During an all hands on deck ceremony, the Commanding Officer of HNLMS De Ruyter, Harold Liebregs complimented Queen Beatrix on her 33 year reign. He also wished the new King, Willem-Alexander best wishes for the future. The ceremony was closed by a driewerf hoezee for both Princess Beatrix and King
USS Dwight D. Eisenhower Receives Battenberg Cup The aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN 69) (IKE) received the Battenberg Cup in recognition of outstanding achievements over the course of 2012. The Battenberg Cup is awarded annually to the best all-around ship or submarine in the Atlanti
She has just spent three months in the Mediterranean as part of the NATO Standing Mine Countermeasures Group 2, but now HMS Cattistock is coming home. • HMS Cattistock will call in at Poole on Friday (May 3), before even returning to her base port of Portsmouth, as she sails home from operations in
On May 2nd, members of the European Parliament Sub Committee on Security and Defence visited the Operational Headquarters of the European Union’s counter piracy mission – Operation Atalanta. The Sub Committee visitors were briefed on the role of the EU Naval Force Somalia, and given an update on the
DCNS and its local partners recently delivered the sixth and final Skjold-class fast patrol boat to the Royal Norwegian Navy. The six-boat Skjold programme is led by a consortium comprising DCNS and two Norwegian contractors with DCNS acting as the combat system design authority and co-supplier. The
A Portsmouth based destroyer has been undertaking target practice in the Gulf to test her state-of-the-art equipment. HMS Dragon has fully automated systems but sometimes they may not be available and the crew have to revert to doing things manually. As a result the Ship’s Company need to know how t
Around 100 newly qualified Royal Navy officers have celebrated their formal commissioning during a parade at Britannia Royal Naval College (BRNC), attended by His Royal Highness The Duke of York. The Duke of York was the guest of honour at the parade which signified the completion of 30 weeks intens
Royal Naval Air Station Culdrose hosted a “Citizenship for Life” (C4L) programme for young people in West Cornwall, putting over 20 students and their mentors through a busy day of exercises and demanding challenges. C4L is an award winning programme that has been running for three years with an aim
The Royal Navy’s head of training Rear Admiral Clive Johnstone leaves the South West after seeing through major changes. As Flag Officer Sea Training (FOST) he oversees the famous realistic weekly ‘Thursday War’ training exercise off the South West Coast which prepares ships for operations worldwide
North Devon MP Sir Nick Harvey visited Barnstaple based engineering firm J+S Ltd on April 26th and cut the ribbon to open their newly refurbished offices and reception area. The reception area has been expanded significantly in order that the company can permanently exhibit their increasing product
Crew members from HMS Illustrious had a very different type of run ashore in Dublin during a recent visit. A team of over 20 runners from the amphibious helicopter carrier competed in the Dublin 10 km night run last weekend. The event, organised by Tourism Ireland, took 5,700 runners on a circuit of
Portsmouth-based Royal Navy minehunter HMS Ledbury sails on Tuesday (May 7) for a four-month NATO mission in the Mediterranean. She will be working as part of a permanent multinational maritime force in the area known as Standing NATO Mine Counter Measures Group 2 (SNMCMG2). The group works througho
