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The above includes closest to the camera, two Bergamini-class FREMM frigates–Alpino (F 594) and Luigi Rizzo Martinengo (F 592)— a Lupo-class frigate and an Andrea Doria-class destroyer to the left, both of Italy’s flattops (Cavour and Garibaldi) in the center, a Durand de la Penne-class destroyer being towed out, and an aging Maestrale-class frigate, in addition to a few misciloanius tugs, lighters, and yard craft.
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Commissioned in Galveston in 1964 Reliance is the leader of her 16-ship class, of which four have been retired in recent years– only to see those old hulls transferred to overseas allies.
In addition, the cutter made port calls in Ecuador, Costa Rica, Mexico, and Panama for the first time in the ship’s 59-year history. The cutter also crossed into the Southern Hemisphere, prompting a time-honored equatorial crossing tradition for the Reliance crew. Before returning to Pensacola, the crew conducted aviation training with aircraft from Coast Guard Aviation Training Center Mobile and steamed in formation with Coast Guard Cutter Diligence (WMEC 616) to commemorate the cutters’ upcoming 60th anniversaries this summer.
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A U.S. military CV-22 Osprey takes off from Iwakuni base, Yamaguchi prefecture, western Japan, on July 4, 2018. (Kyodo News via AP)
WASHINGTON — The Pentagon will lift the ban on flights by the grounded V-22 Osprey next week, U.S. officials told The Associated Press on Friday, following a high-level meeting where Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin endorsed the military services’ plans for a safe and measured return to operations.
The officials said that Naval Air Systems Command, which grounded the controversial tilt-rotor aircraft about three months ago, will lift it and allow the services to begin implementing their plans to get the Osprey back into the air. Austin met with the top service leaders, including for the Navy and Air Force, on Friday morning, according to the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss plans not yet made public.
The Osprey has been grounded for almost three months following a Nov. 29 Air Force Special Operations Command crash in Japan that killed eight service members. The Japan incident and an earlier August Osprey crash in Australia that killed three Marines are both still under investigation. The Air Force has said that it has identified what failed in the Japan crash, even though it does not know yet why it failed.
The decision to end the flight ban is up to Naval Air Systems Command, but Austin had asked for an informational briefing on the matter because of the significant safety concerns and the fact that three of the services and a critical ally are involved in the program. While Austin does not have approval authority in the return to flight process, U.S. officials said his endorsement of the services’ plan was considered a key step.
In the months since, the services have worked on plans to mitigate the known material failure by conducting additional safety checks and establishing a new, more conservative approach to how the Osprey is operated.
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When many people think of World War II naval aviation in the Pacific, aircraft such as the Grumman F4F Wildcat or the Vought F4U Corsair often come to mind. Large, slow flying boats like the Consolidated PBY Catalina, however, played vital roles for naval operations, including launching airborne attacks, anti-submarine patrols, delivering supplies, and performing air rescue. Although missions in these roles may not often be remembered, February 2024 marks the 80th anniversary of one of the most extraordinary flights of the PBY Catalina during World War II.
The U.S. Navy has depended on flying boats since the dawn of aviation. Their ability to take off and land on water gave Navy planners a versatile way to deploy aviation assets to support their fleets. They provided an aeronautical capability any place that featured a deep enough body of water. In fact, flying boats proved to be essential during World War I for long range anti-submarine patrols. One of the first major flights accomplished by the US Navy following that conflict was that of the Curtiss NC-4 flying boat, which completed the first trans-Atlantic flight in May 1919. The Navy continued to use flying boats throughout the 1920s and 1930s, and several squadrons were at Pearl Harbor when it was attacked on December 7, 1941. Although some may have considered the PBY Catalina to be outdated at the outbreak of World War II, they provided a very durable airframe for long-range flights.
Consolidated PBY-5 “Catalina” patrol bomber in flight, May 1942.
