Latest news with #US Navy
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
BWX Technologies secures naval nuclear reactor component contract worth up to $2.6 billion
(Reuters) -BWX Technologies said on Thursday it has secured contracts worth $2.6 billion, including future options, to manufacture components for nuclear submarines and an aircraft carrier for the U.S. Navy. The United States has been modernizing its nuclear-powered Navy fleet as part of broader efforts to counter China's growing influence in the Indo-Pacific region. In 2023, Reuters reported that the U.S. Navy was carrying out its largest revamp of its top-secret undersea surveillance network since the 1950s. Last month, Raytheon, RTX's defense arm, said it had been awarded a $1.1 billion contract from the U.S. Navy to produce short-range missiles. BWX said the products under its contract will be delivered in the next six to eight years. Se produjo un error al recuperar la información Inicia sesión para acceder a tu portafolio Se produjo un error al recuperar la información Se produjo un error al recuperar la información Se produjo un error al recuperar la información Se produjo un error al recuperar la información
South China Morning Post
5 days ago
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Will US-built naval facilities in Philippines strengthen Manila's hand in South China Sea?
The US plan to build new naval facilities in the western Philippines could strengthen Manila's ability to 'confront' Chinese vessels in the South China Sea and even pave the way for shared use between the two allies in the event of future conflict, according to one observer. Earlier this week, the United States said its navy would construct two maintenance facilities for smaller vessels at Oyster Bay and Quezon on Palawan , which is less than 260km (160 miles) from the Second Thomas Shoal, a major flashpoint between Manila and Beijing. The US embassy in Manila said the Oyster Bay facility would 'provide repair and maintenance capabilities for several small Philippine military watercraft' and include 'two multipurpose interior rooms for equipment storage or conference use', according to The Philippine Star. The embassy said the facility was 'not a military base', adding that US military activities in the Philippines were conducted 'in full coordination' with its ally. Bao Yinan, an associate research fellow at the Huayang Centre for Maritime Cooperation and Ocean Governance in Hainan, said: 'From the most superficial 'technical' perspective, it is primarily aimed at ensuring and enhancing the combat capabilities of the Philippine Navy, thereby directly strengthening the ability of Philippine naval vessels to 'confront' or even 'counter' China.' The US may also have the 'potential intention' of smoothing the way for the shared use of Philippine naval facilities.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Yahoo
I spent the night on a World War II submarine Airbnb that can sleep 65 people in sailors' bunks. Take a look inside.
Guests can sleep on the USS Cobia, a World War II submarine, at the Wisconsin Maritime Museum. The submarine is listed on Airbnb and can sleep up to 65 people in sailors' bunks. My stay was a memorable experience that gave me a newfound respect for US Navy submariners. At the Wisconsin Maritime Museum in Manitowoc, you can descend a steep staircase into the USS Cobia, a US Navy submarine that sank 13 ships and earned four battle stars in World War II. You can walk through the rooms and learn about its history in combat from a US Navy veteran or self-guided audio tour. Unlike other museums, you can also sleep there. Through the museum's "Sub Bnb" experience, guests can book a stay on the USS Cobia via Airbnb and spend the night in the same bunks where submariners once slept during their wartime service. For years, the Wisconsin Maritime Museum hosted Boy Scout troops and other large groups on the submarine, which can sleep up to 65 people. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit and large groups could no longer visit, the museum pivoted to hosting individual families. The experiences proved so popular that the museum has continued to offer overnight stays for large and small groups alike. "The Sub Bnb was a business move in many ways for the sustainability of the museum," Wisconsin Maritime Museum director Kevin Cullen told Business Insider. The cost of the Sub BnB starts at $500 per night, plus a $100 cleaning fee and an $85 Airbnb service fee for a total of $685, although prices vary depending on when you book. Business Insider paid a discounted media rate of $200 to report this story. The funds earned from Sub Bnb stays help support the museum. "Just by staying there, you get that authentic experience, but you're also supporting preservation for generations to come," Cullen said. In December, I visited the Wisconsin Maritime Museum for an overnight stay on the USS Cobia accompanied by my dad, a maritime