But I do have something special for you guys (and we do have a companion piece publishing tomorrow)
While poking around my normal haunts of antique stores, library sales, and the like, I came across an old book and bought it. No surprise.
A bigger surprise was finding this old veteran tucked in between the pages, used as a bookmark. It is well-traveled and yellowed, printed on cheap paper using wartime-quality ink.
But it has traveled 81 years to be here and deserves a mention.
I am presenting you with the program and menu for the 1944 Christmas dinner aboard the United States Landing Ship (Tanks) 294, at the time, “somewhere in England.”
I thought one of the more humorous parts was that “Cigarettes!” with an exclamation point is listed under desserts.
USS LST-294 gets hardly a mention in naval history, but she was there. I mean t-h-e-r-e kinda there. Like the first wave of D-Day on Omaha Beach, kinda there. And that was just over four months after she commissioned.
USS LST-294 high and dry on the beach at Normandy, June 1944.
Engineered to outmatch any foreign adversary, the new battleship class will be the centerpiece of naval power. At triple the size of an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, its massive frame provides superior firepower, larger missile magazines, and the capability to launch Conventional Prompt Strike hypersonic missiles and the Surface Launch Cruise Missile-Nuclear.
The Trump class will be capable of operating in a traditional Integrated Air and Missile Defense role with a Carrier Strike Group or commanding its own Surface Action Group for Surface and Anti-Submarine Warfare efforts, in addition to delivering long-range hypersonic strategic fires and quarterbacking the operations of an entire fleet as the central command control node.
I mean, yes, build a Great Navy.
A world-class Navy with new and innovative vessels that will be cutting-edge for generations to come.
Bring back a modern BBG or BBGN, hell, bring back a class of CGNs while you are at it.
I’m all for a modern take on USS Long Beach with 192 VLS strike-length cells.
But the move to designate these new battlewagons the “Trump class” with hull number “1” and the first named USS Defiant (BBG-1) is just pure unadulterated MAGA autism.
You would be far more likely to get a Democratic-controlled Armed Services Committee (coming in 2027 if not 2029) to approve billions of pork-flavored dollars for a ship named after a state. Give it the name of the biggest state (in terms of population and House seats) that currently doesn’t have a ship named after it already on the Navy List, and give it a traditional hull number in line with previous battleships– the future and sixth USS South Carolina (BB-67)– or BB-72 if you take into account the canceled Montana class battleships.
Plus, it should be pointed out that the canceled USS Kentucky (BB-66) was redesignated as BBG-1 in 1954 while still under construction, so at least the new Trump battleship should be BBG-2.
Further, there is already a “Defiant” on the Navy List, a Valiant-class harbor tug (YT-804), which commissioned in 2010. The Navy also owns the Nichols/Serco Maritime unmanned demonstrator ship USX-1 Defiant, which is not officially in commission.
Moving past the name and hull numbers and looking at the renderings, these will be the same rough size (35,000 tons, 840-880 feet oal) as the 10 fast battleships of the North Carolina/SoDak/Iowa classes, but Trump is advertising a build out of 20-25 (!) of these leviathans.
Main battery will be a dozen Conventional Prompt Strike cells (including the use of a theorized W80-4 tipped SLCM-N) and 128 Mk 41 strike-length VLS, with a secondary battery of a 32MJ railgun (hold your breath), a pair of 5-inch guns, 2 300-600kW lasers, and a defensive battery of two RAM launchers, four Mk46 30mm guns, four AN/SEQ-4 ODIN lasers, and two undefined counter UxS systems.
A huge mistake is making these gas turbine-powered akin to the DDG and LHD-8 designs rather than nuclear powered– something that will be desperately needed with the electric draw of the rail gun, ODINs, etc.
Plus, there are realistically just two yards in the country (Ingalls and Newport News) that could build these without major improvements to their facilities, and both are already swamped making CVNs, SSBNs, SSNs, LHAs, LPDs, DDGs, and FF(X)s, so somehow freeing up yard space for two dozen 35,000-ton battleships while still building everything else is…well…just not going to happen.
Three other private yards may have slipways big enough for an 880-foot/35,000-ton warship: NASSCO in San Diego, Philly Shipyard, and BAE in Jacksonville, but do they have the personnel and shop space to pull off such a project?
