Caitlyn Burchett

U.S. forces struck a semi-submersible suspected of trafficking narcotics as it operated in the Eastern Pacific on Monday, according to U.S. Southern Command. Joint Task Force Southern Spear conducted a fatal strike on the low-profile vessel transiting along a known narco trafficking route, which was believed to be operated by a designated terrorist organization. One person was confirmed killed in the strike, SOUTHCOM said in a social media post published on X the same day. Dubbed Operation Southern Spear, U.S. forces are targeting boats suspected of ferrying narcotics as part of the Trump administration’s campaign against drug trafficking. To date,

Two former U.S. Navy fighter pilots are aboard the first crewed orbit around the moon in more than 50 years after launching on Wednesday from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on the Artemis II mission. Retired Capt. Reid Wiseman is the commander of the Artemis II mission, while Capt. Victor Glover Jr. is the pilot. Wiseman and Glover are among two other astronauts – Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen, a Royal Canadian Air Force fighter pilot, and NASA flight engineer Christina Koch – who launched Wednesday from the NASA facility for a 10-day mission from the Earth to the moon. It will

For more than 100 days, the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group – the U.S. Navy’s premier platform – operated in the Caribbean after it was pulled from the Middle East late last year. USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78), Carrier Air Wing 8 and escorts USS Winston S. Churchill (DDG-81), USS Bainbridge (DDG-96) and USS Mahan (DDG-72) were among the naval warships amassed in U.S. Southern Command for Operation Southern Spear as the Pentagon carried out kinetic strikes on boats suspected of trafficking narcotics. Now, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Daryl Caudle is working on an “enduring naval package” to

The Navy welcomed its newest destroyer USS Harvey C. Barnum Jr. (DDG-124) into the fleet Saturday during a ceremony in Norfolk, Va., which is among the last Flight IIA configurations of the Arleigh Burke-class. The destroyer was commissioned at Naval Station Norfolk before approximately 1,800 guests, including senior military leaders, sailors, Marines, veterans and family members. Navy Secretary John Phelan served as the ceremony’s principal speaker, joining Vice Chief of Naval Operations Adm. James Kilby and Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Eric Smith in celebrating the ship’s entry into service. “This ship is not symbolic, it is combat power, and today

U.S. forces struck a suspected narco boat Monday, the 50th such strike since the Trump administration launched its campaign against drug cartels in September, according to USNI News data. The boat was operating in the Eastern Pacific when it was struck, killing two men, U.S. Southern Command announced late Monday on social media platform X. The strike was on what the command called a designated terrorist organization, but the post did not indicate which group allegedly operated the vessel. The strike is the 50th such strike since Sept. 1 when President Donald Trump first announced the U.S. military would use

Aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69) suffered a fire this week while undergoing a maintenance availability at Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, Va., USNI News has learned. There was a small fire onboard the carrier Tuesday, a Navy spokesperson confirmed to USNI News. The ship’s force and Norfolk Naval Shipyard personnel immediately contained and extinguished the fire, the spokesperson said. Three sailors were injured as a result of the fire. The sailors were treated by the ship’s medical team and returned to full duty, according to the spokesperson. Dwight D. Eisenhower has been moored at the Navy’s public Virginia-based

Three sailors were injured in a fire aboard destroyer USS Zumwalt (DDG-1000) at HII Ingalls Shipbuilding on Sunday, USNI News has learned. The ship fire was reported at approximately 9:45 p.m. while Zumwalt was pierside at the Pascagoula, Miss., shipyard, a Naval Surface Force spokesperson confirmed Wednesday in a statement to USNI News. The blaze was extinguished by the crew, the spokesperson said. One sailor was transported to a local hospital for treatment for injuries related to the fire and is in stable condition. Two other sailors received first aid at the scene. “The Navy is investigating the cause of

U.S. forces struck a suspected narco boat Friday, killing two men and leaving one survivor, U.S. Southern Command announced. The boat was operating in the Eastern Pacific and is alleged to have been transiting along known narco-trafficking routes when it was struck. Following the strike, SOUTHCOM notified the U.S. Coast Guard of the survivor. The Coast Guard had not announced an update in the search and rescue of the survivor as of early Monday. The two fatalities from the Friday strike adds to at least 191 deaths as part of the ongoing Operation Southern Spear campaign against narcotics traffickers that

USS Gerald R. Ford Comes Home

Two men were killed Wednesday in a strike on a suspected narco boat in the Eastern Pacific, U.S. Southern Command announced. The vessel, allegedly operated by an unidentified designated terrorist organization, is said to have been traveling along known narco-trafficking routes, USSOUTHCOM said. The strike was the 60th strike as part of Operation Southern Spear, the Trump administration’s campaign against drug cartels and maritime drug trafficking. At least 194 people have been killed in the strikes to date. The strike – the second this week – occurred as the U.S. Navy’s presence in the region winds down. The Iwo Jima