The Littoral Combat Ship was designed for operations close to shore. Its modular design allows the Navy to adapt the ship to ...

A LUCAS drone launches from the USS Santa Barbara in the Arabian Gulf. (Photo courtesy of the Navy) The crew of the USS Santa Barbara and personnel from U.S. Naval Forces Central Command successfully ...

Designed for fast, coastal missions, the Littoral Combat Ship was meant to be the “Swiss Army knife” of the U.S. Navy. But today, the LCS program is dealing with serious issues - from structural ...

A Low-cost Unmanned Combat Attack System (LUCAS) was launched from the flight deck of littoral combat ship USS Santa Barbara while operating in the Persian Gulf on Dec. 16, 2025. In a press release, ...

A Low-cost Unmanned Combat Attack System one-way attack drone, like those shown here on a tarmac at a US Central Command base, was launched from a littoral combat ship. (US Department of Defense) ...

Personnel assigned to U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/U.S. 5th Fleet (NAVCENT/C5F) successfully launched a one-way attack drone from a ship at sea for the first time on Dec. 16. (Navy) The U.S. Navy ...

Fincantieri delivered the PPA (Multipurpose Combat Ship) KRI Prabu Siliwangi-321 to the Indonesian Navy, marking the completion of a two-ship program that significantly upgrades Indonesia’s surface ...

The Navy still needs new frigates, and is still intent on building them. But it must make basic changes to its acquisition process to avoid a second Constellation fiasco. The Constellation class was ...

Saudi Arabia unveiled a new U.S.-built combat ship, HMS Saud, strengthening its role as a key regional partner of Washington. The Saudi Navy floated the new vessel in Wisconsin, the defense ministry ...

Santa Barbara’s namesake warship just made history by launching a one-way attack drone at sea in the Middle East. The USS Santa Barbara, an Independence-class littoral combat ship, launched the drone ...

A Navy warship’s successful launch of a one-way attack drone this week was a watershed in the Defense Department push to get hundreds of thousands of the transformational aircraft into the field, ...

Sailors man the rails as Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN-73) returns to Commander, Fleet Activities Yokosuka, Dec. 11, 2025. US Navy photo Aircraft carrier USS George ...