enthusiast. Here's what it's like to spend a night on a World War II submarine. The USS Cobia was visible from the parking lot when we arrived at the Wisconsin Maritime Museum for our submarine stay. The USS Cobia was docked outside the museum in the Manitowoc River. The freshwater river has helped preserve the submarine over the years since it's less corrosive than saltwater. Inside the museum, we were greeted by Mark Becker, a US Navy submarine veteran and museum volunteer who served as our tour guide. Becker served on the USS Silversides during the Cold War. Becker took us outside for our first proper look at the USS Cobia. The USS Cobia sank 13 ships during its six patrols in World War II, earning four battle stars. The submarine also rescued seven downed American pilots. After the war, the USS Cobia was brought to Manitowoc to serve as a memorial for submariners. The Wisconsin Maritime Museum acquired it in 1986. That same year, the USS Cobia became a National Historic Landmark and was added to the National Register of Historic Places. It's not the first submarine to grace the shores of Manitowoc. The Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company, which was located just miles from the museum, built 28 submarines during World War II. Standing on the deck, I was amazed by the size of the submarine. Becker told us that the USS Cobia actually spent most of her patrols on the surface of the water, not underwater. "Cobia is basically a gunboat that can submerge if she has to, not like a true submarine like I was on," he said. "Cobia was better on the surface. Faster, more maneuverable, and way more firepower." The smell of diesel fuel became stronger as I walked down a set of stairs into the submarine. The stairs didn't exist during the USS Cobia's wartime service. Sailors used ladders to enter and exit the sub through narrow hatches. Becker said we were free to sleep in any of the bunks on the USS Cobia that we saw along the tour. The first stop on the tour, the forward torpedo room, featured pull-out bunks where torpedomen slept. The only exception was the captain's stateroom, which remained off-limits. The captain's stateroom was not available to overnight guests out of respect for the rank. Walking through the USS Cobia, the hallways were so narrow that I could barely lift my arms to my sides. I couldn't believe that a crew of 80 men once navigated the submarine's narrow spaces for months at a time. The hatches required some clambering to navigate from room to room and could have painful consequences if one forgot to duck. Instead of doorways that could be walked through, the hatches required me to duck and climb through the small openings. Becker said that during his submarine service in the Navy, he once hit his head while running through the ship after a call rang out for crew members to report to their battle stations. "I didn't duck far enough, and, pow, I hit my head at the top of that thing," he said. "I damn near knocked myself out." A perk of staying on the submarine overnight was the personalized tour, which included spaces not usually open to the public like the pump room. In the control room, which contained the ship's navigational equipment and controls, Becker opened a hatch in the floor that led to the pump room. I climbed down the ladder to take a look. The pump room featured air compressors, cooling systems, and pumps that removed accumulated water. A laminated set of directions included 54 steps to operate the machinery. Becker said that crew members would have been working here all day and all night. Becker also let us tinker around with some of the switches in the control room. The USS Cobia has been so well maintained that many of its controls still work. The museum staff instructed us not to touch any of the buttons or switches while staying on the submarine to prevent any technical mishaps. In the control room, Becker showed my dad how to pull the lever that sounded the "battle stations" alarm. I was surprised by how loud it was, but it needed to be heard over the roar of the submarine's four diesel engines. After we finished our tour, we picked up our seabags containing all of our linens for the evening. Each seabag provided by the museum included a pillow, a pillowcase, a fitted sheet, a top sheet, and a microplush blanket. Sailors received similar seabags during their submarine service. My dad chose a bunk in the forward torpedo room at the front of the submarine. The night we visited the USS Cobia, temperatures in Manitowoc reached a low of 16 degrees Fahrenheit. Thankfully, the submarine was heated, and the forward torpedo room was the warmest on the ship. I set up my bed down the hall in the "goat locker," where chief petty officers slept. When the rank of chief petty officer was established in 1893, the officers' duties included managing the goats that were kept on ships to produce fresh milk. The goats were kept in the chief petty officer's quarters, which then became