#circulatednavytimes — Public Fediverse posts

PARIS — A number of NATO countries are pursuing new naval concepts based on sea drones programmed to keep adversaries out of allied waters, a nod to Ukraine’s pursuits with such weapons against Russian ships.

The alliance nations belong to the so-called Joint Capability Group for Maritime Unmanned Systems, or JCGMUS. The group, created following the 2018 NATO summit in Brussels, comprises more than a dozen nations considered full members, partners or observers.

Every September, member countries stage one of the largest experimentation exercises with naval unmanned systems – the drill is abbreviated REPMUS – in concert with the Portuguese Navy to help accelerate drone technology testing and interoperability among allies.

Next year, the emphasis will fall on using unmanned systems to keep adversary forces at a distance, a new tack for the group.

“The roadmap of REPMUS will focus in 2025 on non-traditional sea denial – that is limiting an adversary’s maritime freedom of action, including through anti-access, area denial and disruptive and dispersible capabilities, based in part on of what we’ve seen in Ukraine,” Craig Sawyer, chair of JCGMUS said during a panel discussion at the Euronaval defense exhibition here on Nov. 5.

One of the elements that allowed the Ukrainian Navy to create an anti-access perimeter was the deployment of different types of unmanned surface vessels, which in some cases drove straight into Russian vessels at sea or in port to neutralize them.

The NATO official also added that one of the ambitions for next year’s drill will be to deliver an anti-submarine warfare barrier project demonstrator, an initiative established in 2020 and led by the United Kingdom.

“The ASW barrier seeks to develop a technical demonstrator comprising both legacy and interoperable maritime uncrewed systems to securely provide a force multiplying anti-submarine warfare capability,” Sawyer said during his presentation.

The project involves 12 other countries, including Italy, Canada, France, Germany, Spain, the U.S., Portugal, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Australia.

The widespread use of drones seen in Ukraine across all domains has spurred greater investments in these technologies, with many countries having launched national tenders to acquire new platforms.

While procuring more unmanned assets is a necessity for many nations, Sawyer warned of the risk of tackling them alone.#dn-dnr #nato #france #italy #unmanned-naval-drones #sea-drones #alliance #black-sea #circulated-defense-news #circulated-navy-times
NATO allies ready sea drones for the task of repelling enemy warships

ATLANTA — Atlanta is far from the ocean, but it will have a naval vessel named for it again.

Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro announced this week that the Navy will build a Virginia-class attack submarine that will be known as the Atlanta.

It wasn’t immediately clear when the construction will start on the submarine, when it will enter service, or how much it may cost.

In August, the Navy awarded a $1.3 billion contract to the General Dynamics Electric Boat shipyard in Groton, Connecticut, to start buying materials for that and other submarines it will eventually build.

The Navy has recently been naming new submarines in its Virginia class for cities, including Baltimore, San Francisco and Miami.

It would be the fifth Navy vessel named for Georgia’s largest city. The first was a Confederate ironclad captured in 1863 and converted to Union service during the Civil War. The most recent was a Los Angeles-class nuclear attack submarine that served from 1982 to 1999.

“It has been 25 years since the Navy has had a ship named after the proud legacy of the city of Atlanta,” Del Toro said in a speech at the Carter Center in Atlanta.

Del Toro saluted the naval submarine service of former President Jimmy Carter, who just turned 100. Carter, the only president who was a nuclear submariner, already has the Jimmy Carter, a Seawolf-class submarine, named for him. It was commissioned in 2005 and remains in the fleet.

Former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, who has served in President Joe Biden’s administration, will be the ship’s sponsor.

“And wherever she sails, she will represent not only the legacy of the proud ships who bore the name USS Atlanta before her, but also the thousands of Atlantans who have honorably and faithfully served the United States in uniform, as civil servants, and as activists to better our great nation,” Del Toro said.#atlanta #navy #submarine #naming #circulated-navy-times #circulated-defense-news #circulated-military-times
Navy to name submarine after the city of Atlanta