Gertrude Check

Submariners Gather at Keyport to Remember Their Fallen Comrades

Read more: http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2010/may/27/submariners-gather-at-keyport-to-remember-their/#ixzz0pEQVBbnZ

u7-5-2010 Annual Picnic at the Illahee State Park, Sat, July 17, 1100

The annual base picnic will be held at the Illahee State Park (east end of Sylvan Way) on July 17th starting at 1100. We will be hosting a 6 Canadian couples from the Submariners Association of Canada. 2010/2011 Base officers will be sworn in. Cribbage, horseshoes and other game tournaments will be on the docket.

As usual, the base provides the meat, rolls, soft drinks and condiments and you bring a dish or dessert to share.

uupdated 7-4-2010 Play Ball! Postponed until a later date

Shipmates,
I've been in contact with Ryan Austin of USS Connecticut (SSN22) who says the boat is putting on a picnic ???????? . and he'd like to have us subvets attend. He'd like some of us to get up a softball team to play against the 'girls' (women) at the Bremerton Base ball field. So dust off your gloves and warm up those muscles for an afternoon of fun. Please RSVP to me so that I can give him a head count so they'll know how much extra food to order. It should be an afternoon of fun for the whole family. I'm also in the process of organizing a tour of the boat, but it will be after they return from their upcoming patrol this fall.
Thanks

John Mansfield
South Sound Base PAO
253 202 6433
john@erasumner.com

u7-2-2010 Fireworks Stand a Dud of a Fundraiser for Some Kitsap Groups

Read more: http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2010/jul/01/fireworks-stand-a-dud-of-a-fundraiser-for-some/?partner=popular#ixzz0sb0iGug3

Dennis Nardone Sends clip

u7-2-2010 Invitation to Golf in the Tri-Cities Sun

Invitation to Golf in the Tri-Cities Sun. Inland Empire Base has invited us to join them for a round of golf and a picnic on Friday September 3rd.

The event will be at Columbia Point Golf Course and fee plus cart is: $40.00 (that is down from the norm of $56.00). Tee time is 0730. The picnic will be at Columbia Point park on the Columbia River which is right next to the golf course. They have that from 11:00 to dark.......... there are many fine motels right near the area. They are working on getting reduced rates for anyone that comes from out of the area.

David Niemy
Commander
USSVI Bremerton Base
ssbnswo@aol.com

u7-2-2010 USSVI MID-TERM BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING

Please review minutes of subject meeting so you may be informed. Link is here For those who like to analyze numbers, the 2009 national convention financial report is near the end.

uupdated 6-29-2010 2010 Bremerton Base Scholarship Awards. Base Cdr Dave Niemy and Scholarship Chair John Gardner presented cash awards to 9 of the 11 selectees this year. More details will appear in next Puget Soundings. Sam Swenson sent images. Click

Dutch Kaiser put up video of scholarship awards here

See winners' bios here

u6-23-2010 2010 Lt William "Willie" Spoon Memorial Scholarship Raffle Winners were announced by Scholarship Chairman John Gardner. Check here.

u6-14-2010 Vets free voucher for Tacoma Rainiers ball game Click for flyer

The Salute to Independence sponsored by Canine Companions for Independence will be held during and after the game and CCI dogs, trainers and information will be available. Sunday, July 11, 1330.

Our Veteran will receive a free voucher that includes a reserved seat for the game, hotdog, chips and soda. The family & friends voucher are $15.00, and for $2.00 each guest can bring one pet to the game. The fifteen dollar ticket also includes the food and drink.

To receive your free & reduced voucher, please email or call June Jaeger at june.jaeger@comcast.net or (360) 384-2956.

u6-7-2010 USSVI National Elections.... I voted, how about you!? National elections which include voting for national officers as well as proposed changes to the C&Bs got underway on Jun 5th, and end on August 24. Information on candidates and C&Bs may be found in a recent edition of the American Submariner, Volume 2010 Issue 2, which is also on line at https://www.ussvi.org/issues/201002_Issue_1_28. Paper ballots will also be available in the next AS issue.

