U.S. Navy Arctic Roadmap

The Navy Arctic Roadmap provides a chronological list of Navy action items, objectives, and desired effects for the Arctic region from FY10-14. Focus areas include: Strategy, policy, missions, and plans; Operations and training; Investments in weapons, platforms, sensors, command, control,communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance;(C4ISR), installations, and facilities; Strategic communications and outreach; and Environmental assessment and prediction.

Navy action items and objectives within this roadmap are intended to achieve the following desired effects: Developing strong cooperative partnerships with interagency and international Arctic stakeholders; Actively and competently contributing to safety, security, and stability in the Arctic; Acquiring the right capability at the right cost and right time to meet combatant commander requirements for the region; The media, public, Department of Defense, and the interagency, and international communities recognizing the US Navy as a positive and active contributor to a safe, secure, and stable Arctic region; Understanding when significant access for Arctic shipping and other maritime activity is likely to develop.

This roadmap specifies Navy actions over three phases – FY10 (phase 1), FY11-12(phase 2), and FY13-14 (phase 3). Significant action items in phase 1 include: Assessments of Fleet readiness and mission requirements in the Arctic region; Development of Navy Strategic Objectives in the Arctic region; Continued partnership-building with stakeholders in the region and conduct of a limited objective experiment (LOE) for the Arctic; Continued monitoring of USAF’s Polar Military Satellite Communications (MILSATCOM) program; Advocacy for accession to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea; Developing a Navy position regarding combatant commander authorities and responsibilities for the Arctic; and Research and development of a next generation environmental prediction capability applicable to the Arctic, Phase 2 (FY11-12) significant actions include: Initiation of Capabilities Based Assessments regarding required Navy Arctic capabilities; Development of recommendations to address Arctic requirements in Sponsor Program Proposals for the Navy’s Program Objective Memorandum for FY14 (POM-14); Continuing biennial participation in Arctic exercises including ICEX-11, ICEX-13, Arctic Edge and Arctic Care; and Formalizing new cooperative relationships that increase Navy experience and competency in search and rescue (SAR), maritime domain awareness (MDA), humanitarian assistance and disaster response (HA/DR) in the Arctic, and defense support of civil authorities (DSCA) in Alaska. Phase 3 (FY13-14) significant actions consist of: Execution of the Navy POM-14 budget initiatives that address Arctic requirements, and Initiation of combined and bilateral activities which support safety, security, and stability in the region.