Clydebank Beauty

Posted on by Leave a comment

Some 110 years ago this month, a great view of the conning tower and forward turrets, complete with newly-installed 15″/42 Mark I guns, of the future Renown-class battlecruiser HMS Repulse, seen whilst fitting out at John Brown & Co’s Clydebank yard, Scotland.

August 1916 National Records of Scotland, UCS1-118-443-295

The 10th RN ship to carry the name, Repulse commissioned 18 August 1916, just over two months too late for Jutland. The month prior, she hit 31.73 knots on her speed trials, making her the world’s second fastest capital ship upon completion, only bested by her sister Renown, which hit 32.58.

However, the two sisters, Renown and Repulse, spent so much time in modification and maintenance over their careers that the wags in the fleet collectively knew them as HMS Refit and HMS Repair.

This included, for Repulse, 27 months (December 1918 – March 1921) at Portsmouth Dockyard to install torpedo bulges and improved armor to fix the shortcomings exposed in British battlecruisers at Jutland, and a 37-month (April 1933 – May 1936) modernization on the eve of WWII. Add to that numerous minor maintenance and refit periods, and she spent nearly a fourth of her 25-year career in the yard.

Portsmouth Dockyard blueprint for Renown-class battlecruiser HMS Repulse dated 1936.

Repulse nonetheless earned three battle honors (Norway 1940, Atlantic 1940, and Bismarck Action 1941) before she gave her last full measure, escorting the HMS Prince of Wales on 10 December 1941

File under ‘No Suprise’ : Navy Shore Based Harpoon System Successful

Posted on by Leave a comment

It shouldn’t be that much of a surprise, as Harpoon entered service in 1977– yes, almost 50 years ago– but the new Harpoon Coastal Defense System (HCDS) was validated at its Developmental Test (DT-1) at Point Mugu Sea Range (PMSR) in July 2026, “validating the system’s ability to engage and neutralize maritime threats.”

Boeing Photo via DVIDS 260721-O-HP119-5272

During the event, the Harpoon missile successfully launched from land and engaged the target vessel in near-shore/littoral waters.

It is planned to ship these to Taiwan, which has a $2.3B program to field 100 HCDS launchers and 400 missiles– a pretty good way to keep the local littoral their local littoral.

It should also be noted that the background concept has been extensively validated over the years, with the Royal Danish Navy fielding two 8-missile batteries of Scania 113M/320 truck-mounted quad-packed Harpoons from 1988 to 2003.

The Danish Harpoon setup. Marinens Biblioteks digitale arkiv MAB-16884

Plus, Ukraine received 20 Harpoons in 2022 from donations by Denmark, the Netherlands, the U.S., UK, and Spain for use in ground-based launchers, though little has been seen of them. Like, literally. The Ukrainians conceal them inside cargo containers to avoid the drone ka-boom.

The Danes also loved to heavily camouflage their Harpoons, so you can be sure the Taiwanese will be sure to do the same.

But, why?

So why bother with a land-based trailerable Harpoon when the Marines already have the smaller Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction Systems (NMESIS) ground-based system which carries two Kongsberg Naval Strike Missiles?

A Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System launcher deploys into position aboard Pacific Missile Range Facility Barking Sands, Hawaii, Aug. 16, 2021.  (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Maj. Nick Mannweiler, released)

Well, throw weight for one. While the 13-foot/800-pound NSM is a newer and more streamlined missile, it only has a 264-pound warhead, while the 15-foot/1,500-pound Harpoon totes 500 pounds of boom and delivers it with more kinetic energy by virtue of mass and speed.

Yes, NSM has a longer published range of 100nm while the RGM-84L-4 Harpoon Block II has a published range of 75nm, but keep in mind those are public figures.

Of course, the 8-ton NMESIS with its two missiles is CH-53E/K (hoist) or C-130 (internal) aircraft compatible and built to operate in much more austere environments, ready to pop off an LCU, LSM, or LCAC onto a beach while the HCDS, based on the same HEMTT trailer as the Army’s THAAD, is more of a C-17/industrial-grade roadway kinda thing, as its weight is likely closer to 35 tons.

While HCDS is set to deliver to Taiwan to complement indigenous HF-2 and HF-3 anti-ship launchers, it might not be a bad idea for the USN to invest in a few batteries of these, for a just-in-case type of scenario. Put them in the reserves with two Marine Reserve Artillery Battalions, one staged on the East Coast, the other on the West.

Speaking of Marines and Harpoons, since you came this far, how about these great very recent shots of VMFA-232 “Red Devils” F-18C/Ds out of MCAS Iwakuni conducting an anti-ship exercise, complete with two AGM-84s under the wings along with a pair each of Sidewinders and AMRAAMS for emergency use.

