Page 38: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (March 2006)

38 Maritime Reporter & Engineering News

Navy

M. Ship Launches

Experimental Vessel

M. Ship Co. launched the M80 Stiletto, designed as an operational experiment for the Pentagon's Office of Force

Transformation (OFT) and an example of the next generation of military vessels that combines new materials (carbon fiber), with a networked architecture and a revolutionary hull.

The M80 Stiletto initiative is part of

OFT's Wolf PAC Distributed Operations

Experiment, conducted in association with USSOCOM, to explore command and control of geographically dispersed, but networked, autonomous and semi- autonomous military forces. This new concept of operations by the Department of Defense is in response to diffuse threats that are perceived as emerging in the future. "We are confident that the M80

Stiletto's design is superior to all other existing technologies. Nothing else is out there than can achieve the qualities important to brown water vessels at a relatively low cost with short design and production cycles," said Chuck

Robinson, co-founder of San Diego- based M Ship Co. and a former deputy secretary of state with Henry Kissinger.

The 88-ft. long vessel features M Ship

Co.'s patented M-shaped hull that is designed to provide a stable yet fast plat- form for mounting electronic surveil- lance equipment or weapons, or for con- ducting special operations.

The hull design does not require foils or lifting devices to achieve a smooth ride at high speeds in rough conditions.

Its shallow draft means the M-80 Stiletto can operate in riverine environments and potentially allows for beach landings.

The fuel-efficient M-80 Stiletto is equipped with four Caterpillar engines, yielding a top speed in excess of 50 knots (nearly 60 miles per hour) when fully loaded and can be outfitted with jet drives for shallow water operations and beaching.

The M-80 Stiletto is also notable because it is the largest U.S. Naval ves- sel built using carbon fiber composite and epoxy building techniques, which yields a very light, but strong hull.

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Salt-Away Products, Inc. • 1533 East McFadden Avenue, Suite B • Santa Ana, CA 92705 (714) 550-0987 • Fax: (714) 550-7787 • Toll Free: 888- SALT-AWAY (725-8292) e-mail: [email protected] • www.saltawayproducts.com

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Forrest Sherman (DDG 98)

Forrest Sherman (DDG 98) is the 23rd Aegis

Guided Missile Destroyer built by Northrop

Grumman in Pascagoula, Miss., and it is the 48th ship of the Arleigh Burke Class. The guided mis- sile destroyer honors the famed World War II strategist and former Chief of Naval Operations.

Forrest Percival Sherman was born in Merrimack,

N.H., on October 30, 1896. He entered the U.S.

Naval Academy in 1914 and graduated in June 1917. Sherman served in the European theater in World War I in the gunboat Nashville and the destroyer Murray. He took command of Barry in 1921. After flight training in Pensacola, Fla.,

Sherman was designated Naval Aviator in

December 1922 and served on the USS

Lexington during the carrier's first year in serv- ice.

He twice held squadron commands aboard the

USS Saratoga and served as navigator of the

USS Ranger prior to joining the staff of com- mander, U.S. Fleet. When World War II began, he served in the war plans division under the chief of naval operations. After assuming command of the USS Wasp in May 1942, he attained the rank of captain and earned the Navy Cross for his leadership of that ship during early phases of the occupation and defense of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands. After a Japanese submarine sank

USS Wasp on Sept. 15, 1942, he became chief of staff, to Commander Air Force, Pacific Fleet and served in that capacity until November 1943, when he became Deputy Chief of Staff to Admiral

Chester W. Nimitz. Sherman was present and stood next to Admiral Nimitz, General McArthur and

Admiral Halsey onboard the USS Missouri for the surrender of the Japanese empire on September 2, 1945. He earned a Distinguished Service Medal for his role in planning the captures of the islands of the Gilberts, Marshalls, Marianas, Western Carolines, Iwo Jima, and Okinawa. Following a brief tenure as commander, U.S. Naval Forces, Mediterranean, Sherman became the youngest man ever to serve as chief of naval operations on November 2, 1949. He served as Chief of Naval

Operations from November 1949 until his death on July 22, 1951. Forrest Sherman's 81 year-old daughter, the DDG 98 ship's sponsor, gave the order to "man the ship and bring her to life" at the

Commissioning Ceremony in sunny Pensacola, Florida. Commander Michael G. Van Derrick, USN is the first commanding officer. (Text & Image: Peter Hsu, Anteon)

New Rolls-Royce Coastal Protection Vessel Unveiled

Rolls-Royce last month unveiled the latest design in its family of coastal protec- tion vessels at the Pacific 2006 exhibition in Sydney, Australia. The latest design, the UT527, delivers firefighting, emergency towage and pollution control capabil- ity and can hold up to 320 survivors of a marine disaster. A medium-sized heli- copter and two smaller daughter craft are also available for specific missions. It can remain at sea for up to three years without return if required, changing crew and being replenished at sea. The 92-m ship, powered by Rolls-Royce Bergen diesel engines, would be capable of more than 20 knots and have an un-refuelled range of 20,000 nautical miles at 16 knots. The company has identified three naval mar- kets for its ship designs - Coastal Protection (Exclusive Economic Zone) vessels,

Underway Replenishment ships, and Fast Logistics vessels.

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