During World War II, the PBY Catalina proved versatile in several roles. They were excellent for anti-submarine patrols during the early days of the Battle of the Atlantic. With a range of almost 3,000 miles and excellent visibility, Catalinas could fly for great distances with a large crew (seven to nine sailors) searching for German U-boats. Catalinas could then either call in additional ships to attack the submarines or attack themselves with their multiple machine guns or bombs. They were also excellent at long-range reconnaissance and proved to be a critical component to the American victory at the Battle of Midway. On June 3, 1942, Catalinas from Navy patrol squadron VP-44 were the first to spot the Japanese fleet sailing to attack Midway Island and launched some of the first attacks against the enemy fleet. PBY Catalinas continued to perform critical patrol missions throughout the battle by keeping track of the Japanese fleet, allowing U.S. carriers to direct attacks that eventually led to the destruction of four Japanese carriers.
Consolidated PBY-5 “Catalina” flying boat of a “Black Cat” night patrol squadron, in flight near the New Guinea coast, May 1944.
PBY Catalinas also proved to be a useful attack platform during the multi-month battle of Guadalcanal from late 1942 to early 1943. Several Catalinas were painted black and referred to as “Black Cats,” conducting night attacks against Japanese shipments during the battle. Catalinas could fly long distances at low altitudes and attack ships carrying troops and supplies at night, often surprising Japanese commanders. These missions greatly helped reduce the effectiveness of the Japanese attacks on the island and allowed the U.S. to keep possession of the island and its critical airfield. One of the most underrated roles of the Catalinas, however, was its search-and-rescue capability.
A “Black Cat” PBY Catalina from VPB-34 skins the waters of San Pedro Bay off Samar Island, in the Philippines.
The huge expanses of the Pacific Ocean proved to be extremely hazardous to pilots whose planes were damaged in aerial combat or suffered mechanical difficulties. If a pilot could not return to an airfield on an island or to a friendly aircraft carrier, they had no choice but to attempt to ditch their aircraft in the sea and survive in a life raft. The long range, durability, and great visibility that allowed Catalinas to be successful in other roles also made the aircraft excellent for search-and-rescue operations. The ability to land on and take off from the water also meant they could directly rescue downed pilots without the need to call in additional assets. It was this role that led to the only Medal of Honor mission ever conducted in a PBY Catalina.
Vice Admiral Thomas C. Kinkaid, USN (right) (Commander, Seventh Fleet) and Lieutenant Nathan G. Gordon, USNR (left) shaking hands after Gordon was presented the Medal of Honor at Seventh Fleet Headquarters on 19 August 1944.
On February 15, 1944, Lt. j.g. Nathan Green Gordon of VP-34 was flying his PBY Catalina Arkansas Traveler in support of the U.S. 5th Air Force attack on Kavieng, located on New Ireland island. They were tasked with flying “Dumbo” missions that day, which was the name given to search-and-rescue missions. During the attack, several U.S. planes were shot down by enemy anti-aircraft fire, resulting in several crews ditching their aircraft in the water near Kavieng. Gordon landed his PBY Catalina four times under intense enemy fire to pick up stranded aircrew in the water or in small life rafts. In total, Gordon picked up 15 aircrew and flew his very overloaded plane back home without issue. Gordon was awarded the Medal of Honor for his actions, and the details of his rescue were recorded in the citation for the award:
“For extraordinary heroism above and beyond the call of duty as commander of a Catalina patrol plane in rescuing personnel of the U.S. Army 5th Air Force shot down in combat over Kavieng Harbor in the Bismarck Sea, 15 February 1944. On air alert in the vicinity of Vitu Islands, Lt. (then Lt. j.g.) Gordon unhesitatingly responded to a report of the crash and flew boldly into the harbor, defying close-range fire from enemy shore guns to make 3 separate landings in full view of the Japanese and pick up 9 men, several of them injured. With his cumbersome flying boat dangerously overloaded, he made a brilliant takeoff despite heavy swells and almost total absence of wind and set a course for base, only to receive the report of another group stranded in a rubber life raft 600 yards from the enemy shore. Promptly turning back, he again risked his life to set his plane down under direct fire of the heaviest defenses of Kavieng and take aboard 6 more survivors, coolly making his fourth dexterous takeoff with 15 rescued officers and men. By his exceptional daring, personal valor, and incomparable airmanship under most perilous conditions, Lt. Gordon prevented certain death or capture of our airmen by the Japanese.”
The Museum’s Consolidated PBY Catalina is on loan to the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Florida, where it is pictured here on display.
