In early March, the warship ITS MIMBELLI, currently deployed in support of NATO’s counter-piracy Operation OCEAN SHIELD, wrapped up a port visit to Antisiranana, Madagascar. The purpose of the visit was to pursue the ongoing cooperation with the Malagasy authorities in efforts to eliminate sea pir
On Friday, 7 March 2014, Standing NATO Mine Counter-Measures Group TWO (SNMCMG2) carried out a major damage control exercise near the island of Corfu. The exercise included a focus on basic seamanship exercises, including firefighting, steering gear breakdown, man overboard, medical casualty, speedb
A ceremony celebrating the laying and authentication of the keel of the future USNS Trenton (JHSV 5) was held at the Austal USA shipyard, yesterday. The keel was authenticated by the ship’s sponsor, Virginia Kamsky, who confirmed that it was truly and fairly laid. Although the laying of the keel h
The U.S. Dod issued contract modifications yesterday to Lockheed Martin Corporation and Austal USA under their respective Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) block buy contracts to add funding for construction of two fiscal year 2014 Littoral Combat Ships each. The amount of funds added under the block buy c
The Republic of Korea Navy ship ROKS WONSAN, and the Royal Australian Navy ships HMAS HUON and HMAS GASCOYNE returning from the Western Pacific Naval Symposium’s (WPNS) Mine Countermeasures and Diving Exercise 2014. The primary goal of the MCMEX exercise was to test participating nations’ ability
The Royal Navy has rescued six people from a stricken cargo vessel after responding to a Mayday call on Sunday morning. Patrol vessel HMS Tyne, which had been operating nearby, and a Sea King rescue helicopter from Royal Naval Air Squadron Culdrose sped to the aid of the MV Sea Breeze which had st
U.S. 7th Fleet flagship USS Blue Ridge (LCC 19) and embarked 7th Fleet staff departed Busan, Republic of Korea after a five-day port visit March 8. “Our Sailors benefit tremendously from the personal interaction between our two navies,” said Blue Ridge Operations Officer Lt. Rory Schneider. “Over
Austal Limited (Austal) has been awarded a contract from a naval customer in the Middle East for the design, construction and integrated logistics support of two 72 metre High Speed Support Vessels (HSSVs). The value of the contract is approximately US$124.9 million. Austal will construct the HSSV
The search for the Malaysian Airlines flight MH370, which lost radar signal in the early hours of Saturday, when it was flying over the Ho Chi Minh air traffic control area in Vietnam, is intensively underway. Nine countries are contributing to the search 24/7 across the South China Sea for the ai
On March 8th, the US Navy’s amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD 5) received a distress call from a grounded Turkish Flagged Container Vessel, Yusuf Cepnioglu. When Bataan’s Search and Rescue (SAR) helicopter arrived on-scene the Hellenic Coast Guard was responding to the listing Turkish vessel
Republic of Korea Ship (ROKS) Won San has rolled out the red carpet for Royal Australian Navy sailors during the Western Pacific Naval Symposium (WPNS) Mine Counter Measures and Diving Exercise 2014 (MCMEX 14) in New Zealand. Members of the Australian MCM Diving Detachment, drawn from HMAS Diamant
The executive officer of the Bremerton, Wash.-based fast attack submarine USS Connecticut (SSN 22) was relieved of his duties March 8 due to a loss of confidence in his ability to serve as executive officer. Lt. Cmdr. Brett J. Sterneckert was removed from his position by Rear Adm. Phillip G. Sawye
The Israeli Navy said on Wednesday that its commando units had interdicted a suspected Iranian shipment of advanced weapons in the Red Sea. The shipment was said to had been destined for Gaza-based terrorist organizations. The claim was refuted by Iran. The commandos boarded a Panamanian flagged c
The guided-missile cruiser USS Philippine Sea (CG 58), attached to the George H.W. Bush Carrier Strike Group (GHWBCSG), arrived in Aksaz, Turkey March 9, for a scheduled port call. The visit is the second port call for the Philippine Sea this deployment. “I’m very excited to be in Turkey,” said Op
