Sept. 30, 2014

USS Nautilus and the U.S. Navy Get Underway on Nuclear Power

For the cost of a laptop today, the Navy's nuclear propulsion program began 77 years ago. It could only have been a Navy physicist who upon observing the energy created by the splitting of uranium atoms, would also wonder if that could be used for propulsion at sea. It was in 1939 when Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) scientists met to determine if

Sept. 25, 2014

Fit to Fight: American Shipbuilding and Salvage Comes Through in the Wake of Pearl Harbor

This is the final chapter in a 3-part series about the salvage operation that brought USS West Virginia (BB 48) back to the fleet 70 years ago Sept. 23, 1944. She had been hit by seven torpedoes and two bombs during the Dec. 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. Click for Part 1 and Part 2.Lessons noted, lessons learnedThe Pearl Harbor Salvage Division

Sept. 24, 2014

With a Hat Tip to American Shipbuilding, USS West Virginia Returns from the Bottom of Pearl Harbor Fit to Fight

Part two on a 3-part series about the salvage operations that brought USS West Virginia (BB 48) back to the fleet Sept. 23, 1944 after being sunk in the attack at Pearl Harbor.We keep them fit to fightWhen the smoke cleared after the attack on Dec. 7, 1941, 19 ships berthed at Pearl Harbor were severely damaged and in various stages of sinking or

Sept. 23, 2014

American Shipbuilding, Navy Maintenance Past and Present: Keeping the Fleet Fit to Fight

Part One of a 3-part seriesA ship rejoining the fleet after a major overhaul is nothing new in the Navy. But 70 years ago today, when USS West Virginia (BB 48) returned to Pearl Harbor, it was a momentous event. West Virginia was the last, and most heavily damaged, of the 18 ships salvaged after the Dec. 7, 1941 attack. Her return to the fleet

Sept. 19, 2014

Dirt, Taps & Nursery Rhymes: Vietnam POW Book Offers Insight into Captivity

It's National POW/MIA Recognition Day today, observed on the third Friday in September. There may not be any big sales in the stores this weekend, but please take a moment to remember those who served as prisoners of war and the thousands who remain missing in action since World War II. The POW/MIA flag, made official by Congress in 1990, may be

Sept. 13, 2014

Through "Rocket's Red Glare" Flotilla Sailors Stand Strong

It was arguably one of the most famous battles on American soil and is still sung of today. It was a failed attempt by the British to invade one of America's largest cities during the War of 1812, a battle that inspired the anthem of the American people. When Francis Scott Key witnessed a battered American flag still waving "at dawn's early light,"

Sept. 12, 2014

The Colors of a Navy and Nation

Flags, standards, and banners have been used for thousands of years as visual symbols of those who bear them. "The broad stripes and bright stars" of the American flag represent an indivisible nation "with liberty and justice for all" and symbolize sacrifices made by many for the sake of the nation and the freedom they hold dear. For many years,

Sept. 12, 2014

Blue Angels History Milestones

  Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, while serving as Chief of Naval Operations, formed the U.S. Navy Flight Demonstration Team as a means to expose the American public to naval aviation, which had come of age during World War II. This was deemed very important in an era in which the roles and missions of the armed forces were the subject of vigorous

Sept. 11, 2014

9/11: The First Act of Defiance against the Enemies of Freedom: A Sailor's Experience at the Pentagon

A combined graphic images of USS New York (LPD 21), USS Somerset (LPD 25) and USS Arlington (LPD 24) all named in honor of the events of September 11, 2001. (Graphic Image by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Clifford L. H. Davis, Naval Histor...

Sept. 10, 2014

Three Tenets, Three Ships: USS New York, USS Somerset and USS Arlington Put CNO's Vision into Motion

Capt. Kenneth M. Coleman's official photo as USS New York's Executive Officer. ...