Although not as fast or maneuverable as many aircraft of World War II, the PBY Catalina provided critical service during the conflict and was the most produced flying boat by the end of the war. PBYs continued to serve after the war, in both commercial capabilities carrying people and goods to areas without concrete runways, as well as well as in firefighting capabilities. The Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum acquired the last surviving PBY-5 in the early 1960s, which had entered service on February 28, 1943, and provided invaluable training in Pensacola, Florida. It can still be seen on display at the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Florida, where it is on loan as a memorial to all those who bravely flew the skies in the greatly underrated flying boat that served numerous roles to bring about an Allied victory.
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When NASA’s Orion spacecraft splashes into the Pacific after its planned lunar mission next year, the first people the astronauts will see will be a bunch of sailors.
That recovery task requires intricate planning, coordination and training, the latest of which wrapped up this week with the first joint training exercise at sea involving the astronauts who will crew the planned Artemis missions to the Moon. Four astronauts – including two Navy captains – are training for the Artemis II mission that will send them on a 10-day trip orbiting the moon next year. It’s a critical step for NASA’s planned Artemis III mission, which would be the first crewed launch to land on the moon since the Apollo 17 mission in 1972.
During the weeklong Underway Recovery Test 11, amphibious transport ship USS San Diego (LPD-22), Navy divers, helicopter crews and medical staff recovered the astronauts from a test crew craft following a simulated splashdown into the Pacific and then hauled the training spacecraft into San Diego’s well deck.
URT-11 focused on day and night open-ocean tests, with the test craft aboard San Diego, training with the recovery teams and procedures for the splashdown for next year’s scheduled mission to the Moon. The upcoming Artemis II launch, planned for September 2025, will be crewed by mission commander Navy Capt. Reid Wiseman, pilot Navy Capt. Victor J. Glover and mission specialists Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen, the latter with the Canadian Space Agency.
ULT-11, the latest in a series of planned drills with the Navy and NASA’s Exploration Ground Systems ahead of the September 2025 launch, was “very successful,” said Lili Villareal, NASA’s landing and recovery director.
“We continue to validate our procedures that we can safely recover the Artemis II astronauts from the Orion spacecraft into the recovery vessel, along with bringing the spacecraft into the well deck,” Villareal said at a press briefing Wednesday beside USS San Diego, which is berthed at Naval Base San Diego. The test module – the mock-up is similar in size as the actual Orion spacecraft – sat in the ship’s well deck.
“It’s a highly choreographed activity that requires a lot of teams and hardware to come together to bring our Artemis astronauts home,” she said.
After splashdown, that starts with Navy divers who meet the capsule and help astronauts out and onto a raft to be hoisted into Navy helicopters, recovering them, one by one, to the support ship, where the medical department evaluates the astronauts. Then, the joint Navy-NASA team recovers the capsule onto the ship, which returns to the San Diego base.
Navy ship crews have been constant partners with NASA through decades of manned space flight.
Last year, USS Portland (LPD-27) joined Navy crews in recovering the Orion space capsule – sans astronauts – after it splashed down in the Pacific off Baja California. That Artemis I lunar mission had sent the capsule on a 25-day trip to the Moon, where it orbited 1.3 million miles in space. “These tests are what we need to make sure that the Artemis II is just as successful,” Villareal said.
A decade ago, the crew of San Diego participated in recovering the first flight test of the Orion capsule, following its launch from Cape Canaveral, Fla.
Capt. David Walton, San Diego’s commander, noted how the LPDs, with their flight deck, extensive well deck and large medical department, are well suited to conduct the joint recovery mission. This time, Walton noted, URT-11 took on an exciting note as San Diego hosted the astronauts.
The at-sea training also wowed the astronauts. Wiseman recounted getting hoisted off the ship, dangling from a hovering helicopter at night. “This is crazy. This is off of movies, and we’re living it every day,” he said at the briefing.
The upcoming Artemis missions are focused on the Moon, but the greater goal is to pave the way for Mars exploration, Wiseman said. “It’s humans on Mars. It’s humans working on and around the Moon. When we put our minds together to go out and do something – as a planet, all cooperating – that is our goal. To go out and to explore our solar system like humans do. What’s around the next corner? We want to know. We are excited to be the first crew in over 50 years to go out to the moon and back, 50,000 miles out and 250,000 miles back.”
