Category Archives: modern military conflict

Protect Your People

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Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

It seems a good time to point out that the Flight I Burke USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62) has long flown a beautiful green battle flag with the destroyer’s crest in the center. The crest includes four shamrocks that represent the Irish family and heritage of her namesake, LT William Charles Fitzgerald (USNA 1963), who earned a Navy Cross while serving as senior advisor to Vietnamese Navy Coastal Group Sixteen in 1967. The medal was posthumous.

The Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald (DDG 62) returns to its homeport of Naval Base San Diego following operations in the U.S. 3rd, 5th, and 7th Fleets, Jan. 6, 2026.  (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Lordin Kelly VIRIN: 260106-N-WN039-1006)

Fitzgerald’s motto is “Protect your people,” that “also links the Fitzgerald’s ancient family history (when their Gallic war cry, ‘Croom a boo‘ meant “Defend the castle forever”) with the gallantry, fearless dedication to duty and extraordinary heroism exhibited by Lieutenant Fitzgerald and the time honored traditions of the United States Naval Service.”

Devil Dog Icicle

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Talk about dramatic. Check this one out.

Official caption: “Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Sebastian Gutierrez-Quiroz and Sgt. Matthew Blake shoot a FIM-92E Stinger missile at a simulated hostile counter-unmanned aircraft system during Arctic Edge near Fort Greely, Alaska, March 7, 2026. The exercise was designed to improve readiness, demonstrate capabilities, and enhance joint and allied force interoperability in the Arctic.”

Credit: Marine Corps Sgt. Aaron Torres-Lemus, VIRIN: 260307-M-UQ888-1037M

Replacing the old Redeye and British Blowpipe systems– which never worked well– Stinger has been the go-to NATO MANPADS since 1981 and earned its first combat kill before it was a year old with SAS commandos in the Falklands.

War Costs Big Dollars

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Check out these interesting War Department awards posted late Friday, emphasis mine, including big numbers for AI, the new AEHF satcom system, a half-billion worth of upgrades to EA-18G Growlers (namely to the Beowulf system), committing to the E-7A, buying more SM-3s, and, ironically, allocating millions to decommisson the 51-year-old Nimitz— which just deployed on a final final (we promise this is the last one) mission.

The granddaddy carrier’s 12,400-mile ’round the cape redeployment from Bremerton to Norfolk will be extended by an on-the-way SOUTHCOM tasking with her taking part in South Seas 2026, visiting several partner countries along the way, and, well, you know, there is this whole Venezuela and now Cuba thing, sooooo…don’t be surprised if things get kinetic or are at least billed as “possibly becoming kinetic” to influence politics in the region.

U.S. Sailors conduct preservation on the 68 tower of Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68) in San Diego, March 12, 2026. Nimitz is pierside at Naval Air Station North Island for a scheduled port visit while operating in the U.S. 3rd Fleet area of operations while executing a scheduled homeport shift to Norfolk, Virginia. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Gina Gallia)

Anyway, the contracts:

Anduril Industries Inc., Costa Mesa, California, was awarded a firm-fixed-price contract with a cumulative total of $20,000,000,000 to consolidate current and future commercial solutions—including the proprietary, open-architecture, AI-enabled Lattice suite, integrated hardware, data, computer infrastructure, and technical support services—into a unified, mission-ready capability supporting the Army’s evolving operational and business needs. Work locations and funding will be determined with each order, with an estimated completion date of March 12, 2036. U.S. Army Contracting Command, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, is the contracting activity (W9128Z-26-D-A001).

Raytheon Co., Marlboro, Massachusetts, has been awarded a ceiling $2,011,063,181 modification (P00011) to a previously awarded contract FA8735-21-D-0001 for Advanced Extremely High Frequency Terminal. This modification brings the total cumulative face value of the contract to $2,971,063,181 from $960,000,000. Work will be performed at Marlboro, Massachusetts, and Largo, Florida, and is expected to be completed by Aug. 9, 2031. There are no funds being obligated at the time of award. The Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center Strategic Communications Division, Bedford, Massachusetts, is the contracting activity.