Their is competition at more than one national office so it is important to choose the candidate that will do the best job for us, the members.

For me, it was simple to vote on line. Click on https://www.ussvi.org/home.asp . Click on green "Election 2010" button, login and vote. If you need help getting on the site please call national office manager Fred Borgmann at 360-337-2978 from 6-noon weekdays, or me, Don Bassler, at home 360-602-0250 after 5 PM any day.

u6-7-2010 Voting Off Line

Date: 6/7/2010
To: Distribution List
=========================================================
OFFICERS-01: USSVI Voting off-line
Submitted by: Pat Householder on 6/7/2010
---------------------------------------------------------
Please give this information wide dissemination to your membership.

In each on-line election season there will be members who, for various
reasons, cannot vote using the on-line tool.

To accomodate these shipmates, there is a voting ballot available for
downloading at www.ussvi.org. Click the DOCUMENTS button, then the
ELECTIONS button on the page that follows.

You will see the top underlined line item that says 2010 Ballot.doc.pdf
Click on this item to open the ballot, after which it can be printed out and
filled in by hand, signed and dated.

(You do need the free Adobe PDF Reader program installed to do this,
available at http://get.adobe.com/reader/)

This completed ballot must then be mailed to the National Election master,
who will enter the information into the online voting system for the voter.
(The system only allows one ballot per member, whatever the source)

It is critical that the voter put their name legibly on the ballot, because
that is the only way he can validate the legitimacy of the submitted ballot.

If a legible name does not appear, or if the submitted name does not appear
in our member tracking system as a regular (SS) member, the ballot must be
discarded.

John Peters Election Master
P.O. BOX 2911
AIEA, HI 96701- 8411

In addition, a ballot will appear in the next issue of AMERICAN SUBMARINER
in time sufficient for them to submit their vote prior to the August 24 at
midnight EST closing date of the election.

u5-24-2010 Summer Submarine Races and Skills Tournament

17July Picnic

Come to Illahee State Park and enjoy the Submarine Races with your favorite Gal

After the Races we will hold a challenge tournament of Acey-Duecy, Cribbage, Horseshoes, Tobacco Spitting, and Arm Wrestling. The EAB race is cancelled due to an OOC HiPac. A $5.00 entry fee per event will win you half the pot and one year's worth of Bragging Rights. All contests subject to change based on the Plan of the Day.

David Niemy
Commander
USSVI Bremerton Base
ssbnswo@aol.com

u5-5-2010 A Book of "No Shitters"

A member suggested we start a writing project preserving our sea stories for posterity. He would call it a book of "No Shitters". Cdr Dave has suggested we start a 3 ringed note book that would be present at meetings so you could put your tales in writing in the notebook and others could read. A goal of developing a formal book would be the final result.

uupdated 3-4-2010 Base By Laws to Undergo Updating in 2010 (Input Deadline, 31 July 2010) Members are urged to review the base bylaws and make suggestions to the E-board for changes, additions or deletion. The base by laws may be accessed at http://gertrude-check.up-scope.org/BL.htm. Make your suggestions to the base commander at ssbnswo@aol.com

The members of the E-board have started the process to review the by-laws and make improvements as needed. The by-laws were last amended in 2005 and it is about time for another periodic review. Every member is encouraged to review and submit changes to the bylaws that will help to improve the operation of the base. Remember that our base by-laws must not conflict with the national by-laws. The procedures for by-law amendments are as follows:

ARTICLE XI.　 BY-LAW AMENDMENTS

Section 1. Any member in good standing may submit recommendations to amend these 　

Bylaws to the E-Board

Section 2. All recommendations to amend these Bylaws shall be placed on the Base

　　　　 Commanders docket to be read to the membership. 　

