Kiggans Highlights Hampton Roads as Backbone of Naval Power Projection
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congresswoman Jen Kiggans (VA-02) questioned Admiral Samuel Paparo, Commander of INDOPACOM, at the House Armed Services Committee Hearing on U.S. Military Posture and National Security Challenges in the Indo-Pacific Region. Congresswoman Kiggans stressed the importance of the Atlantic Fleet to Indo-Pacific operations, investment in NAS Oceana in her district, F-35 integration, strengthening shipbuilding, and maintaining a highly skilled shipbuilding and ship repair workforce.
Hampton Roads is home to NAS Oceana, the East Coast Master Jet Base, and boasts a strong shipbuilding and ship repair industry and workforce. Investments in both are critical to our Navy’s mission-readiness in the Indo-Pacific and across the globe. As a former Navy helicopter pilot, Congresswoman Kiggans is committed to building up our fleet and ensuring our Navy is positioned to sustain threats globally with a balanced force.
Watch the full clip here and find the full transcript below.
Congresswoman Kiggans:
Thank you, Mr. Chair, and thank you so much to our panelists and for your years of service to our great nation. I have the privilege of representing Hampton Roads, which is home to the Atlantic Fleet, also home to East Coast ship repair and shipbuilding, and just thousands of military families and personnel, especially that are Navy members. So, I want to focus on the on the Navy for a few minutes. But Admiral Paparo, we know that if conflict were to rise in the INDOPACOM area of responsibility, the men and women of Hampton Roads would be on the front lines of that fight. And I know that we are very focused on the Pacific and on the West Coast, but can you just speak to me about the importance of the Atlantic Fleet in your mission in the Indo-Pacific? Because we know that when things arise in the Middle East… Israel is a perfect example. After October 7, we sent the Ford and the Eisenhower to that region of the world, but the Indian Ocean and the Indo-Pacific is not too far away. So, just speak to me about the important role the Atlantic Fleet and specifically the carrier air wings from Naval Air Station Oceana in my district.
Admiral Paparo:
Congresswoman, thank you also for your service to the to the nation as a US naval aviator and those of you, the many members of your family that have served or serving at this at this very time. And you make a great point, and that point is that all of the joint force is designed, that it must be responsive to any threat anywhere, that the rebalance to the Pacific has got to have the capability to have the total balance going to the Pacific within weeks. And so presently, in our plans of record, the Atlantic Fleet is very well represented in the in the Indo-Pacific, and not just in the Indian Ocean, but in the Pacific itself. It would be key and critical and indispensable to combat success.
Congresswoman Kiggans:
And how important to your mission is investment in the upkeep of places like our East Coast Master Jet Base who provide those carrier air wings?
Admiral Paparo:
There can be no difference across the force from a standardization standpoint about the readiness of the facilities to support training and operations, and that is precisely because every force has got to be ready to fight the pacing threat.
Congresswoman Kiggans:
So, we currently have F-18 squadrons, which are great and fulfilling the mission, but are also aging. And so, I just want to ask you specifically, how would an F-35 integration help with your mission?
Admiral Paparo:
F-35s are critical, and we cannot make that transition fast enough across the force, and F-35 must be a part of the Atlantic Fleet, in my humble opinion.
Congresswoman Kiggans:
Thank you for that answer. And now I want to move to shipbuilding. And we continue to decommission ships at a rate that far outpaces new construction, even as many of these platforms are still operational and actively deployed. In some cases, we’re investing in maintenance and upgrades only to retire the ship as soon as it returns to port from deployment. Given our growing global commitments and the urgent need for naval presence, how does this approach make sense at Admiral Paparo? And why are we decommissioning ships when we clearly are clearly short on capacity?
Admiral Paparo:
I think if the ship you know, given the fact that the ship is relevant, and given that there’s the proper balance of investment in the ship, so that the return on investment is right, and getting absolutely the most relevance out of the most relevant ships until the capacity of the United States is built up so that they can be replaced. I think I’m not a proponent of divest to invest. I’m a proponent of make before break, and I’d prefer not to decommission combat relevant capabilities until its replacement is on board, so its Sailors and Marines can properly transfer to that platform and get into the fight.
Congresswoman Kiggans:
I agree and we need all the ships we can get, and even an old ship is better than no ship. And speaking again about shipbuilding, I know that when we had the opportunity to visit Pearl Harbor, you spoke about the fact that I think it was only 17% of your high school graduates are attending colleges and universities, and the lines of the shipyard for those skilled trade jobs are are so long. So, what are you doing in Pearl Harbor in Hawaii that that is working, that we might apply to other ship building and ship repair locations, like Hampton Roads?
Admiral Paparo:
So, Hawaii is very unique, and that Pearl Harbor naval shipyard is a incredibly valued profession in Hawaii which confers that there’s a waiting list in order to get onto the roles as a shipyard worker, and as a result, because of the experience of the shipyard force, Pearl Harbor delivers its projects ahead of schedule and usually below budget. And that’s a great model. And I think outreach in individual communities that similarly reflect and model that that process, where it’s a highly valued profession, making sure that we keep pace from a pay standpoint, that we’re not outcompeted for pay for shipyard workers, because 90% of any organization’s hiring problems can be solved with pay.
###