INTERCEPTS
“The waters east of Africa are a grey zone because developing countries don’t have resources to fight pirates. It’s a temporary solution that a shipper has hired a warship from
another country, but there’s no alternative.”
Jan Fritz Hansen
Vice president of the Danish Shipowners’ Association
After Danish shipper A.P. Moller Maersk hired out soldiers and a warship from
Tanzania to protect its fleet off the coast of Africa.
Copenhagen Post, Jan. 4
“If we are consistent in design, technology and with trying to
give manufacturers — shipbuilders in particular — a stable
workload over a certain amount of time, then what we ought
to expect from industry is that they’re going to make the capital commitments that they needed to do, and that as they
build these ships the learning curve works in our advantage.”
Ray Mabus
Secretary of the Navy
On how the Navy and naval shipbuilders can work in tandem to keep ship construction costs down.
Defense News, Jan. 11
important than what we build is
how we think. The future refuses to
unfold the way we think it will. We
have to figure out how best to use
what we have now to deal with the
world as it is, as our adversaries do.
“The concept of hybrid warfare
forces us to recognize that we now
live in a world where terrorists
are able to steal video feed from a
multimillion-dollar drone using
software you can buy on the Inter-
net for less than $30,” he said. To
counter such developments “we
must be able to adapt to what we
see and do it in real time.”
Harvey praised the multimis-
sion capabilities of the Arleigh
Burke-class destroyers available in
the fleet today.
“It is an extraordinarily capable
and adaptable platform that superbly
supports a truly extraordinary array
of missions. The same DDG that can
engage an exo-atmospheric ballistic
missile can also, with the expert
assistance of a few Navy SEALs, take
out Somali pirates,” he said. ■
The Coast Guard has three icebreakers in its fleet. Healy, the largest
icebreaker, began operating in 2000
and is used mostly for scientific missions. Polar Star has been in “
caretaker” status since 2006 and is not being
used. Polar Sea completed an extensive repair period in September 2008
and took part in Arctic research operations last fall. Polar Sea and Polar
Star have exceeded their 30-year life
expectancies.
Allen said the Coast Guard will
work with Canada during its annual summer mission in the Arctic to
explore what, if any, type of infrastructure is needed in the region
and what assets would be used if
the service opted to expand its
presence in the region. The service
has spent the past three summers
conducting research in the Arctic.
The commandant also said the
service has sent four 270-foot
Medium-Endurance Cutters —
Forward, Mohawk, Valiant and Tahoma
— to assist in rescue and recovery
efforts in Haiti in the wake of the
massive earthquake there Jan. 12.
Harvey to Fleet:
‘Adapt or Die’
U.S. forces must “adapt or die” in
countering the threats in hybrid
warfare, said Adm. John C. Harvey
Jr., commander, U.S. Fleet Forces
Command.
“Multiple forms of warfare, converging in time and space, creating
an environment where everything
is in play, all at once, with varying
degrees of intensity and violence:
Hybrid warfare is, at its heart, a
strong reminder that our enemies
will be thinking enemies … with
actions limited only by [their]
morals and creativity,” he said Jan.
12 at the SNA Symposium.
“Many people have tried to figure
out what it means for our force
structure — what we build and how
many we build,” he said. “Far more
Reporting by Seapower Correspondent
Megan Scully. Managing Editor Richard
R. Burgess, Assistant Editor John C.
Marcario and Special Correspondent
Dale Eisman contributed to this report.
CORRECTIONS
■ The number of propeller
shafts listed in the Power
Plant description for the
Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruisers in the
January Seapower Almanac
was incorrect. Ticonderoga-class ships have two shafts.
■ The name of the fourth
Littoral Combat Ship (LCS)
was incorrect in the December issue. The General
Dynamics-built LCS 4 is
Coronado.