Section 3. All amendments to these Bylaws must be read at three consecutive regular

　　　　 meetings. The third reading a Vote will be taken and a two-thirds majority vote

　　　　 'yes' shall be required to pass the amendment.

Section 4.　All amendments certified as being passed shall become effective immediately.

Section 5. The secretary shall record in the minutes’ book the vote count pertaining to the　

　　　　 balloting under this Article.

u7-8-2010 USSVI OFFICIAL BUSINESS: SubVet News - #2010-025

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NEWS-01: The USS James Monroe Association donates to the Subvet Scholarship Fund
Submitted by: Pat Householder on 6/30/2010
---------------------------------------------------------
On behalf of all our USSVI submariner brothers, we thank the USS James Monroe Association membership for the $ 1,000.00 contribution made to the US Submarine Veterans Charitable Foundation Scholarship Fund.

Our Scholarship Fund supports the children and grand-children of our USSVI shipmates and I am proud and appreciative of the USS James Monroe Association's support of our children and their future.

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NEWS-02: Submarines Could Use Nanotechnology to Scan the Depths and Elude Detection
Submitted by: James A Fox on 7/7/2010
---------------------------------------------------------
UT Dallas researchers have found that carbon nanotube sheets excel as underwater sound generators and noise-canceling speakers, two highly desirable traits for submarine sonar and stealth capabilities.
Researchers had previously shown that sheets of carbon nanotubes can produce a wall of sound in air, without moving back and forth like traditional speakers. The latest study from the UT Dallas Alan G. MacDiarmid NanoTech Institute, reveals that nanoscience speakers perform as well underwater as they do on land, and that one day they could replace traditional submarine sonar arrays.
See Attached link
http://www.azonano.com/news.asp?newsID=18005

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NEWS-03: Royal Navy To Allow Female Sailors On Subs (After Fears Over Affects Of Nuclear Reactors)
Submitted by: James A Fox on 7/7/2010
---------------------------------------------------------
The Royal Navy is preparing to allow women to serve on its submarine fleet for the first time, defence sources say.
The final barrier to allowing females aboard Britain's 11 nuclear submarines has been broken down after a report found that life aboard a submarine would not adversely affect pregnant women.
Previously, accepted thinking was that recycled air and living and working so close to

See attached Link
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1288304/Royal-Navy-allow-female-officers-aboard-submarines-r

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NEWS-04: Conn. Rep. Courtney: Two Subs Per Year A Boon For Jobs, National Security
By Peter Frost, The Shipp
Submitted by: James A Fox on 7/7/2010
---------------------------------------------------------
More subs mean more jobs for Connecticut, U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney said in a guest column published Sunday in The Day newspaper. The same probably could be said for Virginia.

The House last month voted to authorize building two Virginia Class submarines per year starting in 2011, a move Courtney says will help maintain and create jobs at General Dynamics Electric Boat (and Northrop Grumman's Newport News shipyard) and ensure that the military maintains its advantage at sea.

http://weblogs.dailypress.com/news/local/shipsandportsblog/2010/06/conn_rep_courtney_two_subs_per.ht

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NEWS-05: Self-Inflicted Attack Sub Cuts Cripple America’s Sea Superiority
Submitted by: James A Fox on 7/7/2010
---------------------------------------------------------
Decreasing funds and increasing missions have put the Navy’s submarine force in deep trouble — and it’s sinking fast. Lawmakers and strategists agree that the Navy’s plan to reduce its attack submarine fleet by 15 percent will render it unable to meet critical requirements. The planned replacement of 14 ballistic missile subs with 12 new $7 billion Tridents will cut shipbuilding by half for 14 years. The retirement of all guided missile subs will place extra missions on an already stretched fleet.

