U.S. Navy Archives

An Air Force F-22 Raptor executes a supersonic fly by over the flight deck of the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis. John C. Stennis is participating in Northern Edge 2009, a joint exercise focusing on detecting and tracking units at sea, in the air and on land.

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China Is Quietly Breaking America’s Pacific Defense Chain

Key Points and Summary – China is methodically chipping away at America’s Pacific defense architecture, and Yap’s Woleai airfield is the latest warning sign....

Brent SadlerDecember 10, 2025

A U.S. Sailor, assigned to Airborne Command and Control Squadron 124, signals the launch of a Carrier Air Wing 8 E-2D Hawkeye aircraft on the flight deck of the world's largest aircraft carrier, Ford-class aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), while underway in the Caribbean Sea, Nov. 29, 2025. U.S. military forces are deployed to the U.S. Southern Command area of responsibility in support of Operation SOUTHERN SPEAR, Department of War-directed operations, and the president's priorities to disrupt illicit drug trafficking and protect the homeland. (U.S. Navy photo)

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‘It Took an Eternity’: Why the Navy’s Most Expensive Aircraft Carrier Took over a Decade to Build

Key Points and Summary – The USS Gerald R. Ford was meant to revolutionize U.S. carrier aviation, but its path to sea was defined...

Steve BalestrieriDecember 10, 2025

A U.S. Sailor assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron 37 signals to arm ordnance in an F/A-18E Super Hornet aircraft on the flight deck of the world’s largest aircraft carrier, Ford-class aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78), while underway in the Caribbean Sea, Nov. 30, 2025. U.S. military forces are deployed to the U.S. Southern Command area of responsibility in support of Operation SOUTHERN SPEAR, Department of War-directed operations, and the president's priorities to disrupt illicit drug trafficking and protect the homeland. (U.S. Navy photo)

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China Can Sink the Navy’s $13,000,000,000 Ford-Class Aircraft Carrier

Key Points and Summary – A leaked New York Times account of the Pentagon’s classified “Overmatch Brief” paints a grim picture of a U.S.–China...

Reuben JohnsonDecember 10, 2025

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U.S. Navy ‘Battle Stations’ Problem: China Is Building ‘Dirt Cheap’ Hypersonic Missile Swarms

Key Points and Summary – Kris Osborn warns that China’s new YKJ-1000 hypersonic missile could upend the balance in long-range strike. -With a range...

Kris OsbornDecember 10, 2025

F/A-XX Fighter U.S. Navy Mock Up Image Creative Commons Rights

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The Real F/A-XX Fighter Question No One Is Asking

Key Points and Summary – The F/A-XX fight is not about avionics preferences or industrial politics. It is about whether U.S. naval aviation remains...

Andrew LathamDecember 9, 2025

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The U.S. Navy’s Great Aircraft Carrier Gamble

Key Points and Summary – Dr. Brent Eastwood tackles the growing argument that U.S. supercarriers are overpriced targets in an era of Chinese hypersonic...

Brent M. EastwoodDecember 9, 2025

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The F/A-XX Stealth Fighter Showdown Is Coming

Key Points and Summary – The Pentagon has officially delayed the U.S. Navy’s F/A-XX, the sixth-generation carrier fighter meant to replace the F/A-18E/F and...

Reuben JohnsonDecember 8, 2025