Admiral Caudle Discusses Amphibious Ship Needs and Contested Logistics

Amphibious Ship Requirements and Readiness

• 🎯 Admiral Caudle acknowledges General Smith's requirement for three ARG/MEU units, noting that achieving this historically required 37-40 amphibious ships.
• ⚠️ He confirms commitment to the legal mandate of 31 amphibious ships but states that even without maintenance backlogs, a 31-ship force structure is insufficient for a 3.0 ARG presence.
• 🛠️ Caudle is committed to working with General Smith to deliver maximum combat power from the existing force while improving readiness, which he notes is desperately needed.
• 💡 Best practices from other ship classes are being adopted for the amphibious force to improve readiness.

Contested Logistics in the Indo-Pacific

• 🗺️ The challenge of contested logistics in the Indo-Pacific is highlighted, as the assumption of air superiority and unrestricted supply movement, prevalent since WWII, will not hold in a future conflict.
• 🥘 Napoleon's adage about armies moving on their stomachs is invoked, emphasizing the critical need for resupply capabilities.
• 🚀 Caudle identifies rearming, resupplying, and repairing units in a contested environment as a top priority for the Indo-Pacific and Pacific Fleet commanders.
• 🔍 Significant focus, experimentation, and wargaming are being dedicated to developing command structures and strategies for contested logistics.
• 🔒 A healthy combat logistics force is central to addressing this challenge, with efforts focused on counter-targeting and improving unit resilience against enemy targeting.

Merchant Marine Fleet and Cyber Warfare

• 🚢 A concern is raised about the lack of a robust merchant marine fleet, suggesting a need to either borrow or find additional capacity.
• 💻 Cyber warfare is recognized as an incredibly critical aspect of modern warfare, essential for defense, offense, and exploitation operations.
• 📈 The Navy has improved its cyber capabilities by creating specific ratings and designators but faces challenges in retaining highly trained personnel due to high demand from other entities.
• 🧠 Caudle is committed to understanding the retention model better to ensure the Navy can meet its needs in this critical domain, working with the joint force.