See sttached link
http://sigmundcarlandalfred.wordpress.com/2010/05/11/deep-dive-self-inflicted-attack-sub-cuts-crippl

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VET-01: New TRICARE Requirement
Submitted by: John P. Dudas on 6/29/2010
---------------------------------------------------------
Week of June 28, 2010

A new requirement means that skilled nursing facilities will have to preauthorize care provided to Medicare-eligible TRICARE beneficiaries once Medicare benefits are exhausted and TRICARE becomes the primary health coverage. Preauthorization is only required for skilled nursing facility care when medically necessary skilled nursing services extend beyond Medicare's 100-day limit and TRICARE becomes the primary payer for a beneficiary. Since medical documentation must be submitted, the preauthorization is requested by the skilled nursing facility and should not be a burden to beneficiaries or their families.

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VET-02: Bronze Medallions for non-VA Cemeteries
Submitted by: John P. Dudas on 6/29/2010
---------------------------------------------------------
WASHINGTON (AFRNS) -- Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki announced June 29 that the Department of Veterans Affairs is offering bronze medallions to attach to existing, privately purchased headstones or markers, signifying a deceased's status as a veteran.

"For veterans not buried in a national or state veterans cemetery, or those without a government grave marker, VA is pleased to offer this option that highlights their service and sacrifices for our country," said Secretary Shinseki.

The new item can be furnished instead of a traditional government headstone or marker for veterans whose death occurred on or after Nov. 1, 1990, and whose grave in a private cemetery is marked with a privately purchased headstone or marker.

Under federal law, eligible veterans buried in a private cemetery are entitled to either a government-furnished grave marker or the new medallion, but not both. Veterans buried in a national or state veterans cemetery will receive a government headstone or marker of the standard design authorized at that cemetery.

The medallion is available in three sizes: 5 inches, 3 inches and 1½ inches in width. Each bronze medallion features the image of a folded burial flag adorned with laurels and is inscribed with the word "Veteran" at the top and the branch of service at the bottom.

Next of kin will receive the medallion, along with a kit that will allow the family or the staff of a private cemetery to affix the medallion to a headstone, grave marker, mausoleum or columbarium niche cover.

More information about VA-furnished headstones, markers and medallions can be found at www.cem.va.gov/cem/hm/hmtype.asp <blockedhttp://lyris.dmasa.dma.mil/t/2428941/6732383/11786/0/> .

VA is currently developing an application form for ordering the medallion.
Until it is available, applicants may use the form for ordering government headstones and markers, VA Form 40-1330. Instructions on how to apply for a medallion are found on the VA website at www.cem.va.gov/hm_hm.asp <blockedhttp://lyris.dmasa.dma.mil/t/2428941/6732383/11787/0/> .

Veterans with a discharge issued under conditions other than dishonorable, their spouses and eligible dependent children can be buried in a VA national cemetery. Other burial benefits available for all eligible veterans, regardless of whether they are buried in a national cemetery or a private cemetery, include a burial flag, a Presidential Memorial Certificate and a government headstone or grave marker.

The new medallions will be available only to veterans buried in private cemeteries without a government headstone or marker. Families of eligible decedents may also order a memorial headstone or marker when remains are not available for interment.

u6-29-2010 USSVI OFFICIAL BUSINESS: SubVet News - #2010-024

Date: 6/29/2010
To: Distribution List

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NEWS-01: Memorial Service for USS Flier crew scheduled Aug 13, 2010.
Submitted by: Pat Householder on 6/19/2010
---------------------------------------------------------
Muskegeon MI: The Great Lakes Naval Memorial and Museum " USS SILVERSIDES SS- 236" is planning to hold a Memorial for the Families of our shipmates that went on Eternal Patrol when the USS FLIER SS-250 hit a mine on 13 Aug. 1944.

This will take place Aug 12/13/2010 in Muskegon, Mi. Don Morrel, SVWWII North Central Region and Michigan State Commander has been told that at least 1 family member of every shipmate that went on Eternal Patrol on her final dive has been reached and the response has been great. Over 20 hotel rooms have been reserved already, we expect around 70. They hope the event will receive national coverage.

