Eric Dane isn’t a SWO. He just plays one on TV. But his late father, William Melvin, was an aviation boatswain’s mate in the Vietnam War era. To honor his service, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus presented Dane with a shadow box of his awards June 12 at the season 2 premiere “The Last Ship” in Washington, D.C., attended by sailors in the area. On the show, Dane plays Cmdr. Tom Chandler, skipper of the destroyer Nathan James and more or less humanity’s last hope of survival against an apocalyptic virus. “I’m here because I love Washington, I love the Navy and…
Browsing: Ballistic missile defense
Calling all San Diego sailors: If you’ve got some free time Tuesday evening, TV network TNT is holding an open casting call for extras for its Navy-themed show “The Last Ship,” according to a Monday post on the Naval Base San Diego Facebook page. From 2 p.m. to 8 p.m., sailors are invited to drop in to Building 45 at the Recreation Center NBSD, in the Blue and Gold Conference rooms. Applicants must bring an I-9 form (downloadable here) and written permission from their chain of command to participate. Also, you have to be on authorized leave or liberty, so don’t…
The destroyer Stout came home to Norfolk Saturday following a Med cruise in support of theater security operations and ballistic missile deterrence … … and just in time for Father’s Day: Stout took part in the coalition strikes on Libyan forces that began in mid-March. Stout was the first ship on station and fired multiple salvos of Tomahawk cruise missiles at Libyan air defenses, surface-to-air sites and communications nodes, along with the destroyers Stout and Barry, the attack submarines Providence and Scranton and the guided missile submarine Florida, according to the Navy. The crew also had to deal with the…
The Japanese destroyer JS Kirishima shot down a medium-range ballistic missile during a joint exercise with the Navy. Read about it here.
Date: May 13, 2010 Location: Heritage Foundation, Washington D.C. Subj: CNO comments In a speech and response to questions offered at the Heritage Foundation Thursday, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead urged fiscal responsibility yet downplayed talk of further cuts to Navy ships and programs. He agreed with Defense Secretary Robert Gates’ call for greater scrutiny in procurement, and said he is a “proponent” for considering revisions to decades-old laws governing personnel issues. (You can read more about that in Monday’s edition of Navy Times). Other highlights:
It’s no secret the naval fleet has more gaps than O.J.’s alibi. The Navy is lacking surface vessels, especially amphibs. Submarine and aviation gaps are on the horizon. Even the carrier fleet will drop below requirements for at least three years beginning in 2012. Adding the crushing blow on this already sizable dog pile is the fact that SSBN(X) will cost $80 billion — which the Navy doesn’t have. Unless Congress coughs up the cash, the shipbuilding budget will be cut by half for a whopping 14 years. Ouch. Since it’s very unlikely the Navy will get everything it needs,…
