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Raytheon's Standard Missile-6, successfully engaged five targets and shattered its previous maximum engagement range record, set in June of 2014. This test series, supported by the Cooperative Engagement Capability, validated the tactical warfighting capability of SM-6, by demonstrating both maximum down range and a maximum cross range intercepts in over-the-horizon, engage-on-remote missions.

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Raytheon Company's Standard Missile-6 (SM-6) successfully engaged a surface target -- the decommissioned USS Reuben James (FFG 57) -- in a recent flight test. The test was a demonstration of the U.S. Navy's concept of "distributed lethality," employing ships in dispersed formations to increase the offensive might of the surface force and enabling future options for the joint force commander. The USS John Paul Jones fired the SM-6 during the test...

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navyreco said:

Raytheon's SM-6 Surface-to-Air Missile Shatters Engagement Distance Record...

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U.S. Navy’s 14th Virginia-class submarine, USS Washington (SSN 787), was christened at Newport News Shipbuilding, a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries on March 5.
Ship sponsor Elisabeth Mabus, daughter of Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus, smashed a bottle of sparkling wine across the bow to mark the christening of the submarine named for the Evergreen State.
“It seems amazing that only a year and a half ago we were laying the keel,” Elisabeth said. “It is a testament to the work at Newport News and Electric Boat that we are back here so soon to christen the newest member of the fleet.”
Secretary Mabus highlighted the award of 10 Virginia-class submarines in the Block IV contract, the largest shipbuilding contract in U.S. Navy history, and the cost savings associated with it. The nearly $18 billion deal was awarded for the construction of 10 additional nuclear-powered Virginia-class submarines.
Washington will be the seventh Virginia-class submarine delivered by Newport News. Construction began in September 2011, marking the beginning of the two-submarines-per-year build plan between Newport News and General Dynamics Electric Boat.
According to HHI, the submarine is on track to be delivered in 2016.

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China, Russia, and most Asian countries are rapidly modernizing and expanding their submarine fleets. At the same time, the supply of American submarines is going down while demand for American submarines is going up dramatically.

Today, we have 52 multi-mission “attack submarines” (SSNs) of the Los Angeles, Seawolf, and Virginia classes. Even with those 52 boats, we are only meeting 62 percent of our combatant commanders’ demand for submarines—and that is today. By 2029, our SSN fleet will have shrunk by 25 percent and we are going to be seven boats below the Navy’s official (but likely outdated) requirement for 48 SSNs. On top of that, we face a precipitous decline in undersea payload capacity. On top of that, as our SSN fleet shrinks, the Navy is also going to retire all four of its aging Ohio-class guided missile submarines, which together provide 616 missile tubes and roughly 60% of our undersea missile capacity.

America’s submarines can be anywhere, anytime. Should the need arise, they can carry out an increasingly wide range of missions at a time and place of our choosing. And thanks to their stealth and long endurance, our submarines can provide what no other element of the joint force can consistently deliver: persistent, undetected, assured access to all the world’s oceans and littorals. As “anti-access” challenges grow in the air and on the surface, the value of that undersea access can be expected to increase exponentially.

Last week, Adm. Harry Harris, our top commander in the Asia-Pacific region, told Congress that “submarines are the most important warfighting capability that we have.” Whether you think the future security environment is going to be characterized by irregular challenges like terrorism, high-end conflict in contested environments, or Cold War-style competition, our freedom of maneuver and action in the undersea domain—and our ability to reach from that domain into others—is something that is going to be increasingly valuable to the Navy and the nation.

In short, at a time when our submarine force is likely to be called upon to do more than ever, it is going to be smaller in size than it has been at any point since 1916. Modern submarines, of course, are individually far more capable than their predecessors—and ours are indisputably the best. But even with all the capabilities afforded by nuclear power and cutting-edge technologies, a submarine can still only in one place at one time, with only a fraction of the total fleet on station in the theater where and when it matters.

So, while we should be doing everything we can to maximize the reach and capability of each individual submarine and to augment them with unmanned systems, it is growing increasingly hard to escape the conclusion that we simply need more boats.

Fortunately, there may be opportunities to construct more Virginia-class attack submarines and mitigate the looming SSN shortfall. At present, the Navy is constructing 2 Virginia-class SSNs and decommissioning three older boats per year. Starting in fiscal year 2021, new SSN construction is planned to drop down to only one boat per year to free up funding and space in our shipyards for building the Ohio Replacement ballistic missile submarines that will carry 70 percent of our nuclear arsenal. Each one of these next-generation “boomers” will be two-and-a-half times as large as a Virginia-class submarine, and cost an average of $6.2 billion. The national imperative to deliver 12 of these massive boats between 2021 and 2035 is going to put a tremendous deal of pressure on the Navy and the submarine industrial base, complicating any effort to ramp up SSN production.

