Navy Is Upping Its Game in the Pacific
The littoral combat ship USS Gabrielle Giffords deployed last week from San Diego packing the US Navy’s new naval strike missile. It’s headed to the Indo-Pacific theater.
Esper: There’s Progress Filling Pentagon Vacancies
Congress and the White House are working to fill senior vacancies at the Pentagon. Five nominees will face Senate hearings in the coming weeks, while eight are undergoing White House vetting, DefSec Mark Esper says.
SPACECOM Standup Aug. 29
Upon its standup, SPACECOM head Gen. Jay Raymond will inherit 87 units, covering missile warning, satellite operations, space control and space support — and pull about 642 personnel from US Strategic Command.
Army Mini-Drones Join the Afghanistan Mission
82nd Airborne Division used the Black Hornet Personal Reconnaissance System last week to support a foot patrol in Kandahar province — it marks the entry of mini-drones into counter-terrorism efforts in Afghanistan.
Trump Wants Out of Afghanistan by 2020 Election
SecState Pompeo says President Trump wants troops out of Afghanistan before the 2020 election. Pompeo says “real progress” has been made with security in the area. “It won’t just be us. … we hope that overall, the need for combat forces in the region is reduced.”
$738B for DoD Not Enough, Says GOP
The nearly $1.4 trillion spending plan — which would prevent a government shutdown this fall and do away with the final two years of budget caps known as sequestration — includes about $738 billion for DoD in FY2020, a 3 percent increase from current year levels.
Iranian President: US Sanctions End Diplomacy
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani rebukes the Trump White House in reaction to new US sanctions. Rouhani says the hope for a diplomatic solution between the two nations has ended.
Navy Salvage Team Joins Search for Crashed F-35A
The Japan F-35A that crashed into the Pacific Ocean about three weeks ago is believed to be lying on the ocean floor. The US 7th Fleet has sent a Navy salvage team to help find the plane.
Navy’s Aviation Accidents Keep Rising
Manned aviation accident deaths across the services continue to break records, but the steady six-year climb finally halted this year. Only the Navy did not improve in the total accident categories from 2017 to 2018 and is still 83 percent higher than in 2013.
F-35 Dominates Mock Combat Exercise
At the recent Red Flag mock combat exercise, the Air Force put the F-35 up against “the most advanced weapons systems out there,” and the stealth fighters apparently dominated — so much so that even the rookie pilots were crushing it.