known as the "goat locker," according to the Naval History and Heritage Command. Becker said that the nickname also poked fun at the senior officers, who were referred to as "old goats" since they had been in the Navy for a long time. The goat locker contained five beds, and the mattress was surprisingly comfortable. The confined quarters reminded me of the night I once spent in a Dolly Parton-themed RV in Tennessee. My bunk featured its own light and a few drawers for storage — benefits that high-ranking officers enjoyed. Most crew members only received one cubic foot of space for their personal belongings, but higher-ranking officers had access to more storage in their bunks. We ate dinner in the ward room, where officers took their meals, held meetings, and spent their downtime. We brought our own food and ate on the submarine, but there are several restaurants located near the museum for visitors who want to dine out. It was surreal to step inside an active museum exhibit and eat dinner alongside the fake food displayed on real US Navy tableware. Since the USS Cobia does not have working bathrooms, I went back into the museum to get ready for bed. When guests sleep on the USS Cobia, the museum stays open for them all night. A staff member also sleeps at the museum to be available if guests need anything. Staying on the submarine required going up and down its stairs and outside for every bathroom trip, which could prove difficult for those with mobility challenges or inconvenient for those who make frequent nighttime trips. The museum can also accommodate overnight guests inside the building if needed. While brushing my teeth, I charged my phone since there were no easily accessible outlets on board. There was no phone service on the submarine, either. "You are in an entirely metal encapsulated vessel, therefore cell phone service and internet is not available on board," the email with our check-in instructions read. Walking through the dark, empty museum at night was just as cool as I imagined it would be. Ever since I watched "Night at the Museum," a 2006 film in which exhibits at the American Museum of Natural History come alive at night, I've wondered what it would be like to visit a museum after hours. All of my "Night at the Museum" dreams came true at the Wisconsin Maritime Museum. We were given free rein to wander as we pleased. Walking around the museum at night did feel different, similar to the way that watching a scary movie in the dark adds a certain gravitas. We had the entire museum to ourselves, which allowed us to take our time looking through the exhibits. I particularly enjoyed the exhibits about shipwreck artifacts discovered off the coasts of Wisconsin and the history of the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Company. Even though I grew up in Wisconsin, I had no idea of the extent of its maritime history. In my bunk that night, I thought about all of the soldiers who left their families and homes to spend months on board the USS Cobia. It's one thing to walk through a World War II submarine on a guided tour and imagine what life was like on board. It's another to fully immerse yourself in the experience by eating where they ate and sleeping where they slept. I thought about what Becker told us during our tour as we walked through the crew's quarters — no matter how tough sailors seemed, the sound of tearful sniffles would always be audible at night. "I don't care what ship it is — aircraft carrier, submarine — you're going to hear it," he said. The next morning, I watched the sunrise from the deck. I'd been a little bit worried about getting seasick on the sub, but I didn't notice much movement and felt fine the whole time. I slept from around 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. then found it difficult to fall back asleep due to the chilly temperature on board. I took advantage of the early hour and watched the sun's pink glow start to peek through the clouds. As the sun came up, I got a better look at the guns atop the deck. The USS Cobia was equipped with three guns: a 50-caliber deck gun, a Bofors 40 mm gun, and an Oerlikon 20 mm cannon. I noticed other details that I'd missed in the dark, like the name "Cobia" inscribed on the side of the submarine. Cobia, pronounced KOH-bee-uh, is a species of fish. I stepped back onto the walkway connecting the submarine to the museum to take in the full view, once again marveling at its enormity and history. At 312 feet, the USS Cobia was almost as long as the Green Bay Packers' Lambeau Field. The Wisconsin Maritime Museum provided us with breakfast in one of its meeting rooms. Breakfast included instant oatmeal packets, granola bars, muffins, bagels, orange juice, and coffee. After breakfast, we took a bit more time to walk through the museum, including an in-depth look at the USS Cobia. The USS Cobia exhibit inside the museum featured an immersive audiovisual presentation set in a model of the submarine's