Navy

National

Hegseth orders the Navy to strip gay rights leader Harvey Milk's name off ship

2:24am June 04, 2025

There is a list of other possible name changes of ships named after prominent women and civil rights leaders, a U.S. official who was not authorized to speak publicly tells NPR.

National

2 naval aviators died in a plane crash after returning from a tour in Yemen

5:09am October 22, 2024

Lt. Cmdr. Lyndsay “Miley” Evans and Lt. Serena “Dug” Wileman were both 31 and from California, and recently served nine months on a tour in Yemen.

Explosions U.S. Port Chicago Munition Ships

National

The Navy exonerates 256 Black sailors unjustly punished over 1944 WWII port explosion

10:49am July 18, 2024

by Ayana Archie

The blast that happened at the Port Chicago Naval Magazine in California killed 320 people and injured 400 more.

The guided-missile destroyer USS Higgins (DDG 76) is pictured in the South China Sea on July 28, 2022.

Military court convicts U.S. sailor of attempted espionage

5:03pm April 20, 2024

by Luke Garrett

A naval chief petty officer who served on a Japan-based destroyer was found guilty of sharing classified information with a foreign government, the Navy's investigative agency said.

A couple walk along the beach in North Myrtle Beach, S.C.

Health & Safety

Coast Guard and Navy rescue 4 divers off coast of Carolinas

10:39am August 14, 2023

by Associated Press

The Coast Guard and Navy rescued four divers who were reported missing Sunday off the Carolinas, officials said Monday.

A Ukrainian sailor stands watch at a machine gun on the back of a patrol boat in the Dnipro River off Kyiv. Russia seized or destroyed much of Ukraine's navy, but the country is trying to rebuild its sea forces.

World News

Ukraine struggles to rebuild a navy destroyed by Russia

11:11am July 28, 2023

by Greg Myre

First, Russia wiped out Ukraine's navy. Now, Moscow is blocking critical grain exports. As Ukraine tries to rebuild its navy, and fight back, NPR's Greg Myre got a ride on one of its few boats.

Queue Listen Now

US Navy sailor Ryan Sawyer Mays walks past reporters at Naval Base San Diego before entering a Navy courtroom, Aug. 17, 2022, in San Diego.

National

A sailor has been acquitted of setting a fire that destroyed a massive ship

6:21pm September 30, 2022

by The Associated Press

A military judge on Friday acquitted a sailor of arson in a fire that destroyed the USS Bonhomme Richard, a blow to the Navy as it faces allegations of improper training and maintenance of the ship.

National

Pilot killed in Navy jet fighter crash in Southern California desert

2:38am June 04, 2022

by The Associated Press

The jet based at Naval Air Station Lemoore went down Friday in the area of Trona in San Bernardino County, the Navy said. The pilot's identity and details of the crash weren't immediately released.

Sailors are seen aboard the USS George Washington in Yokosuka, Japan, in 2011. The U.S. Navy has seen a spike in desertions, with numbers more than doubling from 2019 to 2021.

National

A surge in Navy deserters could be a sign of a bigger problem for the military

2:26pm May 21, 2022

by Dustin Jones

Navy desertions more than doubled from 2019 to 2021. One expert says the increase could be an indicator of an underlying issue: service members stuck in a line of work they dislike.

The Seawolf-class fast-attack submarine USS Connecticut smacked an undersea mountain, the Navy says. The vessel is seen here leaving Naval Base Kitsap-Bremerton for a trip across the Pacific Ocean in May.

National

A U.S. submarine struck an underwater mountain last month, the Navy says

11:49am November 02, 2021

by Bill Chappell

An investigation found that the USS Connecticut "grounded on an uncharted seamount," the 7th Fleet said. Eleven crew members were injured in the Oct. 2 collision.