The Boeing Co., St. Louis, Missouri, is awarded a not-to-exceed $489,306,966 cost, undefinitized order (N0001926F1055) against a previously issued basic ordering agreement (N0001921G0006). This order is for the procurement of non-recurring engineering and associated test assets, to include four Beowulf A-Kits, four Gunbay Pallet A-Kits, 12 Beowulf B-Kits, 15 sensor control unit B-Kits, and nine power control unit B-Kits, as well as support equipment in support of the design, development, and integration of the AN/ALQ-264(V) Beowulf upgrade to the existing EA-18G platform. Work will be performed in Baltimore, Maryland (61%); St. Louis, Missouri (28%); and Bethpage, New York (11%), and is expected to be completed in February 2030. Fiscal 2026 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $33,988,353 will be obligated at the time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This order was not competed. Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.

Huntington Ingalls Inc., Newport News, Virginia, is awarded an option exercise of $95,703,960 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-25-C-2127) for advance planning and long-lead-time material procurement to prepare and make ready for the accomplishment of the inactivation and defueling of USS Nimitz (CVN 68). Work will be performed in Newport News, Virginia, and is expected to be completed by March 2027. Fiscal 2026 operations and maintenance (Navy) funds in the amount of $32,695,077 will be obligated at time of award and will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was not competitively procured in accordance with 10 U.S. Code 3204(a)(1), (only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements). Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.

The Boeing Co., St. Louis Missouri, is awarded a $60,103,735 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification (P00006) to an order (N0001924F0259) against a previously issued basic ordering agreement (N0001921G0006). This modification adds scope for the procurement of developmental and operational test support, developmental and operational test aircraft installation and capability validation activities, including avionics and airframe material, to support the Growler Block II Phase I upgrade, known as the Next Generation Electronic Attack Unit. Additionally, this modification adds non-reoccurring engineering, consisting of anti-tamper requirements, functional and physical configuration audits, systems engineering, software development and integration, human engineering, test and evaluation requirements, developmental and operational ground and flight testing, product support requirements, and additional software requirement changes. Work will be performed in Linthicum, Maryland (16.3%); Bethpage, New York (37.9%); Minneapolis, Minnesota (27.4%); and St. Louis, Missouri (18.4%), and is expected to be completed in February 2029. Fiscal 2026 research, development, test, and evaluation funds in the amount of $13,082,629 will be obligated at the time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This order was not competed. Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.

These came on Thursday:

The Boeing Co. Defense, Tukwila, Washington, has been awarded a $2,335,411,756 option exercise modification (P00045) to a previously awarded contract FA8730-23-C-0025 for E-7A Rapid Prototype Airborne Mission Segment. The modification brings the total cumulative face value of the contract to $4,907,391,116 from $4,907,391,116. Work will be performed at Seattle, Washington (primary); Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Huntsville, Alabama; and Heath, Ohio, and is expected to be completed by August 10, 2032. Fiscal 2026 research, development, test and evaluation funds in the amount of $31,000,000 are being obligated at time of award. The Air Force Lifecycle Management Center, Hanscom Air Force Base, Massachusetts, is the contracting activity.

Raytheon, Tucson, Arizona is being awarded a noncompetitive fixed-price-incentive-fee modification (HQ0851-24-C-0001), definitizing two previously announced undefinitized contract actions (P00008 and P00014) for Standard Missile (SM-3) Block IB production.  The value of this contract modification is $266,912,456, increasing the previously announced value of $1,099,000,000 to a total value of $1,365,912,456. The total definitized value of this award increases the total existing contract value from $1,948,713,505 by $1,365,912,456 to $3,314,625,961. Under this modification, the contractor will procure and deliver an additional quantity of 23 SM-3 Block IB All-Up Rounds (AURs) for a total of 78 SM-3 Block IB AURs. This contract includes one-time costs to restart the SM-3 IB production line. The work will be performed in Tucson, Arizona; and Huntsville, Alabama, with an expected completion date of May 2030. Fiscal 2024 and 2025 procurement funds are being used to fully fund this effort upon award. The Missile Defense Agency, Huntsville, Alabama, is the contracting activity.

USCG Update: Deep Freeze, An Old Vet with a New flag, Cutters Everywhere, New Waterways vessels

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Lots of Coast Guard news in the past couple of weeks.

Polar Star completes Deep Freeze ’26

The country’s only polar-rated heavy icebreaker, the 13,500-ton USCGC Polar Star (WAGB 10), some 50 years young, recently departed McMurdo Sound, Antarctica, on 1 March after operating for 55 days below the Antarctic Circle and traveling 14,000 miles in support of Operation Deep Freeze 2026– her 29th such participation in the annual resupply mission.