Nice to see the classics.

A U.S. Marine Corps F/A-18D Hornet aircraft assigned to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 232, Marine Aircraft Group 12, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, lands on Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Yamaguchi, Japan, during a harpoon exercise, Aug. 19, 2026. VMFA-232 stands ready to integrate and seize the strategic advantage to ensure stability in the region. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Sgt. Alejandra Vega)

A U.S. Marine Corps F/A-18C Hornet aircraft with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 232, Marine Aircraft Group 12, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, flies off the coast of Japan, Aug, 19, 2026. U.S. Marines with Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 152 conduct aerial refueling operations in support of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 232, demonstrating the Marine Corps’ ability to sustain and generate combat airpower. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. David Getz)

Army buys a *lot* of force-on-force practice rounds

Posted on by Leave a comment

The British firm of UTM just got a mega contract award from the Army for marker rounds to be used in what it calls Close Combat Mission Capability Kits, which convert standard M4s and M249s, etc., to cycle them, a conversion that is easily reversible and doesn’t (overly) damage said small arms.

These things…

The company sells Man-Marker Rounds (MMR/RVR) in red, blue, yellow, or green; Non-Marking & Target Bullet Rounds (NMR/TBR) plastic-backer training rounds, and very loud Battlefield Blanks (LBBR)s without a projectile, all of which cost around 75 cents a pop on large Mil/LE contracts, and this one is a big contract, so that price is likely lower.

The Contract, emphasis mine:

UTM Ltd., Bury St. Edmunds, United Kingdom, was awarded a $257,402,691 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for the procurement of 5.56mm M1042 loose and M1071 linked marking ammunition cartridges for use in the Close Combat Mission Capability Kit. Bids were solicited via the internet with one received. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of Aug. 24, 2031. Army Contracting Command, Newark, New Jersey, is the contracting activity (W15QKN-26-D-A102).

Of note, the ATF recently backpedaled on a rule that banned the import of UTM rounds for consumer use, which was proffered by the Biden administration. It is possible the size of the contract could be a bit of a salve to make the company whole on those lost sales.

The Germans still really love Dragons Teeth

Posted on by Leave a comment

3 April 1945.

Original Caption: “Dragon teeth on the Siegfried Line presented an obstacle to tanks of U. S. Seventh Army in the Wissembourg area, France. Note teeth extend to mountains which raise a natural barrier.”

Signal Corps Photo 111-SC-203387 Photographer: Sgt. Robert G. Heller.

Fast forward some 80 years, and the line has moved well East but still looks much the same, only a bit less angular and more…NATO.

Well versed in MG

Posted on by Leave a comment

Some 110 years ago this month.

Imperial Russian Army pilots and observers training in Kiev, Ukraine, August 1916, with American-made Colt 1895 pattern “potato digger” machine guns, likely made by Marlin-Rockwell.

Contrary to the common trope of being underarmed, the Tsar’s purchasing agents were fond of all things machine gun, with Cossack cavalry carrying Madsen guns in Manchuria in 1904 and the Tula Arsenal putting the Russian version of the water-cooled light Vickers (Maxim) in mass production by 1910– a model that is still in active service today around the world.

As best recalled from “Quiet Flows the Don” by Mikhail Sholokhov, when a young Cossack came to the unit’s attention in 1920:

“I’d like to ask to be transferred to the machine gun team.”

“Are you familiar with a machine gun?”

“I know the systems of Shosha, Bertier, Madsen, Maxim, Gochkis, Bergman, Vickers, Lewis, and Schwarzloze.”

First Crabs, now 85 years in the rearview

Posted on by Leave a comment

Some 85 years ago this week, on 22 August 1941, at the Navy Gun Factory (now the Washington Navy Yard), Mine Recovery School Class No. 1 graduated, minting 10 officers (three of them Coasties), five chiefs, and eight ratings in the art of Navy EOD.

Note the distinctive broad eagle cloth cap insignias on the three USCG officers in the front row, standing out from the smaller eagle devices on the USN officers

These men, who all certainly went on to risk life and limb around moody, explosive-filled devices so that others may keep theirs, were the Navy’s first “Crabs.”

Over 340 American EOD techs have lost their lives since 1942.

The first U.S. casualty in mine disposal was Navy Ensign John M. Howard (who graduated in Class No. 2) when the washed-up German TMA-1 magnetic influence mine he was attempting to defuse on 11 June 1942 exploded on Corton sands at Garton, near Lowestoft in England.

Today, the Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal community numbers roughly 2,290 active and about 140 reserve personnel, but has been very well seasoned, especially during the Sandbox years, in counter-IED and UXO disposal, while keeping their gratefully lesser-used skills of underwater de-mining and WMD disposal at more of an academic level.

