The Navy of the future


Al-Quida has claimed responsibility for firing a rocket at the USS Ashland (foreground in this picture)and another U.S. warship on Friday in Jordan.

It was quite fortunate that the Al-Quida bastards missed striking with missiles the warships USS Ashland and USS Kearsarge in the port of Aquaba, Jordan. A U.S. 5th Fleet statement said:

“At approximately 8:44 a.m. local time, a suspected mortar rocket flew over the USS Ashland’s bow and impacted in a warehouse on the pier in the vicinity of the Ashland and the USS Kearsarge. The warehouse sustained an approximate 8-foot hole in the roof of the building.”

A Jordanian soldier was killed and another was severely wounded when the rocket hit the warehouse, according to news reports. No casualties were reported from two other rockets fired from the same area.

Such attacks, along with the October 2000 bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen, point to how our warships can be sitting ducks while in port. I’m sure the military is doing everything it can to reduce the vulnerability of its ships, but unfortunately, no guarantees exist that our warships won’t be hit.

I can see a day when port visits by U.S. warships could practically be a thing of the past. The Navy and Marine Corps is currently pushing “sea-basing.” The concept is pretty much how it sounds. A mobile, seagoing force of logistical and warfighting assets would operate from wherever might be a hotspot. A brigade of 16,000 Marines transported by the seagoing platform could be deployed and landed within 10-to-14 days rather than the 17-to-20 days it now takes.

The U.S. military also would not have to worry about foreign countries being reluctant to allow our forces to launch an operation on their soil. We rule the seas and will continue to for the immediate future. So this certainly seems safer than using ports in hostile areas.

On the human and sentimental side, it’s a shame because a lot of sailors will lose out on experiencing a lot of different ports of call. Visiting 13 ports in six foreign countries during the year I spent on a destroyer operating in the South and Western Pacific was clearly one of the best parts of my four years in the Navy. Port visits are also beneficial for the ports-of-call themselves because those “rich” American sailors and Marines spend their money.

I hope that the Navy of the future will still get the chance to make port visits. Because you surely can get sick of seeing your shipmates and your ship.

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