USCGC Polar Star (WAGB 10) crew members pose for a group photo while the cutter sits hove-to in the Ross Sea during Operation Deep Freeze 2026, Jan. 12, 2026. The cutter turns 50 years old on Jan. 17, 2026, amid Operation Deep Freeze, which is a joint service, inter-agency support operation for the National Science Foundation that manages the United States Antarctic Program. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Christopher Bokum)

Besides saving the iced-in cruise ship Scenic Eclipse III, she busted a seven-mile channel through fast ice to allow the 600-foot fuel tanker Stena Polaris into and out of Winter Quarter’s Bay to deliver more than 6 million gallons of fuel to McMurdo. She later escorted the chartered SS Plantijngracht in with the Army’s Modular Causeway System, as well as the tug Rachel, which carried the new NSF Discovery Pier to McMurdo Station to be installed by Seabees.

Bollinger gets funds for Polar Security Cutter

From DoW contracts:

Bollinger Mississippi Shipbuilding, Pascagoula, Mississippi, is awarded a $14,922,120 cost reimbursable contract modification to a previously awarded contract (N00024-19-C-2210) for long lead time material for the Polar Security Cutter land-based test facility and production integration facility. Work will be performed in Pascagoula, Mississippi, and is expected to be completed by September 2027. Fiscal 2025 procurement, construction, and improvement (Coast Guard) funds in the amount of $7,494,138 will be obligated at time of award and will not expire at the end of the current fiscal year. Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.

Decisive to Sri Lanka

The old 210-foot Reliance-class cutter Decisive will celebrate her 58th birthday in her new home as pennant number P 628 with the Sri Lankan Navy. Decommissioned 1 March 2023, she has spent the past three years at the USCG Yard outside of Baltimore, where she was refirbed and converted for further use. An 86-man  (14 officers and 72 sailors) Sri Lankan crew moved last December aboard and have been getting used to their new patrol vessel.

She left Baltimore on 21 February for an estimated 77-day, 14,775-nm cruise to her new home across the Pacific via the Panama Canal with numerous strategically important port calls, ultimately joining four other former U.S. Coast Guard cutters on the Sri Lankan naval list.

The Sri Lankan Embassy in D.C. noted that this cruise will be the “longest single sea voyage ever undertaken by a Sri Lankan naval vessel and will be the first Sri Lankan ship to navigate through the Panama Canal.”

Forward bags Narco Sub, Tampa, a go-fast

The 270-foot Famous (Bear)-class USCGC Forward (WMEC 911) intercepted a self-propelled semi-submersible (SPSS) vessel during a routine patrol on 24 February in the Eastern Pacific Ocean. The 70-foot “narco sub” was filled with an estimated 17,600 lbs. of cocaine, and her four-man crew was taken into custody before the smuggler was deep-sixed.

As usual for JITF South/Fourth Fleet tasking in the region, Forward carried a well-armed HITRON MH-65 Dolphin, which was used to help bag the boat. A P-3C Orion (the Navy still has a couple!) helped with the ISR.

A U.S. Navy P-3 Orion oversees a HITRON MH-65 Dolphin and Coast Guard Cutter Forward Over-the-Horizon boat on scene with a Self-Propelled Semi-Submersible in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, February 24, 2026. (U.S. Navy courtesy photo)

The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Forward’s Over-the-Horizon cutter boat approaches a Self-Propelled Semi-Submersible in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, February 24, 2026. (U.S. Coast Guard courtesy photo)

Forward’s sistership, USCGC Tampa (WMEC 902), similarly just interdicted more than $31.9M in cocaine off a vessel in the Eastern Pacific Ocean as well.

A Coast Guard Cutter Tampa (WMEC 902) small boat crew operates near a go-fast vessel that is sunk following interdiction in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, Feb. 27, 2026, resulting in the apprehension of two suspected narco-terrorists and seizure of approximately 4,244 pounds of cocaine worth more than $31.9 million. The vessel was burned and sunk as a hazard to navigation following the interdiction. (U.S. Coast Guard photo)

Munro back after 26,000-mile cruise spanning Atlantic and Pacific

The Alameda-based 418-foot National Security Cutter Munro returned home last week after 119 days deployed on an Eastern Pacific Patrol that saw her pinch hit in the Atlantic. Leaving home last November with two embarked cutter pursuit boats, Scan Eagle short-range UAV, and a HITRON MH-65 Dolphin, she clocked in on the DoW’s Resolute Hunter exercise offshore San Diego, then Operation Pacific Viper.  It was while on Pacific Viper that she interdicted a smuggler with six suspects and 22,052 pounds of cocaine aboard.