Plus, the Crabs of today benefit from investments in unmanned underwater vehicles, advanced sensors, and a “fusion of machine learning and artificial intelligence to extend the reach and lethality of operators.”

Their unofficial motto is a very understandable, “Initial success or total failure.”

The Coast Guard is putting its ersatz AOE to good use already

Posted on by Leave a comment

We covered the story of the civilian-mariner-operated Homeland Security Cutter Ocean (the leased M/V Connor Bordelon) back in June.

A 257-foot/3,285 LT “Ultralight subsea intervention vessel” with a 60-ton AHC crane and a 55-foot helicopter platform, Ocean has the capacity to carry nearly 70,000 gallons of potable water, produce another 3,100 a day, and carry 122,000 gallons of transferable diesel. She also has a massive open deck that can carry a diverse mixture of CEUs, which can carry additional supplies.

Homeland Security Cutter-Ocean moored at U.S. Coast Guard Base Miami Beach, Florida, June 26, 2026. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Reese Hindmarsh)

Well, HSC Ocean is online and recently was used to conduct a replenishment at sea with the 270-foot diesel-powered Bear-class USCGC Forward (WMEC 911) in the Caribbean Sea, a historic first for the service.

Note the CEUs on HSC-Ocean’s deck

Nice to see a MK75 76mm OTO still in U.S. service

Of course, it was stationary in a near-zero sea state, but it was still an all-USCG RAS between two decent-sized non-USN/MSC vessels, which is saying something about how expeditionary warfare could look in the coming years in the West Pac or CENTCOM.

As noted by USCG Atlantic Area:

The HSC-Ocean initiative rapidly deploys leased commercial support vessel capabilities to deliver supplies, equipment, and personnel directly to our cutters underway. By integrating this commercial logistics technology, we keep our high-demand assets on station longer—enhancing our ability to save lives, strengthen border security, and ensure our crews are always ready to respond to maritime crises in the Caribbean and Western Hemisphere.

Mary Bonnin Closes her Dive Locker

Posted on by One comment

EMCM/MDV (Ret) Mary J. Bonnin has passed in an accident on dry land, near her home in Panama City, at age 63.

Wisconsin-born Mary joined the Navy in 1976, finished “A” school to become an Electrician’s Mate (EM), and became one of the first women (following Donna Tobias in 1975) to complete Navy Second Class Dive School in Little Creek in 1977 (with a 200-pound dive rig), graduating at the top of her class, the Honorman position.

After service on a dry dock, in 1982, she completed First Class diving school in Panama City, becoming the first enlisted female diver certified in both air and gas diving (with a 300-pound hard hat rig).

Finishing tours with USS Samuel Gompers (AD-37) working on ships husbandry, she became an instructor training at the Second Class Dive School at NAB Coronado for three years, then shipped out as Master Diver on the salvage ship USS Grasp (ARS-51), having made MD in 1990 by unanimous decision of the Board.

Keep in mind that of the 7,750 dive-certified personnel in the Navy, only about 1,300 are rated as Navy Divers (ND) and only about 75 of those are Master Divers.

She was the Navy’s only female MD until 2024!

She trained for another three years at the First Class school at Panama City, finished her uniformed career at the Naval Safety Center in Norfolk, Virginia as a Master Chief (E-9) Master Diver, retiring in 1996.

During her six years as a Navy diving instructor, Bonnin trained more than 1,000 divers, shaping that very small community for decades.

Mary Bonnin was inducted into the Women Divers Hall of Fame in 2000.

She had three sons, and reportedly kept diving for practice torpedoes while eight months pregnant with her first.

She hosted a great sub-Reddit and made a great podcast appearance on Bottom Dwellers a few years back.

And so we remember,

In Waters Deep– Eileen Mahoney 
In ocean wastes no poppies blow,
No crosses stand in ordered row,
There young hearts sleep… beneath the wave…
The spirited, the good, the brave,
But stars a constant vigil keep,
For them who lie beneath the deep.
‘Tis true you cannot kneel in prayer
On certain spot and think. “He’s there.”
But you can to the ocean go…
See whitecaps marching row on row;
Know one for him will always ride…
In and out… with every tide.
And when your span of life is passed,
He’ll meet you at the “Captain’s Mast.”
And they who mourn on distant shore
For sailors who’ll come home no more,
Can dry their tears and pray for these
Who rest beneath the heaving seas…
For stars that shine and winds that blow
And whitecaps marching row on row.
And they can never lonely be
For when they lived… they chose the sea.