There are only something like 21 certified dry docks in the entire country to conduct routine warship maintenance– with just four of those on the West Coast (THE biggest issue with a modern Pacific naval war in my opinion). Of those 21, just nine are rated to hold a battleship-sized vessel, and they are busy supporting CVNs, LHA/Ds, AOs, and LPDs.
Portsmouth NSY and Bremerton NSY both have very large dry docks capable of holding a CVN, but could they construct a 35,000-ton battleship and still address their huge maintenance backlogs of current ships? That’s probably a big no.
Industrial reality is going to hit this project hard.
Congress may hit it harder.
An Arleigh Burke-class (DDG-51) destroyer costs roughly $2.5 billion per ship for the newest Flight III models, while a Ford-class carrier is more like $13 billion. Back-of-the-envelope math would have a BBG fall somewhere in the middle of those two bookends, which would still be an amazingly stout $7.75 billion per hull. Times 25 hulls is $193B. Sure, the F-35 program runs $2 trillion, but that includes mountains of R&D and sustainment costs as well as spare parts. Speaking of which, what would lifecycle costs be on 25 battleships, each with a 650-800 member crew (which is about three times the size of a DDG crew)? The Navy has often quoted that it cost $100K per year per bluejacket, so that is $2B in just salaries and benefits for battleship sailors, per year, not to count those in shoreside support and maintenance.
Hell, maybe this is all a big ask to get Capitol Hill to gratefully torpedo the 25 Trump-class battleships for a new and improved 12-ship Long Beach CGNs, all conveniently named after Big Blue Cities.
I’d take that.
USS Long Beach (CGN 9), concept by T.G.Webb of proposed anti-air warfare modernization with the Aegis Fleet Air Defense System, FY77. NH 90071
The lost Redoubtable (Pascal)-class submarine of the M6 series (Agosta type) Le Tonnant (“Thunderer”) (Q172) has been discovered.
Built by F.&Ch de la Méditerranée and commissioned on 1 June 1937, she made a high-profile pre-war deployment to Indochina, participated in some early war patrols with the Toulon-based 3rd Submarine Squadron before the Fall of France in June 1940, and ventured as far as Dakar.
She then sailed under orders from Vichy until 15 November 1942, when she was scuttled off Cadiz, Spain, by her own crew following the German occupation of Southern France and the British-American occupation of French North Africa.
Her crew all managed to reach Spain and be interned for the duration, while Le Tonnant settled into the seabed.
Of Le Tonnant’s 31-boat class, only five survived the war, including the famous Casabianca (Q183).
Now, 83 years later, her wreck has been documented by a Franco-Spanish research team by the Univesite de Bretagne Occidentale.
Some 75 years ago this week. The Iowa-class fast battleship USS Missouri (BB-63) fires a 16-inch shell from her forward turret at enemy forces attacking Hungnam, North Korea, during a night bombardment in December 1950. In the background, LSMRs are firing rockets, with both ends of the trajectory visible. This is a composite image, made with two negatives taken only a few minutes apart.
U.S. Naval History and Heritage Command Photograph. Catalog #: NH 96811
The photograph is dated 28 December 1950, but was probably taken on 23-24 December. She was providing gunfire support for the Hungnam defense perimeter until the last U.N. troops, the U.S. 3rd Infantry Division, were evacuated by way of the sea on Christmas Eve.
While the Navy in June 1950 had 15 dreadnoughts on the Navy List (four Iowas, four SoDaks, two NCs, three rebuilt Colorados, and two rebuilt Tennessees), Missouri was the only U.S. battleship in commission. The old USS Mississippi (BB-41) had been converted into a gunnery training ship, re-designated AG-128, in 1947 was still around but in no shape to work a gun line.
Missouri, leaving the Atlantic Fleet in August 1950, joined the U.N. forces just west of Kyushu on 14 September. The first American battleship to reach Korean waters, she bombarded Samchok on 15 September in a diversionary move coordinated with the Inchon landings the next day, the first of many NGFS missions.
F4U-4B Corsair of VF-113 “Stingers” over Inchon, 15 Sept 1950, with Missouri under. NH 97076
Missouri fired 2,895 rounds from her 16-inch guns and 8,043 rounds from her 5-inch guns during her first Korean deployment alone. She added five battlestars for Korea to her three from WWII.