The Coast Guard cutter Munro pulls into its home port of Alameda, Calif., after a 119-day patrol, March 1, 2026. The cutter is named in honor of Petty Officer First Class Douglas A. Munro, the only Coast Guardsman awarded the Medal of Honor, for his heroic actions on Sept. 27, 1942, when he sacrificed himself during the defense, rescue and evacuation of 500 stranded Marines from Point Cruz, Guadalcanal, in the Solomon Islands. 260301-G-BB085-1253N

Ordered through the Panama Canal to take part in the asset-poor Operation Southern Spear, Munro located and identified the dark fleet oil tanker Bella 1, a U.S.-sanctioned vessel, determined to be without nationality and subject to U.S. jurisdiction, and pursued the 333-foot crude oil carrier for 18 days and 4,900 miles until the order came to seize her in the North Atlantic.

A crew member assigned to the Coast Guard cutter Munro observes the oil tanker Bella 1 in the North Atlantic Ocean, Jan. 6, 2026. 260106-G-G0100-1002M

Seven Weeks on 154 feet of sovereign U.S. territory

The 154-foot Sentinel (Webber) class fast response cutter William Hart (WPC 1134) returned to Honolulu on 15 March following a 48-day patrol in support of Coast Guard Oceania District’s Operation Blue Pacific. The long-legged patrol boat roamed more than 7,000 nautical miles, making port calls in Apia, Samoa; Rarotonga, Cook Islands; Pago Pago, American Samoa; Nuku’alofa, Tonga; and Kiritimati, Kiribati, showing the flag across the increasingly strategic islands.

U.S. Coast Guardsmen assigned to the fast response cutter USCGC William Hart (WPC 1134) prepare to moor up on Coast Guard Base Honolulu, March 15, 2026. The crew returned from a 48-day patrol in Oceania during which they exercised partnerships with Samoa and the Cook Islands through bilateral maritime law enforcement agreements, professional exchanges, and community engagements. (U.S. Coast Guard photo by Chief Petty Officer Corinne Zilnicki)

Importantly, she hosted the signing by a U.S. Deputy Secretary of State and Tonga’s Prime Minister of the new annex to the 2009 bilateral maritime law enforcement agreement between the U.S. and the Kingdom of Tonga.

First three WCCs

The U.S. Coast Guard simultaneously authenticated the keels for future 120-foot Chief Petty Officer class Coast Guard Waterways Commerce cutters: Allen Thiele, Fred Permenter, and Samuel Wilson (WLIC-1601, 1602, and 1603) on Friday at Birdon in Bayou La Batre, Alabama. Unlike many USNS auxiliaries, which carry outrageously political names, the WCCs will all be named for past USCG heroes who were, or later became, Chiefs.

A rendering of the future U.S. Coast Guard Waterways Commerce Cutters Allen Thiele, Fred Permenter, and Samuel Wilson. The new Chief Petty Officer class cutters will honor the legacy of senior enlisted leaders and strengthen the Coast Guard’s inland fleet capabilities. (U.S. Coast Guard courtesy rendering Birdon Group)

The cutters are the first three of 30 future WCCs that will replace the Coast Guard’s elderly inland tender fleet (some up to 81 years old) that maintains and protects the 28,200 navigational aids along the country’s 12,000-mile inshore/river marine transportation system.

Wasp’s Tail

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How about this great detail of the layered defense of stingers in an LHD’s tail?

ATLANTIC OCEAN (July 20, 2023) Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD 5) conducts routine operations in the Atlantic Ocean. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Danilo Reynoso) 230720-N-VO895-3048

Sandwiched between the flight deck and the well dock doors, you see one of the ship’s two 21-cell RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missile launchers, one of her two 8-cell RIM-7 Sea Sparrow missile launchers, one of her two 20mm Phalanx Mk 15 Mod 1B CIWS systems, and one of her three 25mm Mk 38 Mod 2 Machine Gun Systems. Not bad for a ‘phib.

