How Ice Cream Replaced Booze in the US Navy

General Order 99 One hundred and eleven years ago on July 1, 1914, Secretary of the US Navy Josephus Daniels issued General Order 99, banning “the use or introduction for drinking purposes of alcoholic liquors on board any naval vessel, … Continue reading

US Navy’s Military Sealift Command to Sideline 17 Ships Due to Mariner Shortage

The Military Sealift Command (MSC) operates approximately 125 replenishment and military transport ships to support the US Navy. Currently, MSC has more ships than it has civilian mariners to sustainably operate them.  MSC’s commander confirmed Thursday that the command will … Continue reading

The Cost of Corruption — Legacy of the US Navy Fat Leonard Scandal

The decades-long “Fat Leonard” bribery and corruption scandal may finally have come to an end.  This week, Malaysian ship-supply contractor, Leonard Glenn Francis, 60, known as “Fat Leonard” was sentenced to 15 years in prison for bribing US Navy officials … Continue reading

Eighty Years Ago Today — Battle off Samar, a Victory Against All Odds

The Battle of Leyte Gulf was fought eighty years ago this week between the US and Australian navies and the Imperial Japanese Navy.  It was the largest naval battle of World War II and by some standards the largest naval … Continue reading

Remembering Jesse L. Brown, First African-American Naval Pilot

In honor of Black History Month, an updated repost about the first African-American pilot in the US Navy, Jesse L. Brown. The story goes that when young Jesse Leroy Brown worked in the cotton fields of Mississippi beside his sharecropper … Continue reading

Update: Navy Says Oahu Water Safe To Drink After Red Hill Fuel Cleanup; EPA and Residents Disagree

Toward the end of December, the US Navy’s Red Hill Bulk Fuel Storage Facility at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii was drained of fuel, after chronic fuel oil leaks into Oahu’s sole drinking-water aquifer from the World War II era underground tanks. … Continue reading

US & UK Navies Suffer Sailor Shortage, Cutting Crews on Carriers & Laying Up Frigates

This year, the US and Royal navies have fallen short of meeting their recruiting goals, leaving both navies with more ships’ billets than they have personnel to fill them. In 2023, the US Navy missed its goal of recruiting 37,700 … Continue reading

Two Ships of US Navy “Ghost Fleet” Visit Japan

In August, we posted about how Ukrainian naval drones are redefining warfare in the Black Sea in Ukraine’s battle against the ongoing Russian invasion. On the other side of the globe, two US Navy unmanned surface vessels (USV) arrived in … Continue reading

Nearly 40% of US Attack Submarines Are Out of Commission for Repairs

Bloomberg reports that delays at naval shipyards mean that nearly 40% of US attack submarines are out of commission for repairs, about double the rate the Navy would like, according to new data released by the service. As of this … Continue reading

Update: the Race to Find Missing Submersible Titan With Five Onboard — 40 Hours of Air Remaining

The US Coast Guard is racing against time to locate and rescue a submersible with five people onboard that went missing on Sunday morning in the North Atlantic while attempting to dive on the wreck of the Titanic. The area … Continue reading

Navy Selects First Female Master Chief Petty Officer in the Service’s 230-Year History

The Navy has selected an active-duty female gunner’s mate for promotion to master chief petty officer for the first time in the service’s 230-year history. Senior Chief Gunner’s Mate Jessica Saunders, who joined the Navy in 2002, was slated for … Continue reading

Remembering Jesse L. Brown, First African-American Naval Pilot

In honor of Black History Month, an updated repost about the first African-American pilot in the US Navy, Jesse L. Brown. The story goes that when young Jesse Leroy Brown worked in the cotton fields of Mississippi beside his sharecropper … Continue reading