The FLIER Committee has asked the Mich. WW11 SUBVETS and the USSVI ESCOLAR BASE to hold a MEMORIAL CEREMONY on the USS SILVERSIDES on Fri. 13 Aug. 2010, 11:00 AM. and they would like to have as many SUBVETS there as possible.

After the Ceremony the engines on the museum boat USS Silversides will be started and run.

A box lunch will be served ($8.50 each which must be ordered in advance) they will also be selling hot dogs in the museum.

There will be a Theater film Presentation at 1330 regarding the discovery of the hulk of Flier in the Balabac Straits.

This would be a great time to stay around and visit with the Families. For those wishing to stay overnight, there will be rooms available at the Red Roof Inn mention SUBVETS for a reasonable rate. You must call the Inn directly, the phone number is 231- 733-4307.

Summer is a busy time in this port city of Muskegon, Michigan and to help guarantee your tickets and hotel, please register by July 23rd.

If you have any questions, please contact Molly at (231) 755-1230 EXT 232 or mshepherd@glnmm.org.

Go to the link for the registration form.

https://www.ussvi.org/Documents/Online_Organization_Flyer_Subvet_Form.pdf

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NEWS-02: Requin Crew reunion this August
Submitted by: Office on 6/21/2010
---------------------------------------------------------
The USS Requin (SSR and SS 481) reunion is held every 3 years at Pittsburgh, where our old boat is a museum in October. This is the chance of a lifetime to be able to visit our old home which is in wonderful condition.

Since our reunions are held every 3 years, it will be some time before we are able to meet again.

Dates are August 20 through August 23 at the Ramada Hotel and Conference Center-Greentree
401 Holiday Drive
Pittsburgh, PA 15220
Phone 412-922-8100 or FAX at 412-921-5402
Special Rates at the Ramada
Tours of the boat

For further information and details of the convention, contact Ronnie Lowe
email lowe9131@charter.net or requin.reunion@gmail.com

If you have trouble reaching Ronnie, feel free to call me for further details.
Doug Nunnery
dnunnery0145@comcast.net
Phone 901-754-7075 Home or Cell 901-233-6956

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NEWS-03: Submarines Outsmart Somali Pirates
Submitted by: Pat Householder on 6/29/2010
---------------------------------------------------------
June 28, 2010: When the Netherlands recently announced that it was sending one of its Walrus class submarines for the anti-piracy patrol off Somalia, many people found this puzzling. But the Dutch subs have a well deserved reputation for their ability to secretly collect information at sea using subs. Most recently it has done this off Iraq, Bosnia and in the Caribbean. The special ingredient here is stealth.

Go to the link for the story...

http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htsub/articles/20100628.aspx

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NEWS-04: Submarine Memorial to be dedicated in Fayetteville AK
Submitted by: Pete Rathmell on 6/29/2010
---------------------------------------------------------
The USS Snook Base of the United States Submarine Veterans will be unveiling a memorial monument dedicated to those submariners lost in service to our country. The unveiling will be held on Wednesday, July 21, 2010, 10:00am at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Fayetteville. Guests include officers from the United States Submarine Veterans, officials from the Veterans Administration Medical Center, and retired and active duty U.S. Navy Submariners. The public and other veterans organizations are invited to attend. This will be the first submarine memorial in northwest Arkansas and the third in the state. For further information, call Pete Rathmell, USS Snook Base Commander at 479 633-4440.

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NEWS-05: USS Clamagore SITREP
Submitted by: Patrick Householder, Natl Cdr on 6/29/2010
---------------------------------------------------------
Rumors have been flying regarding the imminent scrapping of the museum ship USS Clamagore (SS-343) at Patriot Point Naval and Maritime Museum in Mt Pleasant, SC.

These rumors are not true. If you hear anything to the contrary, please set them straight.

Tom Sprowl, the Exhibits Superintendent for Patriot Point (and a former MM1(SS) says

"News of the Clamagore’s demise is somewhat premature.

