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WEST PALM BEACH, Florida (AP) — President Donald Trump said Sunday the U.S. “may be having some discussions” with Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, a potential diplomatic avenue as the U.S. further builds up its military presence near the South American country with the arrival of its most advanced aircraft carrier. Trump didn’t offer details about the possible discussions with Maduro, but he said “Venezuela would like to talk.”The U.S. military has been carrying out a series of strikes against vessels suspected of transporting drugs. The arrival of the USS Gerald R. Ford and other warships, announced by the Navy in...

The world’s biggest aircraft carrier and largest warship ever built entered the Caribbean Sea on Nov. 16. U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth deployed the USS Gerald R. Ford to the region as an effort to carry out the Trump administration’s plan to disrupt illicit drug trafficking and dismantle criminal networks that “exploit our shared borders and maritime domains,” according to a Navy statement. The carrier’s arrival is considered to be an escalating pressure tactic against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, who the United States does not recognize as the legitimate Venezuelan leader based on evidence that he stole last year’s...

A new RUSI report warns that China’s submarine fleet is rapidly “closing the gap” qualitatively, “eroding” the U.S. Navy’s technological edge. While China’s current 6 Type 093 SSNs are “noisy” (comparable to a 1970s Victor III), the upcoming Type 095 SSN will be much larger (11,000 tons) and quieter, using Russian reactor designs. Furthermore, the new Type 096 SSBN will be nearly Ohio-class size (15,000 tons) and armed with 24 6,000-mile-range JL-3 missiles, allowing it to strike the continental U.S. from “safe” Chinese bastions.

In February 1944, the U.S. Navy launched one of the most devastating strikes of the Pacific War — Operation Hailstone. Over the skies and seas of Truk Lagoon, the Japanese stronghold once called the “Gibraltar of the Pacific” was shattered in a two-day assault that rewrote naval warfare. This video tells the forgotten story of how the USS Iowa, USS New Jersey, and America’s radar-guided firepower changed history. Discover how advanced analog computers, precision gunnery, and overwhelming air superiority combined to destroy Japan’s once-invincible fleet. From massive 16-inch naval guns thundering across the ocean to the smoldering wrecks beneath Truk’s...

I heard this morning from Chris Robinson that his dad had passed away on October 27, 2025. They live in Fresno, California. His beloved wife, Sheila, passed away on 11-18-2020. He is survived by his loving sons, Chris and John. He was the founder of this important internet platform for Conservatives, and was a true patriot. THIS was the last post that he wrote, thanking someone for their donation on 10-24-2025. For us who were privileged to have had the chance to meet him, he was a kind a gracious man who worked hard making FReeREpublic a safe place for...

President Donald Trump visits the USS George H. W. Bush during the Titans of the Sea Presidential Review, witnessing a live U.S. Navy maritime power demonstration in the Atlantic Ocean. This event marks the Navy’s 250th anniversary and highlights America’s global naval presence, carrier strike group operations, and commitment to sea control and deterrence. Filmed aboard Nimitz-class aircraft carrier CVN 77, this historic visit reflects two and a half centuries of U.S. naval dominance and forward deployment. Watch the US Navy Shows Off Insane Maneuvers in Front of Donald Trump.

A stark warning argues the U.S. Navy’s bedrock is “cracking” due to an industrial crisis. The fleet is shrinking and aging, while critical maintenance like the USS Ohio’s overhaul faced long delays. New ship programs are behind schedule and over budget. American shipyards lack the capacity and workforce to keep pace, creating a dangerous gap as rivals like China rapidly expand. -The proposed solution is harsh medicine: retire obsolete ships to free resources, launch a massive shipyard modernization effort, and adopt realistic shipbuilding plans.

In a war with China, the U.S. must prepare to absorb a massive opening punch of over a thousand missiles and drones aimed at paralyzing its forces. The key to victory is not preventing this first strike but building a resilient force that can “fight hurt.” This requires a radical shift to strategies like Agile Combat Employment, which disperses aircraft across many smaller bases, and developing resilient command networks.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The murder of Tina Heins has been solved after more than three decades, State Attorney Melissa Nelson announced Thursday. Michael Shane Ziegler, a close friend of Heins’ Navy sailor husband, is now charged with the sexual assault and murder of the 20-year-old, who was four months pregnant when she was stabbed 27 times in her Mayport apartment in 1994. Nelson said Ziegler evaded justice for more than three decades -- allowing another man to be wrongfully imprisoned for the crime for nearly 14 years. ...