control room. Voice actors and animated crew members reenacted the USS Cobia's sinking of a Japanese ship loaded with 28 tanks headed to Iwo Jima in 1945. I commemorated my stay with a magnet from the museum gift shop that read "I stayed the night on the USS Cobia." The magnet cost $5.95. Spending the night on the USS Cobia was a memorable experience that gave me a newfound respect for US Navy submariners. Cullen, the museum director, hopes that when guests stay on the USS Cobia, it sparks "a moment of recognition of the tremendous sacrifice that submariners in World War II underwent." "That's what museums really are here for," he said. "The objects are witness to history — witness to tremendous tragedy as Cobia was in wartime efforts, but also witness to the tremendous humanity of those moments in time that I think connect us as people cross-culturally and cross-generationally." I also asked my dad for his take. "Sleeping in the forward torpedo room with the gentle movement of the floating sub and the ever-prevalent smell of old diesel fuel long expired gave me a small taste of what life on a submarine must have been like," he said. "Truly a unique experience and a must for all militaria aficionados." Indeed, the smell of diesel fuel lingered in my hair and on my clothes after our stay — a souvenir of its own. Read the original article on Business Insider
Yahoo
12-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
The Army and Navy want the ‘right to repair' their own equipment
A fundamental value of life at sea is 'Don't give up the ship,' an axiom ingrained in sailors that all damage and problems aboard a vessel fall to the crew to fix. But under modern contracting rules, some of the most critical systems on U.S. Navy ships, as well as major systems used by the Army, can only be fixed by defense contractors. When one of these systems breaks — whether a vital weapon or the machines that produce fresh water — sailors and soldiers may not have the tools, training or permission to fix them, due to the contracting rules under which the military cedes its 'right to repair' systems to contractors who built them. Many view this repair system as an Achilles' heel for the U.S. military. 'I can tell you that when the shooting starts, sailors will have to keep their ships in the fight at sea because we can't count on being able to bring civilian contractors onboard in a war zone,' a post-command Navy surface warfare officer captain told Task & Purpose. That's why the U.S. military and some lawmakers are both stepping up their focus on'right to repair'for weapons and other systems, ensuring that troops have the necessary tools, training and authorization to fix their own equipment, said Greg Williams, of the Project on Government Oversight, or POGO, a non-partisan watchdog group. Two senators introduced a bill this week that would make 'right to repair' a staple of military contracting, with rules requiring that future weapons systems be delivered with manuals, tools and access to parts and information that would make systems fixable by the military members who use them. Separately, the Senate Armed Services Committee has advanced its version of the fiscal year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act that also includes a 'right to repair' provision, which would require defense contractors to 'submit instructions for continued operational readiness necessary for operations, maintenance, installation, and training,' according to a summary of the bill that was released on Friday. A variety of equipment used by the military – from ships and aircraft to generators and handheld gear – is purchased with a warranty, and that means the manufacturer has the responsibility for making repairs, said Williams, director of POGO's Center for Defense Information. 'Now, that makes a lot of sense when, perhaps, you buy a car or a mobile phone,' Williams told Task & Purpose. 'It does not make a lot of sense when you're thousands of miles from home, potentially under fire; you have a piece of equipment you need either to succeed in your mission or simply to survive, and you want to be able to do whatever you can to repair that on the spot.' Another issue is that servicemembers are not allowed to try to fix certain types of equipment because the U.S. military does not own the intellectual property rights to it, Williams said. But the U.S. military wants service members to perform more types of repairs. In April, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a memo ordering sweeping reforms to the Army, including directing the service to include 'right to repair' provisions in existing contracts and ensure such provisions are part of future contracts. While the Army has a general 'right to repair' its gear, soldiers face certain restrictions when fixes involve proprietary systems, advanced electronics, and software that is protected by intellectual property laws, or if making such repairs would void the warranty, said Army spokesperson Elias Chelala. 