While it is true that there was a statement made by our board chairman that all options had to be examined including letting go of the Clamagore and the Laffey. However that is a worst case scenario.

No plans at this time are in place to dispose of either ship. In fact the reverse is true. We are still actively trying to fund a visit to the dry dock for the Clamagore.

I spoke to our Executive Director last Friday after I received several calls concerning the Clamagore confirming that at this time we are still making every effort to keep the Clamagore on sight.

You may distribute this email as you see fit and anyone may contact me if they want information. I’ll be happy to answer questions if I know the answer.

I am the official contact and have a vested interest in the boat’s continued survival."

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CHARITABLE-01: Bravo Zulu, Bowfin Base!
Submitted by: Pat Householder on 6/16/2010
---------------------------------------------------------
On behalf of all our USSVI submariner brothers, we thank the Bowfin Base membership for the $ 1,000.00 contribution made to the US Submarine Veterans Charitable Foundation Scholarship Fund.

Our Scholarship Fund supports the children and grand-children of our USSVI shipmates and I am proud of Bowfin's support of our children and their future.

uSoup Down: Fri, July 9, 1130, Keeper's Cove Restaurant, 7989 Salish Lane NE, Kingston
Letter for Requesting Gift Certificate from Restaurants

Check out this link for latest images of events. http://www.ussvi.org/base/Bremerton.asp Then Click on Meeting Photos

Don Bassler

Gertrude Check

Founder & Editor

Other News of Interest to Submariners

Smoky Mountain Base's oldest member, Charlie Odom, is a 97-year-old retired Navy Chief Engineman who survived a number of depth charge attacks by the Japanese Navy during WWII. One such attack upon the USS Billfish (SS-286) is described in great detail in "War Beneath the Waves" by Don Keith in which Chief Odom figures prominently and whose actions were one of the major reasons the boat was not sunk. He also survived serving with a young Lt. Jg. named Rickover on another boat, but that's another story.

US Submarines Emerge In Show Of Military Might

Message unlikely to be lost on Beijing as 3 vessels turn up in Asian ports

By Greg Torode, South China Morning Post, 4 July 2010

In a scarcely noticed move last Monday, three of America’s largest submarines surfaced in Asia-Pacific ports in a show of force by the US Seventh Fleet not seen since the end of the cold war.

The appearance of the USS Michigan in Pusan, South Korea, the USS Ohio in Subic Bay, in the Philippines, and the USS Florida in the strategic Indian Ocean outpost of Diego Garcia not only reflects the trend of escalating submarine activity in East Asia, but carries another threat as well.

The three Ohio-class submarines have all been recently converted from carrying cold-war-era nuclear ballistic missiles to other weapons – improved intelligence sensors, special operations troops and, significantly, a vast quantity of Tomahawk cruise missiles, a manoeuvrable low flying weapon designed to strike targets on land.

Between them, the three submarines can carry 462 Tomahawks, boosting by an estimated 60 per cent plus the potential Tomahawk strike force of the entire Japanese-based Seventh Fleet – the core projection of US military power in East Asia.

While the move has been made with little fanfare, it is starting to resonate across the region. US officials insist it reflects long-term deployment plans and is not directed at a single country or crisis – such as intensifying tensions on the Korean peninsula following North Korea’s sinking of a South Korean warship – but the message is unlikely to be lost on Beijing.

One veteran Asian military attaché, who keeps close ties with both Chinese and US forces, noted that “460-odd Tomahawks is a huge amount of potential firepower in anybody’s language”.

“It is another sign that the US is determined to not just maintain its military dominance in Asia, but to be seen doing so … that is a message for Beijing and for everybody else, whether you are a US ally or a nation sitting on the fence.”