A close-up:

Weasels in the snow

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How about these great images from the German Army of a Waffenträger (weapons carrier) Wiesel 1 Aufklärung of the 1,700-man multinational battlegroup Panzerbrigade 45 (the “Lithuania Brigade”) frolicking in the snow, complete with MG3.

The Wiesel is one of the few modern tankettes in service today. Just 343 Wiesel 1s and 148 stretched Wiesel 2s have been delivered since 1979, and the 2.75 ton Audi 298-powered tracked vehicle just always looks like fun.

Activated in Vilnius on 1 April 2025, Panzerbrigade 45 currently includes the 122nd Armored Infantry Battalion (Panzergrenadierbataillon 122) from Oberviechtach and the 203rd Armored Battalion (Panzerbataillon 203) from Augustdorf and is set to grow to around 5,000 soldiers and civilian employees by 2027.

$2.5 billion per hull, grease pencil not included

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Official caption: “Keeping Tally. A sailor tallies launches as the USS Thomas Hudner fires a Tomahawk land attack missile in support of Operation Epic Fury in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, March 5, 2026.”

Note the columns for both TLAMS (43 marks) and SM-3ERs (9 marks); surely a story in two parts, while the fact that Hudner only has a 96-cell VLS is the third act of this tale.

260305-D-D0477-2924M.

The first Flight IIA (TI) Burke, USS Thomas Hudner (DDG-116), commissioned 1 December 2018, and the 66th hull of the class, and since joining the fleet, has been a SUFRFLANT asset, based in Mayport.

Her crew famously earned a Combat Action Ribbon for her time (October 2023 – April 2024) in the Red Sea during the quasi-war with the Houthis. You can bet a second one is inbound.

SSNs still keeping the Pole nailed down

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When not sniping wayward Iranian corvettes and launching TLAMs for CENTCOM, the 125-year-old U.S. Navy Submarine Service is busy this week atop the world.

The Arctic Submarine Laboratory’s Operation Ice Camp 2026 kicked off last week in the Arctic Circle as the legacy Virginia-class fast-attack submarines USS Santa Fe (SSN 763) and USS Delaware (SSN 791) performed a vertical surfacing to a very 1981’s The Thing kinda camp.

The camp, named “Boarfish,” gets its namesake from the WWII Balao-class fleet boat USS Boarfish (SS 327), which served as the flagship for Operation Blue Nose, the first-ever exploration under the polar ice cap. Of note, this year marks the 100th U.S. sub surfacing through Arctic ice at the North Pole, a tradition kicked off by USS Skate (SSN 578) in March 1959.

Skate cracking the ice back in the day

Just as the as-yet-to-be-identified SSN that sank the Iranian Dena last week carried three Royal Australian Navy personnel who are busy learning their trade on nuclear-powered hunter killers for AUKUS, Delaware is carrying a small team of RN submariners, while SUBPAC’s Santa Fe has a few more Ozzys.

“The three-week operation brings together U.S. forces and international partners to research, test, and evaluate operational capabilities in the challenging Arctic environment,” notes SUBLANT.

Jellicoe weeps and Nelson isn’t taking calls any more

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With the hectic week in the Persian Gulf and Arabian Sea, the absence of the Royal Navy in a region that was a British lake for generations was noticed.

Then, with Iranian drones hitting the RAF Akrotiri base in Cyprus in the eastern Mediterranean, a response was needed from the Admiralty.

Then news came that only two of six Type 45 destroyers are operational, and the one that can get to Cyprus the quickest, HMS Dragon, can’t leave port until next week at the earliest. At least Dragon will deploy with two Royal Navy Wildcat helicopters armed with Martlet drone-busting missiles.

“HMS Dragon’s helicopter fires infrared flares during an exercise over the Type 45 destroyer. MOD Photo

Both of the country’s carriers are sidelined for extended maintenance, as are four of seven Type 23 frigates. Meanwhile, all of the RN’s Astute-class submarines are in port, and none are likely to head to sea anytime soon.

Graphics from the Daily Mail.

This is a far cry from the old Armilla Patrol, which kept a couple of escorts deployed in the region in the 1980s and 90s (with two RNZN frigates sent by the Kiwis to take over the duty during the Falklands).