'Commanders often prefer having their soldiers perform basic and intermediate repairs to reduce downtime and increase operational readiness,' Chelala told Task & Purpose. 'This includes diagnostics, component-level replacements, mechanical repairs, and preventative maintenance tasks in the field.' Granting soldiers and sailors access to the tools, manuals, and software needed to repair more types of equipment would both increase their autonomy and sharpen their skills, he said. This would also require soldiers to undergo more training on using diagnostic tools, troubleshooting software systems, and repairing complex systems to avoid damage and injuries. The Navy operates many aircraft, weapons systems, and critical ship systems that either require flying contractors to the ship for repairs or making the fixes when the ship is in port, said Capt. Ron Flanders, a spokesperson for the office of the assistant secretary of the Navy for research, development and acquisition. Sailors and Marines do not have the technical manuals or diagnostic capability to repair those items, which include helicopters, jets, radar systems, guns, fire control systems, reverse-osmosis water filtration systems, and even ovens, Flanders told Task & Purpose. 'Navy commanders would much prefer that sailors be given the technical manuals and diagnostics capabilities they need to perform maintenance on all manner of combat systems,' Flanders said. Flanders added that he is confident that sailors would be able to take care of systems currently serviced by contractors if they were provided with the necessary technical manuals and diagnostic tools. 'Rapid, effective maintenance is a warfighting imperative,' Flanders said. 'This is especially true in contested logistics environments, where self-sufficiency will be required. ' Toward that end, a bill introduced by Sens Sheehy and Warren, in at least one sense, captures the bipartisan consensus on the right to repair. Sheehy is a former Navy SEAL and staunch Donald Trump supporter while Warren is a leading Democrat who has championed consumer protections for over a decade, including right to repairs issues for heavy farm equipment. Along with dictating terms to defense contractors, their bill would also require the defense secretary to conduct a review to modify contracts to remove any intellectual property barriers that prevent service members from repairing equipment. 'It's about time we stand up to Pentagon contractors that are squeezing every last cent from us at the expense of our national security,' Warren said in a statement to Task & Purpose 'Our warfighters – and the American public – deserve better, and I'm proud to lead this bipartisan legislation to streamline bloated bureaucracy, increase competition, and provide our warfighters with the quality and quantity of equipment they need to win the next fight,' Sheehy said in a statement to Task & Purpose. Williams said the underlying reason why troops are prohibited from making certain repairs is that maintaining equipment is 'a very profitable business' for defense industry. 'I think it's important to recognize that we spend tens of billions of dollars annually on these types of repairs, and eventually that could be done a lot less expensively by our people in uniform and by civilian defense employees,' Williams said. 'They generally cost about one third the hourly or annual rate of a contractor.' While it will cost money to train service members to fix equipment that currently must be repaired by contractors, Wiliams said, 'You either pay that expense, or you pay the expense if they're not able to get their equipment fixed when a mission is underway.' Not only do current constraints prevent troops from making repairs under 'dire circumstances,' but they also mean that service members cannot practice fixing equipment when they are not in danger, Williams said. This also means that service members need to wait for contactors to arrive to make necessary repairs. 'Just in case it's illustrative, I don't know if you're a 'Star Trek' fan, but you can probably picture Captain Kirk calling down to engineering to ask Scotty how quickly he's going to repair something,' Williams said. 'Now keep imagining if Scotty's answer was: 'Well it will take three weeks for the contractor to get here at Warp 4. Until then, we can't touch it.'' UPDATE: 07/11/2024; this story was updated with information about a right to repair provision in the Senate version of the fiscal year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act. Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps learns an old lesson: Don't mess with Audie Murphy A breakdown of safety procedures 'directly contributed' to an 82nd Airborne paratrooper's death WWII Marine Raider who fought at Iwo Jima, Guadalcanal wants cards for 100th birthday Navy identifies special warfare sailor killed while parachuting Pentagon appears to pause renaming of Navy ships