“When we land, it’ll be an LPD from the U.S. Navy with survival swimmers coming down the hoist, maybe in the night,” he said.
The Artemis II mission will be notable for another reason. The four-astronaut crew will be the first to leave low-Earth orbit and fly around the Moon with a female astronaut, a Black astronaut and a Canadian astronaut.
“It doesn’t matter if you’re a first if there’s no seconds, thirds and fourths,” Glover, a veteran fighter and test pilot, said during the briefing. “So that’s really what I think about is making sure we do the best at our job so that the American people and our international partners continue to have faith in their public space agencies so we can keep going and exploring further.” Glover had piloted a 2020-2021 SpaceX mission to the International Space Station and, during 168 days in space, did four spacewalks.
“It’s important to bring anyone who has innovative ideas, anyone who has a desire to contribute, to this team,” added Koch, who’s tallied the longest time in space by any woman during a 2019-2020 mission to the space station. “That’s what makes us successful and that’s what is really worth celebrating.”
The latest underway training with the Navy crews helped work through problems such as broken parts and rougher seas than expected, Wiseman said. “You never understand the problems that nature can throw at you,” he said.
The next training drills, ULT-12, will be the mission certification run before the actual lunar mission, Villareal said. The joint NASA-Navy training includes Navy’s Expeditionary Strike Group 3, U.S. Space Command and other Department of Defense units.
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Take a look at Exercise Steadfast Defender 24 – Nato’s largest military exercise since the Cold War.
There are more than 90,000 troops from all 31 Nato allies, plus invitee Sweden, involved in the historic exercise on land, at sea and in the air.
Steadfast Defender aims to demonstrate Nato’s ability to defend every inch of its territory and the commitment by Nato allies to protect each other from any threat.
Sixteen thousand British soldiers are taking part in the largest set of Nato multi-national military manoeuvres in a generation.
Troops are deployed across the entirety of Europe’s eastern flank, stretching from the far north of Norway, inside the Arctic Circle, all the way down to Georgia in the Caucasus.
At the forefront of the five-month exercise will be the British Army, underpinning its position not only as the leading Nato European member state but also as one of its most potent.
Ex Steadfast Defender is split into two overlapping parts, with each phase of the exercise including a range of associated exercises hosted by different countries.
It began in January and runs though to May and comprises 11 individual exercises in which British forces will participate alongside Nato allies and partners.
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HMS St Albans has returned to sea after a major four-year refit at His Majesty’s Naval Base Plymouth.
The Type 23 frigate shines like new, thanks to the extensive work completed during the overhaul.
As the ship undergoes simulated sea exercises with seasoned sailors guiding the new recruits, it marks a crucial step towards full operational readiness.
Ahead of setting sail, HMS St Albans role-played being at sea – while staying firmly tied up – giving the team the chance to run through their drills safely with experts from Fleet Operational Sea Training on board to check all is well.
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Born in Caledonia, Arkansas, in December 1937, John Canley went on to enlist in the Marine Corps in 1953.
In his nearly 30 years in service, Canley was deployed on three combat tours to the Vietnam War, serving as a rifle platoon leader, company gunnery sergeant, and company first sergeant before retiring as a sergeant major in 1981.
In 2018, Canley was awarded the nation’s highest military honor for his actions during the Battle of Hue City in Vietnam in 1968, when he carried more than 20 wounded Marines to safety while under enemy fire. He also took command for three days of Alpha Company, 1st battalion, 1st Marines after his company commander was wounded.
He became the first Black Marine to receive a Medal of Honor while still living.
Canley died on May 11, 2022, in Bend, Oregon, of complications related to prostate cancer. He was 84.
He was honored by the ship’s crewmembers in a memorial service and buried with full military honors at the Arlington National Cemetary.
“The actions in the face of danger Sgt. Maj. Canley took are incredible and remarkable,” Marine Corps Sgt. Maj. Troy Black said in 2022. “Sgt. Maj. Canley was a leader and a warfighter who undoubtedly contributed to the battles won in Vietnam.”
“His first priority was and has always been his Marines — a true example of Semper Fidelis,” Black added. “I’m saddened by the loss of such a great Marine, yet I’m grateful for the legacy he established for generations of warriors.”
