Free Republic

Military Advantage: Our defense secretary proposes doing what no other foreign adversary has done: sink the U.S. Navy. We don't need those billion-dollar destroyers, he says. Meanwhile, the Chinese navy rushes to fill the vacuum. Once Britannia ruled the waves, later to be replaced by America and its Navy. From the Battle of Midway to President Reagan's 600-ship fleet that helped win the Cold War, naval supremacy has been critical to the protection and survival of our nation. Which is why we find the recent remarks of Defense Secretary Robert Gates to the Navy League at the Sea-Air-Space expo so...

The Boeing Company has successfully completed the preliminary design of the U.S. Navy's Free Electron Laser (FEL) weapon system, a key step toward building a FEL prototype for realistic tests at sea. During the preliminary design review held March 9 to March 11 at a Boeing facility in Arlington, Va., the company presented its design to more than 30 U.S. government and National Laboratory representatives. This electric laser will operate by passing a beam of high-energy electrons through a series of powerful magnetic fields, generating an intense emission of laser light that can disable or destroy targets. "The Free Electron...

The U.S. Navy accidentally posted their classified estimate on the size and composition of the Chinese Navy. This data was quickly taken down, but not before it was copied and posted worldwide. The strength of the Chinese fleet was listed as; Submarines- 62 (53 diesel Attack Submarines, six nuclear Attack Submarines, three nuclear Ballistic Missile Submarines). The U.S. has 72 submarines, all nuclear (53 attack and 18 ballistic missile.) Destroyers-26. The U.S. has 52. Frigates-48. The U.S. has 32, including two of the new LCS vessels. Amphibious Ships 58. The U.S. has 30, all much larger and equipped with flight...

Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand agreed Thursday to begin air patrols over the Strait of Malacca to boost security against piracy and terrorism in one of the world's busiest shipping lanes. The four nations will each donate two planes for what they have dubbed the "Eye in the Sky" plan to operate coordinated patrols over the busy Strait of Malacca. The aerial patrols will begin next week. All flights will carry a representative of each country to survey the narrow waterway, which carries more than a quarter of the world's trade. Indonesian Foreign Ministry spokesman Marty Natalegawa says all four...

Navy forces have detained four al Qaeda suspects as a result of maritime interdiction operations in the U.S. Central Command area or responsibility, Vice Adm. David Nichols said Dec. 19. Nichols, who heads the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command, 5th Fleet, said that within the last two weeks, ships stopped and searched two ships. In one instance, sailors detained one individual; in the other it was three. In one case, the suspected al Qaeda was trying to enter Iraq. In the other, Navy officials do not know where the ship was destined. At least one ship was carrying hashish, said...