Despite these challenges and complications, our submarine industrial base still has the capacity to deliver several additional Virginia-class submarines between now and 2029, when the SSN shortfall will be at its worst. To exploit this opportunity, however, the Navy, industry, and Congress will need to work together to fund and sequence things in way that keeps workload and funding levels relatively smooth. Timing will be critical, and the Navy and industry will need to determine in which years it will be most cost-effective to procure additional SSNs. Meanwhile, to secure the required funding in an era of intense fiscal pressures, Congress and the Navy will need to squeeze every penny possible out of the Ohio Replacement program and fully exploit the money-saving authorities that Congress has granted to the National Sea Based Deterrence Fund.

Submarines are among our most important military assets, and the on-time, on-budget Virginia-class program has been a model of acquisition success. Adding additional Virginia-class submarines into the Navy’s underfunded shipbuilding plans will not be easy, but it is imperative that we try.

As Andrew Erickson, an expert on naval issues in Asia, testified before Congress last year: “If we’re not building at least two Virginia-class SSNs per year, we’re not being serious—and regional allies, partners, and China will see that clearly.” Increasing Virginia production is a viable option—even with Ohio Replacement underway—and we should all be seriously pursuing it.

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The former frigate USS Reuben James (FFG-57) was sunk in January during a test of the Navy’s new anti-surface warfare (ASuW) variant of the Raytheon Standard Missile 6 (SM-6), company officials told USNI News on Monday.

The adaptation of the SM-6 was fired from guided missile destroyer USS John Paul Jones (DDG-53) and hit James during the Jan. 18 test at the U.S. Pacific Missile Range Facility off the coast of Hawaii, a Raytheon spokeswoman told USNI News.

“The test was a demonstration of the U.S. Navy’s concept of ‘distributed lethality,’ employing ships in dispersed formations to increase the offensive might of the surface force and enabling future options for the joint force commander,” read a release from Raytheon.

News of the test follows the public announcement of the ASuW modification of the SM-6 in February by Secretary of Defense Ash Carter.

“We are going to create a brand-new capability,” Carter told reporters in San Diego on Wednesday. “We’re modifying the SM-6 so that in addition to missile defense, it can also target enemy ships at sea at very long ranges.”
The modification – part of a $2.9 billion missile purchase over the next five years – will give the Navy’s fleet of guided missile cruisers and destroyers a Mach 3.5 supersonic weapon with a range of more than 200 nautical miles.

Along with the recently announced modification to the Block IV Tomahawk Land Attack Missile (TLAM), the Navy is pushing more offensive capability in its large surface combatants after decades of not fielding a new ASuW capability in the fleet.

Now that the capability has been tested, the service will introduce the modified missile into Baseline 9 Arleigh Burke destroyers (DDG-51).

The target – Reuben James – was decommissioned in 2013 after 27 years of service, which included convoy duty during the Iran-Iraq War and a nine month deployment in 2002 and 2003.

In fiction, the ship was featured in the Tom Clancy and Larry Bond novel Red Storm Rising and (played by another frigate) in the filmed version of

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very interesting (I wonder what was the warhead as to me SM-6 is an anti-air missile hahaha):

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Jura said:

why not

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Jura said:

... and the distance is:
(somehow can't see it, neither here, not in the results of a quick google-search (sooo many sooo excited press-releases), not even for that June 2014 event, now "shattered") impress me LOL!

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FORBIN said:

Not really surprising since long time USN have SM-1 and SM-2 which get this secondary capability and the SM-6 is their successor but first SM-6 right now can' t attack ships for few years.




Some points inexact or wrong and much unnecessary supplements affolements !!!

Actually not 52 but 54 SSN and provide a sufficent number for duty.

1/ CM number, with 4 Ohio SSGN retired no change coz new Virginia with 28 LACM in more replace it.

2/ This not news since some years i see sometimes up to 41 SSN but even if Navy can' t ger more Virginia she can extend lfe of some LA with eventually a new RCOH, last get 20 years possible they remains up to 2030/35.

And for very long term the target is for 48 SSN each Virginia have a service life of 33 years then 1.5 for a year is sufficient for get this fleet and we go for it, 1/1.5 during SSBN-X construction but after can increase again to 2.

You can be sure with the importance of Silent Service especialy with A2/AD Strategegy for a simple reason sub's are hidden USN get what's needed.

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