Megan Eckstein
Naval warfare reporter
Megan Eckstein is the naval warfare reporter at Defense News. She has covered military news since 2009, with a focus on U.S. Navy and Marine Corps operations, acquisition programs and budgets. She has reported from four geographic fleets and is happiest when she’s filing stories from a ship. Megan is a University of Maryland alumna.
All Stories By Megan
Newport News yard seeks experienced workforce for nuclear shipbuilding
Newport News Shipbuilding its expanding its search for talent, looking nationally for experienced tradespeople who can join the shipbuilding industry.
US Navy declares its mine countermeasures suite ready for operations
The Navy declared its mine countermeasures mission package operational, ahead of a planned 2025 deployment on a littoral combat ship.
Marine Innovation Unit tackles some remaining Force Design tech needs
The unit aims to leverage reservists' contacts in the business and tech worlds to quickly solve modernization problems.
Navy eyes private capital to modernize dated facilities
The Navy's infrastructure spending needs are too large for the traditional military construction budget, leading one admiral to look elsewhere for funding.
Fleet Forces chief wants to make a smaller Navy more lethal
Adm. Daryl Caudle has a smaller fleet than he'd like, due to ship and sub maintenance and construction delays. But he's making the ones he has more lethal.
Marines want 31 amphibious ships. The Pentagon disagrees. Now what?
The Navy has 31 amphibious ships — what the Corps considers the bare minimum it needs — but the Pentagon plans to shrink the fleet in fiscal 2024.
Navy long-range plan shows minimal growth in many warship programs
The Navy's 2024 long-range shipbuilding plan, similar to last year's, outlines three potential options, two of which never grow the fleet to 355 ships.
US Navy, Marines push to make virtual training more real
The sea services want to be able to practice complex scenarios in a training and simulation environment that pulls together all-domain sailors and Marines.
US Navy aims to field manned-unmanned fleet within 10 years
Several leaders at the Sea-Air-Space conference presented updates on key unmanned programs. Here are the highlights.
How the US Navy prioritized readiness, and got more ships too
What happens when the chief of naval operations wants more money to create a more prepared fleet, but lawmakers prefer to buy more ships?