Construction of new battleships ceased almost immediately post World War II—the last launched was HMS Vanguard, completed in 1946. Their heavy armor and guns diminished even further in relevance with the evolution of anti-ship missiles, which have a longer range and hit hard enough to negatively tilt the cost-benefit tradeoffs of heavy armor. Missile defense became a better use of tonnage than steel plates.

China’s scripted coast-guard incursions around the Senkaku Islands aim to normalize control through mass and proximity. But Japan has reorganized for rapid joint action, dispersing long-range anti-ship missiles across the Ryukyus, expanding fifth-gen air and AEW, and adding Tomahawks to create a lethal denial web. The U.S.–Japan alliance now signals unambiguous coverage, with carrier, Marine Littoral Regiment, and ISR/long-range fires ready to stiffen defense. Who would win a fight?

So, if war broke out today, who “wins”? A cautious judgment: China could win early episodes—sinking ships, mauling an airbase, or imposing a brief local exclusion near a contested feature—because interior lines and magazine depth pay dividends on day one. But carried beyond the first salvos, the balance bends toward an ugly allied denial. With coastal fires in Japan and the Philippines, coalition patrols normalized inside Manila’s EEZ, and Fujian not yet truly operational, Beijing’s odds of converting tactical gains into a durable political victory are low—unless allied kill chains break or magazines run dry.

The conflict itself would likely play out in several phases. The opening week would be defined by missile barrages aimed at Taiwan’s defenses and US forward bases, along with cyber and space attacks to blind command networks. Taiwan’s dispersal plans and mobile launchers would mitigate, but not eliminate, the damage. The next phase would be the battle for sea denial. Submarines, mines, and long-range anti-ship weapons would be hurled against convoys carrying PLA troops and supplies across the Strait. Geography favors the defenders, but China’s proximity and numerical advantage mean some ships would get through. The outcome of this battle...

The US Navy wanted the F-14 Tomcat for long-range fleet defense against Soviet bomber threats, requiring a large radar, powerful air-to-air missiles, and the ability to operate across a wide range of airspeeds to carry heavy ordnance and maintain maneuverability. The variable-sweep wing design, combined with advanced fire-control systems and the AIM-54 Phoenix missile, made the F-14 capable of engaging multiple targets at long distances while still being able to perform close-in combat and dogfighting.

SSN(X) is the Navy’s planned successor to Virginia: a larger, stealthier, longer-legged attack submarine that teams with UUVs, carries more weapons, and is designed for higher availability. Costs will dwarf current boats, and industrial bottlenecks—from single-source suppliers to overloaded yards—are real. Budget trade-offs and shipyard realities have pushed the first procurement to around FY-2040, delaying entry to the fleet.

The U.S. Navy faces a dangerous shortage of attack submarines, leaving it stretched too thin to meet global demands. While the fleet is already below its 66-boat goal, the reality is worse: about one-third of subs are non-deployable at any time due to massive maintenance backlogs and crew shortages.

To see the F-14 Tomcat for myself, I ventured out to the Air and Space Museum near Dulles International Airport in the Washington, DC, metro area. The Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Manassas, Virginia, has every airplane and spacecraft that you can imagine. I was fortunate to interview an F-14 pilot who actually flew the Tomcat that is on display at the Air and Space Museum in Virginia.

The Ohio-class’s carrying capacity is about 50 percent of the entire supply of the U.S. Navy’s Tomahawk missiles. And since these SSGNs have been used recently to great effect, why take them away now? Some experts even argue that there is a strong case for attempting a refit of at least some of these powerful missile submarines until more Virginia-class boats equipped with cruise missiles can replace them.

On Sept 3, Beijing hosted one of its biggest military parades in years. Xi Jinping watched from Tiananmen Square as long-range missiles, hypersonic weapons, and unmanned systems rolled past in a choreographed display of force, accompanied by Vladimir Putin and Kim Jong-un. The message was unmistakable: China is positioning itself to shift the global balance of power in its favor — and has the will and means to field a military that can deliver not just quantitative, but qualitative, superiority over the United States.

The Caribbean has become a “powder keg” as U.S. warships steam off the coast of Venezuela, sparking a tense standoff. While Washington frames the deployment as a counter-narcotics operation, it’s a clear strategic signal to President Maduro, whose own provocations against Guyana and alignment with China and Russia have raised alarms.