Returning to Norfolk in May 1953, she was decommissioned on 26 February 1955 and kept in mothballs as an unofficial museum ship at Bremerton for three decades, while as many as 250,000 visitors trooped her topside decks each year to see where WWII had ended.
She was recalled for a second time in 1984, then in 1998 began her final career as an official museum ship, bookending the wreck of the old Arizona on Battleship Row.
As we covered previously, SECNAV and CNO have been flirting with the Coast Guard’s 418-foot Legend (Bertholf)-class National Security Cutter– one of which is often deployed on 2nd or 7th fleet tasking at any given time already– as the country’s new fast frigate.
The FF(X) is a highly adaptable vessel. While its primary mission will be surface warfare, its ability to carry modular payloads and command unmanned systems enables it to execute a broad spectrum of operations, making it ready for the challenges of the modern maritime environment. Small surface combatants have always been essential to the fleet, handling a wide range of missions where a large warship isn’t required. The FF(X) will continue this vital role and will take on more routine operations, enhancing the fleet’s operational flexibility, adaptability, and mission readiness.
FF(X) is engineered for rapid, cost-effective production, enabling this vital capability to the fleet faster. This is made possible by basing the new frigate on HII’s proven Legend-Class National Security Cutter. This approach leverages a mature design to deliver ships to our sailors without delay.
Note, the “G” moniker doesn’t seem to be mentioned anymore as they apparently won’t have many guided missiles other than up to 16 NSMs on the stern and what looks to be a 21-cell RAM and an 8-cell tactical VLS forward, which could be quad-packed with Enhanced Sea Sparrows to give it 32 of the latter. If they could make that a 16-cell VLS, that could at least add a couple of SM-2s and vertically launched ASROCs to the mix.
Is a long-hulled variant coming, with, say, a 64-cell VLS, better sensors, and a twin helicopter hangar, while a Flight I group of ships gets built by a lead yard (Ingalls), then is expanded to a multi-yard design (Bath, Fincantieri, Austal, Bollinger?). Perhaps, as hinted at in the video.
In the meantime, well, any frigate is better than none.
This image by Cal Obson of the Mexico-United States border in Agua Prieta, Sonora/Douglas, Arizona captures the old international boundary some 110 years ago today, 22 December 1915.
Arizona Historical Society. PC 1000 Tucson General Photo Collection, Places-Douglas-F1 #58732
Pvt. M.R. Pankratrte of Company A, 22nd US Infantry Regiment, stands guard with his M1903 Springfield at hand while Pvt. Montes Simon, of the 3rd Company, 20th Batallion de Siniloy (Batallón de Sinaloa), Mexican Army, has a Mauser with plenty of ammo, and what looks to be a big S&W on his belt.
The old “Double Deuce” was originally founded in May 1861 as a battalion of the 13th Regulars before earning its own regimental status during the great reorganization of 1869. Famously including a company of Seminole Negro Scouts during the Indian Wars who earned four MoHs, the 22nd saw much service across the frontier in the Old West, shipped to Cuba in the war of ’98, fought across the Philippines from 1900-05, helped San Francisco during the great earthquake of ’06, then shipped to Alaska for two years to help establish order and communications amid the Klondike gold rush.
In garrison at the Presidio, the 22nd was sent to the Border during the tense Mexican Revolution and Civil War then, in April 1917 was about to sail for the Philippines again when the U.S. entered the Great War and was rushed to New York City and Washington, D.C. to guard docks and infrastructure during the conflict, missing out on going “Over There.”
The 22nd only made it to France on 6 June 1944, landing on Utah Beach with the 4th Infantry Division, before being assigned to the 2nd Armored Division, the 83rd Infantry, and back to the 4th, breaking through the Siegfried Line and finishing the war in Germany. The regiment suffered an incredible 1,653 killed and 7,706 wounded in less than a year of fighting.
It later served with the 4th Infantry again in Vietnam (earning a Presidential Unit Citation) and, with a battalion sent to the 10th Mountain, has since seen service in Somalia, Haiti, Bosnia, Afghanistan, and Iraq. Today, the Fort Drum-based 2nd of the 22nd is the regiment’s only active battalion, and, naturally, is known as the Triple Deuce.