A Last look at the old Sultan, 60 Years Ago

Posted on by Leave a comment

On the road in Idaho at an industry event, so instead of our regular Warship Wednesday programming, please accept this glimpse of the past.

Every warship fan knows of the (in)famous Great War-era Moltke-class battlecruiser SMS Goeben, which had been used by the Ottomans as Yavuz Sultan Selim and then by the Turkish Navy simply as TCG Yavuz.

Decommissioned in 1950 and used as a pier-side naval headquarters until 1960, she was put up for sale when efforts by the Turkish government to have West Germany buy her back as a museum ship for a nominal fee failed.

By August 1966, the old girl was sitting idle at Gölcük Naval Base, Turkey, nearing the final chapter of her historic existence, being recycled for her value in pre-Atomic steel.

A series of amazing, if somewhat forlorn, images was captured by British gentleman photographer Aubrey Houston Bowden in August 1966, now in the Imperial War Museum, which chronicled the world’s last remaining battle cruiser and the final capital ship of both the Kaiserliche Marine, the Donanma-yı Humayun, and the Türk Deniz Kuvvetleri.

Below is a sample:

Retro-Vintage Style Recruiting Posters Show off USCG’s New Tactical Jet Ski Program

Posted on by One comment

Check out these great new recruiting posters for the USCG, which show off current programs (MSRT, Blackfin MH-65Es with HITRON, etc.) in an early 1980s throwback style.

The last features a great image by Petty Officer 1st Class Tyler Robertson of Coast Guard Senior Chief Petty Officer Ilima Maiava, an aviation survival technician assigned to Coast Guard Air Station Barbers Point in Kapolei, Hawaii, during training with a Barbers Point MH-65 Dolphin June 3, 2026. The station uses rescue watercraft to assist in rescue swimmer training by providing safety watch, mitigating the use of two helicopters.

It also serves as a good Segway to the new…

USCG Tactical Personal Watercraft (PWC) Program

Earlier this year, the Coast Guard stood up a program to train maritime LE folks on high-speed watercraft to intercept human smugglers and deter unlawful migration in shallow surf zones and restrictive environments where traditional pursuit boats cannot safely go.

Based in San Diego, the program excels in using jetskis to conduct shallow water pursuits in tight spaces, narrow channels, and shallow surf zones. The training is part of the Office of Rapid Response and Prototyping (CG-RAPTOR) Coast Guard program, which identifies, tests, and deploys new technologies, including tactical personal watercraft.

Coast Guard members conduct personal watercraft interdiction training at Coronado Beach, California, Jan. 15, 2026. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Roberto Nieves)

They are using what looks to be all-black Yamaha FX Series WaveRunners with P2P Rescue attachments while the livery includes USCG ensign flashes and white stencils, but no racing stripes.

U.S. Coast Guard personnel demonstrate the use of jet skis during a training exercise in San Diego, California, Feb. 11, 2026. The training highlights the service’s implementation of new watercraft assets to enhance rapid response, interdiction, and maritime safety operations. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by PA2 Carmen Caver)

And yes, they use Nods and blue/green lights.

U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer 1st Class Austin Ladner, a maritime enforcement specialist, maneuvers his personal watercraft during night operations training near San Diego on May 8, 2026. Ladner was one of the first qualified Coast Guard PWC operators and instructors; he initially trained with qualified U.S. Border Patrol personnel. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Gabriel Wisdom)

U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer 1st Class Michael Dugan, a maritime enforcement specialist, instructs his class of unqualified PWC operators during night operations training near San Diego on May 7, 2026. Dugan was one of the first qualified Coast Guard PWC operators and instructors; he initially trained with qualified U.S. Border Patrol personnel. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Gabriel Wisdom)

They can work directly alongside tactical pursuit boat crews as a combined unit and perform physically demanding interventions in dark, turbulent surf to stop smugglers from abandoning migrants in dangerous waters.

U.S. Coast Guard personal watercraft operators follow behind a Coast Guard boatcrew near Point Loma in San Diego on May 8, 2026. The unqualified PWC operators followed behind a boatcrew as part of a force package before simulating a pursuit by chasing their qualified instructors at high speeds. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Gabriel Wisdom)

Note the very sharp USCG insignia on the front cowling of the above image in the below inset:

260508-G-JO805-6513

The force was seen in New York Harbor during the recent Sail250 evolution as well.

Boatswain’s Mate 1st Class Dorian Casey, assigned to the U.S. Coast Guard National Motor Lifeboat School in Ilwaco, Washington, operates a Coast Guard personal watercraft near the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD-3) in New York Harbor during Sail 250, July 5, 2026. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Perry Shirzad)

You gotta admit, it sells itself as far as recruiting goes.

« Older Entries