Fleet Tactics and Naval Operations, Third Edition

Capt. Wayne P. Hughes Jr., USN (Ret.) served thirty years on active duty, commanding a minesweeper, a destroyer, and a large training command. In retirement, he served more than thirty years at the Naval Postgraduate School in many teaching, research, and administrative capacities and was Dean Emeritus. He died in 2019.Rear Adm. Robert Girrier, USN (RET.), is founder and managing member of Strategic Navigation LLC, a consulting company. Serving over thirty-three years in the Navy, he stood-up and led the Navy staff ’s first-ever office for unmanned warfare systems. While on active duty he served as Deputy Commander U.S. Pacific Fleet, commanded two carrier strike groups, served as the Navy’s global mine warfare commander, commanded a forward-deployed destroyer squadron, guided missile destroyer, and a mine countermeasures ship. He lives in Annapolis, Maryland.

2020 Marine Commandant’s Reading List “Fleet Tactics and Naval Operations is an amazing read and welcome addition to anyone interested in naval tactics or history…. Wayne Hughes and Robert Girrier write brilliantly in turning a discussion about littoral warfare into a masterpiece of future naval tactics. This book is a great reference for naval officers and a must read on anyone’s book list interested in the changing dynamics of naval warfare in the 21st century.” —DODReads“The book … provides an excellent starting point from which Marines can begin to factor their shore-and air-based fires into the maritime fight. The book is an A-Z explanation of littoral warfare and also looks forward into continuing trends and the future of littoral warfare.” —CIMSEC“Updated for modern combat in the information age, this edition is a must for any naval officer and strategist and is part of the Blue & Gold Professional Library, which includes classics such as the Watch Officer's Guide and The Bluejacket's Manual.” —Navy Reads“This book provides a wealth of knowledge to anyone with the desire to understand the relationship between land and sea combat.” —War on the Rocks“Fleet tactics should be in every officer's private library. It offers a welcoming and thorough review.” —Sjovasendet"Machiavelli declared that keeping up with changing times is the foremost challenge for any commander or sovereign. Captain Hughes is the Navy's Machiavelli in that sense—helping us adapt our tactics for the age of cyber and robot warfare. The go-to work on the subject—now as for three decades."—James Holmes, J. C. Wylie Chair of Maritime Strategy at the Naval War College and coauthor of Red Star over the Pacific