In a somewhat cryptic announcement recently, Arizona-based Patriot Ordnance Factory revealed that its 8-inch Renegade AR-type platform in .300 Blackout won a contract as the Next Generation Rifle System for a yet-undisclosed user in Asia.
Details are scant. The awarded contract apparently came in partnership with SERT, an “international provider of acquisition and sustainment solutions to defense, security, and intelligence customers.”
However, it is not clear exactly how the two companies are working together.
We did a tour of Patriot Ordnance Factory back in 2023, and we got a sneak peek at this new gun. We were sworn to secrecy at the time, but the cat is out of the bag now. (Photo: Chris Eger/Guns.com)
“We are proud to partner with SERT on this significant contract,” said Cody DeSomma, vice president of POF-USA, in a press release. “The Renegade platform represents the pinnacle of our direct-impingement technology, incorporating patented innovations developed specifically to meet real-world operational requirements. This award reinforces our commitment to delivering American-made firearms that meet the demands of professional end users worldwide.”
According to POF, the Renegade was selected for its compact design, reliability, and performance in modern operating environments. As a .300 Blackout platform, it is also a strong contender for suppressor use, and the Renegade’s ability to reliably use subsonic and supersonic ammo was a contributing factor in its selection.
Additionally, the Renegade came with ambidextrous controls for CQB work, and it is capable of hosting a wide range of accessories, ranging from optics to laser aiming devices.
POF also listed key patented technologies in the Renegade in its press release. These included the POF E² dual-extraction chamber, roller cam pin, and heat-sink barrel nut.
That leaves us with just three big questions. What “end user” in Asia is making moves to equip its forces with suppressor-ready ARs in .300 Blackout with lasers? How many did they order? And why is the buyer a secret?
With that, how about this amazing watercolor painting by Edward T. Grigware titled “Scene Onboard Ship,” one you can almost feel if in a snowy area today.
It was painted in 1943 and depicts U.S. Navy sailors aboard two tied-up destroyers working in bone-numbing cold and snowy conditions, likely in the Alaska theater where Grigware, an official Navy artist, was deployed.
Painting, Watercolor on Paper; by Edward T. Grigware; 1943; Framed Dimensions 16H X 18W. Naval History and Heritage Command Accession #: 07-805-P
Grigware, born in 1889, was already a well-known American artist and illustrator before he moved from Chicago to Cody, Wyoming, in the 1930s. He attended the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts and spent time working as a commercial artist.
During WWII, Grigware created poster art to support the war effort and painted pieces for the Navy, including the haunting work above.
You have to love this bad boy, likely of the “Vipers” of Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron (HMLA) 169.
Official caption: “A U.S. Marine Corps AH-1Z Viper assigned to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM) 265 (Rein.), 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, prepares to land during flight operations aboard the forward-deployed amphibious assault carrier USS Tripoli (LHA 7), flagship of the Tripoli Expeditionary Strike Group, Dec. 2, 2025, while conducting routine operations in the U.S. 7th Fleet Area of Operations.”
(U.S. Marine Corps photo 120225-M-EC903-1500 by Lance Cpl. Raul Sotovilla)
While Brad Pitt’s battle-hardened SSGT Don “Wardaddy” Collier in Furyneeded a whole platoon of M4 Shermans to take out a single ambushing German Panzerkampfwagen VI Tiger (the very real Tiger 131 in a rare on-screen appearance), an AH-1Z could exterminate a whole platoon of the toughest panzer cats in the forest of any generation, so the name is apt.
190812-M-EC058-1148 STRAIT OF HORMUZ (Aug. 12, 2019) An AH-1Z Viper helicopter attached to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron (VMM) 163 (Reinforced), 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit (MEU) takes off during a strait transit aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Boxer (LHD 4). (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Dalton S. Swanbeck/Released)
Sadly, just 189 AH-1Zs were delivered to the Corps, with only about 150 of those in active service with eight (soon to be seven) Marine Light Attack Helicopter (HMLA) squadrons (with two of those reserve units), so they are almost as rare as Tigers…and getting rarer.