Other Asian diplomats said it might reflect a rising chorus of concern in recent months from China’s neighbours, who have been discreetly urging the US to do more to stand up to China’s growing naval assertiveness in East Asia. Chinese exercises have been expanding in size and scope in recent months, with vessels appearing beyond Japan’s offshore islands and appearing deep in the disputed South China Sea.

“Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Singapore and Australia – all these countries have been active behind the scenes in expressing concerns,” another Asian diplomat said. “There is no hotter topic at the moment than China’s naval ambitions.”

In Washington, meanwhile, concern is mounting about missile deployments in East Asia.

Pentagon estimates suggest China is increasing its stocks of short-range ballistic missiles and precision cruise missiles, and boosting their capabilities.

Its last report on China’s military modernisation estimated that a September 2008 stockpile of between 1,050 and 1,150 short-range ballistic missiles was rising at a rate of about 100 per year, the bulk concentrated on Taiwan. South Korean estimates show North Korea has fielded more than 650 short-range ballistic missiles. A recent report from the Washington-based Project 2049 Institute think tank noted that expanded conventional ballistic and groundlaunched cruise missiles were now “the centrepiece of [China’s] political and military strategy”.

Coupled with other improved aerospace capabilities, such as electronic sensors, over the next 15 years China might be “increasingly confident of its ability to dominate the skies around its periphery”, the report said. It noted that the PLA could challenge the defences of Taiwan, Japan and India, as well as US forces in the western Pacific.

“This may lead Beijing to become more assertive in its dealings with its neighbours,” says the report, written by analysts Mark Stokes and Ian Easton.

“A strategic shift in [the] regional aerospace balance also may increasingly unravel the fabric of US alliances and prompt allies and friends to consider weapons of mass destruction … as an insurance against unfavourable imbalances,” it says.

In policies drafted under then president George W. Bush, a Republican, and continued by the administration of his successor, Democrat Barack Obama, the Pentagon is shifting 60 per cent of its 53 fast-attack submarines to the Pacific – a process that is now virtually complete.

But the presence of the larger cruise-missile submarines shows that, at times, the US forward posture will be significantly larger.

While nominally based on the west coast of the United States, the Ohio, for example, has been operating out of Guam for most of the last year, taking advantage of the island’s expanding facilities to extend its operations in the western Pacific.

It is due to return soon, but the Florida and the Michigan are likely to remain in the region for many months yet, using Guam and possibly Diego Garcia for essential maintenance and crew changes.

The presence of the Florida, based on the US east coast, appears to confirm the US is still routinely bringing submarines under the arctic ice cap to East Asia. Some US east coast ports are closer, via this route, to the region than some west coast bases, such as San Diego.

Just one other submarine has been converted from ballistic to cruise missiles and all four are currently deployed simultaneously for the first time.

Announcing the move earlier this month, Submarine Squadron 19 Commander Captain John Tammen noted the “transformational capabilities” of the cruise missile submarines. “[They] provide the combatant commander a significant increase in war-fighting ability, and options for resolving and deterring conflict,” he said.

Gentlemen,

I hope that you all are enjoying this holiday weekend as much as I am.

Yesterday (the 4th) Ed Ferris, Carl Callender and I took the float over the bridge to Kingston and participated in a GREAT and VERY appreciative Kingston parade! It does a sub vet good to have all those citizens waving, applauding and thanking you for your service as you pass by "in review"...

Our next gathering will be THIS Saturday the 10th for the "Hadlock Days" parade out here on the peninsula. We will be checking in and staging the float on Elkins Road which is where the Sherrif's office and county "clink" is. This is the street just on the north side of the ball fields as you are just entering Port Hadlock from Chimacum (from the south). The parade starts at 11A.M. and I will have the float there by 9:30 for "staging".

See you all on Saturday morning! (come get "your fix" of public appreciation")...

Best Regards,

John

John Clear EMC(SS) USN Ret.
Olympic Peninsula Base Commander, USSVI
Submarine Memorabilia
180 Robin Lane
Port Ludlow, WA 98365-9522
360-437-1143