Then there was Operation Kipion, which kept 4 minesweepers (No. 9 Mine Countermeasures Squadron), an RFA support ship, and a rotational frigate, but this stood down recently with the last minesweeper, HMS Middleton (M34), now back in the UK after being carried home on a heavy lift vessel.

Royal Navy Bahrain, February 2021, when they had the frigate HMS Montrose, minehunters Brocklesby, Chiddingfold, Shoreham, Penzance, and the RFA Cardigan Bay. The Brits have no naval forces in the region currently

The United Kingdom Naval Support Facility (UKNSF), formerly the ‘stone frigate’ HMS Jufair in Bahrain, was established in 1935 and, as of a few weeks ago, was no longer running, one last vestige of colonial power shelved.

The RAF is a little better, as a few F-35Bs, supported by RAF Typhoon fighters and a Voyager air-to-air refueling aircraft, have been deployed to police the airspace over Qatar and Jordan and have reportedly shot down uncrewed aerial systems over the latter– the first time an RAF F-35 has shot down a target in combat.

Further, a British Typhoon operating with the joint UK-Qatar 12 Squadron shot down an Iranian one-way attack drone directed at Qatar using an air-to-air missile on Monday.

Hugh Dowding is no doubt giving his navy pals hell.

Clearing the air on Cold War torpedoing

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With the news and dramatic IR footage of an unidentified American SSN/SSGN sending a single Cleveland-built MK 48 ADCAP into the Iranian frigate/corvette Dena on Wednesday, some 20 miles south of Galle in Sri Lanka, there have been lots of goofy comments floating around.

A couple of interesting historical tidbits include the fact that the last American warship in commission to have sunk an enemy ship in battle was “Old Ironsides,” the wooden-hulled frigate USS Constitution, a title she held since the Perry-class frigate USS Simpson was decommissioned in 2015. Simpson had, somewhat ironically, sunk an Iranian naval vessel during Praying Mantis in 1988.

The last American sub to chalk up confirmed torpedo “kills” in combat was the Tench-class fleet boat USS Torsk (SS-423) under T/Cdr. (later RADM) Bafford Edward “Loopy Lou” Lewellen, USNA ’31.

USS Torsk (SS-423). At sea, 16 February 1945. 80-G-313788

Using experimental 19-inch Mark 27 “Cutie” and 21-inch Westinghouse Mark 28 passive-acoustic electric torpedoes rather than his straight(ish) running steam-powered MK14-3As, Lewellen sank the Japanese coastal defense craft Kaibokan 13 and Kaibokan 47 on 14 August 1945 in the Sea of Japan while on her Second War Patrol. While the attacks were not covered in her Patrol Report, they are documented in her War History.

Later, setting a record of over 11,000 dives as a training boat, Torsk was decommissioned in 1964 and has been preserved as a museum ship in Baltimore since 1972.

USS Forrestal (CV-59) taken through the periscope of USS Torsk (SS-423). These photos were taken sometime between Fall 1963 and Spring 1964

USS Forrestal (CV-59) taken through the periscope of USS Torsk (SS-423). These photos were taken sometime between Fall 1963 and Spring 1964 2

“Kills” since then

There have been at least three confirmed anti-ship torpedo engagements (and conspiracy theories about  Cold War submarine losses) between Torsk and today.

In 2010, the South Korean Pohang-class corvette ROKS Cheonan split apart and sank while interdicting a mysterious underwater contact and, when raised, was found to have elements of a Nork CHT-02D torp in her wreckage.

On 2 May 1982, the RN Churchill-class hunter-killer HMS Conqueror (S48) torpedoed and sank the Argentine Brooklyn-class light cruiser ARA General Belgrano (C-4)— the highly decorated ex-WWII era USS Phoenix (CL-46). 

HMS Conqueror returns to Britain flying the Jolly Roger after sinking the Argentine cruiser Belgrano during the Falklands War. Pictured on 4 July 1982.

HMS Conqueror’s 1982 Jolly Roger skull flag from sinking General Belgrano at the Royal Navy Museum

On 9 December 1971, the Pakistani Daphne-class SSK, PNS/M Hangor (S-131), torpedoed and sank the Indian Type 14 (Blackwood-class) frigate INS Khukri (F149).

It will be interesting to see which American sub returns to her homeport in the coming months with a Jolly Roger and broom tied to its masts.

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