USS John L. Canley joined the active fleet in a commissioning ceremony at Naval Air Station North Island in San Diego, California, on February 17.
Canley’s legacy lives on in the Navy’s newest expeditionary sea base, the first of its name and the sixth ESB to join the Navy’s active fleet.
The Lewis B. Puller-class warship acts as a highly flexible mobile staging area to support military operations at sea, including the Marine Corps, special operations forces like the Navy SEALs, and other embarked units. It can also serve as a mothership for unmanned aerial systems.
It is designed to include aviation facilities, equipment staging support, and command-and-control assets.
With a length of 785 feet, it also has the Navy’s third-largest flight deck. The diesel-electric vessel has four large rotary-wing landing spots that can support nearly every helicopter within the joint forces: MH-53E Sea Dragons, MV-22 Ospreys, CH-47 Chinooks, CH-46 Sea Knight, AH-1 Cobras, and AH-64 Apaches.
Fully loaded, the Canley has a displacement of 90,000 tons and can travel at 15 knots with a range of 9,500 nautical miles.
General Dynamics National Steel and Shipbuilding Company built the mobile sea platform. David Carver, President of General Dynamics NASSCO, noted the “remarkable capabilities” of the Canley.
“Canley has substantial residual space, weight, and power to accommodate a wide range of current and future, manned and unmanned, surface, aerial, and undersea systems across multiple warfighting functions,” Carver said. “This is a massive, capable, flexible warship that gives fleet commanders decision space they need throughout their operating theaters.”
The ship can accommodate MK-105 mine sleds, rigid hull inflatable boats (RHIBs) used by SEALs and Marines, and twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs). The ship can also carry high-speed interceptor patrol boats and has weapon mounts and stowage space for weapons and ammunition.
Xavier Vavasseur, chief editor of Naval News, toured the Canley with Capt. Thomas Mays, the commanding officer of the ESB.
They walked through the ship’s parking-garage-like structure, where the crew could store boats and vehicles.
“One of our primary mission sets is US Marine Corps aviation mine-sweeping,” Mays told Naval News. “The MH-53 can drop sleds in the water, and then sweep a minefield free to enable an amphibious assault if needed.”
Flying low over the water, the powerful MH-53 tows the sled through the minefield to trigger any lurking mines so ships can later pass through.
Mays said the ship’s crew will undergo a few more months of certification and training before likely joining the USS Miguel Keith (ESB 5) in the Seventh Fleet operating area in the Western Pacific.
A few weeks after his death, Canley’s daughter and the ship’s sponsor, Patricia Sargent, christened the ship in a time-honored tradition, breaking a bottle of sparkling wine across the ship’s bow in a ceremony in June 2022.
She delivered an address during the ship’s commissioning in February 2023, highlighting her father’s heroism and other Marines in the Vietnam War.
“To be able to give the order to bring this ship to life, I need to give you some information in regards to my father,” Sargent said. “My father understood that greatness is not achieved by the individual; it is achieved by the courageous acts of the many. The Marines of Alpha Company 1/1 are an example of that in what they achieved in the Battle of Hue City.”
“This ship will achieve greatness, but it will only do that by the courageous actions of the many,” Sargent continued. “It is in honor of my father, my family, members of the 1/1, and the great people of the United States that I give the command: officers and crew of the USS John L. Canley, man our ship and bring her to life!”
Paul Garcia recalled his time serving alongside Canley in 1968, saying he “earned the respect of every member of our unit because of his selflessness during combat.”
“During major battles, he’d go out into the open and save Marines after they were shot,” Garcia told the Orange County Register. “I just feel honored I served with him.”
Garcia was part of a private tour of the warship following its commission, describing it as a “beautiful ship named after a very brave man.”
“It will afford the Marine Corps the ability to be prepared in any location to attack in an amphibious landing,” he said.
“It is my firm belief that USS John L. Canley will serve as an inspiration to all who follow in her wake,” US Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro said during the commissioning ceremony earlier this month.
“It is my sincere hope that for those who come aboard this ship — those in the United States Navy, the Marine Corps, Military Sealift Command — when they cross that bow, they’re also challenged to live up to the unwavering devotion to duty that this ship’s namesake.”
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Naval Base Threw Open the Doors -Monday, 24 March 2014,
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