Sept. 9, 2014

Nuclear Navy and Energy Independence Pick Up Steam in 1961

Long Beach, the world's first nuclear-powered guided missile cruiser, was commissioned Sept. 9, 1961, the same year as the world's first nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, USS Enterprise (CVAN 65). "With their nuclear-powered submarine counterparts already operating in the fleet and the nuclear-powered guided missile destroyer USS Bainbridge (DLGN

Sept. 7, 2014

Long Before Nuclear Power, There Was Turtle Power

On 17 July 1785, Thomas Jefferson wrote to his friend and colleague George Washington, requesting "you to be so kind as to communicate to me what you can recollect of Bushnel's experiments in submarine navigation during the late war."  Washington replied two months later, declaring that although he did not "expect much success from the enterprise

Aug. 29, 2014

Paying Respects to USS Houston (CA 30) Crew and the Navy Family

Officers of the USS Houston CA 30 Survivors Association and Next Generations, and descendants of the crew from the World War II cruiser USS HOUSTON (CA 30) spent the day with naval leadership at the Pentagon and the Naval History and Heritage Command (NHHC). The Houston went down fighting during the Battle of Sunda Strait on March 1, 1942, with

Aug. 19, 2014

USS Constitution: Presence Then, Presence Now

The Chief of Naval Operations Guiding Principles (Warfighting First, Operate Forward, Be Ready) were as important and applicable to the early chapters of our Navy's history as they are today. In the months leading up to our declaration of war against Great Britain, Captain Isaac Hull personally witnessed the rising tension between our Navy and the

Aug. 13, 2014

#PeopleMatter: Hospitalman John Kilmer Showed Dedication to Marines Until Death

Today we remember Medal of Honor recipient John Edward Kilmer, a hospital corpsman with the Third Battalion, Seventh Marines during the battle of Bunker Hill in the nearing the end of his four-year enlistment.Hoping to put his medical expertise to use in the war, he re-enlisted in the Navy in Aug. 1951. In his picture, he is wearing a dark uniform

Aug. 2, 2014

PT 59: The PT Boat You Didn't Know About

It may have looked like a speedboat, but beware anything that might threaten its mission. Loaded with two twin .50 cal. M2 Browning machine guns, two 40 mm guns (fore and aft) and four single .30 and .50 cal. machine guns, the water craft had the power to destroy any obstacle that got in its way. That was the power of PT-59.A former Motor Boat

July 31, 2014

#PeopleMatter: On the Surface, Conspicuous Gallantry and Intrepidity were the Hallmarks of a WWII Submariner

Eight submariners have received the Medal of Honor, but only one earned his during combat on the surface rather than under the water.On July 31, 1944, Cmdr. Lawson P. "Red" Ramage was commanding officer of the new Balao-class USS Parche(SS 384). A 1931 Naval Academy graduate and a 13-year veteran of the Navy, Ramage spent his early career on

July 23, 2014

#PeopleMatter: Remembering the Honor, Courage and Commitment of Lt. John W. Finn

 Like the man for whom the ship is named, USS John Finn (DDG 113) will be built to fight, durable and ready to go the moment her crew brings her to life. That is when the 63rd Arleigh Burke-class destroyer joins the fleet in 2016. So we'll talk instead about the ship's namesake on the occasion of his birthday, July 23, 1909.John William Finn was

July 17, 2014

#PeopleMatter - Navy Pilot comes up Aces during the Korean War

There are the rare times when the number five is luckier than a seven. Not at a Las Vegas casino, perhaps, but definitely so for a naval aviator nicknamed "Lucky Pierre," the U.S. Navy's only ace of the Korean War.Guy Pierre Bordelon Jr., a native of Ruston, La., was a pre-law student at Louisiana Polytechnic Institute and then later enrolled at

July 12, 2014

U.S. Navy Catapult Anniversary Highlights Strides in Carrier Aviation

On this day in 1916, the first catapult designed for shipboard use successfully completed calibration launching a Curtiss AB-3 from the deck of the armored cruiser North Carolina making the ship the first to be equipped to carry aircraft. Since then, U.S. Navy aircraft carrier launching technology has evolved, from hydraulics to steam-powered