for an FLC with high transit speed and high payload capacity whilst demonstrating excellent on-beach stability."

Made from aluminium for light weight and strength, BMT's specially developed FLC hull-form design allows:
High-speed, heavy-payload operations (up to 28.5kn fully fuelled and carrying four all-terrain vehicles, or up to 22kn fully fuelled and carrying a main battle tank)
Minimum speed loss in rougher seas (less than 1kn speed reduction in Sea State 4)
Excellent sea-keeping and manoeuvrability characteristics
On-beach stability

Other features include: Three high-speed MTU diesel engines coupled to waterjets, providing reliability and redundancy, and dependable, easily accessible machinery.

BMT has a pedigree in independent naval design, strong technical capability, proven record of innovation and extensive portfolio of designs, particularly for high-speed vessels. BMT was awarded this important MOD contract as part of a DE&S design solutions study to determine viable hull forms to satisfy a FLC requirement.

The MOD will, as part of its FLC concept phase, conduct a cost and performance based appraisal of this design with other options determined in the FLC design solutions study.


Keel Laid for USNS McLean
Source: General Dynamics

Construction of USNS William McLean officially kicked off March 26 with a keel-laying ceremony at the General Dynamics shipyard in San Diego.

The ship is named in honor of Dr. William B. McLean, the China Lake physicist who pioneered the Sidewinder missile technology.

“This is an unbelievable day and I’m very proud,” said Don McLean, son of the ship’s namesake. “My dad was a shy guy but I think he’d be very happy about this because the Navy really meant a lot to him. He’d be especially impressed with how the Navy and civilians are working together to build this ship.”

Rear Adm. William Landay, the Navy’s program executive officer for ships, attended the ceremony with his wife, Tess, who was the honoree for the keel laying. As the honoree, Mrs. Landay performed the first weld on the McLean. Her welded initials will forever be attached to the hull. She also drove in the first wedge on the ship to symbolize the start of the building process.

“It’s difficult to express how excited and honored I am to participate in this important first milestone in the life of USNS William McLean,” Mrs. Landay said. “I’m especially thrilled to be associated with this class of ships that bears the names of our nation’s greatest explorers and trail blazers.”

The McLean, built by General Dynamics NASSCO, is one of 14 dry cargo/ammunition ships (T-AKE) for the Navy. The T-AKE ship incorporates international marine technologies and commercial ship-design features, including an integrated electric-drive propulsion system to minimize operating costs over its projected 40-year service life. The primary mission of T-AKE ships, also known as the Lewis and Clark-class, is to deliver as much as 10,000 tons of food, ammunition, fuel and other provisions to combat ships at sea.

When the McLean joins the fleet, it will be used by the Navy’s Military Sealift Command primarily to stage U.S. Marine Corps equipment abroad.

Construction of “blocks” of the McLean actually began in September. With the keel, or backbone of the ship, now in place, NASSCO will begin placing those blocks together to form the ship.

The McLean is scheduled for delivery to the Navy in March 2011.




Northrop Grumman Salutes First Flight of First F-35 Mission Systems Aircraft
Source: Northrop Grumman Corp.

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. --- Northrop Grumman Corporation today congratulated F-35 Lightning II prime contractor Lockheed Martin for successfully completing the inaugural flight of the first F-35 mission systems aircraft.

The flight of the F-35 designated BF-4, a short take off, vertical landing (STOVL) variant, commenced April 7 at 10:04 a.m. CDT from Lockheed Martin's Fort Worth plan, and lasted approximately 55 minutes. It was piloted by Lockheed Martin F-35 Test Pilot David Nelson.

The flight of BF-4 marks the first time an F-35 has flown with mission-enabling sensor systems, including the Northrop Grumman-developed fire-control radar, and integrated communications, navigation, identification avionics. The company, a principal and founding member of the Lockheed Martin F-35 industry team, also builds the center fuselage for all three F-35 variants and provides key mission systems software and related test equipment.

"The first flight of BF-4 is good news for the warfighter," said Mark A. Tucker, vice president of tactical systems and the F-35 program manager for Northrop Grumman's Aerospace Systems sector. "It means the flight test program is now expanding from simply testing the flying characteristics of this fifth generation fighter, to testing the systems that will deliver the F-35's multi-role value to the U.S. and its allies."

Northrop Grumman is proud of the role it plays helping Lockheed Martin ensure that the F-35 meets the critical mission requirements not only of the U.S. Department of Defense, but also of the F-35 partner countries and potential international customers, added Tucker. Lockheed Martin is the F-35 mission systems integrator.

The company provides missions systems software used to perform several critical F-35 functions: external communications, which includes training, landing and maintenance data links; sensor planning; mission management; embedded training; and health monitoring of on-board mission systems. It also develops and produces the test station equipment used by the entire industry team to develop and test F-35 mission systems software.

Northrop Grumman also produces the aircraft's AN/APG-81 active electronically scanned array fire control radar. It allows the pilot to engage air and ground targets at long range, and provides situational awareness. To date, the company has conducted extensive flight testing of the radar on other platforms with very positive results.

Northrop Grumman developed and has successfully demonstrated the software-defined radios that provide core communication, navigation and identification (CNI) functions for the F-35. This flexible, real-time reconfigurable system will eventually provide the jet with more than 40 CNI functions, including advanced data networking capabilities. To date, it has demonstrated excellent range and stability aboard Lockheed Martin's Cooperative Avionics Test Bed (CATBird) aircraft, a flying laboratory that provides an avionics environment similar to the F-35.




The Titanic Historical Society, Inc.

Today’s website is The Titanic Historical Society, Inc.. Enjoy.


This Day in U.S. Naval History

1898 - Commissioning of the first post-Civil War hospital ship, USS Solace.
1988 - USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG 58) strikes an Iranian mine off Qatar.
1989 - The first Navy ship arrives on scene to assist in the Exxon Valdez oil spill cleanup.


Photo of the Day



The RMS Titanic before her fateful voyage. Shortly before midnight on April 14, 1912 she struck an iceberg in route to New York.

Gator